Yuzawa, Niigata

Yuzawa
湯沢町
Town

Yuzawa town hall

Flag
Seal

Location of Yuzawa in Niigata
Yuzawa

 

Coordinates: 36°56′2.4″N 138°49′2.8″E / 36.934000°N 138.817444°E / 36.934000; 138.817444Coordinates: 36°56′2.4″N 138°49′2.8″E / 36.934000°N 138.817444°E / 36.934000; 138.817444
Country Japan
Region Chūbu (Kōshin'etsu) (Hokuriku)
Prefecture NIigata
District Minamiuonuma
Area
 • Total 357.29 km2 (137.95 sq mi)
Population (June 2016)
 • Total 7,972
 • Density 22.3/km2 (58/sq mi)
Time zone Japan Standard Time (UTC+9)
Symbols  
• Tree Prunus sargentii
• Flower Cosmos
Phone number 025-784-3451
Address 300 Kandatsu, Yuzawa-machi, Minami-Uonuma-gun, Niigata-ken 949-6192
Website www.town.yuzawa.lg.jp

Yuzawa (湯沢町 Yuzawa-machi) is a town located in Minamiuonuma District, Niigata Prefecture, in the Hokuriku region of Japan. As of 1 June 2016, the town had an estimated population of 7,972 and a population density of 22.3 persons per km². Its total area was 257.29 square kilometres (99.34 sq mi). The town is famous for its hot springs.

Geography

Yuzawa is located in southwestern Niigata Prefecture, in a mountainous area bordering northern Nagano Prefecture and northern Gunma Prefecture. Due to its geographical location between the Sea of Japan and the surrounding Japanese Alps it has one of the highest annual snowfalls in Japan. There are numerous ski resorts within the region. Mount Naeba, 2143 meters, is partly located within the town limits.

Surrounding municipalities

History

The area of present-day Yuzawa was part of ancient Echigo Province. The village of Yuzawa was established on April 1, 1889 with the creation of the municipalities system. It was raised to town status on March 31, 1955 by merger with the villages of Kandatsu, Tsuchidaru, Mitsumata, and Mikuni.

Education

Yuzawa has one public elementary schools and one public middle school. The town no longer has a high school.

Climate

Climate data for Yuzawa, Niigata (1981-2010)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Average high °C (°F) 2.8
(37)		 3.3
(37.9)		 7.2
(45)		 15.3
(59.5)		 21.4
(70.5)		 24.8
(76.6)		 28.2
(82.8)		 29.9
(85.8)		 25.1
(77.2)		 18.8
(65.8)		 12.6
(54.7)		 6.3
(43.3)		 16.31
(61.34)
Daily mean °C (°F) −0.5
(31.1)		 −0.3
(31.5)		 2.7
(36.9)		 9.2
(48.6)		 15.3
(59.5)		 19.6
(67.3)		 23.2
(73.8)		 24.7
(76.5)		 20.2
(68.4)		 13.8
(56.8)		 7.7
(45.9)		 2.3
(36.1)		 11.49
(52.7)
Average low °C (°F) −3.6
(25.5)		 −3.7
(25.3)		 −1.1
(30)		 3.9
(39)		 9.8
(49.6)		 15.2
(59.4)		 19.3
(66.7)		 20.5
(68.9)		 16.4
(61.5)		 9.7
(49.5)		 3.7
(38.7)		 −0.9
(30.4)		 7.43
(45.38)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 307.6
(12.11)		 213.1
(8.39)		 154.9
(6.098)		 101.8
(4.008)		 105.3
(4.146)		 134.8
(5.307)		 202.1
(7.957)		 192.3
(7.571)		 186.9
(7.358)		 164.1
(6.461)		 193.9
(7.634)		 274.2
(10.795)		 2,231
(87.835)
Average snowfall cm (inches) 411
(161.8)		 319
(125.6)		 186
(73.2)		 41
(16.1)		 0
(0)		 0
(0)		 0
(0)		 0
(0)		 0
(0)		 0
(0)		 18
(7.1)		 208
(81.9)		 1,183
(465.7)
Mean monthly sunshine hours 57.6 73.0 102.8 146.4 171.0 132.8 134.1 157.9 102.9 103.3 89.6 70.4 1,341.8
Source: Japan Meteorological Agency

Transportation

Railway

Highway

Local attractions

Mount Naeba in Yuzawa

Ski resorts

There are a large number of ski resorts in the area. The town is served by the Echigo-Yuzawa and Gala-Yuzawa stations on the Jōetsu Shinkansen line, making it one of the most easily accessible winter sports areas from Tokyo, and the town's economy is reliant principally on skiing and snowboarding.

Cultural references

Yasunari Kawabata's classic novel Snow Country takes place in Yuzawa.[1]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Lindelauf, Perrin, "Finding the fabled Snow Country", Japan Times, 18 January 2009, p. 12.
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/18/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.