Murayama, Yamagata
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is a
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 ...
located in
Yamagata Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. It has a population of 1,005,926 (1 February 2025) and an area of 9,325 Square kilometre, km2 (3,600 Square mile, sq mi). Its neighbours are Akita Prefectu ...
,
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 had 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 23,643 in 8133 households, 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 120 persons per km². The total area of the city is .


Geography

Murayama is located in northeast Yamagata Prefecture, in a river valley of the Mogami River, with branches 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 ...
to the east and west.


Neighboring municipalities

*Yamagata Prefecture ** Funagata ** Higashine ** Kahoku ** Obanazawa ** Ōishida ** Ōkura ** Sagae


Climate

Murayama has a
Humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers, and cold ...
(
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 ...
''Dfa'') with large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and cold (sometimes severely cold) winters. Precipitation is significant throughout the year, but is heaviest from August to October. The average annual temperature in Murayama is . The average annual rainfall is with July as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around , and lowest in January, at around .


Demographics

Per Japanese census data,Murayama population statistics
/ref> the population of Murayama has declined steadily over the past 70 years and is now less than it was a century ago.


History

The area of present-day Murayama was part of ancient
Dewa Province was a province of Japan comprising modern-day Yamagata Prefecture and Akita Prefecture, except for the city of Kazuno and the town of Kosaka. Dewa bordered on Mutsu and Echigō Provinces. Its abbreviated form name was . History Early per ...
. After the start of the
Meiji period The was an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868, to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonizatio ...
, the area became part of Kitamurayama District, Yamagata Prefecture. The town of Tateoka was established with the establishment of the modern municipalities system on April 1, 1889. The city of Murayama was established on April 1, 1954 with the merger of Tateoka with the villages of Nishigo, Okura, Tozawa, Okubo and Fumoto. Murayama became the registered host town for the
Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...
n
rhythmic gymnastics Rhythmic gymnastics is a sport in which gymnasts perform individually or in groups on a floor with an apparatus: hoop (rhythmic gymnastics), hoop, ball (rhythmic gymnastics), ball, Clubs (rhythmic gymnastics), clubs, ribbon (rhythmic gymnastics), ...
team for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. In 2019, during Japan's national "Host Town Summit 2019", Murayama received first-place awards in each of the three award categories: "Best Host Town Leader," "Best Communicator," and "Poster Session". Bulgaria went on to win the gold medal in the group all-around competition.


Government

Higashine has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a
unicameral Unicameralism (from ''uni''- "one" + Latin ''camera'' "chamber") is a type of legislature consisting of one house or assembly that legislates and votes as one. Unicameralism has become an increasingly common type of legislature, making up nearly ...
city legislature of 16 members. The city contributes one member to the Yamagata Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city is part of Yamagata District 2 of the
lower house A lower house is the lower chamber of a bicameral legislature, where the other chamber is the upper house. Although styled as "below" the upper house, in many legislatures worldwide, the lower house has come to wield more power or otherwise e ...
of the
Diet of Japan , transcription_name = ''Kokkai'' , legislature = 215th Session of the National Diet , coa_pic = Flag of Japan.svg , house_type = Bicameral , houses = , foundation=29 November 1890(), leader1_type ...
.


Economy

The economy of Murayama is based on agriculture.


Education

Murayama has eight public elementary schools and two public middle schools operated by the city government and two public high schools operated by the Yamagata Prefectural Board of Education


Transportation


Railway

East Japan Railway Company The is a major passenger railway company in Japan and the largest of the seven Japan Railways Group companies. The company name is officially abbreviated as JR-EAST or JR East in English, and as in Japanese. The company's headquarters are in ...
- Yamagata Shinkansen *
East Japan Railway Company The is a major passenger railway company in Japan and the largest of the seven Japan Railways Group companies. The company name is officially abbreviated as JR-EAST or JR East in English, and as in Japanese. The company's headquarters are in ...
-
Ōu Main Line The is a railway line in Japan, operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). It connects Fukushima Station (Fukushima), Fukushima Station through Akita Station to Aomori Station. Since the opening of the Yamagata Shinkansen on July 1, 1 ...
* -


Highway

* – Murayama Interchange * *


Sister cities

*
Yakutsk Yakutsk ( ) is the capital and largest city of Sakha, Russia, located about south of the Arctic Circle. Fueled by the mining industry, Yakutsk has become one of Russia's most rapidly growing regional cities, with a population of 355,443 at the ...
, Russia, since April 21, 1992 Murayama also has friendly relations with
Barrie Barrie is a city in Central Ontario, Canada, about north of Toronto. The city is within Simcoe County and located along the shores of Kempenfelt Bay. Although it is physically in the county, Barrie is politically independent. The city is part ...
, Canada.


Noted people from Murayama

* Toshizo Matsuoka, longtime House of Representatives member from Yamagata * Tokunai Mogami, Edo period samurai and explorer * Tōru Murakawa, movie director


References


External links

*
Official Website
{{Authority control Cities in Yamagata Prefecture