Kumamoto, Kumamoto
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

is the capital
city 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 ...
of
Kumamoto Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Kumamoto Prefecture has a population of 1,748,134 () and has a geographic area of . Kumamoto Prefecture borders Fukuoka Prefecture to the north, Ōita Prefecture t ...
on the island of
Kyushu is the third-largest island of Japan's Japanese archipelago, four main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands (i.e. excluding Okinawa Island, Okinawa and the other Ryukyu Islands, Ryukyu (''Nansei'') Ryukyu Islands, Islands ...
,
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 ...
. , the city has an estimated
population Population is a set of humans or other organisms in a given region or area. Governments conduct a census to quantify the resident population size within a given jurisdiction. The term is also applied to non-human animals, microorganisms, and pl ...
of 738,907 and a
population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...
of 1,893 people per km2. The total area is 390.32 km2. had a population of 1,461,000, as of the 2000 census. , Kumamoto Metropolitan Employment Area has a GDP of US$39.8 billion. It is not considered part of the Fukuoka–Kitakyushu metropolitan area, despite their shared border. The city was designated on April 1, 2012, by government ordinance.


History


Early modern period


Shokuhō period

Katō Kiyomasa was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the Azuchi–Momoyama period, Azuchi–Momoyama and Edo periods. His court title was . His name as a child was ''Yashamaru'', and first name was ''Toranosuke''. He was one of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, Hideyoshi's Seven ...
, a contemporary of
Toyotomi Hideyoshi , otherwise known as and , was a Japanese samurai and ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) of the late Sengoku period, Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods and regarded as the second "Great Unifier" of Japan.Richard Holmes, The World Atlas of Warfare: ...
, was made ''
daimyō were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji era, Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and no ...
'' of half of the (old) administrative region of Higo in 1588. Afterwards, Kiyomasa built Kumamoto Castle. Due to its many innovative defensive designs, Kumamoto Castle was considered impenetrable, and Kiyomasa enjoyed a reputation as one of the finest castle-builders in Japanese history.


Edo period

After Kiyomasa died in 1611, his son, Tadahiro, succeeded him. In 1632, Tadahiro was removed by
Tokugawa Iemitsu was the third ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate, Tokugawa dynasty. He was the eldest son of Tokugawa Hidetada with Oeyo, and the grandson of Tokugawa Ieyasu. Lady Kasuga was his wet nurse, who acted as his political adviser and was at the ...
and replaced with the Hosokawa clan. Hosokawa Tadatoshi, the third lord of Kumamoto, was the patron of the artist and swordsman
Miyamoto Musashi , was a Japanese swordsman, strategist, artist, and writer who became renowned through stories of his unique double-bladed swordsmanship and undefeated record in his 62 duels. Miyamoto is considered a ''Kensei (honorary title), kensei'' (swo ...
File:Statue of Hosokawa Tadatoshi.jpg, Statue of Hosokawa Tadatoshi within Suizen-ji Jōju-en File:Hidari mitsudomoe.svg, Mon of
Miyamoto Musashi , was a Japanese swordsman, strategist, artist, and writer who became renowned through stories of his unique double-bladed swordsmanship and undefeated record in his 62 duels. Miyamoto is considered a ''Kensei (honorary title), kensei'' (swo ...
, born in Ōhara-chō province of Mimasaka


Late modern period


Meiji period

The current administrative body of the City of Kumamoto was founded on April 1, 1889.


Showa period

On July 1, 1945, near the end of World War II, Kumamoto was bombed in an Allied air raid that destroyed one square mile, which was 20% of the city's area.


Contemporary history


After World War II

After the war, the Japanese Buddhist monk Nichidatsu Fujii decided to construct a Peace Pagoda atop Mount Hanaoka in the city to commemorate all those lost in war and to promote peace. Inaugurated in 1954, it was the first of over 80 Peace Pagodas built by Fujii and his followers all over the world.


Heisei period

On February 1, 1991, the towns of Akita, Kawachi, Tenmei, and Hokubu (all from Hōtaku District) were merged into Kumamoto. On October 6, 2008, the town of Tomiai (from Shimomashiki District) was merged into Kumamoto. On March 23, 2010, the town of Jōnan (also from Shimomashiki District) and the town of Ueki (from Kamoto District) were merged into Kumamoto.都道府県別市町村変更情報:福岡
." kokudo.or.jp. Retrieved on November 22, 2008.
A series of earthquakes struck the area beginning April 14, 2016, including a tremor with moment magnitude 7.1 early in the morning of April 16, 2016.


Geography


Climate

Kumamoto has a
humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...
(
Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...
''Cfa'') with hot, humid summers and cool winters. There is significant precipitation throughout the year, especially during June and July. The average annual temperature in Kumamoto is . The average annual rainfall is with June as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around , and lowest in January, at around . The highest temperature ever recorded in Kumamoto was on 17 July 1994; the coldest temperature ever recorded was on 11 February 1929.


