Anamizu (穴水町, Anamizu-machi) is a town located in Hōsu District (formerly Fugeshi District), Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan. As of 30 September 2021[update], the town had an estimated population of 7,782 in 3,653 households, and a population density of 42 persons per km2.[1] The total area of the town was 183.21 square kilometres (70.74 sq mi).
Anamizu
穴水町 | |
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Anamizu | |
Coordinates: 37°13′51.3″N 136°54′44.2″E / 37.230917°N 136.912278°E | |
Country | Japan |
Region | Chūbu Hokuriku |
Prefecture | Ishikawa |
District | Hōsu |
Area | |
• Total | 183.21 km2 (70.74 sq mi) |
Population (September 30, 2021) | |
• Total | 7,782 |
• Density | 42/km2 (110/sq mi) |
Time zone | UTC+9 (Japan Standard Time) |
City symbols | |
- Tree | Hiba |
- Flower | Lilium japonicum |
- Bird | Crested kingfisher |
- Fish | Green pheasant |
Phone number | 0768-62-1000 |
Address | 174 Kawajima, Anamizu-machi, Hōsu-gun, Ishikawa-ken 927-0492 |
Website | Official website |
Anamizu occupies the southeastern coastline of Noto Peninsula, facing the Sea of Japan on the east and south. Anamizu has a humid continental climate (Köppen Cfa) characterized by mild summers and cold winters with heavy snowfall. The average annual temperature in Anamizu is 13.5 °C. The average annual rainfall is 2,352 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 25.8 °C, and lowest in January, at around 2.9 °C.[2]
Parts of the town are within the limits of the Noto Hantō Quasi-National Park.
Per Japanese census data,[3] the population of Anamizu has declined over the past 50 years.
Year | Pop. | ±% |
---|---|---|
1970 | 15,488 | — |
1980 | 14,044 | −9.3% |
1990 | 12,831 | −8.6% |
2000 | 11,267 | −12.2% |
2010 | 9,735 | −13.6% |
2020 | 7,890 | −19.0% |
The area around Anamizu was part of ancient Noto Province. During the Sengoku Period (1467–1568), the area was contested between the Hatakeyama clan, Uesugi clan and Maeda clan, with the area becoming part of Kaga Domain under the Edo period Tokugawa shogunate. Following the Meiji restoration, the area was organised into Fugeshi District, Ishikawa. The village of Anamizu was established on April 1, 1889, with the establishment of the modern municipalities system. It was raised to town status on August 10, 1903. Anamizu annexed the neighbouring villages of Shimazaki and Tobo on April 1, 1908; the villages of Kabuto and Sumiyoshi on March 31, 1954; and the village of Morohashi on March 10, 1955.
Anamizu and its surrounding area experienced the 2007 Noto earthquake on March 25, 2007,[4] and the 2024 Noto earthquake on 1 January 2024.[5] After the disaster, the survivors were housed in the municipal stadium named after sumo wrestler Endō, a native of Anamizu. Considered a local hero in his hometown, his sanshō trophies are displayed there.[6] On 6 February 2024, Endō was part of a delegation of wrestlers from the prefecture (along with Ōnosato, Kagayaki and former Tochinonada); charged with symbolically presenting Governor Hiroshi Hase with the sums raised during the January tournament and donations from the Sumo Association.[7]
The economy of Anamizu is based on agriculture and commercial fishing.
Anamizu has two public elementary schools and one public middle school operated by the town government, and one public high school operated by the Ishikawa Prefectural Board of Education.