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Misato

美郷町
Misato 美郷町
Town
	Misato town hall
	Flag Emblem
	Location of Misato in Shimane Prefecture
	Misato Location in Japan
	Coordinates: 35°4′36″N 132°35′26″E / 35.07667°N 132.59056°E
Country	Japan
Region	Chūgoku; San'in
Prefecture	Shimane
District	Ōchi
Area
• Total	282.92 km2 (109.24 sq mi)
Population (July 31, 2023)
• Total	4,355
• Density	15/km2 (40/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+09:00 (JST)
City hall address	168 Kasubuchi, Misato-cho, Ochi-gun, Shimane-ken 699-4692
Website	Official website
Symbols
Flower	Rhododendron subg. Hymenanthes
Tree	Prunus mume

Misato (美郷町, Misato-chō) is a town located in Ōchi District, Shimane Prefecture, Japan.^[1]^[2] As of 31 July 2023^[update], the town had an estimated population of 4,355 in 1844 households and a population density of 15 persons per km².^[3] The total area of the town is 282.92 square kilometres (109.24 sq mi).

Geography

Misato is located in central Shimane, in the Chugoku Mountains bordered by Hiroshima Prefecture to the south. The Enokawa River runs through the town.

Climate

Misato has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa) characterized by warm summers and cool winters with light to no snowfall. The average annual temperature in Misato is 13.4 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1711 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 25.0 °C, and lowest in January, at around 2.4 °C.^[4]

Demographics

Per Japanese census data,^[5] the population of Misato has been decreasing and is now only a third of what it was 50 years ago.

Historical population
Year	Pop.	±%
1970	15,460	—
1980	10,494	−32.1%
1990	8,838	−15.8%
2000	7,606	−13.9%
2010	6,624	−12.9%
2020	5,351	−19.2%

Neighboring municipalities

Hiroshima Prefecture

Miyoshi

Shimane Prefecture

History

The area of Misato was part of ancient Iwami Province. During the Edo Period, the area was tenryō or direct territory of the Tokugawa shogunate, administered together with the Iwami Ginzan Silver Mine. Kasubuchi, the center of Misato Town, is located at the point where the Enokawa River, which flows northward in the Chugoku Mountains, bends and flows westward, and has prospered as a key point for boat transport on the Enogawa River. After the Meiji restoration, villages were established within Ōchi District, Shimane on April 1, 1889 with the creation of the modern municipalities system. The town of Misato was formed on October 1, 2004, from the merger of the village of Daiwa and the town of Ōchi.

Government

Misato has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral town council of 12 members. Misato, collectively with the towns of Kawamoto and Ōnan, contributes one member to the Shimane Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the town is part of the Shimane 2nd district of the lower house of the Diet of Japan.

Economy

Misato is a very rural area, with an economy based on agriculture and forestry.

Education

Misato has two public elementary school and two public junior high schools operated by the town government. The town does not have a high school

Transportation

Railway

Following the closure of the JR West Sankō Line on April 1, 2018, Misato no longer has any passenger railway service. The nearest train station is Gōtsu Station on the JR West San'in Main Line.

JR West - Sankō Line