Aomori (青森市, Aomori-shi) - The capital city
of Aomori Prefecture, Japan. The city faces Mutsu Bay
connecting Tsugaru Channel and the Hakkoda Mountains lie in
the southern part of Aomori. It has the biggest seaport in
the prefecture. Before Seikan Tunnel opened, Port Aomori
served the city with train ferry to Hakodate in Hokkaidō,
and therefore the main entrance of Honshū for passengers and
cargo to and from Hokkaidō.
The city was officially founded on April 1, 1898. The town
and port was however settled in 1626, in the early Edo
period. Recently, the city merged with the former town of
Namioka on April 1, 2005 to form the new city of Aomori.
Aomori literally means blue (or green) woods. The name is
generally considered to refer to a small forest on a hill
which existed near the town, used by fishermen as a
landmark. A different theory suggests the name might have
been derived from the Ainu language.
History
The area has plenty of Jōmon period ruins, the most famous
among them being Sannai Maruyama ruins located in the
southwest of the city center, where the remains of a large
wooden building was unearthed and revolutionalized Japanese
archeology.
Before the early Edo period, Aomori was a small fishing
village called Utō (善知鳥村, Utō-mura). It was settled as a
seaport in 1612 by Moriyama Yashichirō, the Port Development
Officer of Tsugaru han in the order of daimyō Tsugaru
Nobuhira. The town name Aomori was given in that day. During
the Edo period, the most important place in that area was
Hirosaki, the capital of the Tsugaru han and Aomori served
this area as a local seaport and trade center.
During the Meiji Restoration the han system was abolished
and the prefecture system was established in July, 1871.
Aomori became a part of Hirosaki prefecture, succeeding the
area covered by the Tsugaru han. Due to a merger on
September of that year, Hirosaki prefecture (encompassing
the same area as present-day Aomori prefecture) was founded.
The prefectural capital however, was moved from Hirosaki to
Aomori soon after the merger and the prefecture was renamed
to Aomori prefecture. Soon the 5th Infantry Regiment of the
Japanese Imperial Army, and later in 1896 the 8th Division
of the Japanese Imperial Army were stationed in Aomori.
In the winter of 1902, 199 of 210 soldiers died while trying
to cross the Hakkoda Mountains during a military exercise.
This exercise was a part of preparation for Russo-Japanese
War and experiment of activities in severe winter
environment. Today it is pointed out this failure was due to
poor preparation and organisation and confusion of
leadership; another party of exercise departed from Hirosaki
and marched around Hakkoda Mountain counterclockwise
successed in a similar exercise.
The development of the modern Aomori was due to its
prefectural capital status and Seikan ferry which was run by
the Ministry of Trains at the beginning and later Japanese
National Railways as connection between Port Aomori and Port
Hakodate in Hokkaidō, hence the main transport between
Honshū and Hokkaidō from 1908 till 1988. Between Tokyo and
Aomori, two trains lines were built: Ou Main Line connecting
to Akita and Yamagata and Tohoku Main Line connecting to
Morioka, Sendai and Fukushima. On the contrary Hirosaki has
kept its cultural significance. Aomori is the sole
prefectural capital which has no national university in
Japan; in Aomori prefecture Hirosaki became the site for
this educational facility.
In July 1945 the city was bombed by United States Forces.
Climate
Snow and cold weather characterize the winter climate in
Aomori. The city and surrounding area are renowned for heavy
snowfall, which is said to be the heaviest among Japanese
cities. For example, the city recorded a maximum snow cover
of 196 cm in 1981. The current record for Sapporo is 164 cm,
recorded in 1939. The particularly heavy snow is caused by
several winds that collide around the city. This makes the
air rise and cool, resulting in cloud formation and
precipitation.
In summer, a cool wind called Yamase frequently blows from
the east, which sometimes results in extremely cool weather
and poor harvests. Additionally, thick fogs are often
observed in mountainous areas in the summer. Due to this
fog, flights to Aomori Airport are often canceled.
Transportation
Aomori Airport (established 1964, international flights
beginning 1995) is about a 30 minute drive from the city,
with bus service available. There are flights to Tokyo,
Itami (near Osaka), Chūbu Centrair International Airport
(near Nagoya), Sapporo, Fukuoka and Seoul, South Korea
(through Korean Air). In summer, flights to Russia (through
Dalavia Far East Airways) are also available.
Aomori Station is located at the downtown, near the Aomori
Port. The station is served by JR East as the northern
terminus of the Tohoku and Ōu Main Lines. The Hokkaidō
Railway Company also runs trains on the Tohoku Main Line
track to Hachinohe, and owns the Tsugaru Kaikyo Line to the
north which runs through the Seikan Tunnel to Hokkaidō.
Seikan Ferry operates ferries to Hakodate. It takes about
four hours to go by ferry from Aomori to Hakodate.
Information source: “Aomori, Aomori.” wikipedia.org. Article
date: 26 Feb. 2008. Retrieved: Wikipedia. 4 Mar. 2008 <Aomori, Aomori>. |
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