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

Tokushima Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Shikoku. Tokushima Prefecture has a population of 682,439 (1 February 2025) and has a geographic area of 4,146 Square kilometre, km2 (1,601 sq mi). Tokushima Prefecture b ...

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 54,989 in 26,206 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 410 persons per km². The total area of the city is .

Geography

Naruto is located in the northeastern tip of Tokushima Prefecture on the island of

Shikoku is the smallest of the List of islands of Japan#Main islands, four main islands of Japan. It is long and between at its widest. It has a population of 3.8 million, the least populated of Japan's four main islands. It is south of Honshu ...

. It is bordered by the

Seto Inland Sea The , sometimes shortened to the Inland Sea, is the body of water separating Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu, three of the four main islands of Japan. It serves as a waterway connecting the Pacific Ocean to the Sea of Japan. It connects to Osaka Ba ...

to the north and the

Kii Channel The , also called the Kii Strait, is a strait separating the Japanese island of Shikoku from the Kii Peninsula on the main island of Honshū. This strait connects the Inland Sea with the Pacific Ocean. The name of the strait derives from Kii P ...

to the east and faces Awaji Island across the

Naruto Strait is a strait between Awaji Island and Shikoku in Japan. It connects Harima Nada, the eastern part of the Inland Sea and the Kii Channel. A famous feature of the strait is the Naruto whirlpools. Ōnaruto Bridge The is a suspension bri ...

, which is famous for its

whirlpool A whirlpool is a body of rotating water produced by opposing currents or a current running into an obstacle. Small whirlpools form when a bath or a sink is draining. More powerful ones formed in seas or oceans may be called maelstroms ( ). ''Vo ...

s. The city is located in the easternmost part of the

Sanuki Mountains The are a mountain range running along the southern border of Kagawa and the northern border of Tokushima prefectures on the island of Shikoku, Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northe ...

Neighbouring municipalities

Kagawa Prefecture * Higashikagawa Tokushima Prefecture * Itano * Kitajima * Matsushige

Climate

Naruto 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 ''Cfa'') characterized by warm summers and cool winters with light to no snowfall. The average annual temperature in Naruto is 16.2 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1637 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 26.7 °C, and lowest in January, at around 6.3 °C. Due to the

climate, rainfall is low despite being in Tokushima Prefecture.On August 6, 1923, a temperature of 42.5 °C, which was the highest recorded temperature in Japan for many decades, was unofficially recorded in Naruto.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data, the population of Naruto has remained relatively steady over the past 50 years. In the quinquennial census of June 1, 2019, the city had a

of 56,222 (2005: 63,200).

History

As with all of Tokushima Prefecture, the area of Naruto was part of ancient Awa Province. During the

Edo period The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...

, the area was part of the holdings of

Tokushima Domain was a feudal domain under the Tokugawa shogunate of Edo period Japan, controlling all of Awa Province and Awaji Province in what is now Tokushima Prefecture and Awaji Island of modern-day Hyōgo Prefecture. It was centered around Tokushima ...

ruled by the

Hachisuka clan The are descendants of Emperor Seiwa (850-880) of Japan and are a branch of the Ashikaga clan through the Shiba clan (Seiwa Genji) of the Minamoto clan. History Ashikaga Ieuji (13th century), son of Ashikaga Yasuuji, was the first to adopt the ...

from their seat at

Tokushima Castle was an Edo period Japanese castle located in the city of Tokushima, Tokushima Prefecture, Japan. Its ruins have been protected as a National Historic Site since 1957. Its Omotegoten Gardens are designated a national Place of Scenic Beauty. Hi ...

. The villages of Seto (瀬戸村), Naruto (鳴門村), Muya (撫養村), and Satoura (里浦村) were established within

Itano District, Tokushima is a Districts of Japan, district located in Tokushima Prefecture, Japan. As of June 1, 2019, the district has an estimated population of 97,263 and a population density of . The total area is . Matsushige, Tokushima, Matsushige is home to Toku ...

with the creation of the modern municipalities system on October 1, 1889. Seto became a town on November 1, 1938, Naruto on April 1, 1940, and Muya on March 15, 1947. The four municipalities merged on March 15, 1947, to form the city of Narunan (鳴南市), which was renamed Naruto two months later on May 15, 1947.

Government

Naruto 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 council of 22 members. Naruto contributes three members to the

Tokushima Prefectural Assembly is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Shikoku. Tokushima Prefecture has a population of 682,439 (1 February 2025) and has a geographic area of 4,146 km2 (1,601 sq mi). Tokushima Prefecture borders Kagawa Prefecture to the north, ...

. In terms of national politics, the town is part of Tokushima 2nd district 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

Naruto has a mixed economy of agriculture,

commercial fishing Commercial fishing is the activity of catching fish and other seafood for Commerce, commercial Profit (economics), profit, mostly from wild fisheries. It provides a large quantity of food to many countries around the world, but those who practice ...

, food processing and pharmaceuticals. In the past, the salt industry was thriving. Naruto was the origin of the Otsuka Pharmaceutical Group and the Naruto Salt Industry, both of which still have a number of facilities in the city.

Education

Naruto has 13 public elementary schools and five public middle schools operated by the city government and two public high schools operated by the Tokushima Prefectural Department of Education. The

Naruto University of Education is a national university in Japan. It is located in Naruto, Tokushima on the island of Shikoku is the smallest of the List of islands of Japan#Main islands, four main islands of Japan. It is long and between at its widest. It has a populat ...

is located in the city.

Transportation

Railway

Shikoku Railway Company The , commonly known as , is the smallest of the seven constituent companies of the Japan Railways Group (JR Group). It operates of intercity and local rail services in the four prefectures on the island of Shikoku in Japan. The company has it ...

