Ōita, Ōita

Ōita 大分
—  Core city  —
大分市 · Ōita City
City view from city center
Flag
Location of Ōita in Ōita Prefecture
Ōita
Coordinates: 33°14′0″N 131°36′24″E / 33.233333°N 131.60667°E / 33.233333; 131.60667Coordinates: 33°14′0″N 131°36′24″E / 33.233333°N 131.60667°E / 33.233333; 131.60667
Country	Japan
Region	Kyūshū
Prefecture	Ōita Prefecture
Government
- Mayor	Ban Kugimiya (since April 2003)
Area
- Total	501.25 km2 (193.5 sq mi)
Population (June 30, 2011)
- Total	475,861
- Density	949.35/km2 (2,458.8/sq mi)
Time zone	Japan Standard Time (UTC+9)
City symbols
- Tree	Elaeocarpus sylvestris
- Flower	Camellia sasanqua
Phone number	097-534-6111
Address	2-31 Niage-machi, Ōita-shi, Ōita-ken 870-8504
Website	City of Ōita

Ōita (大分市, Ōita-shi^?) is the capital city of Ōita Prefecture located on the island of Kyushu, Japan.

Demographics and geography

Ōita is the most populous city in Ōita Prefecture. As of June 30, 2011, the city has an estimated population of 475,861 with 205,639 households and a population density of 949.35 persons per km².

The total area of the city, after the merger with Town of Notsuharu and Town of Saganoseki on January 1, 2005, is 501.25 km².

The city is bordered by City of Beppu to the northwest, City of Yufu to the west, City of Taketa to the southwest, City of Bungo-ōno to the south, and City of Usuki to the southeast. The north of the city faces Beppu Bay and the Seto Inland Sea.

Main street of Ōita

Economy

During the 1960s and 1970s, an industrial region was formed along the Beppu Gulf coast. Among the plants in the region were flagship plants of Nippon Steel and Showa Denko.

In the 1970s, Toshiba and Canon built and expanded their plants in inland area. By then, the city emerged as a major production center of electronics products such as LSIs and digital cameras.

The downtown and shopping districts are located to the north of Oita Station. Recently, however, the area has been gradually declining, because the main commercial areas have been dispersed due to the construction of big shopping malls in the suburbs.

History

The Ōita area is historically known as Funai (府内^?), the capital of Bungo (豊後^?).

During the Sengoku period (15th - 16th century), the powerful Ōtomo clan based in Funai and the area prospered as a key port of trade with Portugal and Ming Dynasty China. Ōtomo Sōrin, a famous Christian Daimyo, first introduced western culture. It was in Funai that the first western style hospital was built and the first Japanese choir was formed.

Landmarks and points of interest

Marine Palace AKA "Umi Tamago"

Takasaki Mountain

Takasaki mountain (高崎山) that borders Beppu is famous for wild monkeys, specifically the Japanese Macaque.

At the entrance to the Takasaki-yama park is the "Marine Palace" aquarium, also known as "Umi Tamago", or "Sea Egg".^[1]

The Ōita Stadium, also known as Big Eye or Kyushu Oil Dome, is situated along the city expressway. It is the home field of the J. League football club Oita Trinita and is used for large local events.

In the middle of the city, there are many shops and department stores. Some major departmental stores include Tokiwa, Parco, Frespo Kasugaura, and D Plaza. There are also shopping malls in the suburbs, such as Tokiwa Wasada Town and Park Place Oita.

Outside the city, scenic spots include mountain plateaus, seaside villages and towns renowned for onsen (geothermal hot springs).

Ōita is also famous for the intestines of puffer fish.

Toriten (とり天^?) is another famous food in this city.

Transportation

Japan National Route 10 at Oita, Oita

The principal railway station of the city is Ōita Station where Nippō Main Line, Kyudai Main Line, and Hohi Main Line of JR Kyushu gathers.

Buses are the primary mode of transportation in Oita, run by two main bus service companies. The Oita Bus Company operates bus routes in the city. The Oita Kotsu Company runs north of the city. For long distance bus services, these two companies, as well as Kamenoi Bus Company operate bus routes from Oita to main place of Kyushu, such as Fukuoka and Kumamoto, and Osaka, Nagoya and more.

Oita Airport is located nearby, at Kunisaki, and used to be accessible via hovercraft, which takes about 30 minutes. However, this service has been suspended since late 2009. Other ways of accessing the airport is by bus, taxi or a private vehicle.

The Ōita Expressway, Higashi-Kyushu Expressway, Japan National Route 10 and Japan National Route 210 all run through the city.

Many ships depart from the Port of Oita, to places such as Kansai, and Shikoku.

Sports

Annual sporting events include:

• Beppu-Oita Mainichi Marathon, which traces a path between Ōita and its neighbouring city of Beppu. The competition has been held every year since 1952 and is classed as an IAAF Silver Label road race.^[2]
• The Kyūshū Ekiden, beginning in Nagasaki and ending in Fukuoka, the world's longest relay race

Sporting events held in Oita include:

• 1966 National Sports Festival of Japan
• 2001 Kirin Cup
• 2002 FIFA World Cup
• 2003, 2006, 2007 Kirin Challenge Cup
• 2005 J. League All-Star Soccer

Sports teams and facilities

Club	Sports	League	Venue	Established
Oita Trinita	Football	J. League Division 1	Ōita Stadium	1994(year of starting as Oita Trinity, changed to current name from 1999)
Vasagey Oita	Futsal	F. League	Oita Prefectural General Gymnasium	2003
Oita Miyoshi Weisse Adler	Volleyball	V.League	TOTO Oita factory gymnasium (TOTO大分工場体育館)	1996(year of starting as Miyoshi Department of Cardiology EKG, changed to current name from 2006)

Education

Oita City operates all public elementary and junior high schools, while the prefecture operates the high schools.

National Universities

• Oita University

Prefectural University

• Oita University of Nursing and Health Sciences

Private Universities

• Nippon Bunri University
• Beppu University - Oita Campus

Prefectural high schools

• Oita Uenogaoka High School
• Oita Oginodai High School
• Oita Kogyo High School
• Oita Shogyo High School
• Oita Tsurusaki High School
• Oita Nishi Highs School
• Oita Higashi High School
• Oita Hofu High School (middle and high school)
• Oita Maizuru High School
• Oita Minami High School
• Geijutsu Midorigaoka High School
• Jouhou Kagaku High School
• Tsurusaki Kogyo High School

Famous people from Ōita

See also Category:People from Ōita (city).

• Arata Isozaki, architect
• Akira Nishikino, singer
• Atsuhiro Miura, football player
• Chiyotaikai Ryūji, sumo wrestler
• Daisuke Miyazaki, handball player
• Eri Fukatsu, actress
• Kiyoshi Imaizumi, rugby player
• Kosetsu Minami, singer
• Mao Abe, singer-songwriter
• Naomi Zaizen, actress
• Seiichi Uchikawa, baseball player
• Shigeichi Nagano, photographer
• Teppei Tsuchiya, baseball player
• Tomiichi Murayama, 81st Prime Minister of Japan
• Yūko Kotegawa, actress
• Yūsuke Santamaria, tarento
• Yuya Ando, baseball player
• Sashihara Rino, AKB48 Team A member

Sister cities

• Aveiro, Portugal (1978)
• Wuhan, China (1979)
• Austin, Texas, USA (1990)
• Guangzhou, China (1997)
• Vitória, Brazil

References

1. ^ http://umitamago.jp/
2. ^ Beppu-Oita Mainichi Marathon. ARRS (2009-12-24). Retrieved on 2010-02-08.

External links

• Official Ōita city website