260px, Namura Jinja Haiden is 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 ...

located in Gamō District,

Shiga Prefecture is a landlocked prefecture of Japan in the Kansai region of Honshu. Shiga Prefecture has a population of 1,398,972 as of 1 February 2025 and has a geographic area of . Shiga Prefecture borders Fukui Prefecture to the north, Gifu Prefecture to th ...

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 town 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 11,786 in 4499 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 260 persons per km². The total area of the town is .

Geography

Ryūō is located in the center of Shiga Prefecture. The Hino River and its 3 tributaries, Zenkōji-gawa, Sofu-gawa, and Sōshirō-gawa, run on the flat land between Mount Kagami on the west and Mount Yukino on the east. Hilly regions cover the southern area in and out of Ryūō. * Mountains: Kagami-yama (also called Western Ryūō-zan), Yukinoyama (also called Eastern Ryūō-zan) * Rivers: Hino, Zenkōji, Sofu, Sōshirō

Neighbouring municipalities

Shiga Prefecture *

Higashiōmi is a city located in Shiga Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 113,229 in 45771 households and a population density of 290 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Geography Higashiōmi is located in east-centr ...

Koka KOKA (980 Kilohertz, kHz, "KOKA 980 AM, 93.3 FM") is an American radio station city of license, licensed to Shreveport, Louisiana. The station is broadcasting an Urban contemporary gospel, urban gospel format. The station serves the Shreveport� ...

Konan Konan may refer to: * Conan (disambiguation), a name spelt "Konan" in the Breton language * ''Kɔnan'', a male given name in a number of Akan cultures, chiefly the Baoulé people, for whom it is typically given to any male born on a Wednesday (''ml ...

Ōmihachiman file:Omihachiman City Hall.jpg, 260px, City Hall file:Hachimanbori07s3200.jpg, 260px, Traditional buildings Preservation Area is a Cities of Japan, city located in Shiga Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 82,233 in 3474 ...

* Yasu

Climate

Aishō 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 Aishō is 14.8 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1433 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 26.6 °C, and lowest in January, at around 3.5 °C.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data, the population of Ryūō peaked around the year 2000 and has declined slightly since.

History

The area of Ryūō was part of ancient

Ōmi Province was a Provinces of Japan, province of Japan, which today comprises Shiga Prefecture. It was one of the provinces that made up the Tōsandō Circuit (subnational entity), circuit. Its nickname is . Under the ''Engishiki'' classification system, ...

. On April 1, 1889 the village of Nae (苗村) was formed within

Gamō District, Shiga is a Districts of Japan, district located in Shiga Prefecture, Japan. As of September 1, 2011, the district has an estimated population of 35,629 and a population density, density of 220 persons per km2. The total area is 162.15 km2. Town ...

by the merger of the hamlets of Kawamori (川守村), Iwai (岩井村), Yamanoue (山之上村), Hayashi (林村), Shō (庄村), Shinano (信濃村), Kayochō (駕輿丁村), Shima (島村), and Ayado (綾戸村). Likewise, the village of Kagamiyama (鏡山村) was formed by the merger of the hamlets of Kagami (鏡村), Yamazura (山面村), Ukawa (鵜川村), Oguchi (小口村), Kuzushi (薬師村), Shichiri (七里村), Kawakami (川上村), Hashimoto (橋本村), Yuge (弓削村), Sue (須恵村), Nishikawa (西川村), Nishiyokozeki (西横関村), Yamanaka (山中村), and Okaya (岡屋村). On April 29, 1955 Kagamiyama and Nae merged to form the town of Ryūō. The name comes from the name of a mountain shared between the two villages.

Government

Ryūō 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 12 members. Ryūō, collectively with the town of Hino, contributes one member to the Shiga Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the town is part of Shiga 4th 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 ...

Industry

* Car Industry -

Daihatsu is a Japanese automobile manufacturer headquartered in Ikeda, Osaka Prefecture, Japan. One of the oldest surviving Japanese internal combustion engine manufacturers, the company was known for building three-wheeled vehicles and off-road vehicle ...

Motor Co., Ltd. * Industry Ratio ** Farmer 6.3% ** Industry 52.4% ** Service 41.3%

Education

Ryūō has two public elementary schools and one public middle school operated by the town government. The town does not have a high school. Previously the city hosted a Brazilian school, Colégio Latino de Shiga. It moved to Ōmihachiman and changed its name to Colégio Latino do Japão.Escolas Brasileiras Homologadas no Japão

Archive
. Embassy of Brazil in Tokyo. Retrieved on October 13, 2015.

Transportation

Railway

Ryūō has no passenger rail service. The nearest station is Shinohara Station, but many people find the Ōmi-Hachiman Station or Yasu Station to be more convenient.

Highways

Meishin Expressway The , or Nagoya-Kōbe Expressway is a toll expressway in Japan. It runs from a junction with the Tōmei Expressway in Komaki, Aichi (outside Nagoya) west to Nishinomiya, Hyōgo (between Osaka and Kobe). It is the main road link between Osaka a ...

* *

Bus

* Ōmi Bus

Sister cities

Ryūō's sister cities are: *

Kai, Yamanashi is a city located in Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 73,626, and a population density of 1,100 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Geography Kai is located in central Yamanashi Prefecture, ...

, Japan *

Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan Sault Ste. Marie ( ') is a city in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, Upper Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is the county seat of Chippewa County, Michigan, Chippewa County and is the only city within the county. With a population of ...

, United States, since 1974

Local attractions

*Mitsui Outlet Park Shiga Ryūō * Namura Jinja, a Shinto shrine with a National Treasure ''

honden In Shinto shrine architecture, the , also called , or sometimes as in Ise Shrine's case, is the most sacred building at a Shinto shrine, intended purely for the use of the enshrined ''kami'', usually symbolized by a mirror or sometimes by a sta ...

'' * Ryūō-ji, Buddhist temple founded in the Nara period. * Yukinoyama Kofun, Kofun period tumulus, National Historic Site

References

External links

*
Ryūō Official Website
Towns in Shiga Prefecture Ryuo, Shiga {{Shiga-geo-stub