Katori, Chiba

Katori 香取市
—  City  —
A view of October Sawara Festival, these festival held on July and October
Flag
Location of Katori in Chiba
Katori
Coordinates: 35°41′N 140°2′E
Country	Japan
Region	Kantō
Prefecture	Chiba
Government
• Mayor	Seiichi Ui (since May 2006)
Area
• Total	262.31 km2 (101.28 sq mi)
Population (February 1, 2011)
• Total	82,633
• Density	315/km2 (820/sq mi)
Time zone	Japan Standard Time (UTC+9)
City Symbols
- Tree	Sakura
- Flower	Japanese iris, Iris laevigata
- Bird	Great Reed Warbler
Phone number	0478-54-1111
Address	Sawaraguchi 2127, Katori-shi, Chiba-ken 287-8501
Website	City of Katori

Katori City Hall

A view of old Sawara

Katori (香取市, Katori-shi) is a city located in northern Chiba, Japan. As of February 2011, the city had an estimated population of 82,633 and a population density of 315 persons per km². The total area was 262.31 km². Katori Shrine is in the city of Katori, as is the old merchant town and canal of Sawara.

Geography

Katori is located in far northeastern Chiba Prefecture, along the lower reaches of the Tone River.

Surrounding municipalities

• Narita, Chiba
• Sōsa, Chiba
• Asahi, Chiba
• Kōzaki, Chiba
• Tako, Chiba
• Tōnoshō, Chiba
• Inashiki, Ibaraki
• Itako, Ibaraki
• Kamisu, Ibaraki

History

After the Meiji Restoration, the towns of Sawara and Omigawa and villages of Katori, Kanishi and Higashi-Daito were founded within Katori District on May 23 1890. Katori was raised to town status on May 5, 1897. On March 15, 1951, the city of Sawara was formed by the merger of Katori, Sawara, Omigawa and Higashi-Daito. Sawara expanded on February 11, 1955 by annexing the neighboring villages of Niijima, Okura, Mizuho and Tsunomiya. On March 27, 2006, Sawara merged with the towns of Kurimoto, Omigawa and Yamada, all from Katori District to form the new city of Katori.

Economy

Katori is a regional commercial center. The economy is primarily agricultural, with rice, chives, onions, and greater burdock as major crops.

Transportation

Railways

• East Japan Railway Company (JR East) - Narita Line
  • Ōto - Sawara - Katori - Suigō - Omigawa
• East Japan Railway Company (JR East) - Kashima Line
  • (Sawara -) Katori - Jūnikyō

Highways

• Higashi-Kantō Expressway
• Japan National Route 51
• Route 356 (Japan)

Local attractions

• Katori Jingu
• Kurobe River
• Suigō Sawara Aquatic Botanical Garden

Noted people from Katori

• Takao Sakurai – professional boxer
• Kazuo Misaki – mixed martial artist

External links

• Official site (Japanese)