Uwajima, Ehime

Coordinates: 33°13′N 132°34′E / 33.217°N 132.567°E / 33.217; 132.567
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Uwajima
宇和島市
View of Uwajima Bay and downtown Uwajima from Uwajima Castle
View of Uwajima Bay and downtown Uwajima from Uwajima Castle
Flag of Uwajima
Official seal of Uwajima
Map
Location of Uwajima in Ehime Prefecture
Uwajima is located in Japan
Uwajima
Uwajima
Location in Japan
Coordinates: 33°13′N 132°34′E / 33.217°N 132.567°E / 33.217; 132.567
CountryJapan
RegionShikoku
PrefectureEhime
Government
 • MayorFumiaki Okahara (since 2013)
Area
 • Total468.19 km2 (180.77 sq mi)
Population
 (September 1, 2022)
 • Total70,440
 • Density150/km2 (390/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+09:00 (JST)
City hall address1 Akebonochō, Uwajima-shi, Ehime-ken 798-8601
ClimateCfa
WebsiteOfficial website
Symbols
FlowerCitrus unshiu
TreeQuerus phillyraeoides
Uwajma City Hall
Aerial view of Uwajma city center
Japan National Route 320 in Uwajma city center

Uwajima (宇和島市, Uwajima-shi) is a city located in Ehime Prefecture, Japan. As of 1 September 2022, the city had an estimated population of 70,440 in 35429 households and a population density of 150 persons per km2.[1] The total area of the city is 468.19 square kilometres (180.77 sq mi).

Geography

Uwajima is located in southwestern Ehime Prefecture, facing the wide rias coastline and remote islands, Uwa Bay on the

JR Shikoku Yosan Line
, people other than local residents tend to think that it is the westernmost city in Ehime Prefecture.

Neighbouring municipalities

Ehime Prefecture

Kōchi Prefecture

Climate

Uwajima has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa) with hot summers and cool winters. Precipitation is significant throughout the year, but is highest from June to September.

Climate data for Uwajima (1991−2020 normals, extremes 1922−present)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 22.5
(72.5)
23.7
(74.7)
26.8
(80.2)
30.0
(86.0)
31.7
(89.1)
35.9
(96.6)
40.2
(104.4)
38.4
(101.1)
36.1
(97.0)
33.0
(91.4)
28.2
(82.8)
24.3
(75.7)
40.2
(104.4)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 11.3
(52.3)
12.3
(54.1)
15.6
(60.1)
20.4
(68.7)
24.3
(75.7)
26.7
(80.1)
31.0
(87.8)
32.2
(90.0)
29.0
(84.2)
24.5
(76.1)
19.1
(66.4)
13.8
(56.8)
21.7
(71.0)
Daily mean °C (°F) 7.0
(44.6)
7.6
(45.7)
10.7
(51.3)
15.3
(59.5)
19.5
(67.1)
22.8
(73.0)
26.8
(80.2)
27.7
(81.9)
24.5
(76.1)
19.3
(66.7)
14.1
(57.4)
9.1
(48.4)
17.0
(62.7)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 2.9
(37.2)
3.2
(37.8)
5.9
(42.6)
10.4
(50.7)
14.9
(58.8)
19.4
(66.9)
23.4
(74.1)
24.3
(75.7)
20.9
(69.6)
15.1
(59.2)
9.8
(49.6)
5.0
(41.0)
12.9
(55.3)
Record low °C (°F) −5.6
(21.9)
−6.2
(20.8)
−4.2
(24.4)
−0.7
(30.7)
2.8
(37.0)
9.0
(48.2)
14.5
(58.1)
16.2
(61.2)
8.7
(47.7)
2.9
(37.2)
−0.4
(31.3)
−3.3
(26.1)
−6.2
(20.8)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 61.2
(2.41)
74.8
(2.94)
115.6
(4.55)
116.7
(4.59)
149.0
(5.87)
286.0
(11.26)
245.0
(9.65)
177.1
(6.97)
215.9
(8.50)
129.8
(5.11)
86.4
(3.40)
70.2
(2.76)
1,727.5
(68.01)
Average snowfall cm (inches) 3
(1.2)
3
(1.2)
0
(0)
0
(0)
0
(0)
0
(0)
0
(0)
0
(0)
0
(0)
0
(0)
0
(0)
0
(0)
6
(2.4)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) 9.2 8.6 10.9 9.3 8.7 13.3 10.8 8.8 9.9 7.3 7.6 8.9 113.3
Average snowy days (≥ 1 cm) 0.7 0.8 0.1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1.6
Average
relative humidity
(%)
66 66 67 67 71 78 78 75 76 74 72 69 72
Mean monthly sunshine hours 110.1 132.0 167.7 187.7 197.0 139.0 195.1 219.8 169.5 171.9 135.4 110.0 1,933.4
Source: Japan Meteorological Agency[2][3]

Demographics

Per Japanese census data,[4] the population of Uwajima has been decreased steadily since the 1960s.

