Town in Shikoku, Japan From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Seamless Wikipedia browsing. On steroids.
Every time you click a link to Wikipedia, Wiktionary or Wikiquote in your browser's search results, it will show the modern Wikiwand interface.
Wikiwand extension is a five stars, simple, with minimum permission required to keep your browsing private, safe and transparent.
Motoyama (本山町, Motoyama-chō) is a town located in Nagaoka District, Kōchi Prefecture, Japan. As of 31 July 2022[update], the town had an estimated population of 3‚318 in 1858 households and a population density of 25 persons per km2.[1] The total area of the town is 134.22 square kilometres (51.82 sq mi). Motoyama has been named one of The Most Beautiful Villages in Japan.[2]
Motoyama
本山町 | |
|---|---|
 View of Motoyama on route 439 | |
 Flag  Chapter | |
 Location of Motoyama in Kōchi Prefecture | |
 | |
  Motoyama Location in Japan | |
| Coordinates: 33°45′N 133°35′E | |
| Country | Japan |
| Region | Shikoku |
| Prefecture | Kōchi |
| District | Nagaoka |
| Area | |
• Total | 134.22 km2 (51.82 sq mi) |
| Population (July 31, 2022) | |
• Total | 3,318 |
| • Density | 25/km2 (64/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+09:00 (JST) |
| City hall address | 504 Motoyama, Motoyama-chō, Nagaoka-gun, Kōchi-ken 781-3692 |
| Climate | Cfa |
| Website | Official website |
| Symbols | |
| Bird | Japanese robin |
| Flower | Cherry blossom |
| Tree | Hinoki |
.jpg)
Motoyama is located in the Shikoku Mountains near the center of northern Kōchi Prefecture. The upper reaches of the Yoshino River and Shikoku's largest dam, the Sameura Dam are located in the town.
Ehime Prefecture
Kōchi Prefecture
Motoyama has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa) with hot, humid summers and cool winters. There is significant precipitation throughout the year, especially during June and July. The average annual temperature in Motoyama is 14.2 °C (57.6 °F). The average annual rainfall is 2,892.3 mm (113.87 in) with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 25.2 °C (77.4 °F), and lowest in January, at around 3.3 °C (37.9 °F).[3] The highest temperature ever recorded in Motoyama was 38.1 °C (100.6 °F) on 28 July 2007; the coldest temperature ever recorded was −8.9 °C (16.0 °F) on 16 January 2011.[4]
| Climate data for Motoyama (1991−2020 normals, extremes 1977−present) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 18.8 (65.8) |
23.6 (74.5) |
26.2 (79.2) |
31.5 (88.7) |
33.2 (91.8) |
35.2 (95.4) |
38.1 (100.6) |
37.7 (99.9) |
35.3 (95.5) |
30.9 (87.6) |
25.1 (77.2) |
22.6 (72.7) |
38.1 (100.6) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 9.3 (48.7) |
10.5 (50.9) |
14.3 (57.7) |
19.9 (67.8) |
24.4 (75.9) |
26.7 (80.1) |
30.6 (87.1) |
31.4 (88.5) |
27.8 (82.0) |
22.7 (72.9) |
16.7 (62.1) |
11.2 (52.2) |
20.5 (68.8) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 3.3 (37.9) |
4.2 (39.6) |
7.7 (45.9) |
12.7 (54.9) |
17.3 (63.1) |
21.0 (69.8) |
24.8 (76.6) |
25.2 (77.4) |
21.9 (71.4) |
16.2 (61.2) |
10.5 (50.9) |
5.3 (41.5) |
14.2 (57.5) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −1.1 (30.0) |
−0.5 (31.1) |
2.3 (36.1) |
6.7 (44.1) |
11.9 (53.4) |
17.1 (62.8) |
21.1 (70.0) |
21.6 (70.9) |
18.1 (64.6) |
12.0 (53.6) |
6.3 (43.3) |
1.2 (34.2) |
9.7 (49.5) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −8.9 (16.0) |
−8.4 (16.9) |
−5.7 (21.7) |
−2.7 (27.1) |
1.9 (35.4) |
7.2 (45.0) |
13.4 (56.1) |
14.0 (57.2) |
7.8 (46.0) |
2.3 (36.1) |
−2.8 (27.0) |
−5.6 (21.9) |
−8.9 (16.0) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 67.6 (2.66) |
103.6 (4.08) |
173.6 (6.83) |
196.0 (7.72) |
241.9 (9.52) |
352.6 (13.88) |
452.6 (17.82) |
410.1 (16.15) |
426.9 (16.81) |
226.4 (8.91) |
122.3 (4.81) |
95.6 (3.76) |
2,892.3 (113.87) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) | 7.5 | 9.0 | 11.7 | 10.8 | 10.8 | 14.5 | 13.8 | 13.7 | 12.8 | 9.2 | 7.6 | 7.9 | 129.3 |
| Mean monthly sunshine hours | 149.0 | 145.3 | 165.4 | 184.2 | 188.7 | 122.6 | 145.7 | 160.6 | 125.4 | 146.5 | 133.1 | 135.3 | 1,801.8 |
| Source: Japan Meteorological Agency[4][3] | |||||||||||||
Per Japanese census data,[5] the population of Motoyama has declined by more than half over the past 60 years.
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 8,476 | — |
| 1965 | 7,343 | −13.4% |
| 1970 | 7,052 | −4.0% |
| 1975 | 6,265 | −11.2% |
| 1980 | 6,011 | −4.1% |
| 1985 | 5,566 | −7.4% |
| 1990 | 5,215 | −6.3% |
| 1995 | 4,901 | −6.0% |
| 2000 | 4,657 | −5.0% |
| 2005 | 4,374 | −6.1% |
| 2010 | 4,103 | −6.2% |
| 2015 | 3,573 | −12.9% |
| 2020 | 3,261 | −8.7% |
| Source: Motoyama population statistics[5] | ||
As with all of Kōchi Prefecture, the area of Motoyama was part of ancient Tosa Province. During the Edo period, the area was part of the holdings of Tosa Domain ruled by the Yamauchi clan from their seat at Kōchi Castle. The village of Nishi-Motoyama was established with the creation of the modern municipalities system on October 1, 1889 out of 12 smaller hamlets. It was renamed Motoyama Village on June 1, 1890. Motoyama was raised to town status on June 1, 1910. On April 20, 1955, Motomachi merged with the neighboring town of Yoshino. However, on April 1, 1961, five western hamlets of Motomachi were transferred to the neighboring town of Tosa.
Motoyama has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral town council of ten members. Motoyama, together with the other municipalities of Tosa District and Nagaoka District, contributes one member to the Kōchi Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the village is part of Kōchi 1st district of the lower house of the Diet of Japan.
The economy of Motoyama is based forestry, agriculture and the raising of Japanese Brown beef cattle.
Motomachi has two public elementary schools and one public middle school operated by the town government, and one public high school operated by the Kochi Prefectural Board of Education
Motoyama has no passenger railway service. The nearest station is Ōsugi Station on the JR Shikoku Dosan Line; however, most passengers travel to Kōchi Station by bus.
Upper Darby Township, Pennsylvania, United States, friendship city since August 10, 1966
