Setouchi, Okayama

Setouchi 瀬戸内市
City
Ushimado Port and resort area Ushimado Port and resort area
Flag of Setouchi Flag
Location of Setouchi in Okayama Prefecture Location of Setouchi in Okayama Prefecture
Setouchi Location in Japan
Coordinates:
Country	Japan
Region	Chūgoku (San'yō)
Prefecture	Okayama Prefecture
Government
• Mayor	Akinari Takehisa (since July 2009)
Area
• Total	125.51 km2 (48.46 sq mi)
Population (January 1, 2012)
• Total	39,232
• Density	310/km2 (810/sq mi)
Symbols
• Tree	Olive
• Flower	Chrysanthemum
• Bird	Japanese white-eye
Time zone	Japan Standard Time (UTC+9)
City Hall Address	300-1 Oku-cho Owari, Setouchi-shi, Okayama-ken 701-4292
Website	www.city.setouchi.lg.jp

Setouchi (瀬戸内市, Setouchi-shi) is a city located in southern Okayama Prefecture, Japan.

As of January 1, 2012, the city had an estimated population of 39,232, with 14,735 households and a population density of 310 persons per km². The total area is 125.51 km² (48.46 sq mi).

The modern city of Setouchi was founded on November 1, 2004, by the merger of the former towns of Oku, Osafune and Ushimado (all from Oku District). Its city hall is the former town hall of Oku.

The name Setouchi is derived from Seto Inland Sea (in Japanese: Setonaikai). The city faces the Inland Sea on its eastern and southern parts. The climate is moderate. Its main industries are fishery, agriculture, pottery, and sightseeing.

History

Setouchi City Hall

Port Ushimado was a famous port till the early modern era. It served messengers from Korea to the Tokugawa Shogunate. The port is today a good spot for sightseeing and sailing. Osafune was famous for the production of katana in the 12th century under the name of Bizen Osafune (Osafune, Bizen Province). Fukuoka District, which flourished as a trade center and later a political center along the Seto Inland Sea until the beginning of the Edo period, served by the Yoshii River and the Seto Inland Sea, is also included as a part of the city. The Fukuoka Market (Fukuoka no Ichi) was recorded in the scroll Ippen Shonin Emaki, drawn in the 13th century. At the end of the Kamakura period a castle was built in Fukuoka. In the middle Muromachi period, the daimyo who governed Bizen province took this castle as their site, rebuilt and fortified it more than before. Because the Yoshii river changed its course and most of Fukuoka including the castle sank under the river, the castle was abandoned.

International relations

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Japan

Twin towns — Sister cities

Setouchi is twinned with:

• Mytilene, Greece (1982)
• Horokanai, Hokkaidō, Japan (1989)
• Tsushima, Nagasaki, Japan (1996)

External links

• Setouchi City official website (Japanese)