Area


Wards

Since April 1, 2012, Kumamoto has five wards ''(ku)'':


Surrounding municipalities

;
Kumamoto Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Kumamoto Prefecture has a population of 1,748,134 () and has a geographic area of . Kumamoto Prefecture borders Fukuoka Prefecture to the north, Ōita Prefecture t ...
* Gyokuto * Kashima * Kikuchi * Kikuyō * Kōsa * Kōshi * Mashiki * Mifune * Tamana * Uki * Uto * Yamaga


Demographics

Per Japanese census data, the population of Kumamoto in 2020 is 738,865 people. Kumamoto has been conducting censuses since 1920.


Government

Kazufumi Ōnishi has been the city's mayor since December 2014.


Working mother incident

In November 2017, Kumamoto politician Yuka Ogata was forced to leave the Kumamoto municipal assembly because she had brought her baby. The incident was reported by international media as an example of the challenges facing
women in Japan A woman is an adult female human. Before adulthood, a female child or Adolescence, adolescent is referred to as a girl. Typically, women are of the female sex and inherit a pair of X chromosomes, one from each parent, and women with functi ...
.


Transportation

Local public transport is provided by the Kumamoto City Transportation Bureau.


Airways


Airports

Kumamoto Airport is located in nearby Mashiki.


Railways


High-speed rail

On March 12, 2011, work on the
shinkansen The , colloquially known in English as the bullet train, is a network of high-speed railway lines in Japan. It was initially built to connect distant Japanese regions with Tokyo, the capital, to aid economic growth and development. Beyond lon ...
(high-speed bullet train) network was completed, establishing a direct high-speed rail link to
Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...
via
Fukuoka is the List of Japanese cities by population, sixth-largest city in Japan and the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The city is built along the shores of Hakata Bay, and has been a center of international commerce since ancient times. ...
's Hakata station. ; *
Kyushu Shinkansen The is a Japanese Shinkansen high-speed railway network. It is an extension of the San'yō Shinkansen from Honshu connecting the city of Fukuoka (Hakata Station) in the north of Japan's Kyushu Island to the city of Kagoshima (Kagoshima-Chuo Sta ...
: Kumamoto Station -


Conventional lines

The JR Kumamoto station provides rail links to Japan's extensive rail network. ; * Kagoshima Main Line: Tabaruzaka - Ueki - Nishizato - Sōjōdaigakumae - Kami-Kumamoto -
Kumamoto is the capital Cities of Japan, city of Kumamoto Prefecture on the island of Kyushu, Japan. , the city has an estimated population of 738,907 and a population density of 1,893 people per km2. The total area is 390.32 km2. had a populat ...
- Nishi-Kumamoto - Kawashiri - Tomiai - * Hōhi Main Line:
Kumamoto is the capital Cities of Japan, city of Kumamoto Prefecture on the island of Kyushu, Japan. , the city has an estimated population of 738,907 and a population density of 1,893 people per km2. The total area is 390.32 km2. had a populat ...
- Heisei - Minami-Kumamoto - Shin-Suizenji - Suizenji - Tōkai-Gakuen-mae - Tatsutaguchi - Musashizuka - Hikarinomori - ; Kumamoto Electric Railway * Kikuchi Line: Kami-Kumamoto - Kankanzaka - Ikeda Station - Uchigoshi - Tsuboigawa-kōen - Kita-Kumamoto - Kamei - Hakenomiya - Horikawa - * Fujisaki Line: Kita-Kumamoto - Kurokamimachi - Fujisakigū-mae


Tramways

Trams run to a few suburbs near the downtown area. ; Kumamoto City Transportation Bureau


Bus

A large bus terminus, called the Kotsu Centre, provides access to both local and intercity destinations.


Taxi

Several local taxi companies serve the Kumamoto metropolitan area and are the only 24-hour public transport in the city.


Roads


Expressways

* Kyushu Expressway


Japan National Routes

* Japan National Route 3 * Japan National Route 57 * Japan National Route 208 * Japan National Route 218 * Japan National Route 219 * Japan National Route 266 * Japan National Route 387 * Japan National Route 443 * Japan National Route 445 * Japan National Route 501


Seaways


Seaports

*Port of Kumamoto


Ferry

*Kyusyu Shosen: Kumamoto - Shimabara *Kumamoto-Ferry: Kumamoto - Shimabara *Korean Marine Transport: Kumamoto -
Busan Busan (), officially Busan Metropolitan City, is South Korea's second list of cities in South Korea by population, most populous city after Seoul, with a population of over 3.3 million as of 2024. Formerly romanized as Pusan, it is the economi ...


