Ōkuwa

Ōkuwa (大桑村, Ōkuwa-mura) is a village located in Nagano Prefecture, Japan. As of 1 April 2019, the village had an estimated population of 3,693 in 1558 households, and a population density of 16 persons per km². The total area of the village is 234.47 square kilometres (90.53 sq mi).

Ōkuwa 大桑村
Village
Ōkuwa Village Hall
Flag Seal
Location of Ōkuwa in Nagano Prefecture
Ōkuwa
Coordinates: 35°40′58.2″N 137°39′53.9″E
Country	Japan
Region	Chūbu (Kōshin'etsu)
Prefecture	Nagano
District	Kiso
Area
• Total	234.47 km2 (90.53 sq mi)
Population  (April 2019)
• Total	3,693
• Density	16/km2 (41/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+9 (Japan Standard Time)
Symbols
• Tree	Chamaecyparis obtusa
• Flower	Rhododendron subg. Hymenanthes
Phone number	0264-55-3080
Address	2778 Nagano, Ōkuwa-mura, Kiso-gun, Nagano-ken 399-5503
Website	Official website

Ōkuwa village form Mount Doppo

Geography

Ōkuwa is located in the Kiso Mountains of southwest Nagano Prefecture, bordered by the Atera Mountains to the west. The Kiso River flows through the village. Mount Utsugi (2864 meters) and Mount Minamikoma (2841 meters) are on the border of the village.

Surrounding municipalities

• Gifu Prefecture
  • Nakatsugawa
• Nagano Prefecture
  • Agematsu
  • Iida
  • Iijima
  • Komagane
  • Nagiso
  • Ōtaki

Climate

The town has a climate characterized by characterized by hot and humid summers, and cold winters (Köppen climate classification Cfa). The average annual temperature in Ōkuwa is 12.6 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1680 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 25.1 °C, and lowest in January, at around 0.4 °C.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data, the population of Ōkuwa has decreased over the past 60 years.

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±%
1940	6,274	—
1950	7,362	+17.3%
1960	7,994	+8.6%
1970	6,338	−20.7%
1980	5,637	−11.1%
1990	5,160	−8.5%
2000	4,770	−7.6%
2010	4,146	−13.1%
2020	3,439	−17.1%

History

The area of present-day Ōkuwa was part of ancient Shinano Province. The area developed as Suhara-juku and Nojiri-shuku two post stations on the Nakasendō highway connecting Edo with Kyoto during the Edo period. The present village of Ōkuwa was established on April 1, 1889 by the establishment of the modern municipalities system.

Education

Ōkuwa has one public elementary school and one public middle school operated by the town government. The village does not have a high school.

Transportation

Railway

• [JR Tōkai - Chūō Main Line
  • Suhara - Ōkuwa - Nojiri

Highway

• National Route 19

International relations

• – Shelbyville, Illinois, USA, sister city

External links

• Media related to Okuwa, Nagano at Wikimedia Commons
• Official Website (in Japanese)