Ajigasawa, Aomori
Encyclopedia
is a town
located in the Nishitsugaru District
of Aomori Prefecture
in the Tōhoku region
of Japan
. As of 2009, the town had an estimated population
of 11,561 and a density
of 33.7 persons per km². Its total area was 342.99 km².
, facing the Sea of Japan
to the north, and Mount Iwaki
to the east. The town has a cold maritime climate characterized by cool short summers and long cold winters with heavy snowfall.
during the Edo period
. Oura Mitsunobu, the founder of the Tsugaru clan
, settled in Tanesato (now part of Ajigasawa) in 1491, which developed into a port for the Tsugaru region. Ajigasawa became a village in the Nishitsugaru District in 1889, and was elevated to town status on March 31, 1955, by annexing the neighboring villages of Akaishi, Nakamura, Narusawa and Maido.
. The most common type of fish is squid
. Other fish commonly caught in the local waters are flat fish, Flat-fish flounder, horse mackerel
, Atka mackerel
, red snapper
, cod
, angler fish, octopus
, shark
s and salmon
.
s with a total of 238 students; two elementary school
s with 528 students; one junior high school with a total of 328 students and one high school
with 273 students.
The Shirakami Nature School is a non-profit organization
that is housed in a 19th century wooden building that was used as an elementary school until the spring of 2003. The Shirakami Nature School hosts a wide variety of environmental education including classroom activities and open-air classes to people of all ages.
, gets its name from its appearance, it looks like a standing black bear. It is listed as number 7 in the Japan’s Top 100 Waterfalls
.
Towns of Japan
A town is a local administrative unit in Japan. It is a local public body along with prefecture , city , and village...
located in the Nishitsugaru District
Nishitsugaru District, Aomori
is a district located in Aomori, Japan.As of 2003 , the district has an estimated population of 24,033 and a density of 28.9 persons per km²...
of Aomori Prefecture
Aomori Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku Region. The capital is the city of Aomori.- History :Until the Meiji Restoration, the area of Aomori prefecture was known as Mutsu Province....
in the Tōhoku region
Tohoku region
The is a geographical area of Japan. The region occupies the northeastern portion of Honshu, the largest island of Japan. The region consists of six prefectures : Akita, Aomori, Fukushima, Iwate, Miyagi and Yamagata....
of Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. As of 2009, the town had an estimated population
Population
A population is all the organisms that both belong to the same group or species and live in the same geographical area. The area that is used to define a sexual population is such that inter-breeding is possible between any pair within the area and more probable than cross-breeding with individuals...
of 11,561 and a density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
of 33.7 persons per km². Its total area was 342.99 km².
Geography
Ajigasawa occupies the southwestern corner of Aomori prefecture on the border with Akita PrefectureAkita Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku Region of northern Honshu, the main island of Japan. The capital is the city of Akita.- History :The area of Akita has been created from the ancient provinces of Dewa and Mutsu....
, facing the Sea of Japan
Sea of Japan
The Sea of Japan is a marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean, between the Asian mainland, the Japanese archipelago and Sakhalin. It is bordered by Japan, North Korea, Russia and South Korea. Like the Mediterranean Sea, it has almost no tides due to its nearly complete enclosure from the Pacific...
to the north, and Mount Iwaki
Mount Iwaki
is a stratovolcano located in western Aomori Prefecture, Tohoku, Japan. It is also referred to as Tsugaru-Fuji from its shape. the mountain is listed as one of the 100 Famous Japanese Mountains in a book composed in 1964 by mountaineer/author Kyūya Fukada...
to the east. The town has a cold maritime climate characterized by cool short summers and long cold winters with heavy snowfall.
Neighbouring municipalities
- HirosakiHirosaki, Aomoriis a city located in southwest Aomori Prefecture, Japan. It is a castle town and was the Tsugaru clan ruled the 100,000 koku tozama han Hirosaki Domain from Hirosaki Castle during the Edo period. The city is currently a regional commercial center and the largest producer of apples in Japan...
- TsugaruTsugaru, Aomoriis a city located in northeastern Aomori in Tōhoku region of Japan. As of 2009, the city had an estimated population of 37,957 and a density of 150 persons per km². Its total area was 253.85 km²...
