Hagi, Yamaguchi

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Hagi
萩市
City
Hagi castle town
Hagi castle town
Flag of Hagi
Flag
Location of Hagi in Yamaguchi Prefecture
Location of Hagi in Yamaguchi Prefecture
Hagi is located in Japan
Hagi
Hagi
Location in Japan
Coordinates: Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Country Japan
Region Chūgoku (San'yō)
Prefecture Yamaguchi Prefecture
Government
 • Mayor Kōji Nomura
Area
 • Total 698.86 km2 (269.83 sq mi)
Population (2010)
 • Total 53,606
 • Density 77/km2 (200/sq mi)
Time zone Japan Standard Time (UTC+9)
Website www.city.hagi.lg.jp

Hagi ( Hagi?) is a city located in Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan, which was incorporated on July 1, 1932.

As of March 31, 2012, the city has an estimated population of 53,606 and a population density of 77 of persons per km². The total area is 698.86 km².

On March 6, 2005, Hagi absorbed the towns of Susa and Tamagawa, and the villages of Asahi, Fukue, Kawakami and Mutsumi (all from Abu District) to create the new, expanded city of Hagi.

Iwami Airport in nearby Masuda, Shimane Prefecture serves Hagi.

History

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Traditional path in Hagi

In the medieval period, Hagi was dominated by the Yoshimi clan, who built Hagi Castle, of which the ruins can be visited today. The Mōri clan became daimyo of Chōshū Domain at the beginning of the Edo period and built Hagi Castle at the foot of Mt. Shizuki in 1608. They transferred the capital of the domain from Hiroshima to Hagi at the same time. Since then, Hagi developed as the political center of Chōshū for over 250 years.

When the Meiji Restoration came about in the 1860s, as the result of efforts by samurai from Chōshū and a number of other domains, this small city gained great historical significance. Many Japanese statesmen and Prime Ministers were born and brought up in this city.

Population

Historical population
Year Pop. ±% p.a.
1955 97,744 —    
1960 93,245 −0.94%
1970 77,962 −1.77%
1980 74,846 −0.41%
1990 68,999 −0.81%
Year Pop. ±% p.a.
1995 65,293 −1.10%
2000 61,745 −1.11%
2005 57,989 −1.25%
2010 53,606 −1.56%
Source: [1]

One of the factors underlying the continual decrease of population is said to be its poor public transport. Industry didn't grow at all and the rapid economic growth of Japan only caused the town to decline. But it also left the traditional precious town as it is.

Climate

Climate data for Hagi, Yamaguchi (1981-2010)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 18.8
(65.8)
23.6
(74.5)
25.9
(78.6)
30.7
(87.3)
32.0
(89.6)
34.3
(93.7)
36.6
(97.9)
37.9
(100.2)
37.4
(99.3)
32.0
(89.6)
26.5
(79.7)
21.6
(70.9)
37.9
(100.2)
Average high °C (°F) 9.2
(48.6)
10.0
(50)
13.0
(55.4)
18.1
(64.6)
22.2
(72)
25.3
(77.5)
29.3
(84.7)
30.8
(87.4)
26.8
(80.2)
22.1
(71.8)
17.1
(62.8)
12.0
(53.6)
19.7
(67.5)
Average low °C (°F) 2.5
(36.5)
2.6
(36.7)
4.6
(40.3)
9.1
(48.4)
13.7
(56.7)
18.3
(64.9)
22.8
(73)
23.7
(74.7)
19.5
(67.1)
13.4
(56.1)
8.7
(47.7)
4.5
(40.1)
12.0
(53.6)
Record low °C (°F) −5.8
(21.6)
−6.8
(19.8)
−3.9
(25)
−0.3
(31.5)
3.0
(37.4)
8.6
(47.5)
12.2
(54)
15.2
(59.4)
8.1
(46.6)
3.9
(39)
0.6
(33.1)
−3.8
(25.2)
−6.8
(19.8)
Average rainfall mm (inches) 90.0
(3.543)
79.0
(3.11)
124.2
(4.89)
118.8
(4.677)
147.5
(5.807)
227.2
(8.945)
265.0
(10.433)
139.2
(5.48)
207.3
(8.161)
92.7
(3.65)
91.6
(3.606)
75.7
(2.98)
1,658.2
(65.282)
Average rainy days 22.6 19.7 19.7 15.3 14.6 16.3 17.4 14.8 16.8 13.8 16.5 20.5 208
Average relative humidity (%) 67 67 71 71 74 80 81 78 79 75 72 68 73.6
Mean monthly sunshine hours 77.0 95.6 141.4 181.7 197.8 151.1 165.6 205.7 155.2 167.1 119.6 92.1 1,749.9
Source #1: Japan Meteorological Agency[2]
Source #2: Japan Meteorological Agency[3]

Hagi-yaki

The city was the capital of the Chōshū Domain during the Edo period (ca. 1603–1868). Hagi is renowned for hagi-yaki, a form of Japanese pottery dating from 1604 when two Korean potters were brought to Hagi by Mori Terumoto. Hagi was also the location for an International Sculpture Symposium in 1981. Twenty-six international sculptors working worked together to create a seaside park. They created many functional sculptures, including tables and benches.

Literature

People

Tamae Kannon

Sister cities

Since 1968, Hagi has been a sister city to Ulsan (울산광역시, 蔚山廣域市), a fishing port and market centre in the southeast of South Korea.

References

  1. National Census by Statistics Bureau Japan
  2. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

External links