is a city in the northwestern portion of

Toyama Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu. Toyama Prefecture has a population of 993,848 (1 January 2025) and has a geographic area of 4,247.61 km2 (1,640.01 sq mi). Toyama Prefecture borders Ishikawa Prefecture to the ...

, Japan. Takaoka has the second largest population after Toyama City, and the city is a center of western Toyama Prefecture (''Gosei''). , the city had an estimated population of 173,086 in 68,350 households and a population density of 819 persons per km². Its total area was .

Geography

Takaoka covers an area which equates to roughly 5% of the surface area of Toyama Prefecture. The surface area of the city comprises 36.96 km² of real estate, 61.02 km² of agricultural land, 22.69 km² of mountains and forests, 80.43 km² of public property (parks etc.), 6.10 km² of wasteland, and 2.18 km² of moorland. Takaoka borders four cities in Toyama Prefecture ( Himi, Oyabe,

Tonami is a Cities of Japan, city in Toyama Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 48,659 in 16,739 households and a population density of 384 persons per km2. Its total area was . Geography Tonami is located in the Tonami plain ...

, and

Imizu 270px, Tonami-yotaka festival held in June is a city located in Toyama Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 93,447 in 37,734 households and a population density of 850 persons per km². Its total area was . Geography Im ...

) and two towns in Ishikawa Prefecture ( Tsubata and Hōdatsushimizu). From its border with Himi down to the southwest area of the city, a range of mountains stretch for roughly 150 m to 300 m with a particularly high stretch of mountains centering on Mt. Futagami near Himi. Shogawa River and the Oyabegawa River run through Takaoka, and tributaries weave their way through the city center. Including small rivers, a total of 10 rivers flow through the city. The Amaharashi coast lies to the north of the region. Just off the coast lies the uninhabited offshore rock of Otokoiwa. Another uninhabited rock, Onnaiwa, lies nearby, and the view of this island against the backdrop of the Tateyama range of peaks is famous and features in promotional media for the region. A section of the Imizu plains runs from the central district of the city to the eastern district, and the Tonami plains which stretch from the west to the south are dotted with

dispersed settlement A dispersed settlement, also known as a scattered settlement, is one of the main types of settlement patterns used by landscape historians to classify rural settlements found in England and other parts of the world. Typically, there are a num ...

s in certain areas.

Surrounding municipalities

* Ishikawa Prefecture ** Hōdatsushimizu ** Tsubata * Toyama Prefecture ** Himi **

** Oyabe **

Climate

The climate of Takaoka is 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 climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

''Cfa''), similar to that of much of the

Sea of Japan The Sea of Japan is the marginal sea between the Japanese archipelago, Sakhalin, the Korean Peninsula, and the mainland of the Russian Far East. The Japanese archipelago separates the sea from the Pacific Ocean. Like the Mediterranean Sea, it ...

coast. All of the regions in Toyama Prefecture can experience large quantities of snow in winter. Depending on the year, the city can experience extraordinarily heavy snowfall, like, for example in 2006 when snow 1.4m high, and in 2011 1.27m was recorded. According to weather records, the average temperature in 2010 was , the average level of humidity was 79%, the yearly rainfall was roughly 2,665.5mm and there were 1,634 hours of sunlight.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data, the population of Takaoka has declined over the past 40 years.

Foreign population

, the Brazilian population of Takaoka was approximately 1,430 residents, the Chinese population was approximately 700, and the Philippine population was approximately 360.

History

The area of present-day Takaoka was part of ancient

Etchū Province was a province of Japan in the area that is today Toyama Prefecture in the Hokuriku region of Japan. Etchū bordered on Noto and Kaga Provinces to the west, Shinano and Hida Provinces to the south, Echigo Province to the east and the Sea o ...

, and the

provincial capital A capital city, or just capital, is the municipality holding primary status in a country, state, province, department, or other subnational division, usually as its seat of the government. A capital is typically a city that physically encomp ...

was located in what are now the outskirts of the modern city.

