Sakata, Yamagata

Sakata 酒田市
City
Sakata Festival, held annually in May
Flag Seal
Location of Sakata in Yamagata Prefecture
Sakata
Coordinates: 38°54′52.1″N 139°50′11.2″E / 38.914472°N 139.836444°E / 38.914472; 139.836444Coordinates: 38°54′52.1″N 139°50′11.2″E / 38.914472°N 139.836444°E / 38.914472; 139.836444
Country	Japan
Region	Tōhoku
Prefecture	Yamagata Prefecture
Area
• Total	602.97 km2 (232.81 sq mi)
Population (October 2015)
• Total	105,022
• Density	174/km2 (450/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+9 (Japan Standard Time)
- Tree	Zelkova
- Flower	Hemerocallis
- Bird	Aquila chrysaetos
Phone number	0234-22-5111
Address	2-2-45, Honchō, Sakata-shi, Yamagata-ken 998-8540
Website	http://www.city.sakata.lg.jp/

Sakata City Hall

Sakata (酒田市, Sakata-shi) is a city located in Yamagata Prefecture, Japan. As of October 2015, the city has an estimated population of 105,022, and a population density of 174 persons per km². The total area is 602.97 square kilometres (232.81 sq mi).

Geography

Sakata is located in the coastal plains of the northwest corner of Yamagata Prefecture, bordered by the Sea of Japan to the west, and by Akita Prefecture to the north. The Mogami River runs through the city, which has Mount Chōkai on its northern border. The inhabited island of Tobishima, approximately 38 kilometres (24 mi) off the coast of the mainland, is within the administrative borders of the city. The island, as well as part of the mainland portion of the city, is within the borders of the Chōkai Quasi-National Park^[1]

Climate

Sakata has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa) with very warm summers and cool winters. Precipitation is plentiful throughout the year, although the months from February to June have somewhat less rainfall.

History

The area of present-day Sakata was the location of the provincial capital of ancient Dewa Province, although the precise location has yet to be discovered by archeologists. A port at the mouth of the Mogami River is known to have existed since the Kamakura period. Although silting rendered it less important in the Muromachi period, the area developed as a major center for the kitamaebune coastal trade during the Edo period. By the early Meiji period, the Honma clan, a local merchant clan, dominated trade and emerged as the largest landholder in Japan.

With the establishment of the municipalities system after the start of the Meiji period, the area was organized as Sakata Town under Akumi District, Yamagata Prefecture in 1878. Approximately 80% of the town was destroyed by the 1894 Shōkai earthquake and subsequent fires. The modern city of Sakata was founded on April 1, 1933. The city largely escaped damage during World War II, save for a lone air raid on its port district on August 10, 1945, which left 30 people dead or missing. On October 29, 1976 Sakata suffered from a major fire which gutted 22.5 hectares of its city center, destroying 1,774 buildings and injuring 964 people (and one fatality).

On November 1, 2005, the towns of Hirata, Matsuyama and Yawata (all from Akumi District) were merged into Sakata.

Economy

The economy of Sakata is based on light manufacturing, agriculture and commercial fishing. Major employers include Maeta Seikan,^[2] which makes concrete products and has played a major role in supporting reconstruction after the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Kao, a chemical and cosmetics company^[3] and the electronics company, Seiko Epson. Seiko Epson uses the local Shonai Airport for weekly employee charter flights to and from Matsumoto, Nagano since 1997.

Transportation

Education

Health care

• Prefectural Nihonkai Hospital
• Municipal Sakata Hospital
• Municipal Yawata Hospital
• Homma Hospital

Media

Sister city relations

• Tangshan, Hebei, China^[4] – since July 26, 1990
• Zheleznogorsk-Ilimsky, Irkutsk Oblast, Russia^[4] – since October 8, 1979
• Delaware, Ohio, USA - since April 19, 2017^[5]

Local attractions

Culture

Sakata Festival is a historical festival held every year in the center of the city between May 19 and May 21. The first festival was held in 1609 during the Edo period. In the past, it was called Sannou Festival. However, after a large fire damaged much of Sakata in 1976, the festival became a memorial event and was renamed Sakata Festival. There is a large parade in the central streets of the city, which features festival floats and dancers from schools, local companies and community organisations. Huge 'shishi gashira' (lion heads) are symbols of the festival. It is said that children chewed by the shishi gashira will become smart and healthy. About 350 stalls line the side of the main street selling snacks, drinks and crafts.^[16]

Sakata was the shooting location for the following movies:

• Okuribito (English title Departures), 2008, winner of the Oscar for best foreign film.^[17] Set in present time, a newly unemployed cellist takes a job preparing the dead for funerals.
• Silk, 2007, a film set in the 19th century, about a silkworm merchant and his love life, based on the novel by Alessandro Baricco
• Oshin, 2013, a film about the life of a young girl named Oshin who grew up in poverty in the Sakata region. The film was directed by Shin Togashi.^[18]

Notable people from Sakata

• Teiji Honma, ice hockey goaltender
• Ken Domon, photographer
• Kumiko Ikeda, long jumper
• Kinnosuke Ogura, mathematician
• Shūmei Ōkawa, nationalist
• Seiko Shimakage, volleyball player and golfer
• Homma Munehisa, legendary 18th century rice trader
• Haruo Nakajima, Japanese actor, best known for portraying Godzilla from the 1950s through the early 1970s
• Yoshiki Aoki, legendary Trials Frontier player

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sakata, Yamagata.

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Sakata.

• Official Website (in Japanese)