–

Kōtoku Line The is a railway line in northeastern Shikoku, Japan that connects the prefectural capitals Takamatsu ( Kagawa) and Tokushima (Tokushima). Shikoku Railway Company (JR Shikoku) owns and operates the line, whose name comes from the characters in ...

* -

–

Naruto Line The is a railway line in Japan operated by Shikoku Railway Company (JR Shikoku). It connects Ikenotani Station and Naruto Station in Naruto, Tokushima. History In 1916 the Awa Electric Railway Co. opened a line from Nakahara to Naruto, includin ...

* - - - - - -

Highways

Tokushima Expressway * JP Expressway E28

Kobe-Awaji-Naruto Expressway The is a tolled expressway that connects Hyōgo and Tokushima prefectures in Japan by crossings of the Akashi Strait and Naruto Strait. Built between 1970 and 1998, it is one of the three routes of the Honshu-Shikoku Bridge Expressway Company c ...

* *

Sister cities

Lüneburg Lüneburg, officially the Hanseatic City of Lüneburg and also known in English as Lunenburg, is a town in the German Bundesland (Germany), state of Lower Saxony. It is located about southeast of another Hanseatic League, Hanseatic city, Hambur ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

, since 1974 *

Qingdao Qingdao, Mandarin: , (Qingdao Mandarin: t͡ɕʰiŋ˧˩ tɒ˥) is a prefecture-level city in the eastern Shandong Province of China. Located on China's Yellow Sea coast, Qingdao was long an important fortress. In 1897, the city was ceded to G ...

, China, friendship city since 1999 *

Zhangjiajie Zhangjiajie (; Tujia language, Tujia: /tsán tɕá kǎi/) is a prefecture-level city in the northwestern part of Hunan, Hunan Province, China. It comprises the district of Yongding District, Zhangjiajie, Yongding, Wulingyuan District, Wulingyua ...

Hunan Hunan is an inland Provinces of China, province in Central China. Located in the middle reaches of the Yangtze watershed, it borders the Administrative divisions of China, province-level divisions of Hubei to the north, Jiangxi to the east, Gu ...

, China, friendship city since 2011 *

Narayanganj Narayanganj () is a city in central Bangladesh in the Greater Dhaka area. It is in the Narayanganj District, about southeast of the capital city of Dhaka. With a population of almost 1 million, it is the 6th largest city in Bangladesh. It is als ...

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

, since 2023

Local attractions

Bandō prisoner-of-war camp The was a prisoner-of-war camp during World War I in the western suburbs of what is now Naruto, Tokushima Prefecture, on the island of Shikoku, Japan. From April 1917 until January 1920, just under a thousand of the 3,900 soldiers of the Imperia ...

, National Historic Site * Gokuraku-ji, 2nd temple on the

Shikoku Pilgrimage The or is a multi-site pilgrimage of 88 temples associated with the Buddhist monk Kūkai (''Kōbō Daishi'') on the island of Shikoku, Japan. A popular and distinctive feature of the island's cultural landscape, and with a long history, ...

Naruto whirlpools The are tidal whirlpools in the Naruto Strait, a channel between Naruto in Tokushima and Awaji Island in Hyōgo, Japan. The strait between Naruto and Awaji island has a width of about . The strait is one of the connections between the Pac ...

* Ōasahiko Jinja, ''

ichinomiya is a Japanese language, Japanese historical term referring to the Shinto shrines with the highest rank in a Provinces of Japan, province. Shrines of lower rank were designated , , , and so forth.''Encyclopedia of Shinto'' ''Ichi no miya'' retr ...

'' of Awa Province *

Ōnaruto Bridge The is a suspension bridge that carries 4 lanes of the Kobe-Awaji-Naruto Expressway connecting Minamiawaji, Hyogo on Awaji Island with Naruto, Tokushima on Ōge Island, Japan. Completed in 1985, it has a main span of . Although it is one ...

Ōtsuka Museum of Art The in Naruto, Tokushima, Naruto, Tokushima Prefecture is an art museum founded in 1998 and is one of the list of largest art museums, largest exhibition spaces in Japan. Established by Otsuka Pharmaceutical as a celebration of its 75th anniv ...

* Ryōzen-ji, 1st temple on the

Tōrin-in is a sub-temple of the temple complex of Myōshin-ji in Kyoto, Japan. It is affiliated with the Myōshin-ji school of Rinzai Zen Buddhism. Name The temple is named for Donglin Temple () at the base of Mountain Lu near Jiujiang in China. Due ...

File:Big Naruto Bridge04n3872.jpg,

File:The Otsuka Museum of Art20s3203-B-T.jpg,

File:140712 Baruto-no-niwa in Bando Naruto Tokushima pref Japan02n.jpg, The museum of the history of

"Baruto-no-niwa" File:Naruto Whirlpools taken 4-21-2008.jpg,

Sports

Naruto has the home stadium of professional

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

Tokushima Vortis is a Japanese professional football club located in Tokushima, capital of Tokushima Prefecture. The club currently playing in the J2 League, the Japanese second tier of professional football league. Name origin The name, "Vortis" was named in 19 ...

and of

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 ...

team

Tokushima Indigo Socks The are a baseball team in the Shikoku Island League plus of Japan. Established in 2005, the Indigo Socks mainly play their home games at Tokushima prefecture Kuramoto stadium in Tokushima, Tokushima, Tokushima, Tokushima Prefecture. They won th ...

Traditional arts

* Ōtani-yaki

Notable people

* Akihito Shimizu, Japanese sport shooter

References

External links

* * * *
Kitaro Shikoku Peace Bell Project
{{Authority control Cities in Tokushima Prefecture Populated coastal places in Japan