was a village

Villages of Japan

A is a local administrative unit in Japan.It is a local public body along with , , and . Geographically, a village's extent is contained within a prefecture....

 located in the former Nishikanbara District

Nishikanbara District, Niigata

is a district located in Niigata, Japan.As of March 20, 2006, the district has an estimated population of 8,537. The total area is 25.22 km².- Towns and villages :On March 20, 2006, the towns of Bunsui and Yoshida merged with the former city of Tsubame...

, Niigata

Niigata Prefecture

is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Honshū on the coast of the Sea of Japan. The capital is the city of Niigata. The name "Niigata" literally means "new lagoon".- History :...

, Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

. The area is famous for onsen

Onsen

An is a term for hot springs in the Japanese language, though the term is often used to describe the bathing facilities and inns around the hot springs. As a volcanically active country, Japan has thousands of onsen scattered along its length and breadth...

 near Yahiko mountain

Yahiko, Niigata

is a village in Nishikanbara District, Niigata, Japan.It is the only village left in its district after the two towns from the same district merged into the city of Tsubame on March 20, 2006. Yahiko lies on the south side of Mt. Yahiko. This mountain and nearby Mt...

. Farming remains the predominant industry in the area. It is served by National Route 116 and Niigata Route 55.

On April 1, 2007, Iwamuro became part of Nishikan-ku ward (西蒲区, Nishikan-ku?) of Niigata city

Niigata, Niigata

is the capital and the most populous city of Niigata Prefecture, Japan. It lies on the northwest coast of Honshu, the largest island of Japan, and faces the Sea of Japan and Sado Island....

.

History

Iwamuro, which means 'stone' and 'room' in kanji

Kanji

Kanji are the adopted logographic Chinese characters hanzi that are used in the modern Japanese writing system along with hiragana , katakana , Indo Arabic numerals, and the occasional use of the Latin alphabet...

, lies at the foot of . It was originally surrounded by lagoons and marshes before major irrigation work was undertaken in the late 19th and early 20th century. Nevertheless people have been coming to the area since the Edo

Edo

, also romanized as Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of the Japanese capital Tokyo, and was the seat of power for the Tokugawa shogunate which ruled Japan from 1603 to 1868...

 period to bathe in naturally-created geothermal

Geothermal

Geothermal is related to energy and may refer to:* The geothermal gradient and associated heat flows from within the Earth- Renewable technology :...

 waters. Currently there are more than 20 onsen

Onsen

An is a term for hot springs in the Japanese language, though the term is often used to describe the bathing facilities and inns around the hot springs. As a volcanically active country, Japan has thousands of onsen scattered along its length and breadth...

s which range in price from cheap (500 yen) to expensive (+20,000 yen). Iwamuro's fame stems from its waters 'perceived' healing properties. An apocryphal tale tells of a farmer's wife who found a goose with a broken leg. She put it in a hot sulphur-smelling pool near her home. The goose's leg got better. The farmer and his wife then became very rich by opening the first onsen in Iwamuro.
Iwamuro w.

Behind Yahiko mountain lies the fishing village of Maze. During the Meiji period

Meiji period

The , also known as the Meiji era, is a Japanese era which extended from September 1868 through July 1912. This period represents the first half of the Empire of Japan.- Meiji Restoration and the emperor :...

 copper mining flourished in the foothills north west of Maze. At its peak, 60 tons of copper were being extracted each month. Output decreased in the 1920s but in 1943, mining was temporarily revived. Work ended at the end of the war

Pacific War

The Pacific War, also sometimes called the Asia-Pacific War refers broadly to the parts of World War II that took place in the Pacific Ocean, its islands, and in East Asia, then called the Far East...

.

Traditionally Maze was one of the ferry points to the banishment island of Sado

Sado, Niigata

is a city located on Sado Island in Niigata Prefecture, in the Chūbu region of Japan. Since 2004, the city has comprised the entire island, although not all of its total area of 855.26 km2 is urbanized...

. A small watch tower was sited just of north of the village. Samurai

Samurai

is the term for the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. According to translator William Scott Wilson: "In Chinese, the character 侍 was originally a verb meaning to wait upon or accompany a person in the upper ranks of society, and this is also true of the original term in Japanese, saburau...

 were tasked with guarding the shore and questioning all who landed from boats. South of the harbour is Maze Beach, which is popular with surfers. Maze is also famous for its race circuit that holds regular weekend meetings throughout the summer months, attracting sports car drivers from across Japan.

Geography

The sulphurous waters in Iwamuro rise from depths of up to 2 miles (3.2 km). They have an average surface temperature of 24.3°C and are highly saturated in mineral salts. Iwamuro lies on a fault zone between Yahiko mountain and the bedrock beneath the Niigata Plain. In 2006, due to the number of onsens in the area, additional bore holes were drilled to a depth of 0.75 miles (1.2 km).

Rice farming is predominant throughout the area although there are several dairy and pig-rearing farms. As the village is on the Niigata plain, the rich soil

Alluvium

Alluvium is loose, unconsolidated soil or sediments, eroded, deposited, and reshaped by water in some form in a non-marine setting. Alluvium is typically made up of a variety of materials, including fine particles of silt and clay and larger particles of sand and gravel...

 deposited by the Shinano

Shinano River

The Shinano River is the longest and largest river in Japan. It flows from Nagano Prefecture to Niigata Prefecture. It is called the Chikuma River in Nagano Prefecture....

 and Agano River

Agano River

The Agano River is a river which flows from Fukushima Prefecture to Niigata Prefecture in Japan. It is called the Aga River or the Ōkawa River in Fukushima. It is 210km long with 7,710km² watershed....

 make it ideal for agriculture.

