Demographics

Per Japanese census data, the population of Tahara has been relatively steady over the past 60 years.

Neighboring municipalities

;Aichi Prefecture

  • Toyohashi

History

Origin

The area of present-day Tahara has been continuously occupied since prehistoric times.

Archaeologists have found numerous remains from the Jōmon period and burial mounds from the Kofun period.

Ancient history

During the Nara period, the area was assigned to ancient Atsumi County, and was divided into several shōen during the Heian period.

Feudal period

During the Kamakura period, the area was noted for production of a certain type of pottery.

During the Sengoku period, the area was under the control of the Toda clan, who constructed Tahara Castle.

Early modern period

The Toda, who were allied with Tokugawa Ieyasu were dispossessed by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, but returned as daimyō of Tahara Domain at the start of the Edo period.

The Toda were later replaced by the Miyake clan, who ruled until the end of the Tokugawa shogunate. The noted scholar Watanabe Kazan was from Tahara.

Late modern period

At the start of the Meiji period, on October 1, 1889, Tahara was organized into a number of villages within Atsumi District, Aichi Prefecture with the establishment of the modern municipalities system.

Tahara Village was elevated to town status on October 3, 1892, and Fukue village became Fukue Town on February 22, 1897.

Contemporary history

Fukue later changed its name to Atsumi Town on April 15, 1955.

On November 11, 1958, the village of was raised to town status.

The city of Tahara was established on August 20, 2003, from the merger the former town of Tahara, absorbing the town of Akabane (both from Atsumi District) to elevate city status. On October 1, 2005, the town of Atsumi (also from Atsumi District) was merged into Tahara. Therefore, Atsumi District was dissolved as a result of this merger.

Government

thumb|200px|Tahara City Hall

Tahara has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral city legislature of 18 members. The city contributes one member to the Aichi Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city is part of Aichi District 15 of the lower house of the Diet of Japan.

Sister cities

International

;Sister cities

  • Georgetown, Kentucky, United States, since April 20, 1990
  • Princeton, Indiana, United States, since August 8, 2002

;Friendship cities

  • Kunshan, Jiangsu, China, since May 14, 1993
  • Dongjak-gu, Seoul, South Korea, since December 2006 JERA operates the Atsumi Thermal Power Station, an oil-fired power plant with capacity of 1400 MW in Tahara.

Education

Schools

Tahara has 18 public elementary schools, five public middle schools operated by the city government and three public high schools operated by the Aichi Prefectural Board of Education.

Transportation

thumb|200px|[[Mikawa Tahara Station]]

thumb|200px|The [[Kilometre Zero of Tahara]]

Railways

Conventional lines

;20px Toyohashi Railroad

  • Atsumi Line: - – – –

Bus

Bus services

Toyotetsu buses and city-operated environmentally friendly public transport facilitate access throughout Tahara, even to the westernmost point at Cape Irago.

Roads

Japan National Route

  • is the main highway that runs the length of Atsumi Peninsula. An alternate reading of the kanji in this highway numeral designation is ji-go-ku. In Japanese, the word jigoku means Hell, and thus some locals refer to it as ji-go-ku-douro, or the "Highway to Hell". This term was encouraged by the perception of a higher fatality rate along the road, especially before it was widened and improved.

Seaways

Seaports

From the Port of Irago, the Ise-wan Ferry connects Tahara with the town of Toba, Mie prefecture. The ferry can accommodate motor vehicles. The ferry also docks at the Central Japan International Airport, built on an artificial island in Ise Bay, south of Nagoya.

Local attractions

  • Akabane Long Beach, also known as "Akabane Beach" or "Long Beach", is a very scenic area for locals and tourists. The Akabane Beach hosted the 2018 World Surfing Games, among other international surfing competitions over the years.
  • Irago Tōdai-ji Tile Kiln ruins, Kamakura-period kiln ruins, a National Historic Site
  • Kazan Jinja
  • Kojigahama Beach, Cape Irago, the wave sounds of which were listed as one of the 100 Soundscapes of Japan by the Ministry of the Environment
  • Ōarako Old Kiln ruins, a National Historic Site
  • Site of Tahara Castle
  • Yoshigo Shell Midden, a Jōmon period shell midden and National Historic Site

<gallery mode="packed">

Iragomisaki5.jpg|Cape Irago

Irago view hotel.jpg|View of Cape Irago from Irako View Hotel

Taiheiyou long beach.jpg|Akabane Long Beach

Tahana nanohana.jpg|Rape Blossoms

Taharajou.JPG|Tahara Castle

Atsumi Peninsula3.JPG|Nishinohama Wind Farm

Yoshigo kaizuka.JPG|Yoshigo Kaizuka

</gallery>

Notable people

  • Watanabe Kazan, Edo period samurai and artist
  • Kayoko Okubo, comedian
  • Noboru Ueda, motorcycle racer

References

  • (with link to English pages)