Education


Universities

* Kumamoto Gakuen University * Kumamoto University * Kyūshū Lutheran College * Prefectural University of Kumamoto * Shokei College * Shokei Gakuin University * Sojo University * Tokai University


Landmarks


Kumamoto Castle

The city's most famous landmark is Kumamoto Castle, a large and once extremely well fortified Japanese castle. The '' donjon'' (castle central keep) is a concrete reconstruction built in the 1970s, but several ancillary wooden buildings from the original castle remain. The castle was assaulted during the Satsuma Rebellion and sacked and burned after a 53-day
siege A siege () . is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition, or by well-prepared assault. Siege warfare (also called siegecrafts or poliorcetics) is a form of constant, low-intensity conflict charact ...
. It was during this time that the tradition of eating '' basashi'' (raw horse meat) originated. ''Basashi'' remains popular in Kumamoto and, to a lesser extent, elsewhere in Japan, although these days it is usually considered a delicacy. Within the outer walls of Kumamoto Castle is the Hosokawa Gyobu-tei, the former residence of the Higo ''
daimyō were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji era, Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and no ...
''. This traditional wooden mansion has a fine
Japanese garden are traditional gardens whose designs are accompanied by Japanese aesthetics and philosophical ideas, avoid artificial ornamentation, and highlight the natural landscape. Plants and worn, aged materials are generally used by Japanese garden desig ...
located on its grounds.


Religious sites

The first of many peace pagodas around the world was erected by Japanese Buddhist monk Nichidatsu Fujii atop Mount Hanaoka beginning 1947. Inaugurated in 1954, it was the first of over 80 built by Fujii and his followers all over the world. Kumamoto is also the location of Takahashi Inari Shrine and Fujisaki Hachimangū.


Suizenji area

Kumamoto is home to Suizen-ji Jōju-en, a formal garden neighboring Suizenji Temple approximately 3 kilometers southeast of Kumamoto Castle. Suizenji Park is also home to the Suizenji Municipal Stadium, where the city's
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
team, Roasso Kumamoto, used to play regularly. The team now uses the larger KKWing Stadium in Higashi Ward.


Other notable sites

Miyamoto Musashi , was a Japanese swordsman, strategist, artist, and writer who became renowned through stories of his unique double-bladed swordsmanship and undefeated record in his 62 duels. Miyamoto is considered a ''Kensei (honorary title), kensei'' (swo ...
lived the last part of his life in Kumamoto. His tomb and the cave where he resided during his final years (known as Reigandō, or "spirit rock cave") are situated close by. He penned the famous ''Go Rin no Sho'' ('' The Book of Five Rings'') whilst living here. The downtown area has a commercial district centred on two shopping arcades, the Shimotori and Kamitori, which extend for several city blocks. The main department stores are located here along with a large number of smaller retailers, restaurants, and bars. Many local festivals are held in or near the arcades. Cultural venues include the Kumamoto Prefectural Museum of Art and Kumamoto Prefectural Theater.


Culture


Sports


Sports teams

;
Baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...
* Hinokuni Salamanders of the baseball Kyusyu Asia League are based in Kumamoto. ;
Football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
* Roasso Kumamoto in J.League is the local football club. ;
Basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...
* Kumamoto Volters of the basketball B.League are based in Kumamoto. ;
Volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...
* Forest Leaves Kumamoto of the
Volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...
V.League ( V2) are based in Kumamoto. File:Fujisakidai Baseball Stadium Kumamoto.jpg, Kumamoto Fujisakidai Baseball Stadium File:Kumamoto kkw.JPG, Egao Kenko Stadium File:Kumamoto-pref synthesis gymnasium 1.jpg, Kumamoto Prefectural Gymnasium File:Kumamoto-city synthesis gymnasium 1.jpg, Kumamoto City Synthesis Gymnasium


Sporting events

The Kumamoto Castle Marathon is a yearly event in Kumamoto City. It was established in commemoration of Kumamoto becoming a designated city in 2012. The city also hosted the 1997 World Men's Handball Championship and the 2019 World Women's Handball Championship.


Sister cities

Kumamoto is twinned with the following cities. * Billings,
Montana Montana ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota to the east, South Dakota to the southeast, Wyoming to the south, an ...
, United States *
Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...
,
England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
, United Kingdom *
Guilin Guilin (Standard Zhuang: ''Gveilinz''), postal map romanization, formerly romanization of Chinese, romanized as Kweilin, is a prefecture-level city in the northeast of China's Guangxi, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. It is situated on the we ...
,
Guangxi Guangxi,; officially the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, is an Autonomous regions of China, autonomous region of the China, People's Republic of China, located in South China and bordering Vietnam (Hà Giang Province, Hà Giang, Cao Bằn ...
, People's Republic of China *
Heidelberg Heidelberg (; ; ) is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fifth-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, and with a population of about 163,000, of which roughly a quarter consists of studen ...
,
Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg ( ; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a states of Germany, German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million i ...
, Germany, since 1992 * Helena,
Montana Montana ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota to the east, South Dakota to the southeast, Wyoming to the south, an ...
, United States * Rome, Georgia, United States, since 1995 *
San Antonio San Antonio ( ; Spanish for " Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the third-largest metropolitan area in Texas and the 24th-largest metropolitan area in the ...
,
Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
, United States, since 1987 * Ulsan, South Korea, since 2010 *
Kaohsiung Kaohsiung, officially Kaohsiung City, is a special municipality located in southern Taiwan. It ranges from the coastal urban center to the rural Yushan Range with an area of . Kaohsiung City has a population of approximately 2.73 million p ...
, Taiwan, since 2017