Ōtomo no Yakamochi was a Japanese people, Japanese statesman and ''waka (poetry), waka'' poet in the Nara period. He was one of the ''Man'yō no Go-taika,'' the five great poets of his time, and was part of Fujiwara no Kintō's . Yakamochi was a member of the pr ...

took office as a government official in this area in the 8th century. During his five-year stay, he wrote many ''waka'' poems. This is the reason for Takaoka being nicknamed Manyō City. Originally, the Takaoka region was called ''Sekino'', but when Maeda Toshinaga of

Kaga Domain The , also known as the , was a domain of the Tokugawa Shogunate of Japan during the Edo period from 1583 to 1871.Takaoka Castle was built on a slightly elevated shoreline is thought to be another possible origin for the name Takaoka, since ''Taka'' means "high" and ''Oka'' means "hill or elevated land". Despite the loss of its castle due to orders from the

Tokugawa shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. The Tokugawa shogunate was established by Tokugawa Ieyasu after victory at the Battle of Sekigahara, ending the civil wars ...

in 1615, the

Maeda clan The was a Japanese samurai clan who occupied most of the Hokuriku region of central Honshū from the end of the Sengoku period through the Meiji Restoration of 1868. The Maeda claimed descent from the Sugawara clan through Sugawara no Kiyotom ...

pursued policies regulating the relocation of Takaoka citizens and promoting the development of Takaoka as an industrial city. This resulted in the start of Takaoka's role as a city of commerce and industry. Takaoka copperware and lacquerware also took off at this time. Following 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 ...

, with the establishment of the municipalities system on April 1, 1889, Takaoka was registered as one of Japan's first 30 cities. The area around Fushiki Port was declared an open port for foreign trade by Imperial decree in July 1899. On November 1, 2005, the town of

Fukuoka is the List of Japanese cities by population, sixth-largest city in Japan and the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The city is built along the shores of Hakata Bay, and has been a center of international commerce since ancient times. ...

(from Nishitonami District) was merged into Takaoka. Nishitonami District was dissolved as a result of this merger.

Government

Takaoka 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 legislature of 27 members. The city contributes seven members to the Toyama Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city is part of the Toyama Third Electoral District for 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 ...

Education

Colleges and universities

* University of Toyama - Takaoka campus * Takaoka University of Law

Primary and secondary education

Takaoka has 26 public elementary schools and 12 public junior high schools operated by the town government, and eight public high schools operated by the Toyama Prefectural Board of Education. There are also three private high schools. The city also operates one special education school, and an additional four special education schools are operated by the Toyama Prefectural government.

Transportation

Railway

West Japan Railway Company , also referred to as , is one of the Japan Railways Group (JR Group) companies and operates in western Honshu. It has its headquarters in Kita-ku, Osaka. It is listed in the Tokyo Stock Exchange, is a constituent of the TOPIX Large70 index, ...

(JR West) -

Hokuriku Shinkansen The Hokuriku Shinkansen () is a high-speed Shinkansen railway line connecting Tokyo with Tsuruga, Fukui, Tsuruga in the Hokuriku region of Japan. It is jointly operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East) and West Japan Railway Company (JR ...

** *

(JR West) - Himi Line ** - - - - - *

(JR West) - Jōhana Line ** - - - - * Ainokaze Toyama Railway logo

Ainokaze Toyama Railway The is a Japanese third-sector railway operating company established in 2012 to operate passenger railway services on the section of the JR West Hokuriku Main Line within Toyama Prefecture when it was separated from the JR West network in Marc ...

** - - - * Manyosen - Takaoka Kidō Line ** - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - * Manyosen - Shinminatokō Line **

Highway

Hokuriku Expressway The , (abbreviated as , is a 4-laned national Expressways of Japan, expressway in Japan. It is owned and managed by East Nippon Expressway Company and Central Nippon Expressway Company. Overview The first section was opened in 1972 by Japan ...

* * * *

International relations

Mirandópolis Mirandópolis is a municipality in the state of São Paulo in Brazil. The population is 29,706 (2020 est.) in an area of 918 km2. The elevation is 429 m. Nickname is ''Cidade labor'' (''labor city''), and Demonymis ''mirandopolense''. History The ...

São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...

