Kōchi, Kōchi

A symbol of the city is its most famous dish, katsuo tataki, made by lightly searing and seasoning bonito.[http://www.city.kochi.kochi.jp/info/english/vis-001-04.htm] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081103130658/http://www.city.kochi.kochi.jp/info/english/vis-001-04.htm|date=November 3, 2008}}

File:Kochi Japan.jpg|Skyline of Kōchi City（2006）

File:080229 Obiyamachi Street Kochi Kochi pref Japan01s.jpg|Obiyamachi in Downtown Kōchi City（2008）

File:Nichiyoichi.jpg|Sunday street markets（2009）

File:Kochi-City.jpg|CBD of Kōchi City（2010）

File:高知城 天守からの景色3 Kochi Castle - panoramio.jpg|Views from Kōchi Castle Keep Tower（2013）

File:Kochi Castle, enkei.jpg|Kōchi Castle（2020）

File:Urado, Kochi, Kochi Prefecture 781-0262, Japan - panoramio (2).jpg]]

Kōchi is located on the southern coast of Kōchi Prefecture, facing the Pacific Ocean to the south. The city area can be divided into three distinct geographic sections. The urban centre lies at the head of Urado Bay, in a narrow alluvial plain crossed by several rivers, notably the Kagami River and Kokubu River. The plain is bounded by mountains to the north and a range of hills to the south and west.

The northern mountains form the least densely populated part of the city, with the only settlement being along narrow river valleys. The highest point in Kōchi is Kuishi-yama at {{convert|1176|m|ft|0}}.

To the south of the city centre, Urado Bay cuts through the hills to its outlet into the Pacific Ocean. The land surrounding the bay and a small strip of the coastline form the third part of the city. This area, although hillier and less dense than the plain, is nevertheless a major location of housing and port-related industry.

Kōchi Prefecture

• Ino
• Nankoku
• Tosa City
• Tosa Town

Kōchi has a very wet humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa), receiving twice as much rainfall as Shikoku's other chief cities Matsuyama and Takamatsu. It is also the most typhoon-prone of Japan's major cities owing to its location directly exposed to the open Pacific Ocean from which the storms enter the country, and has twice received over {{convert|50|cm|abbr=on}} of rainfall in a day from a typhoon.

{{Weather box

|width=auto

|collapsed = Y

|single line = Y

|metric first = Y

|location = Kochi (1991-2020 normals, extremes 1886-present)

