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 ...

located in Kikuchi District,

Kumamoto Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Kumamoto Prefecture has a population of 1,748,134 () and has a geographic area of . Kumamoto Prefecture borders Fukuoka Prefecture to the north, Ōita Prefecture t ...

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 ...

Population

As of 2003, 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 5,720 and a

density Density (volumetric mass density or specific mass) is the ratio of a substance's mass to its volume. The symbol most often used for density is ''ρ'' (the lower case Greek letter rho), although the Latin letter ''D'' (or ''d'') can also be u ...

of 279.02 persons per km². The total area was 20.50 km².

History

On March 22, 2005, Shichijō, along with the town of

Shisui is a town located in Chiba Prefecture, Japan., the town had an estimated population of 20,660 in 9,888 households and a population density of 1,100 persons per km2. The total area of the town is . Etymology The name of Shisui in the Japanese ...

, and the village of Kyokushi (all from Kikuchi District), was merged into the expanded city of Kikuchi and no longer exists as an independent

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

. Shichijo means "Seven Castles" in Japanese. The town derived its name from the seven castles that surrounded the area. One of the most famous onsens in the Kumamoto-area, Kunakokujo, is constructed in the shape of castle.

Economy

Shichijo is also home to award-winning rice and melons. In the center of town is the Melon Dome, which is a farmer's market located under a structure shaped like melons.

External links

Official website of Kikuchi
Dissolved municipalities of Kumamoto Prefecture Kikuchi, Kumamoto {{Kumamoto-geo-stub