, Brazil, sister city since 1974 *

Fort Wayne, Indiana Fort Wayne is a city in Allen County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. Located in northeastern Indiana, the city is west of the Ohio border and south of the Michigan border. The city's population was 263,886 at the 2020 census ...

, United States, sister city since 1977 *

Jinzhou Jinzhou (, zh, s= , t=錦州 , p=Jǐnzhōu), formerly Chinchow, is a coastal prefecture-level city in central-west Liaoning province, China. It is a geographically strategic city located in the Liaoxi Corridor, which connects most of the la ...

Liaoning ) , image_skyline = , image_alt = , image_caption = Clockwise: Mukden Palace in Shenyang, Xinghai Square in Dalian, Dalian coast, Yalu River at Dandong , image_map = Liaoning in China (+all claims hatched).svg , ...

, China, friendship city since 1985

Local attractions

* Great Buddha of Takaoka *: Reaching a height of nearly , the Great Buddha of Takaoka is the third largest in Japan. The current Buddha made of Takaoka bronze was completed in 1933 after the previous statue made of wood burnt down. The Buddha is situated next to the Daibutsu Temple in the middle of a residential area in Takaoka town centre. * Takaoka Kojo Park *: Takaoka Kojo Park, the former site of the Takaoka Castle, is situated a short walk from the centre of Takaoka. Within the park grounds, there are the Imizu Shrine, the Takaoka Museum, Takaoka Zoo, the Civic Hall, and Civic Gymnasium, plus abundant nature. The moat surrounding the centre of the park is a common spot for cherry blossom viewing in spring. Zuiryuji Temple 2010-08-29 01

* Zuiryū-ji Temple *: Completed in 1663, Zuiryū-ji temple, is just south of Takaoka Station and a designated

National Treasure of Japan Some of the National Treasures of Japan A is " Tangible Cultural Properties designated by law in modern Japan as having extremely high value." Specifically, it refers to buildings, arts, and crafts designated as especially valuable from ...

. This Zen temple was constructed to mourn for the death of Maeda Toshinaga who fortified Takaoka, and is celebrated as being reminiscent of architecture from the early

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 ...

. * Amaharashi Coast *: The Amaharashi Coast, located north of Takaoka city has sandy beaches and views of the Onnaiwa Rock against the backdrop of the Tateyama mountains. * Kanayamachi *: Kanayamachi is an area of Takaoka which has traditional buildings, both warehouses and houses, which have been preserved since the Meiji period. It is the birthplace of the manufacture of Takaoka copperware. * Sakuradani Kofun *: The Sakuradani Kofun is group of ''

kofun are megalithic tombs or tumulus, tumuli in Northeast Asia. ''Kofun'' were mainly constructed in the Japanese archipelago between the middle of the 3rd century to the early 7th century AD.岡田裕之「前方後円墳」『日本古代史大辞 ...

burial mound Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and objec ...

s, two of which are designated as a National Historic Site of Japan.

Festivals

* Takaoka Mikurumayama Festival (May 1) *: The tradition of this festival started when Maeda Toshinaga received a float from Hideyoshi, a powerful figure at the time, and gave it to the people of Takaoka. The festival features seven floats, crafted in the brightly colored ''Momoyama'' style, which make their way around the streets of Takaoka. * Fushiki Hikiyama Festival (May 15) *: The Hikiyama festival in the port town of Fushiki is called 'Kenkayama' (fighting floats) by locals. During the day, the floats are adorned with flowers, and at night they are decorated with paper lanterns. The floats are rammed into each other to the beat of the yamaga war drums. * Goin Festival (June 19/20) *: The Goin festival celebrates the kindness of Maeda Toshinaga who took care of the city's casters, by worshipping documents with his seal on. During the festival, the Yagaefu dance (a processional dance performed with bamboo sticks) is also performed on the streets of Kanayamachi. Toide tanabata1

