Tosashimizu, Kōchi

Tosashimizu 土佐清水市
City
View of Pacific Ocean and Cape Ashizuri View of Pacific Ocean and Cape Ashizuri
Official seal of Tosashimizu Symbol
Location of Tosashimizu in Kōchi Prefecture Location of Tosashimizu in Kōchi Prefecture
Tosashimizu Location in Japan
Coordinates:
Country	Japan
Region	Shikoku
Prefecture	Kōchi Prefecture
Government
• Mayor	Shinichirō Nishimura
Area
• Total	266.54 km2 (102.91 sq mi)
Population (February 29, 2012)
• Total	16,069
• Density	60.29/km2 (156.2/sq mi)
Symbols
• Tree	Akō (Ficus superba Miq. var. japonica Miq.)
• Flower	Camellia
• Bird	Blue Rock-thrush
• Fish	Mejika
Time zone	Japan Standard Time (UTC+9)
City Hall Address	11-2 Tenjinmachi, Tosashimizu-shi, Kōchi-ken 787-0392
Website	www.city.tosashimizu.kochi.jp

Tosashimizu (土佐清水市, Tosashimizu-shi) is a city located in Kōchi Prefecture, Japan. The city was founded on August 1, 1954.

As of February 29, 2012, the city has an estimated population of 16,069, with 7,984 households and a population density of 60.29 persons per km². The total area is 266.54 km².

The village of Nakanohama in what is now Tosashimizu City is the birthplace of John Manjiro (Manjiro Nakahama), the first Japanese to reach the United States. Manjiro, a young fisherman, was shipwrecked off the coast of Japan in 1841 and rescued by whaling captain William Whitfield of Fairhaven, Massachusetts. Whitfield brought the young Manjiro back to Fairhaven and New Bedford at the end of the whaling voyage, and Manjiro spent several years there before eventually making his way back to Japan. Because of this history, Tosashimizu became the sister city of both Fairhaven and New Bedford in 1987.

Sister cities

• New Bedford, Massachusetts, USA
• Fairhaven, Massachusetts, USA

External links

• Tosashimizu City official website (Japanese)