Hōfu
Geography
Hōfu is located almost in the center of Yamaguchi Prefecture, facing the Seto Inland Sea to the south. The Saba River, a first-class water system, flows from the northwest of the city toward the Seto Inland Sea. On the offshore side, the remains of former salt fields have been reclaimed to form a plain. In the Seto Inland Sea, five islands, Sabajima, Mukaishima, Nojima, Hirashima, and Okishima, belong to the city.
Neighbouring municipalities
Yamaguchi Prefecture
Climate
Hōfu has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa) with hot summers and cool winters. Precipitation is significant throughout the year, but is much higher in summer than in winter. The average annual temperature in Hōfu is 15.9 °C (60.6 °F). The average annual rainfall is 1,653.7 mm (65.11 in) with July as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 27.5 °C (81.5 °F), and lowest in January, at around 5.0 °C (41.0 °F). The highest temperature ever recorded in Hōfu was 37.7 °C (99.9 °F) on 11 August 2013; the coldest temperature ever recorded was −8.1 °C (17.4 °F) on 22 January 2004.
| Climate data for Hōfu (1991−2020 normals, extremes 1977−present) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 18.8 (65.8) |
21.4 (70.5) |
23.9 (75.0) |
28.7 (83.7) |
31.8 (89.2) |
32.9 (91.2) |
37.4 (99.3) |
37.7 (99.9) |
36.9 (98.4) |
31.7 (89.1) |
25.9 (78.6) |
23.9 (75.0) |
37.7 (99.9) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 9.7 (49.5) |
10.7 (51.3) |
14.2 (57.6) |
19.4 (66.9) |
24.0 (75.2) |
26.7 (80.1) |
30.4 (86.7) |
31.8 (89.2) |
28.5 (83.3) |
23.5 (74.3) |
17.7 (63.9) |
12.1 (53.8) |
20.7 (69.3) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 5.0 (41.0) |
5.9 (42.6) |
9.1 (48.4) |
14.0 (57.2) |
18.8 (65.8) |
22.4 (72.3) |
26.3 (79.3) |
27.5 (81.5) |
23.9 (75.0) |
18.2 (64.8) |
12.5 (54.5) |
7.2 (45.0) |
15.9 (60.6) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 0.7 (33.3) |
1.3 (34.3) |
4.0 (39.2) |
8.7 (47.7) |
13.7 (56.7) |
18.8 (65.8) |
23.1 (73.6) |
24.0 (75.2) |
20.0 (68.0) |
13.5 (56.3) |
7.6 (45.7) |
2.7 (36.9) |
11.5 (52.7) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −8.1 (17.4) |
−7.2 (19.0) |
−5.0 (23.0) |
−0.4 (31.3) |
3.6 (38.5) |
9.6 (49.3) |
16.2 (61.2) |
17.1 (62.8) |
8.5 (47.3) |
1.8 (35.2) |
−0.9 (30.4) |
−6.0 (21.2) |
−8.1 (17.4) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 55.6 (2.19) |
68.9 (2.71) |
119.3 (4.70) |
142.8 (5.62) |
184.1 (7.25) |
241.8 (9.52) |
315.7 (12.43) |
147.7 (5.81) |
159.6 (6.28) |
88.4 (3.48) |
75.1 (2.96) |
54.9 (2.16) |
1,653.7 (65.11) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) | 8.4 | 8.7 | 10.2 | 9.7 | 8.9 | 11.7 | 10.8 | 8.0 | 9.0 | 6.0 | 7.6 | 8.6 | 107.6 |
| Mean monthly sunshine hours | 139.4 | 143.5 | 174.5 | 190.8 | 209.5 | 148.6 | 173.9 | 212.7 | 172.1 | 182.2 | 154.6 | 143.6 | 2,045.4 |
| Source: Japan Meteorological Agency | |||||||||||||
Demographics
Per Japanese census data, the population of Hōfu in 2020 is 113,979 people. Hōfu has been conducting censuses since 1920.