|Jan record high C = 23.5

|Feb record high C = 25.2

|Mar record high C = 26.3

|Apr record high C = 30.0

|May record high C = 32.3

|Jun record high C = 34.7

|Jul record high C = 38.3

|Aug record high C = 38.4

|Sep record high C = 37.3

|Oct record high C = 32.2

|Nov record high C = 28.0

|Dec record high C = 23.5

|Jan record low C = -7.6

|Feb record low C = -7.9

|Mar record low C = -6.5

|Apr record low C = -0.9

|May record low C = 3.8

|Jun record low C = 9.1

|Jul record low C = 14.6

|Aug record low C = 15.9

|Sep record low C = 10.0

|Oct record low C = 2.5

|Nov record low C = -1.9

|Dec record low C = -6.6

|precipitation colour = green

|Jan precipitation mm = 59.1

|Feb precipitation mm = 107.8

|Mar precipitation mm = 174.8

|Apr precipitation mm = 225.3

|May precipitation mm = 280.4

|Jun precipitation mm = 359.5

|Jul precipitation mm = 357.3

|Aug precipitation mm = 284.1

|Sep precipitation mm = 398.1

|Oct precipitation mm = 207.5

|Nov precipitation mm = 129.6

|Dec precipitation mm = 83.1

|year precipitation mm = 2666.4

|Jan mean C = 6.7

|Feb mean C = 7.8

|Mar mean C = 11.2

|Apr mean C = 15.8

|May mean C = 20.0

|Jun mean C = 23.1

|Jul mean C = 27.0

|Aug mean C = 27.9

|Sep mean C = 25.0

|Oct mean C = 19.9

|Nov mean C = 14.2

|Dec mean C = 8.8

|year mean C = 17.3

|Jan high C = 12.2

|Feb high C = 13.2

|Mar high C = 16.3

|Apr high C = 20.9

|May high C = 24.8

|Jun high C = 27.1

|Jul high C = 30.8

|Aug high C = 32.1

|Sep high C = 29.5

|Oct high C = 25.0

|Nov high C = 19.6

|Dec high C = 14.4

|year high C = 22.2

|Jan low C = 2.1

|Feb low C = 3.1

|Mar low C = 6.4

|Apr low C = 10.9

|May low C = 15.5

|Jun low C = 19.7

|Jul low C = 23.9

|Aug low C = 24.5

|Sep low C = 21.4

|Oct low C = 15.6

|Nov low C = 9.7

|Dec low C = 4.2

|year low C = 13.1

|Jan humidity = 61

|Feb humidity = 60

|Mar humidity = 62

|Apr humidity = 65

|May humidity = 70

|Jun humidity = 78

|Jul humidity = 79

|Aug humidity = 76

|Sep humidity = 74

|Oct humidity = 68

|Nov humidity = 68

|Dec humidity = 64

|year humidity = 69

|Jan sun = 190.7

|Feb sun = 177.2

|Mar sun = 192.2

|Apr sun = 197.3

|May sun = 195.7

|Jun sun = 133.8

|Jul sun = 173.7

|Aug sun = 204.0

|Sep sun = 162.0

|Oct sun = 179.6

|Nov sun = 168.8

|Dec sun = 184.6

|year sun = 2159.7

|Jan snow cm = 0

|Feb snow cm = 0

|Mar snow cm = 0

|Apr snow cm = 0

|May snow cm = 0

|Jun snow cm = 0

|Jul snow cm = 0

|Aug snow cm = 0

|Sep snow cm = 0

|Oct snow cm = 0

|Nov snow cm = 0

|Dec snow cm = 0

|year snow cm = 1

|unit precipitation days = 0.5 mm

|Jan precipitation days = 6.0

|Feb precipitation days = 7.5

|Mar precipitation days = 10.5

|Apr precipitation days = 10.4

|May precipitation days = 11.1

|Jun precipitation days = 15.1

|Jul precipitation days = 13.7

|Aug precipitation days = 12.9

|Sep precipitation days = 13.2

|Oct precipitation days = 9.0

|Nov precipitation days = 7.3

|Dec precipitation days = 6.4

|year precipitation days = 123.2

|source 1 = Japan Meteorological Agency{{cite web

| url = https://www.data.jma.go.jp/obd/stats/etrn/index.php?prec_no=74&block_no=47893&year=&month=&day=&view=

|script-title=ja:気象庁 / 平年値（年・月ごとの値）

| publisher = Japan Meteorological Agency

| access-date = May 19, 2021}}

}}

Per Japanese census data,[https://www.citypopulation.de/php/japan-kochi.php Kōchi population statistics] the population of Kōchi increased rapidly in the 1960s and 1970s before peaking around the year 2000 and going into decline.

{{Historical populations

| 1920 | 133,277

| 1930 | 159,010

| 1940 | 163,182

| 1950 | 190,452

| 1960 | 221,737

| 1970 | 265,571

| 1980 | 318,266

| 1990 | 335,287

| 2000 | 348,979

| 2010 | 343,393

| 2020 | 326,545

|align = none

| footnote =

}}

As with all of Kōchi Prefecture, the area of Nahari was part of ancient Tosa Province. The river plain now containing the city centre was originally settled as a castle town around Kōchi Castle, the seat of the daimyō of Tosa Domain. The castle site was chosen by Yamauchi Kazutoyo in 1601 to replace the earlier seats of the Chōsokabe clan who had previously ruled in province. The city takes its name from that of the castle. As the centre of administration for the province, and the prefecture which succeeded it, the town rapidly grew to become the largest settlement of the region.

