Ichinoseki, Iwate

Ichinoseki 一関市
City
Ichinoseki Skyline
Flag Seal
Location of Ichinoseki in Iwate Prefecture
Ichinoseki
Coordinates: 38°55′5″N 141°07′35.7″E / 38.91806°N 141.126583°E / 38.91806; 141.126583Coordinates: 38°55′5″N 141°07′35.7″E / 38.91806°N 141.126583°E / 38.91806; 141.126583
Country	Japan
Region	Tōhoku
Prefecture	Iwate
Area
• Total	1,256.42 km2 (485.11 sq mi)
Population (September 1, 2015)
• Total	123,490
• Density	95.9/km2 (248/sq mi)
Time zone	Japan Standard Time (UTC+9)
Symbols
• Tree	Japanese beech
• Flower	Canola
• Bird	Japanese bush-warbler
Phone number	0191-21-2111
Address	7-2 Takeyama-chō, Ichinoseki-shi, Iwate-ken 021-8501
Website	Official website

7-2 Takeyama-chō, Ichinoseki-shi, Iwate-ken

Ichinoseki (一関市, Ichinoseki-shi^?) is a city located in Iwate Prefecture, in the Tohoku region of northern Japan. As of September 1, 2015, the city had a population of 120,490 and a population density of 95.9 persons per km². It is currently the second largest city by population in the prefecture, after Morioka. The total area was 1,256.42 square kilometres (485.11 sq mi).

Ichinoseki is located inland in the south of Iwate Prefecture, a little over two hours north of Tokyo by the Tohoku Shinkansen. A large volume of extremely stable granite rock runs beneath the city, and is the center of the site deemed suitable for potential construction of the International Linear Collider (ILC).

Due to factories belonging to large Japanese companies such as Sony and NEC being located in the industrial parkland zone of Ichinoseki, the city has a sizable population of Brazilian workers. The agricultural makeup of the city outside the centre is mostly composed of farmers, leading to an influx of Chinese and Filipino immigrants due to marriage. As a result, Ichinoseki has a varied ethnic makeup, although the newcomers still remain a small minority.

The area of present-day Ichinoseki was part of ancient Mutsu Province, and has been settled since at least the Japanese Paleolithic period. The area was inhabited by the Emishi people, and came under the control of the Yamato dynasty during the early Heian period. During the Heian period, it was controlled by the Abe clan, followed by the Northern Fujiwara clan of Hiraizumi. During the Sengoku period, the area was dominated by various samurai clans before coming under the control of the Date clan during the Edo period, who ruled Sendai Domain under the Tokugawa shogunate.