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 1920 | 61,807 | — |
| 1925 | 64,395 | +4.2% |
| 1930 | 65,721 | +2.1% |
| 1935 | 72,616 | +10.5% |
| 1940 | 76,389 | +5.2% |
| 1945 | 89,843 | +17.6% |
| 1950 | 93,939 | +4.6% |
| 1955 | 96,821 | +3.1% |
| 1960 | 94,513 | −2.4% |
| 1965 | 94,342 | −0.2% |
| 1970 | 97,009 | +2.8% |
| 1975 | 105,540 | +8.8% |
| 1980 | 111,468 | +5.6% |
| 1985 | 118,067 | +5.9% |
| 1990 | 117,634 | −0.4% |
| 1995 | 118,803 | +1.0% |
| 2000 | 117,724 | −0.9% |
| 2005 | 116,818 | −0.8% |
| 2010 | 116,641 | −0.2% |
| 2015 | 115,942 | −0.6% |
| 2020 | 113,979 | −1.7% |
| Hōfu population statistics | ||
History
The area of Hōfu was part of an ancient Suō Province, and the name "Hōfu" (防府) means "the capital (国府) of Suō Province (周防国)". The area has been settled since the Jōmon period. During the Nara period, the Suō Kokubun-ji was located in Hōfu. In the Edo Period, it was part of the holdings of Chōshū Domain. Following the Meiji Restoration, the area was divided into villages within Saba District, Yamaguchi, including the villages of Saba and Mitajiri with the creation of the modern municipalities system on April 1, 1889. The two villages merged to form the town of Hōfu on January 1, 1902. Hōfu was elevated to city status on August 25, 1936. The city's change over the past fifty years is shown in the animated film Mai Mai Miracle, with its story taking place in the year of 1955 (with flashbacks going 1,000 years further back).
Government
Hōfu has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral city council of 25 members. Hōfu contributes four members to the Yamaguchi Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city is part of the Yamaguchi 1st district of the lower house of the Diet of Japan.
Economy
Hōfu was a port settlement and noted for its salt production in ancient times. In the early modern period, the area rapidly industrialized, with textile mills and large scale factories established on the site of the former salt farms and coastal areas. There are a large concentration of transportation-related industries in the area. In addition to the large Mazda automobile factory companies such as Bridgestone, Kyowa Hakko Bio, and Tokai Carbon are in the city. The city is also home to an Japan Air Self-Defense Force training base.
Education
Hōfu has 17 public elementary school and ten public junior high schools operated by the city government, and three public high schools operated by the Yamaguchi Prefectural Board of Education. There are also one private junior high school and two private high schools. The private Yamaguchi Junior College is located in the city.
Transportation
Railway
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JR West (JR West) - San'yō Main Line
- Tonomi - Hōfu Freight Terminal - Hōfu - Daidō
Highways
Sister cities
Akitakata, Hiroshima, Japan since July 16, 1971
Chuncheon, Gangwon-do, South Korea since October 29, 1991
Monroe, Michigan, United States, since May 29, 1993
Local attractions
- Hōfu Tenman-gū
- Mōri Museum
- Suō Kokubun-ji, National Historic Site
- Tamanooya Shrine, ichinomiya of Suō Province
Sports
- Hofu Keirin venue
Notable people
- Gin Maeda, actor
- Kamiyama Mitsunoshin, 11th Governor-General of Taiwan
- Taneda Santōka, poet
- Hiroki Yasumoto, voice actor
References
- ^ "Hōfu City official statistics" (in Japanese). Japan.
- ^ 気象庁 / 平年値（年・月ごとの値）. JMA. Retrieved May 24, 2022.
- ^ 観測史上1～10位の値（年間を通じての値）. JMA. Retrieved May 24, 2022.
- ^ Hōfu population statistics
- ^ "市の概要・市章(Japanese)".
- ^ Stills from the film juxtaposed with modern photos Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine(in Japanese)
- ^ "Offices Archived October 7, 2009, at the Wayback Machine." Mazda. Retrieved on October 29, 2009.
- ^ "防府市の姉妹都市（安芸高田市）(Japanese)".
- ^ "防府市の姉妹都市（春川市・冬のソナタのロケ地）(Japanese)".
- ^ "Monroe, MI". Archived from the original on January 28, 2010. Retrieved March 12, 2010. Twin towning with Monroe, Michigan
- ^ "Home". hofukeirin.jp.
External links
- Hōfu City official website (in Japanese) - Google translation embedded
- Hōfu City official website at the Wayback Machine (archive index) (in English)
- Oidemase Hōfu website (in Japanese)
Geographic data related to Hōfu at OpenStreetMap
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