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Ōkura

大蔵村
Ōkura 大蔵村
Village
	Ōkura Village Hall
	Flag Seal
	Location of Ōkura in Yamagata Prefecture
	Ōkura
	Coordinates: 38°42′14.8″N 140°13′49.3″E / 38.704111°N 140.230361°E
Country	Japan
Region	Tōhoku
Prefecture	Yamagata
District	Mogami
Area
• Total	211.59 km2 (81.70 sq mi)
Population (January 2020)
• Total	3,044
• Density	14/km2 (37/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+9 (Japan Standard Time)
Phone number	0233-75-2111
Address	2528 Kiyomizu, Ōkura-mura, Mogami-gun, Yamagata-ken 999-0212
Climate	Cfb/Dfb
Website	Official website
Symbols
Bird	Copper pheasant
Flower	Japanese gentian
Tree	Japanese beech

Ōkura (大蔵村, Ōkura-mura) is a village in Yamagata Prefecture, Japan. As of January 2020, the village has an estimated population of 3044, and a population density of 14 persons per km². The total area is 211.59 square kilometres (82 sq mi).

Geography

Ōkura is located in a mountainous north-central eastern Yamagata Prefecture, and includes Mount Gassan within its borders. The Mogami River runs through the village. The area is known for extremely heavy snows in winter. Its highest accumulation of snow recorded is 414 cm, second place in Japan after Sukayu Onsen in Aomori.^{[citation needed]} Snow typically starts in November, and starts piling up on the ground by early December. The snow will usually stop by early May, but will not completely melt until mid-June. Similar to Sukayu Onsen, snowfalls of 50 to 100 cm in a single day are not uncommon at all.^{[citation needed]}

Neighboring municipalities

Yamagata Prefecture
- Funagata
- Murayama
- Nishikawa
- Sagae
- Shinjō
- Shōnai
- Tozawa

Climate

Ōkura has a Humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa) with large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and cold (sometimes severely cold) winters. Precipitation is significant throughout the year, but is heaviest from August to October. The average annual temperature in Ōkura is 9.2 °C (48.6 °F). The average annual rainfall is 2,844.8 mm (112.00 in) with December as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 21.9 °C (71.4 °F), and lowest in January, at around −1.8 °C (28.8 °F).^[1]

Climate data for Hijiori Onsen, Ōkura (1991−2020 normals, extremes 1976−present)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °C (°F)	11.8 (53.2)	17.3 (63.1)	18.2 (64.8)	26.3 (79.3)	30.4 (86.7)	30.5 (86.9)	33.4 (92.1)	35.3 (95.5)	32.4 (90.3)	27.4 (81.3)	21.9 (71.4)	17.7 (63.9)	35.3 (95.5)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	1.1 (34.0)	1.8 (35.2)	5.4 (41.7)	11.7 (53.1)	19.1 (66.4)	22.7 (72.9)	25.7 (78.3)	27.1 (80.8)	23.0 (73.4)	16.9 (62.4)	10.4 (50.7)	3.8 (38.8)	14.1 (57.3)
Daily mean °C (°F)	−1.8 (28.8)	−1.6 (29.1)	1.1 (34.0)	5.6 (42.1)	12.0 (53.6)	17.0 (62.6)	20.9 (69.6)	21.9 (71.4)	17.8 (64.0)	11.5 (52.7)	5.5 (41.9)	0.5 (32.9)	9.2 (48.6)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	−4.6 (23.7)	−5.1 (22.8)	−2.9 (26.8)	0.5 (32.9)	5.5 (41.9)	11.6 (52.9)	16.8 (62.2)	17.5 (63.5)	13.3 (55.9)	6.7 (44.1)	1.3 (34.3)	−2.3 (27.9)	4.9 (40.7)
Record low °C (°F)	−16.1 (3.0)	−16.6 (2.1)	−22.9 (−9.2)	−11.1 (12.0)	−2.5 (27.5)	2.0 (35.6)	6.7 (44.1)	8.2 (46.8)	2.3 (36.1)	−2.7 (27.1)	−8.0 (17.6)	−13.9 (7.0)	−22.9 (−9.2)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	403.3 (15.88)	268.4 (10.57)	186.4 (7.34)	128.4 (5.06)	112.4 (4.43)	135.0 (5.31)	229.2 (9.02)	201.5 (7.93)	170.6 (6.72)	222.0 (8.74)	332.5 (13.09)	443.8 (17.47)	2,844.8 (112.00)
Average snowfall cm (inches)	459 (181)	343 (135)	212 (83)	80 (31)	13 (5.1)	0 (0)	0 (0)	0 (0)	0 (0)	0 (0)	49 (19)	325 (128)	1,469 (578)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm)	26.7	22.7	20.7	14.7	12.4	11.4	14.7	13.2	14.2	16.4	20.1	25.5	212.7
Average snowy days (≥ 3 cm)	24.1	20.0	17.1	12.2	2.1	0	0	0	0	0	3.6	18.7	97.8
Mean monthly sunshine hours	20.7	37.7	75.9	149.5	191.4	150.0	119.6	153.7	115.4	103.7	74.5	31.3	1,223.5
Source: Japan Meteorological Agency^[2]^[1]

Demographics

Per Japanese census data,^[3] the population of Ōkura peaked around 1950 and is now considerably less than it was a century ago.

Historical population
Year	Pop.	±%
1920	8,156	—
1930	7,486	−8.2%
1940	7,797	+4.2%
1950	9,015	+15.6%
1960	8,434	−6.4%
1970	6,080	−27.9%
1980	5,301	−12.8%
1990	4,982	−6.0%
2000	4,528	−9.1%
2010	3,762	−16.9%
2020	3,028	−19.5%

History

The area of present-day Ōkura was part of ancient Dewa Province. During the Sengoku period, the area was under the control of the Mogami clan. During the Edo period, the village was a river port on the Mogami River and a post station on the pilgrimage route to Mount Gassan. After the start of the Meiji period, the area became part of Mogami District, Yamagata Prefecture. The village of Ōkura was established on April 1, 1889, with the establishment of the modern municipalities system.^{[citation needed]}

Economy

The main industry is agriculture (tomato and buckwheat), sake production, and seasonal tourism to its hot spring resorts. Kokeshi dolls are a noted local handicraft.