Sanjō (三条市, Sanjō-shi) is a city located in Niigata Prefecture, Japan. As of 1 July 2019, the city had an estimated population of 95,706 in 36,201 households,[1] and a population density of 222 persons per km². The total area of the city was 431.97 square kilometres (166.78 sq mi).

Sanjō
三条市
View from Osakiyama Park Terrace
View from Osakiyama Park Terrace
Flag of Sanjō
Official seal of Sanjō
Location of Sanjō in Niigata
Location of Sanjō in Niigata
Sanjō is located in Japan
Sanjō
Sanjō
 
Coordinates: 37°38′12.4″N 138°57′42″E / 37.636778°N 138.96167°E / 37.636778; 138.96167
CountryJapan
RegionChūbu (Kōshin'etsu) (Hokuriku)
PrefectureNiigata
Government
 • MayorRyo Takizawa (from November 2020)
Area
 • Total
431.97 km2 (166.78 sq mi)
Population
 (July 1, 2019)
 • Total
95,706
 • Density220/km2 (570/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+9 (Japan Standard Time)
Phone number0256-34-5511
Address2-3-1 Asahi-chō, Sanjō-shi, Niigata-ken 955-8686
ClimateCfa
WebsiteOfficial website
Symbols
BirdChicken (Shiba jidori)
FlowerLiliaceae, Iris ensata, Sunflower
TreeJapanese White Pine, Taxus cuspidata

Geography

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Sanjō is located in an inland region of north-central Niigata Prefecture. It is about 2 hours from Tokyo via the Jōetsu Shinkansen or 4 hours on the Kan-Etsu Expressway and Hokuriku Expressway. The Shinano River flows through the west of it from south to north and the Ikarashi-gawa River flows through the centre of the urbanised area.

Surrounding municipalities

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Climate

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Sanjō has a Humid climate (Köppen Cfa) characterized by warm, wet summers and cold winters with heavy snowfall. The average annual temperature in Sanjō is 13.6 °C (56.5 °F). The average annual rainfall is 2,056.3 mm (80.96 in) with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 26.2 °C (79.2 °F), and lowest in January, at around 2.0 °C (35.6 °F).[2]

Climate data for Sanjō (1991−2020 normals, extremes 1978−present)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 14.3
(57.7)
21.7
(71.1)
23.7
(74.7)
30.5
(86.9)
33.7
(92.7)
36.1
(97.0)
39.5
(103.1)
40.4
(104.7)
40.4
(104.7)
36.0
(96.8)
25.0
(77.0)
19.1
(66.4)
40.4
(104.7)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 4.9
(40.8)
5.6
(42.1)
10.0
(50.0)
16.6
(61.9)
22.2
(72.0)
25.5
(77.9)
29.1
(84.4)
30.8
(87.4)
27.0
(80.6)
20.8
(69.4)
14.2
(57.6)
8.0
(46.4)
17.9
(64.2)
Daily mean °C (°F) 2.0
(35.6)
2.2
(36.0)
5.5
(41.9)
11.2
(52.2)
17.0
(62.6)
21.0
(69.8)
24.9
(76.8)
26.2
(79.2)
22.3
(72.1)
16.1
(61.0)
9.9
(49.8)
4.6
(40.3)
13.6
(56.4)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) −0.5
(31.1)
−0.8
(30.6)
1.5
(34.7)
6.3
(43.3)
12.4
(54.3)
17.3
(63.1)
21.5
(70.7)
22.5
(72.5)
18.4
(65.1)
12.0
(53.6)
6.1
(43.0)
1.7
(35.1)
9.9
(49.8)
Record low °C (°F) −12.5
(9.5)
−10.3
(13.5)
−5.6
(21.9)
−2.2
(28.0)
3.8
(38.8)
8.6
(47.5)
13.9
(57.0)
12.4
(54.3)
7.8
(46.0)
2.8
(37.0)
−2.2
(28.0)
−10.4
(13.3)
−12.5
(9.5)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 219.6
(8.65)
137.0
(5.39)
123.6
(4.87)
98.0
(3.86)
94.2
(3.71)
132.5
(5.22)
243.2
(9.57)
171.6
(6.76)
144.6
(5.69)
160.4
(6.31)
236.7
(9.32)
287.8
(11.33)
2,056.3
(80.96)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) 8.4 4.9 4.4 3.4 3.3 3.9 6.5 5.2 5.0 5.6 8.7 10.7 70
Mean monthly sunshine hours 41.1 66.5 123.4 167.9 196.4 160.6 148.4 195.7 143.7 136.0 88.0 50.1 1,517.8
Source: Japan Meteorological Agency[3][2]

