Yuzawa, Akita

Yuzawa 湯沢市
City
Yuzawa City Hall Yuzawa City Hall
Flag of Yuzawa Flag Official seal of Yuzawa Seal
Location of Yuzawa in Akita Prefecture Location of Yuzawa in Akita Prefecture
Yuzawa
Coordinates:
Country	Japan
Region	Tōhoku
Prefecture	Akita Prefecture
Government
• -Mayor	Suzuki Toshio
Area
• Total	790.91 km2 (305.37 sq mi)
Population (May 2015)
• Total	47,119
• Density	59.6/km2 (154/sq mi)
Time zone	Japan Standard Time (UTC+9)
- Tree	Japanese Red Pine
- Flower	Dahlia
Phone number	0183-73-2111
Address	1-1 Satakechō, Yuzawa-shi, Akita-ken 012-8501
Website	Official website

Yuzawa (湯沢市, Yuzawa-shi) is a city located in Akita Prefecture, in the northern Tohoku region of Japan.

As of May 2015, the city has an estimated population of 47,119 and a population density of 59.6 persons per km². The total area is 790.91 km² (305.37 sq mi).

Yuzawa claims to be the birthplace of the famous Heian period poet Ono no Komachi.

Geography

Yuzawa is located at the far southeast corner of Akita Prefecture, bordered by mountains to the south, east and west.

Neighboring municipalities

• Akita Prefecture
  • Yurihonjō, Akita
  • Yokote, Akita
  • Ugo, Akita
  • Higashinaruse, Akita
• Yamagata Prefecture
  • Shinjō, Yamagata
• Mogami, Yamagata
  • Kaneyama, Yamagata
  • Mamurogawa, Yamagata
• Miyagi Prefecture
  • Kurihara, Miyagi
  • Ōsaki, Miyagi

Climate

Yuzawa has a Humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa) with large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and cold (sometimes severely cold) winters. Precipitation is significant throughout the year, but is heaviest from August to October.

History

The area of present-day Yuzawa was part of ancient Ugo Province, dominated by the Satake clan during the Edo period, who ruled Kubota Domain under the Tokugawa shogunate. Much of the territory was part of the 20,000 koku subsidiary feudal domain of Iwasaki Domain ( 岩崎藩, Iwasaki-han).

After the start of the Meiji period, Iwasaki Domain became briefly “Iwasaki Prefecture”, before becoming Ogachi District, Akita Prefecture in 1878. The towns of Iwasaki and Yuzawa were created in 1889, becoming the city of Yuzawa on March 31, 1954.

On March 22, 2005, the towns of Inakawa, Minase and Ogachi (all from Ogachi District) were merged into Yuzawa.

Politics and government

Elections

• Yuzawa mayoral election, 2005

Economy

The economy of Yuzawa is based on agriculture, primarily rice cultivation, and the brewing of sake.

Education

Yuzawa has 11 elementary schools, six middle schools and four high schools as well as one special education school.

Transportation

Railway

• JR East - Ōu Main Line
  • Innai Station - Yokobori Station - Mitsuseki Station - Kami-Yuzawa Station - Yuzawa Station - Shimo-Yuzawa Station

Highway

• Yuzawa-Yokote Road
• Japan National Route 13
• Japan National Route 108
• Japan National Route 398

Local attractions

• Takanoyu Onsen

International relations

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Japan

Twin towns – Sister cities

Yuzawa is twinned with:

• Csurgó, Hungary
• Kushiro, Hokkaido

Noted people from Yuzawa

• Terukuni Manzō – sumo wrestler
• Kiyokuni Katsuo – sumo wrestler
• Ryuzo Sato – economist
• Yoshihide Suga – politician
• Kantarō Suga – actor

External links

• Yuzawa official website (Japanese)