Kawanishi 川西町 |
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Town | |||
Kawanishi Town Hall
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Location of Kawanishi in Yamagata Prefecture |
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Coordinates: 38°00′N 140°03′E / 38.000°N 140.050°ECoordinates: 38°00′N 140°03′E / 38.000°N 140.050°E | |||
Country | Japan | ||
Region | Tōhoku | ||
Prefecture | Yamagata | ||
District | Higashiokitama | ||
Area | |||
• Total | 166.46 km2 (64.27 sq mi) | ||
Population (November 2013) | |||
• Total | 16,449 | ||
• Density | 98.8/km2 (256/sq mi) | ||
Time zone | Japan Standard Time (UTC+9) | ||
- Tree | Pine | ||
- Flower | Dahlia | ||
Phone number | 0238-42-2111 | ||
Address | 1567-banchi Kamikomatsu, Takahata-machi, Higashiokitama-gun, Yamagata-ken 999-0193 | ||
Website | Official website |
Kawanishi (川西町 Kawanishi-machi?) is a town located in Higashiokitama District, Yamagata Prefecture, Japan.
As of November 2013, the town had an estimated population of 16,449 and a population density of 98.8 persons per km². The total area was 166.46 square kilometres (64 sq mi).
Kawanishi is located in the southeast of the Yonezawa Basin. There are two major rivers, the Mogami River and the Omonogawa River, running along the town's borders. The literal meaning of Kawanishi is "west of the river", which refers to its location west of the Mogami River. Also, there are two minor rivers, the Inukawa and the Kurokawa, running through the town.
From the north, following Kawanishi’s border clockwise:
Kawanishi has a Humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification Dfa) with large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and cold (sometimes severely cold) winters. Precipitation is significant throughout the year, but is heaviest from August to October.
The area of present-day Kawanishi was part of ancient Dewa Province. After the start of the Meiji period, the area became part of Higashiokitama District, Yamagata Prefecture. Once the nineteenth-century English traveler, Isabella Bird stayed in the town, and noted the Yonezawa Basin area "as a 'Garden of Eden,' ground that smiles fruitfully, and Arcadia in Asia." The modern town of Kawanishi was established on January 1, 1955 by the merger of the villages of Otsuka, Inukawa, Komatsu and Chugun from Meiji period]], the area became part of Higashiokitama District and the village of Tamaniwa from Minamiokitama District. The village of Yoshijima from Higashiokitama District joined the town on February 1, 1955.