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 de ...

located in Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan, founded on April 1, 1954. In March 1, 2012, the city had 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 ...

of 43,931, with 19,119

household A household consists of two or more persons who live in the same dwelling. It may be of a single family or another type of person group. The household is the basic unit of analysis in many social, microeconomic and government models, and is im ...

s 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 294.82 persons per km². However the census of 2020 confirmed a population decline to 39,011 and by October 2022 there were only 17,537 households . The total area is and shares a border with Ei, a town to its north. On January 1, 2006, the towns of Kaimon and Yamagawa (both from Ibusuki District) were merged into Ibusuki. Ibusuki can be accessed by Routes

226 Year 226 ( CCXXVI) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Severus and Marcellus (or, less frequently, year 979 ''Ab urbe co ...

and

269 Year 269 ( CCLXIX) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Claudius and Paternus (or, less frequently, year 1022 ''Ab urbe con ...

and the Ibusuki Skyline drive. The city's main railroad station is Ibusuki Station. Ibusuki is famous for black-sand spas known as ''sunamushi

onsen In Japan, are the country's hot springs and the bathing facilities and traditional inns around them. As a volcanically active country, Japan has many onsens scattered throughout all of its major islands. There are approximately 25,000 hot ...

'' and the fine noodle

sōmen , ''somyeon'' ( ko, 소면; 素麵), or ''sùmiàn'' () is a very thin noodle made of wheat flour, less than 1.3 mm in diameter. The noodles are used extensively in East Asian cuisines. Japanese ''sōmen'' is made by stretching the dough ...

nagashi. Ibusuki has a

sister city A sister city or a twin town relationship is 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 are early examples of inter ...

relationship with

Rockhampton Rockhampton is a city in the Rockhampton Region of Central Queensland, Australia. The population of Rockhampton in June 2021 was 79,967, Estimated resident population, 30 June 2018. making it the fourth-largest city in the state outside of ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

, Australia.

Geography

Points of interest include: * Kirishima-Kinkowan National Park contains in its Kagoshima Bay region: ** Kaimondake volcano ***An inactive stratovolcano at the end of the

Satsuma Peninsula The Satsuma Peninsula (薩摩半島 ''Satsuma-hantō'') is a peninsula which projects south from the southwest part of Kyūshū Island, Japan. To the west lies the East China Sea, while to the east it faces the Ōsumi Peninsula across Kagoshima ...

Chiringashima is an island in Ibusuki, Kagoshima, Japan. Geography Chiringashima is the biggest island in Kagoshima Bay. It is uninhabited and lies about 800m off Tarahama. Its circumference is about 3 km and the area is about 60 ha, with a highest poi ...

***Island in

Kagoshima Bay also known as Kinkō Bay, is a deep inlet of the East China Sea on the coast of Japan.''Merriam Webster's Geographical Dictionary, Third Edition'', p. 562. Kagoshima Bay is on the south coast of the island of Kyūshū. The port city of Kagoshi ...

** Lake Ikeda ***A volcanic Caldera *

Tōsenkyō is a gorge in Ibusuki, Kagoshima Prefecture, in southern Japan. It stands southwest of the Ikeda Lake. The name Tōsenkyō is derived from a place known as Tōsen-ga-saka, which had a deep cove in the Edo period (1603–1868) where many Chinese s ...

* Ryūgū Shrine The city includes the following districts from the west: *Kaimonjutcho **The northern aspect of Mount Kaimon and adjacent sea coast of

*Kaimonkawashiri **The southern aspect Mount Kaimon and adjacent sea coast of

*Kaimonsenta **From Kaimonjutcho and Kaimonkawashiri to Lake Ikeda *Ikeda **Northern Lake Ikeda to the west *Iwamoto **North of Ikeda to the west coast at

*Komaki **regions north west of Iwamoto to the west coast at

*Yamagawaokachogamizu **The coast including

Cape Nagasakibana A cape is a clothing accessory or a sleeveless outer garment which drapes the wearer's back, arms, and chest, and connects at the neck. History Capes were common in medieval Europe, especially when combined with a hood in the chaperon. The ...

at the entrance to

*Kaimonueno **From Lake Ikeda towards the south *Yamagawatoshinaga **Adjacent to eastern shore Lake Ikeda *Yamagawaoyama **to the west of Yamagawaogawa from Nishi-Ōyama rail station to Lake Unagi *Yamagawaogawa **extends from near the sea almost to Lake Unagi a volcanic crater *Yamagawanarikawa *Surrounds of

Lake Unagi (translated as eel lake) is a Japanese maar lake associated with an eruptive vent line extending towards the sea from the parent volcano Ikeda Caldera which contains . Geography It is located within the city limits of Ibusuki, Kagoshima on Ky� ...

to the northern aspects Yamagawa harbour *Nishikata **from west of

including the land corridor to Ibusuki *Higashikata **Rural north of

almost to the coast of

missing the main land corridor to Ibusuki and includes

*Yamagawafukumoto **coast at entrance to

and includes southern aspects Yamagawa harbour *Yamagawaasahicho **coastal in Yamagawa harbour within

*Shinnishikata **Northern inland area *Junicho ** Almost from

to the east, mainly inland but reaching the coast at northern aspect Yamagawa harbour *Omure **Central Ibusuki to the north and reaching

*Minato **Central Ibusuki to the north and reaching

Yunohama **South of Ibusukifrom railway to coast of

*Kiirenukumicho **North of Komaki along the coast of

*Yamagawayamashitacho

Geology

The city has many volcanoes and hot springs of the Ibusuki Volcanic Field. The Yamagawa

Binary Binary may refer to: Science and technology Mathematics * Binary number, a representation of numbers using only two digits (0 and 1) * Binary function, a function that takes two arguments * Binary operation, a mathematical operation that ta ...