Historical population
YearPop.±%
1960 132,146—    
1970 111,648−15.5%
1980 110,920−0.7%
1990 105,030−5.3%
2000 95,641−8.9%
2010 84,212−11.9%
2020 70,809−15.9%

History

The area of Uwajima was part of ancient

Meiji restoration.[5]

Following the Meiji restoration, the town of Uwajima was created with the establishment of the modern municipalities system. In 1917, Maruho Village was merged into Uwajima. The town of Uwajima merged with the village of Yahata on August 1, 1921 and was raised to city status. The city was extended by combining Kushima Village in 1934 and renovating the bay area for factory usage. The center of the city was largely destroyed by bombing during World War II in 1945; however, post-war reconstruction was rapid. In 1955, Uwajima annexed Miura and Takamitsu Villages and Uwaumi village in 1974. On August 1, 2005 Uwajima absorbed the towns of Mima, Tsushima and Yoshida (all from Kitauwa District) .

Government

Uwajima has a

Diet of Japan
.

Economy

Uwajima is the largest municipality of southwestern, but industry is poorly developed except for a single shipyard. Commercial fishing, taking advantage of the ria coastline, aquaculture and cultured pearls is the mainstay of the local economy.

Education

Uwajima has 30 public elementary schools and six public middle schools operated by the city government. The city has five public high schools operated by the Ehime Prefectural Board of Education.

Transportation

Railways

Shikoku Railway Company - Yosan Line

Shikoku Railway Company - Yodo Line

Highways

Ports

Local attractions

A mask of the Cow Demon (牛鬼, ushioni), one of the many used at the bullfighting festival.
  • Uwajima Castle is well known as one of the 12 Japanese castles to have an original donjon built in the Edo Period.
  • Date Family Museum[6] which features many historically important objects tied to the history of the region and the Daimyō family Date which ruled this area.
  • sex museum
    , filled with artifacts and paintings from around the world.
  • matador
    . Two bulls fight in a ring until one bull's knees touch the ground or flees, marking it the loser. Bullfights are generally held in January, April, July, and August.
  • Ryūkō-ji, 41st temple on the Shikoku Pilgrimage
  • Butsumoku-ji, 42nd temple on the Shikoku Pilgrimage

Tsushima

Tsushima occupies an area of approximately 200 km2 and has a significant proportion of Uwajima's current land area, despite not being highly populated (fewer than 15,000 people). It's made up of small villages that shared a municipal government as Tsushima until they were amalgamated into Uwajima.

Tsushima is known for the Iwamatsu River and its annual festival where people eat tiny, live fish, as well as pearl and fish farming. It is part of the prefecture's

mikan industry.[7]

Notable people from Uwajima, Ehime

Gallery

  • Uwajima Castle
  • Uwajima as viewed from the castle
    Uwajima as viewed from the castle
  • Warei Shrine
    Warei Shrine
  • Taga Shrine statues
    Taga Shrine statues

References

  1. ^ "Uwajima city official statistics" (in Japanese). Japan.
  2. ^ 宇和島 平年値(年・月ごとの値) 主な要素 (in Japanese). Japan Meteorological Agency. Retrieved May 15, 2018.
  3. ^ 宇和島(愛媛県) 主な要素 (in Japanese). Japan Meteorological Agency. Retrieved May 15, 2018.
  4. ^ Uwajima population statistics
  5. .(in Japanese)
  6. ^ http://www.city.uwajima.ehime.jp/datehaku [dead link]
  7. ^ Ehime 2015 Guidebook (PDF). p. 50. Retrieved March 3, 2021.
  8. ^ "Bishop Raymond Ken'ichi Tanaka". Union of Catholic Asian News. Archived from the original on August 5, 2021. Retrieved August 5, 2021.

External links