is a
city
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...
in
Fukuoka Prefecture
is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Fukuoka Prefecture has a population of 5,109,323 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of 4,986 Square kilometre, km2 (1,925 sq mi). Fukuoka Prefecture borders S ...
, Japan. As of June 1, 2019, the city has an estimated
population
Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, whether it be a city or town, region, country, continent, or the world. Governments typically quantify the size of the resident population within their jurisdiction using a ...
of 303,579 and a
population density
Population density (in agriculture: Stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical ...
of 1,320 persons per km². The total area is 229.96 km².
On February 5, 2005, the town of
Kitano (from
Mii District), the towns of
Jōjima and
Mizuma (both from
Mizuma District), and the town of
Tanushimaru (from
Ukiha District) were merged into Kurume.
Geography
Climate
Kurume has a
humid subtropical climate (
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Bernd Köppen (born 1951), German pianist and composer
* Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan
* Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author and ...
: ''Cfa''). The average annual temperature in Kurume is . The average annual rainfall is with July as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around , and lowest in January, at around .
[ The highest temperature ever recorded in Kurume was on 13 August 2018; the coldest temperature ever recorded was on 25 January 2016.][
]
Neighboring municipalities
Fukuoka Prefecture
is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Fukuoka Prefecture has a population of 5,109,323 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of 4,986 Square kilometre, km2 (1,925 sq mi). Fukuoka Prefecture borders S ...
* Yame
* Asakura
* Ukiha
* Okawa
* Chikugo
* Ogōri
* Ōki
* Hirokawa
* Tachirai
Saga Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu. Saga Prefecture has a population of 809,248 (1 August 2020) and has a geographic area of 2,440 km2 (942 sq mi). Saga Prefecture borders Fukuoka Prefecture to the northeast and Nagasa ...
* Tosu
* Kanzaki
* Miyaki
Demographics
Per Japanese census data, the population of Kurume in 2020 is 303,316 people.[ Kurume has been conducting censuses since 1960.
]
Industry
Traditional products
Traditional products of Kurume are ''kasuri
is the Japanese term for fabric that has been woven with fibers dyed specifically to create patterns and images in the fabric, typically referring to fabrics produced within Japan using this technique. It is a form of ikat dyeing, traditionally ...
'', or woven indigo-dyed cloth; '' tonkotsu'' '' ramen'' (pork-bone broth noodles); and trays and bowls made from , a composite made from lacquered bamboo.
Education
Universities
* Kurume University
*
Kurume University Hospital
* Kurume Institute of Technology
* St.Mary's College
* Kurume Shin-Ai Women's College is a private women's junior college in Kurume, Fukuoka, Japan, established in 1968. In 2004 the college was selected for Good Practice
GxP is a general abbreviation for the "good practice" quality guidelines and regulations. The "x" stands for ...
Transport
Kurume Station is served by the Kyushu Shinkansen
The is a Japanese Shinkansen high-speed railway network. It is an extension of the San'yō Shinkansen from Honshu connecting the city of Fukuoka (Hakata Station) in the north of Japan's Kyushu Island to the city of Kagoshima ( Kagoshima-Chuo St ...
and Kyudai Main Line east to Oita, while Nishitetsu Kurume Station is served by the Nishitetsu Amagi Line.
Sister cities
Kurume is twinned with these cities.
* Kōriyama, Fukushima, Japan
* Modesto, California, United States
* Hefei, Anhui
Anhui , (; formerly romanized as Anhwei) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the East China region. Its provincial capital and largest city is Hefei. The province is located across the basins of the Yangtze River ...
, China
Notable people born or raised in Kurume
In chronological order of birth year:
* Tanaka Hisashige (1799-1881) Engineer and Inventor who started the company which became Toshiba.
* George Shima (1864–1926), "Potato King" of California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
.[Kim, Hyung-chan. (1999). ]jika-tabi
are a style of footwear with a divided toe, originating in Japan. They are similar to socks in both appearance and construction. Though they can be worn with traditional thonged footwear such as and , are mostly designed and made to be worn ...
'') used by farmers; they found that by coating the bottom of ''tabi
are traditional Japanese socks worn with thonged footwear such as zori, dating back to the 15th century.
History
Japanese are usually understood today to be a kind of split-toed sock that is not meant to be worn alone outdoors, much like r ...
'' with rubber, farmers could be protected from the invasion of parasitic worms that live in rice paddies.
* Harue Koga (1895–1933), eclectic avant-garde artist and poet.
*Susumu Fujita
Susumu Fujita () (8 January 1912 – 23 March 1991) was a Japanese film and television actor. He played the lead role in Akira Kurosawa's first feature, '' Sanshiro Sugata'', and appeared in other Kurosawa films including ''The Men Who Tread O ...
(1912–1990/91), actor.
*Leiji Matsumoto
is a Japanese mangaka, creator of several anime and manga series. His wife Miyako Maki is also a manga artist.
Early life
Matsumoto was the middle child of a family of seven brothers, and, in his early childhood, Matsumoto was given a 35m ...
(1938–present), manga artist, anime character designer and animator.
* Seiji Sakaguchi
is a Japanese retired professional wrestler and judoka, Sakaguchi holds a 7th dan red and white belt in Judo. Sakaguchi was a mainstay of New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) and also competed for the World Wide Wrestling Federation and the Nati ...
(1942-present), Japanese professional wrestler and judoka
*Ryo Ishibashi
is a Japanese actor and lead singer of the Japanese rock band ARB. He is known around the world for his roles in the Japanese horror films '' Suicide Club'' and ''Audition.'' He is also recognized in America for his role as Nakagawa in ''The Gr ...
(1956–present), actor.
*Seiko Matsuda
, known professionally as , is a Japanese pop singer and songwriter, known for being one of the most popular Japanese idols of the 1980s. Since then, she is still actively releasing new singles and albums, doing annual summer concert tours, win ...
(1962–present), singer and actress.
* Fumiya Fujii (1962–present), lead vocalist of The Checkers (Japanese band).
*Izumi Sakai
, known professionally as , was a female Japanese pop singer, songwriter, and member of the group Zard. As Sakai was the only member who stayed in the group while others joined and left regularly, Zard and Sakai may be referred to interchangeably. ...
(1967–2007), lead vocalist of Zard
were a Japanese pop rock group, originally with five members, with lead vocalist Izumi Sakai as its only constant member. Zard's work was sold under the record label B-Gram Records, Inc. Their most popular and successful songs are , , and " M ...
; born in Kurume, but raised in Kanagawa
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Kanagawa Prefecture is the second-most populous prefecture of Japan at 9,221,129 (1 April 2022) and third-densest at . Its geographic area of makes it fifth-smallest. Kanagaw ...
.
*Rena Tanaka
is a Japanese actress and TV personality. In 1999, she won the Japanese Academy Award for "Best Newcomer" for her performance in ''Give It All''; in 2001, she received a "Best Actress" nomination for '' First Love''.
Selected filmography
Fi ...
(1980–present), actress.
* Kanikapila 7 piece Pop Band.
*Leo Ieiri
is a Japanese singer and songwriter. Her song "Sabrina" was used as the third ending song of the anime television series '' Toriko'' and her song "Silly" was used as the theme song for the television adaption of popular novel "Nのために" (" ...
(1994–present), singer, songwriter.Leo Ieiri
is a Japanese singer and songwriter. Her song "Sabrina" was used as the third ending song of the anime television series '' Toriko'' and her song "Silly" was used as the theme song for the television adaption of popular novel "Nのために" (" ...
See also
* Chikugo River
References
External links
*
*
{{Authority control
Cities in Fukuoka Prefecture