- FukauraFukaura, Aomoriis a town located in the Nishitsugaru District of Aomori Prefecture in the Tōhoku region of Japan. As of 2009, the town had an estimated population of 9,917 and a density of 20.3 persons per km²...
- NishimeyaNishimeya, Aomoriis a village located in the Nakatsugaru District of southern Aomori Prefecture in the Tōhoku region of Japan. As of 2009, the village had an estimated population of 1,470 and a density of 5.97 persons per km². Its total area was 246.58 km².-Geography:...
- Happō, AkitaHappo, Akitais a town in Yamamoto District in Akita Prefecture.The town was created on March 27, 2006, by merging the village of Minehama, and the town of Hachimori, both from Yamamoto District.-External links:...
- Fujisato, AkitaFujisato, Akitais a town located in Yamamoto District, Akita, Japan.As of 2011, the town has an estimated population of 3,861 and a density of 13.7 persons per km². The total area is 281.98 km²....
History
The area around Ajigasawa was controlled by the Nambu clan of Morioka DomainMorioka Domain
The was a han or feudal domain that encompasses present-day the middle-northern part of Iwate Prefecture and eastern part of Aomori Prefecture. It is sometimes colloquially called . The domain was tozama daimyo and was governed by the Satake clan. Its income was 100,000...
during the Edo period
Edo period
The , or , is a division of Japanese history which was ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family, running from 1603 to 1868. The political entity of this period was the Tokugawa shogunate....
. Oura Mitsunobu, the founder of the Tsugaru clan
Tsugaru clan
The was a Japanese samurai clan originating in northern Japan, specifically Mutsu Province . A branch of the local Nanbu clan, the Tsugaru rose to power during the Azuchi-Momoyama period. It was on the winning side of the Battle of Sekigahara, and entered the Edo period as a family of lords ...
, settled in Tanesato (now part of Ajigasawa) in 1491, which developed into a port for the Tsugaru region. Ajigasawa became a village in the Nishitsugaru District in 1889, and was elevated to town status on March 31, 1955, by annexing the neighboring villages of Akaishi, Nakamura, Narusawa and Maido.
Economy
The economy of Ajigasawa is heavily dependent on agriculture (rice and horticulture) and on commercial fishingCommercial fishing
Commercial fishing is the activity of catching fish and other seafood for commercial profit, mostly from wild fisheries. It provides a large quantity of food to many countries around the world, but those who practice it as an industry must often pursue fish far into the ocean under adverse conditions...
. The most common type of fish is squid
Squid
Squid are cephalopods of the order Teuthida, which comprises around 300 species. Like all other cephalopods, squid have a distinct head, bilateral symmetry, a mantle, and arms. Squid, like cuttlefish, have eight arms arranged in pairs and two, usually longer, tentacles...
. Other fish commonly caught in the local waters are flat fish, Flat-fish flounder, horse mackerel
Horse mackerel
A horse mackerel is a large fish, such as the tuna, and the scad or saurel of the Pacific coast:*Australian bonito *various Jack mackerels*Pilot fish...
, Atka mackerel
Atka mackerel
The Atka mackerel, Pleurogrammus monopterygius, is a mackerel in the family Hexagrammidae. Atka mackerel are common to the northern Pacific ocean, and are one of only two members of the genus Pleurogrammus - the other being the Arabesque greenling...
, red snapper
Red Snapper
Red Snapper may refer to:Fish:* Several species from the genus Lutjanus, for example the red snapper .* Several species from the genus Sebastes, for example the vermilion rockfish and yelloweye rockfish Red Snapper may refer to:Fish:* Several species from the genus Lutjanus, for example the red...
, cod
Cod
Cod is the common name for genus Gadus, belonging to the family Gadidae, and is also used in the common name for various other fishes. Cod is a popular food with a mild flavor, low fat content and a dense, flaky white flesh. Cod livers are processed to make cod liver oil, an important source of...
, angler fish, octopus
Octopus
The octopus is a cephalopod mollusc of the order Octopoda. Octopuses have two eyes and four pairs of arms, and like other cephalopods they are bilaterally symmetric. An octopus has a hard beak, with its mouth at the center point of the arms...