Demographics

As of 2005, the Iwamuro had an estimated population

Population

A population is all the organisms that both belong to the same group or species and live in the same geographical area. The area that is used to define a sexual population is such that inter-breeding is possible between any pair within the area and more probable than cross-breeding with individuals...

 of 9,917 and a density

Population density

Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...

 of 274.63 persons per km². Its total administrative area was 36.11 km².

On March 21, 2005 Iwamuro was absorbed into the greatly expanded city of Niigata

Niigata, Niigata

is the capital and the most populous city of Niigata Prefecture, Japan. It lies on the northwest coast of Honshu, the largest island of Japan, and faces the Sea of Japan and Sado Island....

 which now included the former towns of Kameda

Kameda, Niigata

Kameda was a town located in Nakakanbara District, Niigata, Japan.As of 2003, the town had an estimated population of 32,386 and a density of 1,925.45 persons per km²...

, Kosudo

Kosudo, Niigata

was a town located in Nakakanbara District, Niigata, Japan.As of 2003, the town had an estimated population of 10,256 and a density of 606.5 persons per km²...

 and Yokogoshi

Yokogoshi, Niigata

was a town located in Nakakanbara District, Niigata, Japan.In 2003, the town had an estimated population of 11,339 and a density of 480.06 per km²...

 from the Nakakanbara District

Nakakanbara District, Niigata

Nakakanbara was a district located in Niigata Prefecture, Japan.-History:In 1878, Nakakanbara District was established.The district started to shrink after the town of Nuttary merged and Niigata continued to absorb the district...

; the town of Nishikawa

Nishikawa, Niigata

Nishikawa was a town located in Nishikanbara District, Niigata, Japan.As of 2003, the town had an estimated population of 12,277 and a density of 495.84 persons per km²...

, the villages of Ajikata

Ajikata, Niigata

Ajikata was a village located in Nishikanbara District, Niigata, Japan.As of 2005, the village had an estimated population of 4,506 and a density of 312.05 persons per km²...

, Katahigashi

Katahigashi, Niigata

Katahigashi was a village located in Nishikanbara District, Niigata, Japan.As of 2003, the village had an estimated population of 6,347 and a density of 264.90 persons per km²...

, Nakanokuchi

Nakanokuchi, Niigata

was a village located in Nishikanbara District, Niigata, Japan.On March 21, 2005 Nakanokuchi, along with the towns of Kameda, Kosudo and Yokogoshi, all from Nakakanbara District, the town of Nishikawa, the villages of Ajikata, Iwamuro, Katahigashi and Tsukigata, all from Nishikanbara District, and...

 and Tsukigata

Tsukigata, Niigata

Tsukigata was a village located in Nishikanbara District, Niigata, Japan.On March 21, 2005 Tsukigata, along with the towns of Kameda, Kosudo and Yokogoshi, all from Nakakanbara District, the town of Nishikawa, the villages of Ajikata, Iwamuro, Katahigashi and Nakanokuchi, all from Nishikanbara...

 from Nishikanbara District

Nishikanbara District, Niigata

is a district located in Niigata, Japan.As of March 20, 2006, the district has an estimated population of 8,537. The total area is 25.22 km².- Towns and villages :On March 20, 2006, the towns of Bunsui and Yoshida merged with the former city of Tsubame...

; and the cities of Niitsu

Niitsu, Niigata

was a city located in Niigata, Japan.As of 2003, the city has an estimated population of 66,058 and the density of 843.87 persons per km². The total area is 78.28 km².The city was founded on January 1, 1951...

, Shirone

Shirone, Niigata

was a city located in Niigata, Japan.As of 2003, the city had an estimated population of 39,966 and density of 518.63 persons per km². The total area was 77.06 km².The city was founded on June 1, 1959...

 and Toyosaka

Toyosaka, Niigata

Toyosaka was a city located in Niigata, Japan.As of 2003, the city had an estimated population of 49,159 and the density of 639.67 persons per km². The total area was 76.85 km².The city was founded on November 1, 1970...

.

Since Iwamuro became part of there have been several changes in the area. For instance local government services have moved to Maki, Iwamuro's farming cooperative opened a new rice storage centre centralising grain collection for the entire area In April 2008 after closing six independent silos and the fishing cooperatives of Maze and Niigata city have both merged, although the fish market and boat repair yard both remain open.

Iwamuro also has two independent sake makers both located in the heart of the old district at Iwamuro-onsen. Products are sold locally and are of a higher quality than commercially-made rice wine.
There are two elementary schools and one Junior High School

Secondary education in Japan

Secondary education in Japan is split into middle schools which cover the seventh through ninth grades, and high schools which mostly cover grades ten through twelve...

 within Iwamuro.

Iwamuro incorporates more than 20 hamlets, villages and townships:

• Hiso
• Sakai
• Hashimoto
• Iwamuro-onsen
• Ishize
• Kubota
• Saragase
• Kanaike

• Minami-yachi
• Kitano
• Shitatori
• Nishinagashima
• Tokozone
• Araya
• Oburajima
• Takabatake

• Nishifunakoshi
• Katakami
• Nishinaka
• Natsui
• Wano
• Maze
• Kami-Wano

External links

• Niigata official website in Japanese
  Japanese language
  is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
  
  
• Niigata Nishikan-ku website in Japanese
  Japanese language
  is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
  
  
• 岩室甚句（新潟民謡) Iwamuro Folk Song
  Enka
  is a popular Japanese music genre considered to resemble traditional Japanese music stylistically. Modern enka, however, is a relatively recent musical form which arose in the context of such postwar expressions of modern Japanese nonmaterial nationalism as nihonjinron, while adopting a more...
  
  
• Iwamuro Onsen Information page in Japanese
  Japanese language
  is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...