Power Station uses local geothermal power to contribute a maximum of 4990 kW as a "green energy" source.

Climate

Ibusuki has a humid subtropical climate (

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, nota ...

''Cfa'') with hot summers and mild winters. Precipitation is significant throughout the year, and is heavier in summer, especially the months of June and July. The average annual temperature in Ibusuki is . The average annual rainfall is with June as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around , and lowest in January, at around . Its record high is , reached on 18 August 2020, and its record low is , reached on 25 January 2016. Due to its marine subtropical climate, the city is the northern limit in Japan where

cycad Cycads are seed plants that typically have a stout and woody (ligneous) trunk with a crown of large, hard, stiff, evergreen and (usually) pinnate leaves. The species are dioecious, that is, individual plants of a species are either male or f ...

s grow naturally.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data, the population of Ibusuki in 2020 is 39,011 people. Since the census began in Ibusuki in 1950, the town's population has been slowly declining, with no signs of picking up until 2020 but the latest data suggests further decline.

Culture

Hirasaki Shrine , also known as Hirakiki-jinja, is a Japanese Shinto shrine in Ibusuki, Kagoshima on the island of Kyushu.Kotodamaya.com"Hirasaki Jinja" retrieved 2012-10-24. History Hirasaki was the chief Shinto shrine (''ichinomiya'') of the old Satsuma Prov ...

Iwasaki Art Museum opened in Ibusuki, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan, in 1983. Located in the gardens of a resort hotel and designed by Fumihiko Maki, the Museum's collection includes works by Kuroda Seiki and Fujishima Takeji, as well as Western painters. The adja ...

Ibusuki Onsen is a group of hot springs in the east of Ibusuki, Kagoshima in Japan, which includes Surigahama Onsen, Yajigayu Onsen, and Nigatsuden Onsen. 2,850,000 people visited in 2003, and 910,000 people stayed there. 90% of the water is used for indus ...

Ibusuki Experimental Botanical Garden The is a botanical garden operated by the Faculty of Agriculture, Kagoshima University. It is located at 1291 Ju-cho, Ibusuki, Kagoshima, Japan. The garden contains useful plants of tropical and subtropical origin for student education and gene ...

Transport

Higashi-Kaimon Station is a railway station on the Ibusuki Makurazaki Line in Ibusuki, Kagoshima, Japan, operated by Kyushu Railway Company (JR Kyushu). The station is unmanned and opened in 1960. Lines Higashi-Kaimon Station is served by the Ibusuki Makurazaki Lin ...

* Ibusuki Station *

Irino Station is a railway station located in Ibusuki, Kagoshima, Japan. The station is unmanned and opened in 1960. Lines *Kyushu Railway Company **Ibusuki Makurazaki Line The is a railway line in Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan, operated by the Kyushu Ra ...

Kaimon Station is a railway station on the Ibusuki Makurazaki Line in Ibusuki, Kagoshima, Japan, operated by Kyushu Railway Company (JR Kyushu). The station is unmanned and opened in 1960. Lines Kaimon Station is served by the Ibusuki Makurazaki Line. Ad ...

Miyagahama Station is a passenger railway station located in the city of Ibusuki, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and i ...

Nigatsuden Station is a railway station located in Ibusuki, Kagoshima, Japan. The station opened in 1934. Line *Kyushu Railway Company ** Ibusuki Makurazaki Line Layout Adjacent stations Nearby places *Ibusuki City Office *Jūchō Post Office *Ka ...

Nishi-Ōyama Station is a railway station on the Ibusuki Makurazaki Line in Ibusuki, Kagoshima, Japan, operated by Kyushu Railway Company (JR Kyushu). The station is unmanned and opened in 1960. It is the southernmost train station of Japan Railways. Lines Nishi- ...

* Ōyama Station * Satsuma-Imaizumi Station * Satsuma-Kawashiri Station *

Yamakawa Station is a railway station located in Ibusuki, Kagoshima, Japan. The station opened in 1936. It is the southernmost ''conventional'' staffed railway station in Japan. Lines *Kyushu Railway Company The , also referred to as , is one of the se ...

Twin Cities

* Chitose in Hokkaidō *

in Australia

References

External links

Ibusuki City official website

Kagoshima Prefectural Visitors Bureau official website
*

Cities in Kagoshima Prefecture {{Kagoshima-geo-stub