270px, Awakura Onsen is a

village 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 v ...

located in Aida District,

Okayama Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. Okayama Prefecture has a population of 1,826,059 (1 February 2025) and has a geographic area of 7,114 Square kilometre, km2 (2,746 sq mi). Okayama Prefecture ...

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 village 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 1,361 in 593 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 29 persons per km². The total area of the village is .

Geography

Nishiawakura is located in the northeastern part of Okayama Prefecture, bordering

Hyōgo Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Hyōgo Prefecture has a population of 5,469,762 () and a geographic area of . Hyōgo Prefecture borders Kyoto Prefecture to the east, Osaka Prefecture to th ...

and

Tottori Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. Tottori Prefecture is the List of Japanese prefectures by population, least populous prefecture of Japan at 538,525 (2023) and has a geographic area of . ...

. Located on the southern side of the Chugoku Mountains, mountains and forests occupy 95% of the village area; and the village is designated as a heavy snowfall area.

Neighboring municipalities

Hyōgo Prefecture * Shisō Okayama Prefecture * Mimasaka Tottori Prefecture * Chizu * Wakasa

Climate

Nishiawakura 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 moderate snowfall. The average annual temperature in Nishiawakura is 11.9 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1981 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 23.8 °C, and lowest in January, at around 0.1 °C.

Demography

Per Japanese census data,population statistics
/ref> the population of Nishiawakura has been as follows. The population has been steadily declining since the 1950s

History

Nishiawakura is part of ancient

Mimasaka Province was a Provinces of Japan, province of Japan in the area that is northern Okayama Prefecture in the Chūgoku region of western Japan. Mimasaka bordered Bitchū Province, Bitchū, Bizen Province, Bizen, Harima Province, Harima, Hōki Province, Hō ...

. After the

Meiji restoration The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored Imperial House of Japan, imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Althoug ...

, the area was organized into Nishiawakura village, Yoshino District, Okayama Prefecture with the creation of the modern municipalities system on June 1,1889. Yoshino District was merged into

Aida District, Okayama is a district located in Okayama Prefecture, Japan. As of 2003, the district has an estimated population of 31,845 and a density of 79.65 persons per km2. The total area is 399.83 km2. Towns and villages Aida District consists of the f ...

on April 1,1900.

Government

Nishiawakura 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 ...

village council ten members. Nishiawakura, collectively with the city of Mimasaka, contributes one member to the Okayama Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the village is part of the Okayama 3rd 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

The main industry in the area is forestry and woodworking.

Education

Nishiawakura has one public elementary school and one public junior high school operated by the town government. The village does not have a high school.

Transportation

Railway

44px

Chizu Express The is a Japanese third-sector railway that connects Hyōgo Prefecture, Hyōgo, Okayama prefecture, Okayama and Tottori prefectures. The Chizu Line is not electrified, but is a high-grade railroad, and extends a total of . The limited expresses ' ...

- Chizu Line * -

Highways

Tottori Expressway *

Notable people from Nishiawakura

* Seiji Hagiwara, politician of the Liberal Democratic Party

References

External links

*
Nishiawakura official website
Villages in Okayama Prefecture {{Okayama-geo-stub