* Toide Tanabata Festival (July 3–7) *: A large collection of around 1,000 ''tanabata'' of various sizes, including tall jumbo tanabata, make a large tunnel that serves as an archway into the town's main street. * Takaoka Tanabata Festival (Early August) *: The Takaoka Tanabata Festival is a symbol of summertime, when the streets are lined with thousands of large tanabata to celebrate the union of Orihime and Hikoboshi, two deities who, according to legend, are only allowed to meet once a year. * Fukuoka Tsukurimon Festival (23/24 September) *: The Tsukurimon festival is a festival with more than 300 years of history. Sculptures depicting local sights and famous characters are made out of fruits and vegetables and displayed throughout the town. * Nakada Scarecrow Festival (late September) *: Depicting current events and famous characters, scarecrows are made using everyday materials such as straw and wood and displayed around the main shopping area of the Nakada district. * Takaoka Manyō Festival (first weekend of October) *: This major autumn event celebrates the Manyō tradition with a marathon poetry recital lasting three days and three nights. The entire Manyō poetry anthology is recited by a large number of participants in a relay fashion. * Takaoka Nabe Festival (mid-January) *: Fresh fish and shellfish from the Sea of Japan are cooked in large cauldrons made with local casting techniques.

Notable people from Takaoka

* Kinjirō Ashiwara (1850–1937), also known as * Hiroshi Fujimoto (1933–1996), manga artist created several characters including the globally famous

Doraemon is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Fujiko F. Fujio. First serialized in 1969, the manga's chapters were collected in 45 volumes published by Shogakukan from 1974 to 1996. The story revolves around an earless robotic ...

. He formed a manga artist duo Fujiko Fujio together with Motoo Abiko. *

Tadamasa Hayashi was a Japanese art dealer who introduced traditional Japanese art such as ukiyo-e to Europe. Tadamasa was born to the Nagasaki family of physicians. When he was still a child, he was adopted into the Hayashi family, an upper-class samurai famil ...

(1853–1906), art dealer who introduced traditional Japanese art to Europe. * Tomomi Hayashi (), architect * Yoshie Hotta (1918–1998), writer who won the Akutagawa Prize. * Shihoko Ishii (), mathematician * Eiichi Kanamori (1908–2001), a recognized Important Intangible Cultural Asset (a "Living National Treasure") as a leading metal engraver of Takaoka copperware. * Izumi Matsumoto (1958–2020), manga artist * Sosen Mishima (1876–1934), author and theatre critic whose career took off at the start of the 20th century after his work 'Kaiboshitsu' (Dissecting Room) was published in the Chuo Koron literary magazine. * Shoichiro Mukai (), judoka who won a silver medal at the 2020 Summer Olympics. * Kingetsu Murozaki (1891–1977), composer and founder of the Chuo School of Music, Tokyo. Known for 'Yuhi' (Sunset), a song which he wrote about the view of sunset at Takaoka Kojo Park. * Namori, manga artist and author of '' YuruYuri'', which takes place in the fictional Nanamori area of Takaoka. * Komin Ozawa (1941–2023), a recognized Important Intangible Cultural Asset (a "Living National Treasure"). He was known as the master of the Chukin casting technique of making utensils and vessels by pouring molten metal into a mould.Takaoka Lifelong Learning Web, http://www.manabi-takaoka.jp/03/jpn/category/detail/1883/1/detail.html * Noriko Shinohara (), fine artist * Keiichiro Tachibana (), politician *

Takamine Jōkichi was a Japanese chemist. He is known for being the first to isolate epinephrine in 1901. Early life and education Takamine was born in Takaoka, Toyama, Takaoka, Toyama Prefecture, in November 1854. His father was a doctor; his mother a member of ...

(1854–1922), scientist specializing in engineering and pharmacology. He was joint founder of the RIKEN Natural Sciences Institute and discoverer of Adrenaline. *

Yōjirō Takita Yōjirō Takita (滝田洋二郎 ''Takita Yōjirō'', born December 4, 1955) is a Japanese filmmaker. Takita received an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film for his 2008 drama '' Departures''. It marked the first time a Japanese film won the aw ...

(), filmmaker whose 2008 film '' Okuribito'' won a US Academy award for Best Foreign Language Film. * Eri Tosaka (), freestyle wrestler who won a gold medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics.

Note

References

External links

*
Takaoka City official website

{{Authority control Cities in Toyama Prefecture Populated coastal places in Japan Port settlements in Japan