Location
The city of Takayama is situated in
the central part of the Takayama Basin in the southern district
of the Hida region of Gifu Prefecture. Its official altitude
is listed at 573m (1879 feet) above sea level. Linked with the
Ohno district to the east, south, and west and to the Yoshiki
district to the north, Takayama is located at 137 degrees 16
minutes east longitude and 36 degrees 9 minutes latitude.
The Takayama National Railways line
runs through the center of Takayama, linking the city with Gifu
and Nagoya in the south and Toyama and Kanazawa to the north.
Meanwhile, National Highway Route 41 connects Takayama to Nagoya
in the south and Toyama to the north, and Route 158, running
east/west, links the city with Matsumoto and Fukui. Nagoya and
Gifu are 167 km (104 miles) and 136 km (84 miles) from Takayama.
While Toyama lies 90 km (56 miles) to the north and Matsumoto
is 103 km (64 miles) east of Takayama.
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Geography
and Geology
The city of Takayama sits in a basin
amidst the Hida range of the Japan Alps, and it covers an area
of 139.57km2 (54.22 square miles), which ranks it fifth among
the fourteen cities in Gifu Prefecture. At its widest points,
Takayama stretches 27.1km (16.83 miles) from east to west and
11.5km (7.14 miles) from north to south.
Takayama's maximum altitude is 1500m
(4920 feet) above sea level in the Hikage plains and the minimum
altitude is 450m (1771 feet) in the Akahoki district.
The geological features around Takayama
vary widely. The Daihachiga Village area includes a great part
of the Paleozoic strata. Most of the central urban area of Takayama
is composed of a diluvium formation, as is the area in the southern
part of town, ranging from an altitude of 650m (2132 feet) to
1142m (3745 feet) above sea level, near the Genji mountain. In
the western part of the city, the Nakayama and Mihaka mountain
districts are categorized as quartz porphyry, and the Shingu
and Yokamachi districts, at an altitude of about 604m (1980 feet)
above sea level, are also of the diluvium formation. Finally,
the Shimogirimachi area in the northern part of Takayama was
formed during the Jurassic Period.
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Climate
Takayama's climate is generally an inland
type, but the weather is usually influenced by the districts
along the Sea of Japan. And since Takayama sits in the mountains,
temperatures can vary considerably between morning and night.
Throughout the year, it cools off a great deal after the sun
sets behind the mountains in the evening.
The annual mean temperature is about
10 degrees C (50 degrees F), with the record maximum of 35 degrees
C (95 degrees F) and the record minimum being -17 degrees C (-0.4
degrees F). The annual mean wind velocity is 1.6 meters/ second
(5.28 feet/second), and the wind usually blows from the southeast
in the summer and from the northwest in the winter. Takayama's
yearly precipitation ranges from 1500mm (59 inches) to 1900mm
(75 inches). Takayama's first frost usually occurs in late October
or early November, and the rainy season usually lasts for about
four weeks, ordinarily beginning in June.
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Some
Facts & Friends
Municipal Tree : The yew
tree
Municipal Flower : The azalea
Sister Cities
Denver, Colorado,
USA (established July 29, 1960)
Matsumoto
City, Nagano Pref.
Friendly Cities
Takefu
City, Fukui Pref.
Hiratsuka City, Kanagawa Pref.
Kaminoyama
City, Yamagata Pref.
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AREA AND
GEOLOGICAL FEATURESE