is a

village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to ...

located in Yoshino District,

Nara Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Nara Prefecture has a population of 1,321,805 and has a geographic area of . Nara Prefecture borders Kyoto Prefecture to the north, Osaka Prefecture to the ...

, Japan. As of October 2016, the village has an estimated

population Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, whether it be a city or town, region, country, continent, or the world. Governments typically quantify the size of the resident population within their jurisdiction using ...

of 855 and a

density Density (volumetric mass density or specific mass) is the substance's mass per unit of volume. The symbol most often used for density is ''ρ'' (the lower case Greek letter rho), although the Latin letter ''D'' can also be used. Mathematicall ...

of 6.4 persons per km². The total area is 133.53 km². Bordering on Kamikitayama to the north and Totsukawa to the west, it is the southeasternmost region in

. It shares a border to the east with Kumano,

Mie Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Mie Prefecture has a population of 1,781,948 () and has a geographic area of . Mie Prefecture is bordered by Gifu Prefecture to the north, Shiga Prefecture and Kyoto Prefecture ...

, and to the south, with

Kitayama is an exclave village that belongs to Higashimuro District, Wakayama Prefecture, Japan, but is located on the border between Mie and Nara Prefectures. It lies along the Kitayama River and has become a popular spot for log rafting. As of 2016, ...

Wakayama Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Wakayama Prefecture has a population of 944,320 () and has a geographic area of . Wakayama Prefecture borders Osaka Prefecture to the north, and Mie Prefecture and Nara Prefect ...

Geography

Shimokitayama is composed of seven main hamlets, arranged roughly in a circle, and Zenki, which is no longer inhabited but which once housed a religious community of shugendo practitioners, including Jitsukaga. Roads lead north toward Nara from Ikehara, east toward Kumano from Shimokuwahara, south toward Kitayama from Kamikuwahara, and west toward Totsukawa from Uramukai. ;Ikehara :The main center of Shimokitayama's main industry, tourism, Ikehara is home to Kinari no Sato, a resort containing an

onsen In Japan, are the country's hot springs and the bathing facilities and traditional inns around them. As a volcanically active country, Japan has many onsens scattered throughout all of its major islands. There are approximately 25,000 hot ...

known as Kinari no Yu, various fishing and camping shops, gas stations, a few cafes and izakaya, and a small karaoke bar. It also contains Fumonji, a temple of the

Sōtō Sōtō Zen or is the largest of the three traditional sects of Zen in Japanese Buddhism (the others being Rinzai and Ōbaku). It is the Japanese line of the Chinese Cáodòng school, which was founded during the Tang dynasty by Dòngshān ...

sect of

Zen Zen ( zh, t=禪, p=Chán; ja, text= 禅, translit=zen; ko, text=선, translit=Seon; vi, text=Thiền) is a school of Mahayana Buddhism that originated in China during the Tang dynasty, known as the Chan School (''Chánzong'' 禪宗), and ...

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

, and Shimokitayama Junior High School. ;Ikemine :Ikemine is home to the Ike no Taira nine-hole golf course, the Myōjin Ike Pond Shrine and a Tenrikyō temple. ;Teragaito :Teragaito contains Shimokitayama's village hall, Sumiyoshi Shrine, and Shimokitayama Elementary School. It is also home to Shōbōji, a temple of the

sect of

at which local shugenja Jitsukaga Gyōja is enshrined. ;Uramukai :Uramukai includes the drainage area known as Okuji, a series of waterfalls and mountain streams sacred to shugenja, who keep a hut high in the mountains for training purposes. ;Sada :Sada is home to a gas station and a Tenrikyō temple. ;Kamikuwahara :Kamikuwahara is almost entirely residential. ;Shimokuwahara :Shimokuwahara contains Shimokitayama Preschool and Ryūganji a temple of the

sect of

. ;Zenki :Zenki is a wild and mountainous region which contains several large waterfalls sacred to shugenja, including the famous Nana E no Taki.

External links

*
Shimokitayama official website

English sub) Villages in Nara Prefecture {{Nara-geo-stub