Notable people

*
Aimer is a J-pop, Japanese pop singer and lyricist signed to Sacra Music and managed by Agehasprings. Her stage name comes from the French verb 'to love'. Aimer uses the name aimerrhythm for lyrics credits. Debuting in 2011, she has released seven ...
, pop singer and lyricist. * Naoichi and Mutsue Inomoto Fujimori, parents of Alberto Fujimori, the 54th
President of Peru The president of Peru (), officially the constitutional president of the Republic of Peru (), is the head of state and head of government of Peru. The president is the head of the executive branch and is the supreme head of the Peruvian Armed ...
. * Yuki Fukushima, Japanese badminton player. * Lafcadio Hearn, writer, lived in Kumamoto for three years, from 1891. * Higonoumi Naoya,
sumo is a form of competitive full-contact wrestling where a ''rikishi'' (wrestler) attempts to force his opponent out of a circular ring (''dohyō'') or into touching the ground with any body part other than the soles of his feet (usually by th ...
wrestler. * Sayaka Hirota, Japanese badminton player. * Inoue Kowashi, statesman. * Sayuri Ishikawa,
enka is a Japanese music genre considered to resemble traditional Japanese music stylistically. Modern ''enka'', however, is a relatively recent musical form which adopts a more traditional musical style in its vocalism than ''ryūkōka'' music, pop ...
singer * Yuta Iwasada, Japanese baseball player. * Masahiko Kimura, judoka. * Kobato Miku, lyricist, rhythm guitarist, singer and creator of the rock band BAND-MAID. * Noriko Kubo, Japanese female fencer. *
Rie Kugimiya is a Japanese voice actress and singer. She is best known for her voice performances in anime, which include Alphonse Elric in the '' Fullmetal Alchemist'' series, Kagura in '' Gintama'', and Happy in '' Fairy Tail'' and '' Edens Zero'', and ...
, voice actress. * Yuri Masuda, vocalist from the group
m.o.v.e Move (styled as M.O.V.E or m.o.v.e, and previously as move) was a Japanese band. The band consisted of producer t-kimura (), rapper motsu () and singer Yuri (Japanese singer), yuri (). t-kimura left the band in 2009. History t-kimura formed the ...
. * Musashi Miyamoto, famed swordsman, lived and died in Kumamoto, 1645. * Yuna Mizumori, professional wrestler *
Chisato Moritaka (born 11 April 1969) is a Japanese pop singer who also is notable as a songwriter. She is affiliated with Up-Front Create, a subsidiary of the Up-Front Group.
, pop singer and lyricist. * Munetaka Murakami, baseball player * Eiichiro Oda, manga artist, author of ''
One Piece ''One Piece'' (stylized in all caps) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Eiichiro Oda. It follows the adventures of Monkey D. Luffy and his crew, the Straw Hat Pirates, as he explores the Grand Line in search of the myt ...
.'' *
Akari Ogata is a Japanese judoka. Ogata started taking part in karate at the age of 7 and she became national junior karate champion when she was 10, but at age 13, she quit karate and started to practice judo. Ogata won a bronze medal in the half-heavyw ...
, judoka. * Yōko Shimada, actress. * Go Shiozaki, Japanese professional wrestler, currently signed to the Pro Wrestling Noah promotion and Chairman of the Noah Wrestlers' Association. * Shōdai Naoya, sumo wrestler. * Soseki Natsume, writer, lived in Kumamoto, 1896-1900. * Tochihikari Masayuki, sumo wrestler. * Momoko Ueda, professional golfer. * Tadako Urata, ophthalmologist * Sean Michael Wilson, Scottish manga writer, living in Kumamoto since 2004, his books are often about the city. * Kaji Yajima, educator, pacifist, president of the WCTU in Japan. * Yokoi Shōnan, scholar and political reformer. * Seiki Yoshioka, Japanese professional wrestler * Isao Yukisada, film director.


See also

* *


References


External links


Kumamoto City official website


* {{Authority control Kumamoto, Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan Cities in Kumamoto Prefecture Populated coastal places in Japan Port settlements in Japan