, shark
Shark
Sharks are a type of fish with a full cartilaginous skeleton and a highly streamlined body. The earliest known sharks date from more than 420 million years ago....
s and salmon
Salmon
Salmon is the common name for several species of fish in the family Salmonidae. Several other fish in the same family are called trout; the difference is often said to be that salmon migrate and trout are resident, but this distinction does not strictly hold true...
.
Education
For the 2011-2012 school year, there are a total of six kindergartenKindergarten
A kindergarten is a preschool educational institution for children. The term was created by Friedrich Fröbel for the play and activity institute that he created in 1837 in Bad Blankenburg as a social experience for children for their transition from home to school...
s with a total of 238 students; two elementary school
Elementary school
An elementary school or primary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as elementary or primary education. Elementary school is the preferred term in some countries, particularly those in North America, where the terms grade school and grammar...
s with 528 students; one junior high school with a total of 328 students and one high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
with 273 students.
The Shirakami Nature School is a non-profit organization
Non-profit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
that is housed in a 19th century wooden building that was used as an elementary school until the spring of 2003. The Shirakami Nature School hosts a wide variety of environmental education including classroom activities and open-air classes to people of all ages.
Railway
- JR East - Gonō LineGono LineThe is a railway line in Japan linking Higashi-Noshiro Station in Akita Prefecture with Kawabe Station in Aomori Prefecture, in the northern Tōhoku region of Honshū. The line stretches 147.2 km along the Sea of Japan coast with a total of 43 stations...
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- , ,
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Points of interest
- The Kikuya squid stand on the outskirts of town is the home of Wasao, an Akita dog that garnered nationwide attention after starring in a 2011 feature film which was filmed on location in the town.
- NAQUA Shirakami Ski Resort allows both skiing and snowboarding. There are 4 chairlifts and 1 gondola to accommodate for 14 courses. Ski/snowboard school is open to all ages and has rental equipment. The resort also offers four room types, two restaurants, an indoor/outdoor hot-springOnsenAn is a term for hot springs in the Japanese language, though the term is often used to describe the bathing facilities and inns around the hot springs. As a volcanically active country, Japan has thousands of onsen scattered along its length and breadth...
, exercise facility, outdoor climbing playground and a 36-hole golf courseGolf courseA golf course comprises a series of holes, each consisting of a teeing ground, fairway, rough and other hazards, and a green with a flagstick and cup, all designed for the game of golf. A standard round of golf consists of playing 18 holes, thus most golf courses have this number of holes...
.
- Ajigasawa Beach is about a ten minute walk from the train station and has both grass and sand areas with an incredible view of the Sea of JapanSea of JapanThe Sea of Japan is a marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean, between the Asian mainland, the Japanese archipelago and Sakhalin. It is bordered by Japan, North Korea, Russia and South Korea. Like the Mediterranean Sea, it has almost no tides due to its nearly complete enclosure from the Pacific...
.
- Umi No Eki “Wando” is a collection of stores, much like a market, that sells local goods directly from the farmers and fishermen. The products sold here are all local, and very fresh.
- The Indoor Heated Pool is located near the Ajigasawa High School and is only a short distance from the train station. The Facility includes a Japan Swimming Federation regulation-sized swimming pool (25 meters in length, 8 lanes wide), a baby pool with an approximate depth of 0.75 meters, an outdoor pool, a water slide, men and women saunaSaunaA sauna is a small room or house designed as a place to experience dry or wet heat sessions, or an establishment with one or more of these and auxiliary facilities....
s, a training room, conference rooms and a gallery.
- Shirakami-SanchiShirakami-Sanchiis a UNESCO World Heritage Site in northern Honshū, Japan. This mountainous, unspoiled expanse of virgin forest straddles both Akita and Aomori Prefectures. Of the entire 1,300 km², a tract covering 169.7 km² was included in the list of World Heritage Sites in 1993...
– UNESCOUNESCOThe United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
World Heritage Site
- Otaka-yama park is open to the public and includes a multipurpose stadium, tennis courts, amphitheater, go-carts and an elaborate playground.
, gets its name from its appearance, it looks like a standing black bear. It is listed as number 7 in the Japan’s Top 100 Waterfalls
Japan’s Top 100 Waterfalls
is a listing of waterfalls in Japan compiled by the Japanese Ministry of the Environment in 1990.-Background:Per the Japanese government, there are 517 named waterfalls in Japan...
.