was a

town 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 ...

in Kurihara District,

Miyagi Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. Miyagi Prefecture has a population of 2,265,724 (1 August 2023) and has a geographic area of . Miyagi Prefecture borders Iwate Prefecture to the north, Akit ...

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 ...

. Established in 1955 with the consolidation of six municipalities, it was abolished in a merger forming the larger Kurihara City in 2005. The municipal area was 244.36 km² and the population was 13,736 in 2005. KurikomaSogoShisho2005-10b

Geography

Kurikoma was located on the northwest border of

with

Iwate Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. It is the second-largest Japanese prefecture (behind Hokkaido) at , with a population of 1,165,886 (as of July 1, 2023). Iwate Prefecture borders Aomori Pre ...

and

Akita Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Provinces and prefectures" in ; "Tōhoku" in . Its population is estimated 915,691 as of 1 August 2023 and its geographi ...

. Kurikoma covered a narrow east–west area. Mount Kurikoma sat at the northwest border with

. It was the origin of the name of the municipality. The largest town of the area was Iwagasaki, which was 23 kilometers east of the mountain. Later Iwagasaki was often called Kurikoma because the municipal office was built there. The western half of the municipality covered a part of the

Ōu Mountains The are a mountain range in the Tōhoku region of Honshū, Japan. It is the longest range in Japan and stretches south from the Natsudomari Peninsula of Aomori Prefecture to the Nasu volcanoes at the northern boundary of the Kantō region. T ...

. This area is less populated but a ski and spa resort is located southeast of Mount Kurikoma. Two rivers, Nihasama and Sanhasama, run toward the southeast from the mountain. Both make valleys of 1 - 3 kilometers width on reaching the eastern area, which are mainly cultivated as rice fields. Iwagasaki is located on the north bank of Sanhasama River. Nihasama (Second Hasama), Sanhasama (Third Hasama) and Ichihasama (First Hasama) merge to form the Hasama River east of the former Kurikoma Town. The eastern area was more populated than the west, but flatlands are limited to the above-mentioned valleys. The rest of the eastern half, especially almost all of the northeast quarter, was occupied by low hills of less than 500 meters height. PaddyField2005-12Sappirai

History

*April 1, 1955 - Kurikoma Town was established through the consolidation of Iwagasaki Town (岩ヶ崎町) and the villages of Omatsu (尾松村), Toyasaki (鳥矢崎村), Monji (文字村), Kurikoma (栗駒村) and Himematsu (姫松村). *April 1, 2005 - Kurikoma Town was merged with the towns of Ichihasama (一迫町), Uguisuzawa (鶯沢町), Kannari (金成町), Shiwahime (志波姫町), Semine (瀬峰町), Takashimizu (高清水町), Tsukidate (築館町),

Wakayanagi was a List of towns in Japan, town located in Kurihara District, Miyagi, Kurihara District, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. Population In 2003, the town had an estimated population of 14,149 and a population density of 269.20 persons per km2. The to ...

(若柳町) and the village of

Hanayama Hanayama is a Japanese toy company founded in 1933. They are best known for their series of metal disassembly puzzles, "" (also known as "Cast Puzzle"), which include reproductions of older designs, and new puzzles by other inventors such as Osk ...

(花山村) to form the new Kurihara City (栗原市).

References

{{Authority control Dissolved municipalities of Miyagi Prefecture Kurihara, Miyagi