Demographics

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Per Japanese census data,[4] the population of Sanjō peaked at around 1985 and has declined steadily since.

Historical population
YearPop.±%
1970 102,220—    
1980 109,429+7.1%
1990 110,228+0.7%
2000 107,662−2.3%
2010 102,292−5.0%
2020 94,642−7.5%

History

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Honjoji temple

The area of present-day Sanjō was part of ancient Echigo Province. During the Edo period, the area was part of Sanjō Domain, a feudal domain under the Tokugawa shogunate from 1598 to 1651. Afterwards, it was divided between Nagaoka Domain, Murakami Domain and tenryō territory administered directly by the shogunate. After the start of the Meiji period, the area was organised as part of Minamikanbara District, Niigata. The town of Sanjō was created with the establishment of the modern municipalities system on April 1, 1889. It was raised to city status on January 1, 1934. Heavy rain caused extensive flooding in 1961 and in 2004. On May 1, 2005, the town of Sakae, and the village of Shitada (both from Minamikanbara District) were merged into Sanjō.[5][6]

Government

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Sanjō City Hall

Sanjō has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral city legislature of 22 members.[7] On November 8, 2020, attorney Ryo Takizawa was elected to become the next mayor of Sanjō.[8]

Economy

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Tsubamesanjo Regional Industries Promotion Center Research Core

Sanjō is traditionally known for its iron crafts, notably knives and scissors. The following are headquartered in Sanjō.

  • Asano (manufacturer of commercial fishing equipment)
  • Marunao (manufacturer of chopsticks)
  • Snow Peak (manufacturer of high-end camping equipment)
  • Suwada (manufacturer of nail care instruments)

It is also one of the municipalities where a local Factory Festival takes place once per year in October (Kouba no Saiten).

Education

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Sanjō has 25 public elementary schools and nine public middle schools operated by the city government. There are four public high schools operated by the Niigata Prefectural Board of Education, and the prefecture also operates one special education school.

Transportation

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Railway

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  JR East - Jōetsu Shinkansen

  JR East - Shin'etsu Main Line

  JR East - Yahiko Line

Highway

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Sister cities

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Notable people from Sanjō

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References

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  1. ^ Sanjō city official statistics(in Japanese)
  2. ^ a b 気象庁 / 平年値(年・月ごとの値). JMA. Retrieved March 23, 2022.
  3. ^ 観測史上1~10位の値(年間を通じての値). JMA. Retrieved March 23, 2022.
  4. ^ Sanjō population statistics
  5. ^ 住民基本台帳人口移動報告年報 (in Japanese). 総務庁統計局. 2005. p. 139. Sanjo-shi, Sakae-machi and Shitada-mura were incorporated into a newly established Sanjo-shi as of May 1, 2005.
  6. ^ 荒川区. "新潟県三条市". 荒川区公式サイト (in Japanese). Retrieved 2024-02-04. 三条市は、新潟県のほぼ中央に位置し、平成17年5月1日に三条市・栄町・下田村の3市町村が合併し誕生したまちです。
  7. ^ Sanjō City Assembly homepage(in Japanese)
  8. ^ "新潟県三条市長選挙、滝沢亮氏が初当選". 新潟県内のニュース|にいがた経済新聞 (in Japanese). 8 November 2020. Retrieved 2020-11-09.
  9. ^ a b "International Exchange". List of Affiliation Partners within Prefectures. Council of Local Authorities for International Relations (CLAIR). Retrieved 8 December 2015.
  10. ^ Chihiro Kaneko
  11. ^ Tetsuji Morohashi Museum
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