File:Chosokabe.jpg|Chōsokabe Motochika

File:Yamauchi Katsutoyo01s3872.jpg|Yamauchi Kazutoyo

File:Kochi Castle08s3872.jpg|Kōchi Castle

During the time of the Meiji Restoration, Kōchi became famous as a centre of pro-imperial ideology, and later for incubating democratic and human rights movements. The city was incorporated on April 1, 1889, with the establishment of the modern municipalities system..

Tram service began in the city on May 2, 1904, and the city was connected to the national rail network on November 12, 1951.

File:Statue Sakamoto Ryouma.JPG|Sakamoto Ryouma

File:Itagaki Taisuke01.JPG|Itagaki Taisuke

Kōchi was selected as a target by the United States' XXI Bomber Command because of the city's status as a prefectural capital, and the fact that it was a centre for industry and commercial trade. On July 3, 1945, at 6:22 pm (JST) 129 aircraft took off to bomb Kōchi. 1060 tons of incendiary bombs were dropped on Kōchi, destroying 48% of the built up areas of the city, killing 401 civilians and rendering over 40,000 homeless.{{cite web|url=https://www.scribd.com/doc/61702152/21st-Bomber-Command-Tactical-Mission-Report-247-250-Ocr |title=21st Bomber Command Tactical Mission Report 247, 250, Ocr |publisher=Scribd.com |access-date=2013-12-09}}

On April 1, 1998, the city was designated as the first core city on Shikoku.

On January 1, 2005, the villages of Kagami and Tosayama, both from Tosa District were merged into Kōchi.

On January 1, 2008, the town of Haruno (from Agawa District) was also merged into Kōchi.

File:Kochi City Hall 20230615 1700.jpg

Kōchi has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral city council of 42 members.

The current mayor (since 2023) is Ryugo Kuwana.{{Cite web|title=ようこそ！市長室へ|language=ja|trans-title=welcome! To the Mayor's Office|website=Kōchi City |url=https://www.city.kochi.kochi.jp/soshiki/174/info-gaiyou-msg.html|access-date=June 29, 2022}}

{{Clear}}

Kōchi contributes 15 members to the Kōchi Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city is divided between the Kōchi 1st district and Kōchi 2nd districts of the lower house of the Diet of Japan.

;Sister cities

;Friendship cities

;Sister ports

;Sister cities

File:Kochi University 20120520.jpg]]

File:University of Kochi, Eikokuji Campus.jpg]]

Kōchi is home to two universities, Kōchi University (national) and University of Kochi (prefectural), and four junior colleges including Kochi Junior College.

;National university

• Kōchi University

;Public university

• University of Kochi（Kōchi Prefectural University）

;Private university

• Kochi Gakuen University
• The Open University of Japan
• University of Kochi Health Sciences

;Elementary and secondary education

Kōchi has 39 public elementary schools, 17 public middle schools and one public high school operated by the city government, one private and one national elementary school, and five private combined middle/high schools. The city has eight public high schools administered by the Kōchi Prefectural Department of Education. The prefecture also operates one middle school and one combined middle/high school.

File:Kochiryomaairport.jpg]]

File:Kochi-STA.jpg]]

File:Tosaden 100.jpg]]

File:KochiEXPWY Kagami river bridge.jpg

File:Uradooohasi.jpg

• Kōchi Ryōma Airport, located in nearby Nankoku

Kōchi is located on the JR Shikoku's Dosan Line connecting it to northern Shikoku, and via interchanges with the Tosa Kuroshio Railway to the eastern and western parts of Kōchi Prefecture. JR's central station in Kōchi is Kōchi Station.

