Yamamoto, Miyagi

Yamamoto
山元町
Town
Yamamoto Town Office

Flag
Seal

Location of Yamamoto in Miyagi Prefecture
Yamamoto
 
Coordinates: 37°57′44.5″N 140°52′39″E / 37.962361°N 140.87750°E / 37.962361; 140.87750Coordinates: 37°57′44.5″N 140°52′39″E / 37.962361°N 140.87750°E / 37.962361; 140.87750
Country  Japan
Region Tōhoku
Prefecture Miyagi
District Watari
Area
 • Total 64.58 km2 (24.93 sq mi)
Population (August 2017)
 • Total 12,452
 • Density 193/km2 (500/sq mi)
Time zone UTC+9 (Japan Standard Time)
- Tree Japanese black pine
- Flower Azalea
- Bird Barn swallow
Phone number 0223-37-1111
Address Aasehara Sakutayama 31, Yamamoto-chō, Watari-gun, Miyagi-ken 989-2292
Website http://www.town.yamamoto.miyagi.jp/

Yamamoto (山元町, Yamamoto-chō) is a town located in Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. As of 1 August 2017, the town had an estimated population of 12,452, and a population density of 193 persons per km² in 4664 households.[1] The total area of the town is 64.58 square kilometres (24.93 sq mi).

Geography

Yamamoto is located in south-east Miyagi Prefecture in the Tōhoku region of northern Japan. It us bordered by the Pacific Ocean to the east, and Fukushima Prefecture to the south. Yamamoto has a humid climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa) characterized by mild summers and cold winters. The average annual temperature in Yamamoto is 12.6 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1252 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 24.8 °C, and lowest in January, at around 1.7 °C.[2]

Neighboring municipalities

Demographics

Per Japanese census data,[3] the population of Yamamoto peaked at around the year 2000, and has dropped rapidly since.

Census Year Population
1970 14,820
1980 17,630
1990 18,268
2000 18,537
2010 16,704

History

The area of present-day Yamamoto was part of ancient Mutsu Province, and was part of the holdings of Sendai Domain under the Edo period Tokugawa shogunate. The village of Yamamoto was established on April 1, 1889 with the establishment of post-Meiji restoration modern municipalities system. It was raised to town status on February 1, 1951 by merging with the neighboring village of Sakamoto.

Yamamoto was devastated by the 8.9 – 9.0 MW megathrust earthquake off the coast of Japan that occurred at 14:46 JST (05:46 UTC) on 11 March 2011 and resultant tsunami.[4] Eyewitness accounts describe Yamamoto as "one of the worst-hit areas" with no houses left undamaged.[5]

Economy

The economy of Yamamoto is largely based on agriculture and commercial fishing.

Education

Yamamoto has four public elementary schools and two public middle schools operated by the town government. The town does not have a public high school; however, there is a special education school operated by the Miyagi Prefectural Board of Education.

Transportation

Railway

Highway

Noted people from Yamamoto

References

  1. ↑ Yamamoto Town official home page (in Japanese)
  2. ↑ Yamamoto climate data
  3. ↑ Yamamoto population statistics
  4. ↑ Reilly, Michael (11 March 2011). "Japan's quake updated to magnitude 9.0". New Scientist (Short Sharp Science ed.). Retrieved 11 March 2011.
  5. ↑ Japan fights to avert nuclear meltdown, ABC News

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