Nobeoka (延岡市Nobeoka-shi) is the northernmost city located in Miyazaki, Japan.
Nobeoka City in ancient times, during the period where different feudal clans ruled separate areas, was a city that flourished as a castle town under the Naito Family. (The Naito Family boasted an economic power expressed in a yearly harvest of 70, 000 koku {equal to 358, 400 bushels or 2, 867, 200 gallons} of rice).
In modern times, Nobeoka City takes pride in being Eastern Kyushu’s number one industrial city. With a population of over 130,000, it has become a central city in the nortnorthern region of Miyazaki Prefecture, and its development has continued through until this day.
History
The city was officially founded on February 11, 1933 after it gained city status. During World War II it was one of the most important centers of military explosives in Japan.[1] On the night of June 28-29th, 1945, 117United States B-29s fire-bombed the city destroying 1.35 square km, or 36% of the city.[2] On July 16, 1945, 33 US B-24s bombed the bridges in around the city, severing the strategically important Nippō Main Linerailway.[3] On February 20, 2006 Nobeoka absorbed the towns ofKitakata and Kitaura, both from Higashiusuki District.On March 31, 2007 the town of Kitagawa, also from Higashiusuki District, was absorbed into Nobeoka.
[edit]Climate[]
The climate of Nobeoka is hot and humid in the summer (above 30 °C) and is somewhat cold in the winter with temperatures dropping to around freezing (0 °C). Snowfall can be seen in the winter months, but does not accumulate because of coastal warming effects.
[edit]Economy[]
The city's economy depends strongly on the company Asahi Kasei, a producer of synthetic and industrial fibers.
It is known regionally for its Ayu fish.
Recently a new type of onion has been developed that can be harvested very early in the year (around February) due to Miyazaki and Nobeoka's relatively warm winter climate. It is known for its mildness and is put raw in salads. Many products, including an onion jam and onion salad dressing, have been produced to promote the onion by local agricultural boards.
Transportation
Nobeoka is the terminal station for trains that run the length of the prefecture (although some trains do continue up into Oita prefecture). It used to be the terminal station for the privately owned takachiho line, which ran towards Kumamoto prefecture from the northeast to the northwest of the prefecture. This line was closed after a typhoon in 2005, and has not been reopened.
Miyazaki is not currently serviced by an expressway, but there are vague plans of building a freeway from Miyazaki city up to Nobeoka. This would bring Nobeoka to within a one-hour drive of Miyazaki city. The cost, however, of building an expressway has been criticized has not being recoverable by the relatively small population that it would serve. Nobeoka does have its own municipal bus service with routes to most destinations in the city.
Festivals and Events[]
Takigi Noh Theatre is held in October in the space of the second outer castle enclosure of the Nobeoka Castle Ruins. It uses Noh masks which were handed down from Nobeoka's previous feudal lords, the Naito Family. The Noh theatre, set upon a backdrop of The Killer of a Thousand People Stone Wall, which rises up behind the light of bonfires, invites viewers into a world of mysterious profundity.