20px Shikoku Railway Company JR Shikoku {{Color|#e25885|■}}Dosan Line

• {{STN|Tosa-Ōtsu|x}}{{•}}{{STN|Nunoshida|x}}{{•}}{{STN|Tosa-Ikku|x}}{{•}}{{STN|Azōno|x}}{{•}}{{STN|Kōchi|x|Kōchi}}{{•}}{{STN|Iriake|x}}{{•}}{{STN|Engyōjiguchi|x}}{{•}}{{STN|Asahi|x|Kōchi}}{{•}}{{STN|Kōchi-Shōgyō-Mae|x}}{{•}}{{STN|Asakura|x|JR Shikoku}}

The most visible form of transport within Kōchi is the tram service run by Tosaden Kōtsū. Its three lines with historic cars service the major north–south and east–west axes of the city.

;Tosaden Kōtsū

• {{Color|green|■}}Gomen Line
• {{Color|green|■}}Ino Line
• {{Color|green|■}}Sanbashi Line

The city also has an extensive bus network.

Kōchi is also serviced by the Kōchi interchange of the Kōchi Expressway which connects to the national expressway system.

• File:JP Expressway E32.svg Kōchi Expressway
• File:JP Expressway E55.svg Kōchi-Tōbu Expressway

• {{jct|country=JPN|Route|32}}
• {{jct|country=JPN|Route|33}}
• {{jct|country=JPN|Route|55}}
• {{jct|country=JPN|Route|56}}
• {{jct|country=JPN|Route|194}}
• {{jct|country=JPN|Route|195}}

• Port of Kōchi

{{Clear}}

File:Kochi Katsurahama Daytime 1.JPG]]

File:Harimaya-bashi (6453595247).jpg

Kōchi Castle still exists in its pre-restoration form, and is one of the main tourist attractions. Other places of interest in the city centre are the {{nihongo|Obiyamachi|帯屋町}} shopping arcade, the regular Sunday street markets which are close to a kilometre in length, and {{nihongo|Harimayabashi|はりまや橋}}, a bridge that featured in a famous Kōchi song about the forbidden love of a Buddhist priest.

The mountain {{nihongo|Godaisan|五台山}} holds a public park with views of the city, and is home to stop 31 on the Shikoku Pilgrimage, Chikurin-ji, as well as the Makino Botanical Garden.

Off Museum Road (Kenritsu Bijutsukandori) is The Museum of Art, Kōchi, where the main collection is composed of expressionistic works related to Kōchi.[http://kochi-bunkazaidan.or.jp/~museum/english_page/welcome.htm] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080125210204/http://kochi-bunkazaidan.or.jp/~museum/english_page/welcome.htm|date=January 25, 2008}}

The Former Yamauchi Residence and Tosa Yamauchi Family Treasury and Archives are also to be found in the city.

File:Katsurahama Aquarium 01.jpg|Katsurahama Aquarium

File:200104 Kochi Prefectural Makino Botanical Garden01s5.jpg|Makino Botanical Garden

File:Sakamoto Ryoma Memorial Museum.jpg|Sakamoto Ryōma Memorial Museum

File:Kochi City Sawada Mansion Aug. 12, 2016.jpg|Sawada Mansion

;Castle

• Kōchi Castle
• Urado Castle ruins

;Shrine

The Shinto Shrine Tosa jinja is located to the west.Kōchi Prefectural Museum of History, [http://www.kochi-bunkazaidan.or.jp/~rekimin/pdf/english.pdf map]; retrieved August 9, 2011

;Temples

Temples No.30 (Zenrakuji, No.31(Chikurin-ji) and No.33 (Sekkei-ji) on the Shikoku Pilgrimage are located in the city.

At the mouth of Urado Bay, the remnants of Urado Castle (an earlier provincial seat) stand above Katsurahama, a famous beach with an aquarium and statue of the Kōchi hero Sakamoto Ryōma.

