Tahara, Aichi

Tahara 田原市
City
Upper: Iragomisaki Lighthouse, Cape Iragomi Middle: Tahara Castle, Mt Zao Lookout Lower:Kazan Jinja, Akahane Beach
Cinnamomum camphora

Tahara (田原市, Tahara-shi) is a city in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. As of 1 October 2019^[update], the city had an estimated population of 60,206 in 22,576 households,^[1] and a population density of 315 persons per km². The total area of the city is 191.12 square kilometres (73.79 sq mi).

Geography

Tahara is situated in southern

.

Climate

The city has a climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and relatively mild winters (Köppen climate classification Cfa). The average annual temperature in Tahara is 16.4 °C (61.5 °F). The average annual rainfall is 1,642.1 mm (64.65 in) with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 27.4 °C (81.3 °F), and lowest in January, at around 6.0 °C (42.8 °F).^[3]

Demographics

Per Japanese census data,^[5] the population of Tahara has been relatively steady over the past 60 years.

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±%
1950	65,095	—
1960	59,120	−9.2%
1970	56,248	−4.9%
1980	60,581	+7.7%
1990	64,978	+7.3%
2000	65,534	+0.9%
2010	64,128	−2.1%

Neighboring municipalities

Aichi Prefecture

• Toyohashi

History

Origin

The area of present-day Tahara has been continuously occupied since prehistoric times. Archaeologists have found numerous remains from the Jōmon period and burial mounds from the Kofun period.

Ancient history

During the

.

Middle Ages

During the Kamakura period, the area was noted for production of a certain type of pottery. During the Sengoku period, the area was under the control of the Toda clan, who constructed Tahara Castle.

Early modern period

The Toda, who were allied with

. The Toda were later replaced by the Miyake clan, who ruled until the end of the Tokugawa shogunate. The noted scholar Watanabe Kazan was from Tahara.

Late modern period

At the start of the

with the establishment of the modern municipalities system. Tahara Village was elevated to town status on October 3, 1892, and Fukue village became Fukue Town on February 22, 1897.

Contemporary history

Fukue later changed its name to Atsumi Town on April 15, 1955. On November 11, 1958, the village of Akabane [ja] was raised to town status.

The city of Tahara was established on August 20, 2003, from the merger the former town of Tahara, absorbing the town of Akabane (both from Atsumi District) to elevate city status. On October 1, 2005, the town of Atsumi (also from Atsumi District) was merged into Tahara. Therefore, Atsumi District was dissolved as a result of this merger.

Government

Tahara has a

.

External relations

Twin towns – Sister cities

International

Sister city

• Georgetown (Kentucky, United States of America)
  • since April 20, 1990
• Princeton (Indiana, United States of America)
  • since August 8, 2002

Friendship city

• Kunshan (Jiangsu, China)
  • since May 14, 1993^[6]
• Dongjak-gu (Seoul, South Korea
  )
  • since December 2006[6]

National

Friendship city

• Shitara (Aichi Prefecture, Chūbu region)
  • since Marchi 24, 1999
• Miyata (Nagano Prefecture, Chūbu region
  )
  • since November 9, 1999

Economy

Tahara is a regional commercial center with a mixed economy of manufacturing and agriculture. Due to its long coastline, Tahara has many ports for commercial fishing.

Secondary sector of the economy

Manufacturing

The main industrial employer is

models. The Toyota Celica was manufactured in Tahara from 1979 to 1999. Many Lexus models are manufactured within this plant, as are many Toyota models for domestic and international markets.

Lifeline

Energy

Tahara has a

Education

Schools

Tahara has 18 public elementary schools, five public middle schools operated by the city government and three public high schools operated by the Aichi Prefectural Board of Education.

Transportation

Kilometre Zero

of Tahara

Railways

Conventional lines

Toyohashi Railroad

• Atsumi Line: - Yagumadai – Toshima – Kambe – Mikawa Tahara

Bus

Bus services

Toyotetsu buses and city-operated environmentally friendly public transport facilitate access throughout Tahara, even to the westernmost point at

.

Roads

Japan National Route

• National Route 259 is the main highway that runs the length of Atsumi Peninsula. An alternate reading of the kanji in this highway numeral designation is ji-go-ku. In Japanese, the word jigoku means Hell, and thus some locals refer to it as ji-go-ku-douro, or the "Highway to Hell". This term was encouraged by the perception of a higher fatality rate along the road, especially before it was widened and improved.
• National Route 42

Seaways

Seaports

From the Port of Irago, the

.

Local attractions

• shell midden
  and National Historic Site
• Irago Tōdai-ji Tile Kiln ruins, Kamakura-period kiln ruins, a National Historic Site
• Ōarako Old Kiln ruins, a National Historic Site
• Site of Tahara Castle
• Kojigahama Beach, Cape Irago, the wave sounds of which were listed as one of the 100 Soundscapes of Japan by the Ministry of the Environment^[10]
• Kazan Jinja
• Akabane Long Beach, also known as "Akabane Beach" or "Long Beach", is a very scenic area for locals and tourists. The Akabane Beach hosted the 2018 World Surfing Games, among other international surfing competitions over the years.

• 
  Cape Irago
• 
  View of Cape Irago from Irako View Hotel
• 
  Akabane Long Beach
• 
  Rape Blossoms
• 
  Tahara Castle
• 
  Nishinohama Wind Farm
• 
  Yoshigo Kaizuka

Notable people

• Watanabe Kazan, Edo period samurai and artist
• Noboru Ueda, motorcycle racer
• Kayoko Okubo, comedian

References

External links

• Media related to Tahara, Aichi at Wikimedia Commons
• Tahara travel guide from Wikivoyage
• Geographic data related to Tahara, Aichi at OpenStreetMap
• Official website (in Japanese) (with link to English pages)