is a river in

Fukushima Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. Fukushima Prefecture has a population of 1,771,100 () and has a geographic area of . Fukushima Prefecture borders Miyagi Prefecture and Yamagata Prefecture ...

Tochigi Prefecture is a landlocked Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Tochigi Prefecture has a population of 1,897,649 (1 June 2023) and has a geographic area of 6,408 Square kilometre, km2 (2,474 Square mile, sq mi ...

and

Ibaraki Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Ibaraki Prefecture has a population of 2,828,086 (1 July 2023) and has a geographic area of . Ibaraki Prefecture borders Fukushima Prefecture to the north, ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. It rises at the northern slope of

Mount Yamizo is a mountain and it stretches Ibaraki Prefecture with Fukushima in Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of ...

, where the border of these three prefectures is located, and flows into

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...

Hitachi () is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 1910 and headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo. The company is active in various industries, including digital systems, power and renewable ener ...

and Tokai in Ibaraki Prefecture. It has a length of and a drainage area of , and is designated as a

Class A river Rivers in Japan are classified according to criteria set by the , which was introduced in 1967. Rivers are classified by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT). River Act Pre-1967 river administration At the begi ...

History

The name ''Kuji'' is thought to be derived from the phonetically similar word for

whale Whales are a widely distributed and diverse group of fully Aquatic animal, aquatic placental mammal, placental marine mammals. As an informal and Colloquialism, colloquial grouping, they correspond to large members of the infraorder Cetacea ...

(''kujira'' in Japanese). ', one of the existent ''

fudoki are ancient reports on provincial culture, geography, and oral tradition presented to the reigning monarchs of Japan, also known as local gazetteers. They contain agricultural, geographical, and historical records as well as mythology and ...

'', states: "There were a hill that resembled a whale 'kujira'' Then the emperor named the land ''Kuji''." The river is known for

ayu Ayu or AYU may refer to: * Ayu (given name) * Ayu sweetfish (''Plecoglossus altivelis''), a species of smelt * ''Ayu'', a local name for the African manatee * Ayu (singer) or Ayumi Hamasaki, Japanese singer * Ayu Islands, a small archipelago in ...

fishing. In 2006 it had the second largest catch of ayu in Japan after the Naka River, which is also located in Ibaraki Prefecture. A

fishing weir A fishing weir, fish weir, fishgarth or kiddle is an obstruction placed in tidal waters, or wholly or partially across a river, to direct the passage of, or trap fish. A weir may be used to trap marine fish in the intertidal zone as the tide rec ...

(梁 ''yana'') for tourists is installed along the river in Daigo. Fukuroda Falls are located on the Taki River (滝川 ''Takigawa''), which is one of its tributary rivers. One midwinter phenomenon is called ', in which

frazil ice Frazil ice is a collection of loose, randomly oriented ice crystals a millimeter and sub-millimeter in size, with various shapes, e.g., elliptical disks, dendrites, needles and of an irregular nature. Frazil ice forms during the winter in open-wa ...

that is formed at the bottom floats to the surface. Distribution of freshwater fish like

salvelinus ''Salvelinus'' is a genus of Salmonidae, salmonid fish often called char or charr; some species are called "trout". ''Salvelinus'' is a member of the subfamily Salmoninae within the family Salmonidae. The genus has a northern circumpolar distrib ...

and masu salmon captured in Fukushima Prefecture was restricted after the

Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster The Fukushima nuclear accident was a major nuclear accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant in Ōkuma, Fukushima, Japan, which began on 11 March 2011. The cause of the accident was the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, which r ...

in 2011, though restrictions on Kuji River fish has been gradually removed.

Geography

Kuji River originates from the northern slope of Mount Yamizo, where the border of Fukushima Prefecture, Tochigi Prefecture and Ibaraki Prefecture is located. It initially flows to the northeast in

Tanagura, Fukushima 270px, Site of Tanagura Castle is a town located in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan. , the town had an estimated population of 13,827 in 5053 households, and a population density of 86 persons per km². The total area of the town was . Geography Ta ...

and then changes the flow direction to the sounth in the town. The dividing ridges of

Abukuma River The , with a length of , is the second longest river in the Tōhoku region of Japan and the 6th longest river in the country. It is designated as a Classification of rivers in Japan, Class A river. It runs through Fukushima Prefecture and Miyagi P ...

and Kuji River are relatively low, and it is considered that Kuji River captured the course of Abukuma River in the past. It flows along a narrow plain between and and into Ibaraki Prefecture. In Ibaraki Prefecture it flows through Daigo, Hitachiomiya and flows finally into

at the border of

and Tokai. While the mainstream of the river flows through Fukushima Prefecture and Ibaraki Prefecture, some tributaries flow through Otawara in

