was a

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

located in Hienuki District,

Iwate Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. It is the second-largest Japanese prefecture (behind Hokkaido) at , with a population of 1,165,886 (as of July 1, 2023). Iwate Prefecture borders Aomori Pre ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

History

The town of Ōhasama created on April 1, 1889, with the establishment of the municipalities system. On January 1, 1955, it annexed the neighboring villages of Kamegamori, Uchikawame and Sotokawame. On January 1, 2006, Ōhasama, along with the town of Ishidoriya (from Hienuki District), and the town of Tōwa (from Waga District), was merged into the expanded city of Hanamaki (which lies to the south), and no longer exists as an independent

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

. As of January 1, 2006, the town had an estimated

population Population is a set of humans or other organisms in a given region or area. Governments conduct a census to quantify the resident population size within a given jurisdiction. The term is also applied to non-human animals, microorganisms, and pl ...

of 6,568 and a

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing 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 geog ...

of 26.6 persons per km². The total area was 246.84 km².

Geography

Ōhasama is located roughly in the center of

; about 25 km south of the prefectural capital of

Morioka is the capital Cities of Japan, city of Iwate Prefecture located in the Tōhoku region of northern Japan. On 1 August 2023, the city had an estimated population of 283,981 in 132,719 households, and a population density of . The total area of t ...

. Ōhasama is itself composed of four major areas: Ōhasama (大迫) proper, which lies in the center; Uchikawame (内川目), a valley to the north; Sotokawame (外川目), to the east; and to the west is the flatter farmland of Kamegamori (亀々森). In the northeast section of Ōhasama is Mt. Hayachine (早池峰山) which, at an

altitude Altitude is a distance measurement, usually in the vertical or "up" direction, between a reference datum (geodesy), datum and a point or object. The exact definition and reference datum varies according to the context (e.g., aviation, geometr ...

of 1,917 m. (6,289 ft.), is the second highest mountain in

after Mt. Iwate in

. Ōhasama lies in the mountainous region of the

Kitakami River The is the fourth largest river in Japan and the largest in the Tōhoku region. It is long and drains an area of . page 793 It flows through mostly rural areas of Iwate Prefecture, Iwate and Miyagi Prefecture, Miyagi Prefectures of Japan, Pr ...

area. This results in a sharp contrast between daytime and nighttime temperatures - most noticeably in the summer. It also receives little snow or rainfall compared to surrounding areas.

Local Culture

The climate of Ōhasama is well suited to the growing of

grapes A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus ''Vitis''. Grapes are a non- climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters. The cultivation of grapes began approximately 8,0 ...

. The town is home to the regionally well-known Edel

Wine Wine is an alcoholic drink made from Fermentation in winemaking, fermented fruit. Yeast in winemaking, Yeast consumes the sugar in the fruit and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Wine is most often made f ...

. In September, the Ōhasama Wine House hosts the annual Wine

Festival A festival is an event celebrated by a community and centering on some characteristic aspect or aspects of that community and its religion or cultures. It is often marked as a local or national holiday, Melā, mela, or Muslim holidays, eid. A ...

. The

shrine A shrine ( "case or chest for books or papers"; Old French: ''escrin'' "box or case") is a sacred space">-4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of French, that is, when it wa ...: ''escri ...

at Mount Hayachine is famous for a local variety of

Kagura is a type of Shinto ritual ceremonial dance. The term is a contraction of the phrase , indicating the presence of gods () in the practice. One major function of is , involving a procession-trance process. Usually a female shaman will perfor ...

(神楽). Kagura dancers often appear at area festivals or functions. On a hill above the town of Ōhasama proper stands a statue resembling the wolf-like costumes donned by Hayachine Kagura dancers. Mt. Hayachine is also home to a particular species of

edelweiss ''Leontopodium nivale'', commonly called edelweiss () ( ; or ), is a mountain flower belonging to the daisy or sunflower family Asteraceae. The plant prefers rocky limestone places at about altitude. It is a non-toxic plant. Its leaves and f ...

, called ''Hayachine Usuyukisou'', which grows exclusively on the mountain. It was because of this flower that

mountain climber Mountaineering, mountain climbing, or alpinism is a set of outdoor activities that involves ascending mountains. Mountaineering-related activities include traditional outdoor climbing, skiing, and traversing via ferratas that have become mounta ...

s from Ōhasama forged a friendship with those from Berndorf,

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

, resulting in the two becoming

sister cities A sister city or a twin town relationship is International relations, a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties. While there ar ...

in 1965. Around the time of Japan's Girls' Festival, Ōhasama puts on displays of its collection of

dolls A doll is a physical model, model typically of a human or humanoid character, often used as a toy for children. Dolls have also been used in traditional religious rituals throughout the world. Traditional dolls made of materials such as clay and ...

: many of which are several hundred years old. Local history suggests that the dolls may have been given to residents of Ōhasama by travelers from

Kyoto Kyoto ( or ; Japanese language, Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan's largest and most populous island of Honshu. , the city had a population of 1.46 million, making it t ...

on their way to trade in

Hokkaidō is the second-largest island of Japan and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by railway via the Seikan Tunnel. The ...

Sister cities

Ōhasama has been twinned with Berndorf,

Lower Austria Lower Austria ( , , abbreviated LA or NÖ) is one of the nine states of Austria, located in the northeastern corner of the country. Major cities are Amstetten, Lower Austria, Amstetten, Krems an der Donau, Wiener Neustadt and Sankt Pölten, which ...

, since 1965. The student exchange programme between Berndorf grammar school and Ōhasama high school will be continued despite the incorporation. As part of the city of Hanamaki, Ohasama is also twinned with

Hot Springs, Arkansas Hot Springs is a resort city in the state of Arkansas and the county seat of Garland County, Arkansas, Garland County. The city is located in the Ouachita Mountains among the U.S. Interior Highlands, and is set among several natural hot springs ...

. As of 2007, Ōhasama Junior High School has begun a sister school partnership with Jessieville Middle School in Arkansas, thanks to a friendship forged during a visit to Hanamaki by visitors from the Jessieville School.

References

External links

Ōhasama Town Society of Commerce and Industry
(in Japanese) {{DEFAULTSORT:Ohasama, Iwate Dissolved municipalities of Iwate Prefecture Hanamaki, Iwate