Tsu

Geography

Tsu is located in east-central Kii Peninsula, in central Mie Prefecture. It is the largest city in Mie Prefecture in terms of area and stretches the width of Mie Prefecture, and is bordered by Ise Bay on the Pacific Ocean to the east, and Nara Prefecture to the west. Parts of the city are within the limits of the Murō-Akame-Aoyama Quasi-National Park.

Neighboring municipalities

The city of Iga, to the west

The city of Kameyama, to the north

The city of Matsusaka, to the south

The city of Nabari to the west

The village of Mitsue, Nara to the west

The village of Soni, Nara to the west

The city of Suzuka, to the north

Climate

Tsu has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa) characterized by warm summers and cool winters with light to no snowfall. The average annual temperature in Tsu is 15.6 °C (60.1 °F). The average annual rainfall is 1,931 mm (76.0 in) with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 26.7 °C (80.1 °F), and lowest in January, at around 5.0 °C (41.0 °F). Precipitation is significant throughout the year, but is heaviest from May to September.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data, the population of Tsu has been relatively stable over the past 40 years.

History

Origin

Tsu originally developed as a port town known as Anotsu (安濃津) in the Nara and Heian periods.

The port was destroyed by a tsunami in the 1498 Meiō Nankaidō earthquake.

Edo period

The town was rebuilt as a castle town and a post station by the Tōdō clan, daimyō of Tsu Domain under the Tokugawa shogunate. During the Edo period, it became a popular stopping point for travelers to Ise Grand Shrine, about 40 km to the southeast.

Modern Tsu

Following the Meiji Restoration, Tsu became the capital of Mie Prefecture in 1871. With the establishment of then modern municipalities on April 1, 1889, Tsu was one of the original 31 cities to be proclaimed. The city borders gradually expanded, with Tsu annexing the neighboring villages of Tatebe and Tosa in 1909, Shinmachi in 1934, Fujimi in 1936, Takachaya in 1939 and Anto, Kanbe and Kushigata in 1943. During World War II, Allied air raids on July 24 and July 28, 1945, destroyed most of the city and killed 1,239 people. In 1953, Tsu annexed the neighboring villages of Kumozu in 1953, Isshinden, Shiratsuka, Kurima, and Katada in 1954 and Toyosato in 1973.

On January 1, 2006, the neighboring city of Hisai, the towns of Anō, Geinō and Kawage, and the village of Misato (all in Age District), the towns of Hakusan, Ichishi and Karasu, and the village of Misugi (all in Ichishi District) were merged into Tsu. As a result of the merger, the city became the second largest in Mie by population behind Yokkaichi, and the largest in Mie by area ahead of Matsusaka.

Government

Tsu has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral city council of 34 members. Tsu contributes seven members to the Mie Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city is part of Mie 1st district of the lower house of the Diet of Japan.

Economy

Imuraya Confectionery, a confectionery company, and ZTV, a cable television operator, are headquartered in Tsu.

Education

Colleges and universities

Mie Prefectural College of Nursing

Mie University, the prefecture's only national university.

Takada Junior College

Tsu City College

Primary and secondary education

Tsu has 48 public elementary schools and 19 public middle schools operated by the city government, one public elementary school and one public middle schools affiliated with Mie University and two private middle schools, as well as one compulsory (Combined elementary and junior high) school. The city has nine public operated by the Mie Prefectural Board of Education and three private high schools.

The prefecture also operates six special education schools for the disabled.

Transportation

Railway

JR Tōkai – Kisei Main Line

Ishinden - Tsu - Akogi - Takachaya

JR Tōkai – Meishō Line

Ise-Hata - Ichishi - Isegi - Ise-Ōi – Ise-Kawaguchi - Sekinomiya - Ieki - Ise-Takehara - Ise-Kamakura - Ise-Yachi - Hitsu - Ise-Okitsu

Kintetsu Railway – Nagoya Line

Chisato - Toyotsu-Ueno - Shiratsuka - Takadahonzan - Edobashi - Tsu - Tsu-shimmachi - Minamigaoka - Hisai - Momozono

Kintetsu Railway – Osaka Line

Higashi-Aoyama - Sakakibara-Onsenguchi - Ōmitsu - Ise-Ishibashi - Kawai-Takaoka

Ise Railway – Ise Railway Ise Line

Ise-Ueno – Kawage – Higashi-Ishinden - Tsu

Highway

Ise Expressway

National Route 23

National Route 163

National Route 165

National Route 306

National Route 368

National Route 369

National Route 422

National Route 306]

Sea ports

Port of Tsu-Matsusaka

Sister cities

Higashishirakawa, Gifu, since June 28, 1989

Osasco, São Paulo, Brazil, since October 18, 1976

Zhenjiang, Jiangsu, China, since June 11, 1984

Local attractions

Tsu is famous for its Tōjin Odori (唐人踊り), a festival commemorating the arrival of the Joseon Tongsinsa delegation from Korea during the feudal period. There are two other cities that celebrate Tōjin Odori: Suzuka city in Mie Prefecture and Ushimado-chō in Okayama Prefecture.

The ruins of Tsu Castle have been made into a downtown city park.

Kitabatake Shrine and Yūki Shrine are notable local Shinto shrines.

Culture

Sports

Mie Takatora baseball club (JABA)

Veertien Mie (V.League)

Notable people

Sho Gokyu, professional soccer player

Yuki Hashimoto, politician, former idol

Sota Higashide, professional soccer player

Mu Kanazaki, professional soccer player

Kintaro Kanemura, professional wrestler

Kōji Kitao, sumo wrestler

Kotokaze Kōki, sumo wrestler

Yoshihito Nishioka, professional tennis player

Ayumi Oka, actress

Hiroshi Okuda, former president of Toyota Motors

Keisuke Okuda, professional wrestler

Edogawa Rampo, author

Chikara Sakaguchi, politician

Kōdō Sawaki, Zen Buddhist

Hidesaburō Ueno, agricultural scientist

Saori Yoshida, Olympic wrestler