Nearby on the grounds is the Sakamoto Ryōma Memorial Museum.{{cite web |url=http://www.kochi-bunkazaidan.or.jp/~ryoma/english1.htm |title=The Sakamoto Ryoma Memorial Museum |publisher=Kochi-bunkazaidan.or.jp |access-date=2013-12-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140523005834/http://www.kochi-bunkazaidan.or.jp/~ryoma/english1.htm |archive-date=2014-05-23 |url-status=dead }}

File:Tosa-jinja haiden-1.JPG|Tosa jinja

File:Chikurin-ji Temple - panoramio (1).jpg|Chikurin-ji

{{Clear}}

File:Yosakoi Performers at Kochi Yosakoi Matsuri 2008 40.jpg]]

File:The Museum of Art Kochi01s3872.jpg]]

File:Katsuo.jpg]]

;Festival

Kōchi's most famous festival is the Yosakoi which is held in August. Teams of dancers dance to traditional and modern songs at various places around Kōchi. The total number of dancers is in the thousands.

• Yosakoi

;Events

• Sunday street markets

• Katsuo-no-tataki
• Katsuobushi
• Sawachi Sushi
• Tosa-maki

• Kōchi Castle Museum of History
• Kōchi Literary Museum
• Ryōma's Birthplace Memorial Museum
• Sakamoto Ryōma Memorial Museum
• The Museum of Art, Kōchi

File:Haruno baseball park.JPG|Kōchi Fighting Dogs
（Kochi Prefectural Haruno Baseball Stadium）

File:Harunokyu20090213a.jpg|Kochi United SC
（Kochi Haruno Athletic Stadium）

File:Kochi Racecouse 20080720.jpg|Kochi Racecourse
Horse racing

File:Ryouma st1.JPG|Kōchi Velodrome（Ryoma Stadium）
Keirin

File:Kochi Prefectural Gymnasium01ss3200.jpg|Kochi Prefectural Gymnasium

{{Clear}}

{{Unreferenced section|date=September 2012}}

File:Sakamoto Ryoma.jpg]]

• Ryōko Hirosue (born 1980), actress and singer
• Okada Izō (1832–1865), samurai
• Kusunose Kita (1836–1920), advocate for women's rights
• Akihiro Kitamura (born 1979), actor and director
• Tomitaro Makino (1862–1957), botanist
• Nakahama Manjirō (1827–1898), samurai and translator
• Hideshi Matsuda (born 1954), car racer and TV reporter
• Tetsuya Nomura (born 1970), video game designer
• Fumio Nutahara (born 1963), rally driver
• Toshiko Okanoue (born 1928), avant-garde artist
• Sakamoto Ryōma (1836–1867), samurai and politician
• Tsutomu Seki (born 1930), astronomer
• Sumi Shimamoto (born 1954), voice actress
• Itagaki Taisuke (1837–1919), politician
• Baba Tatsui (1850–1888), legislative reformer
• Noa Tsurushima (born 2001), actress and model
• Nobuo Uematsu (born 1959), composer and keyboardist

{{Reflist}}

{{Wikivoyage|Kochi_(Shikoku)|Kōchi}}

{{Commons category|Kochi, Kochi}}

• [http://www.city.kochi.kochi.jp Kōchi City official website] {{in lang|ja}}
• [http://www.city.kochi.kochi.jp/life/5/ Kōchi City official website] {{in lang|en}}
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20110427210526/http://attaka.or.jp/foreign/english/index.html Kōchi Visitors and Convention Association official website]
• [http://cgi2.nhk.or.jp/michi/cgi/detail.cgi?dasID=D0004200005_00000 Yosakoi Festival in Kōchi City] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150526085810/http://cgi2.nhk.or.jp/michi/cgi/detail.cgi?dasID=D0004200005_00000 |date=May 26, 2015 }}NHK
• {{OSM relation|4028510|Kōchi}}

{{Kōchi Prefecture}}

{{Metropolitan cities of Japan}}

{{Most populous cities in Japan}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kochi, Kochi}}

Category:Cities in Kōchi Prefecture

Category:Port settlements in Japan

Category:Populated coastal places in Japan