(former Kurobane), which is located in the southwest of Mt.Yamizo. The approximately 80% of the basin consists of mountains and hills, and the rest consists of

plateau In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; : plateaus or plateaux), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. ...

s and

plain In geography, a plain, commonly known as flatland, is a flat expanse of land that generally does not change much in elevation, and is primarily treeless. Plains occur as lowlands along valleys or at the base of mountains, as coastal plains, and ...

s. In the downstream basin there is Naka Plateau (那珂台地) between Naka River and Kuji River, which is a

fluvial terrace Fluvial terraces are elongated Terrace (geology), terraces that flank the sides of floodplains and fluvial valleys all over the world. They consist of a relatively level strip of land, called a "tread", separated from either an adjacent floodplai ...

formed by the erosion and deposition by the two rivers.

Major tributaries

* (八溝川) :Yamizo River originates from the southern slope of Mt. Yamizo in Daigo, Ibaraki. It is 20.8 kilometers long. The natural springs of Yamizo River (八溝川湧水群 ''Yamizogawa Yūsuigun'') are located at the source of the river. It is one of the , which were designated by Ministry of the Environment in 1985. * Oshi River (押川) :It is 27.4 kilometers in length and flows into Kuji River. * Taki River (滝川) :Taki River rises at Namase Basin (生瀬盆地) and flows to the west. It is 12 kilometers in length. Namase Falls and Fukuroda Falls are located alongside the river. Fukuroda Falls are one of the three great waterfalls of Japan (日本三名瀑 ''Nihon-san-meibaku''), the other two being

Kegon Falls The Huayan school of Buddhism (, Wade–Giles: ''Hua-Yen,'' "Flower Garland," from the Sanskrit "''Avataṃsaka''") is a Mahayana Buddhist tradition that developed in China during the Tang dynasty (618-907).Yü, Chün-fang (2020). ''Chinese Bu ...

and

Nachi Falls in Nachikatsuura, Wakayama Prefecture, Japan, is one of the best-known waterfalls in Japan. With a drop of 133 meters (and 13 meters wide), it is the tallest waterfall with a single uninterrupted drop in Japan (although Japan also disputes R ...

. Namase Falls and Fukuroda falls are designated as

Places of Scenic Beauty is a collective term used by the Japanese government's Law for the Protection of Cultural Properties to denote Cultural Properties of JapanIn this article, capitals indicate an official designation as opposed to a simple definition, e.g "Cultural ...

. * Tama River (玉川) :It is 20.0 kilometers in length and flows into Kuji River. * Asa River (浅川) :It is 23.9 kilometers in length and flows into Kuji River. * Yamada River (山田川) :It originates from Mount Nabeashi (鍋足山), flows through former Suifu, Kanasagō, Hitachiota, and into Kuji River. It is 37.8 kilometers in length. * Ryūjin River (竜神川) :Its source is in (男体山) located in the southeastern part of Daigo. It is 12.5 kilometers in length and flows into Yamada River at Takakura (高倉) in former Suifu Village. , a valley that was formed by the erosion, is situated alongside the river. On the lower valley Ryujin Dam is located and has the total capacity of and the height of . Ryujin Big Suspension Bridge (竜神大吊橋 ''Ryujin Otsuribashi'') links both sides of the valley, and is the longest

suspension bridge A suspension bridge is a type of bridge in which the deck (bridge), deck is hung below suspension wire rope, cables on vertical suspenders. The first modern examples of this type of bridge were built in the early 1800s. Simple suspension bridg ...

for pedestrians in

Honshu , historically known as , is the largest of the four main islands of Japan. It lies between the Pacific Ocean (east) and the Sea of Japan (west). It is the list of islands by area, seventh-largest island in the world, and the list of islands by ...

at 375 meters. * Sato River (里川) :It is 51.4 kilometers in length and flows into Kuji River.

Municipalities in the basin

In the basin there are five

cities A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

, five

towns A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

and two

villages A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban village ...

, which are listed below. the population of the basin is approximately 200,000. *

, Hitachiota, Naka, Hitachiomiya, Daigo, Tokai (in Ibaraki Pref.) * Asakawa, Tanagura,

Hanawa is a Japanese singer and comedian raised in Saga City. He began his career in 1997 going throughout the 2000s distinguishing himself by use of his bass guitar throughout comedy acts. He rose to fame in Japan during 2003 for a comical song abou ...

, Yamatsuri, Samegawa (in Fukushima Pref.) * Otawara (in Tochigi Pref.)

Notes

References

External links

Hitachi River and National Highway Office
(in Japanese)

(in Japanese)
Kujigawa Fishery Cooperative
(in Japanese) {{authority control Rivers of Fukushima Prefecture Rivers of Ibaraki Prefecture Rivers of Japan