Country Japan Website www.town.mukawa.lg.jp Population 10,207 (Jan 2008) | Region Hokkaido Area 166.4 km² Local time Tuesday 5:01 PM | |
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Time zone Japan Standard Time (UTC+9) Weather 4°C, Wind SE at 26 km/h, 63% Humidity District Yūfutsu District, Hokkaido Prefecture Hokkaido (Iburi Subprefecture) | ||
Mukawa (むかわ町, Mukawa-chō) is a town located in Yūfutsu (Iburi) District, Iburi Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan.
Contents
- Map of Mukawa Yufutsu District Hokkaido Prefecture Japan
- Population Statistics
- Workforce
- Land Usage
- Annual expenditure
- Annual Income
- References
Map of Mukawa, Yufutsu District, Hokkaido Prefecture, Japan
On March 27, 2006, Mukawa (鵡川町) absorbed the town of Hobetsu (also from Yūfutsu (Iburi) District) to create the new town of Mukawa. The new town was given the same name as the former town of Mukawa, but in hiragana, instead of former kanji name.
As of January 2008, the town (including the Hobetsu area) has an estimated population of 10,207 (5,012 men, 5,195 women) with a total of 4,565 households. The total area is 166.43 km².
Mukawa is situated on the southern coast of Hokkaido, bordering the Pacific Ocean. It can be accessed via train from Tomakomai. By car, the town is approximately 1/2 hour east of Tomakomai along Route 235.
The town is famed for shishamo, a small fish that is hung on bamboo poles. Shishamo are currently included in the Mukawa town sign. The shishamo are harvested during the Fall season. During this season the town holds a number of shishamo themed events, including a town race in October and Shishamo Matsuri in November.
A large community center in the town features an indoor swimming pool, exercise room, hotel, onsen, cafe, restaurant, and lecture hall. During the late Summer, an O-Bon matsuri is held near the town community center.
Population Statistics
In recent years, Mukawa has faced an overall decline in population. In 1995, there were 7,853 people and 2,786 households. In 2000, the population declined to 7,232 people with 2,744 households, and by 2005 the population had declined to 6,765 people and 2,698 households. These numbers do not include the population of Mukawa's Hobetsu area.
Workforce
As of the 2006, as total of 3,884 people are employed in Mukawa (excluding the workforce of Hobetsu). The working population is broken into different categories depending on occupational type and the number of workers, as shown below:
Land Usage
The 2006 Handbook does not distinguish between Hobetsu or Mukawa regarding land usage. The areas of Hobetsu (546.48 km²), and Mukawa (166.43 km²) total to 712.91 km². Of this total area, the land usage is divided into the following categories:
Annual expenditure
As with the proceeding information, the following comes from the Mukawa 2006 Handbook. The following information regarding the 2005, town expenditures does not consider Mukawa and Hobetsu separately. The unit of currency is millions of yen.
Annual Income
The following information for the 2005 income is also from the Mukawa 2006 Handbook, and as with the annual expenditure, Mukawa and Hobetsu are considered as a unified area. The unit of currency is millions of yen.