Tamano

For Tamano, Butoh Dancer, see Butoh.

Tamano (玉野市, Tamano-shi) is a city located in southern Okayama Prefecture, Japan. As of 31 October 2022^[update], the city had an estimated population of 55,889 in 27087 households, and a population density of 540 persons per km² .^[1] Its total area is 103.58 square kilometres (39.99 sq mi)

Tamano 玉野市
City
Crossing in Tamano City
Flag Seal
Location of Tamano in Okayama Prefecture
Tamano Location in Japan
Coordinates: 34°29′19″N 133°56′55″E
Country	Japan
Region	Chūgoku (San'yō)
Prefecture	Okayama
Government
• Mayor	Susumu Kuroda (since October 2005)
Area
• Total	103.58 km2 (39.99 sq mi)
Population  (October 31, 2022)
• Total	55,889
• Density	540/km2 (1,400/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+09:00 (JST)
City hall address	1-27-1 Uno, Tamano-shi, Okayama-ken 706-8510
Climate	Cfa
Website	Official website
Symbols
Fish	"Sebastes inermis" (Mebaru in Japanese)
Flower	Azalea
Tree	Quercus

Tamano City Hall

Aerial view of Tamano city center

Shibukawa beach in Tamano

Geography

Tamano is located in southern Okayama Prefecture. It faces the Seto Inland Sea to the south, and parts of the city are within the borders of the Setonaikai National Park.

Adjoining municipalities

Okayama Prefecture

• Kurashiki
• Okayama

Climate

Tamano has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa). The average annual temperature in Tamano is 16.1 °C (61.0 °F). The average annual rainfall is 1,038.5 mm (40.89 in) with July as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 28.1 °C (82.6 °F), and lowest in January, at around 5.5 °C (41.9 °F).^[2] The highest temperature ever recorded in Tamano was 38.2 °C (100.8 °F) on 19 August 1995; the coldest temperature ever recorded was −6.4 °C (20.5 °F) on 26 February 1981.^[3]

Climate data for Tamano (1991−2020 normals, extremes 1976−present)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °C (°F)	17.2 (63.0)	19.8 (67.6)	24.4 (75.9)	29.0 (84.2)	32.3 (90.1)	36.1 (97.0)	37.1 (98.8)	38.2 (100.8)	37.1 (98.8)	31.5 (88.7)	26.0 (78.8)	20.9 (69.6)	38.2 (100.8)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	9.2 (48.6)	9.7 (49.5)	13.0 (55.4)	18.1 (64.6)	22.9 (73.2)	26.0 (78.8)	30.3 (86.5)	32.1 (89.8)	28.6 (83.5)	23.1 (73.6)	17.2 (63.0)	11.7 (53.1)	20.2 (68.3)
Daily mean °C (°F)	5.5 (41.9)	5.8 (42.4)	8.8 (47.8)	13.7 (56.7)	18.5 (65.3)	22.2 (72.0)	26.3 (79.3)	28.1 (82.6)	24.7 (76.5)	19.0 (66.2)	13.1 (55.6)	7.9 (46.2)	16.1 (61.0)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	2.0 (35.6)	2.0 (35.6)	4.6 (40.3)	9.5 (49.1)	14.6 (58.3)	19.2 (66.6)	23.5 (74.3)	25.2 (77.4)	21.4 (70.5)	15.3 (59.5)	9.2 (48.6)	4.3 (39.7)	12.6 (54.6)
Record low °C (°F)	−4.0 (24.8)	−6.4 (20.5)	−5.1 (22.8)	0.1 (32.2)	5.7 (42.3)	10.4 (50.7)	17.5 (63.5)	18.3 (64.9)	11.6 (52.9)	5.8 (42.4)	1.7 (35.1)	−3.5 (25.7)	−6.4 (20.5)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	35.5 (1.40)	42.9 (1.69)	77.9 (3.07)	78.7 (3.10)	103.1 (4.06)	146.2 (5.76)	152.5 (6.00)	78.3 (3.08)	137.4 (5.41)	97.4 (3.83)	48.4 (1.91)	40.3 (1.59)	1,038.5 (40.89)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm)	5.4	6.5	9.1	9.0	8.8	10.7	9.1	5.6	8.5	7.3	5.9	5.8	91.7
Mean monthly sunshine hours	158.5	152.4	182.3	202.1	212.7	166.2	203.6	237.8	171.1	179.1	161.6	159.8	2,187.1
Source: Japan Meteorological Agency[3][2]

Demographics

Per Japanese census data, the population of Tamano in 2020 is 56,531 people.^[4] Tamano has been conducting censuses since 1920.

Historical population

Year Pop. ±% 1920 35,355 —     1925 32,647 −7.7% 1930 36,382 +11.4% 1935 40,717 +11.9% 1940 51,879 +27.4% 1945 62,237 +20.0% 1950 65,625 +5.4% 1955 68,076 +3.7% 1960 70,933 +4.2% 1965 71,419 +0.7% 1970 73,478 +2.9%	Year Pop. ±% 1975 78,516 +6.9% 1980 77,803 −0.9% 1985 76,954 −1.1% 1990 73,238 −4.8% 1995 71,330 −2.6% 2000 69,567 −2.5% 2005 67,047 −3.6% 2010 64,553 −3.7% 2015 60,736 −5.9% 2020 56,531 −6.9%
Tamano population statistics[4]

History

The Tamano area is part of ancient Bizen Province. During the Edo Period, it was part of the holdings of Okayama Domain. Following the Meiji restoration, the area was organized into villages within Kojima District, Okayama with the creation of the modern municipalities system on April 1, 1889. The city of Tamano was officially founded on August 3, 1940 by the merger of the towns of Uno and Hibi.

Government

Tamano has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral city council of 19 members. Tamano contributes two members to the Okayama Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city is part of the Okayama 2nd district of the lower house of the Diet of Japan.

Economy

Tamano has a mixed economy of heavy industry, commercial fishing and agriculture. Shipbuilding and metal refining are major industries, with one of the largest shipbuilding yards in Japan, operated by Mitsui Engineering & Shipbuilding, is located in Tamano. Other industries include textiles, chemicals, oil refining and salt production.

Education

Tamano has 14 public elementary schools, seven public junior high schools and two public high schools operated by the city government, and two public high schools operated by the Okayama prefectural Board of Education.

Transportation

The JR Uno Line connects it to Okayama. Before the Great Seto Bridge was opened, there was a train ferry between Uno Port in Tamano and Takamatsu on Shikoku. Then, Tamano was the major entrance to Shikoku. Today there still exist many ferry lines between Uno port and Takamatsu, and also the islands of Shōdoshima and Naoshima.

Railway

JR West (JR West) - Uno Line

• Tsuneyama - Hachihama - Bizen-Tai - Uno

Highways

• National Route 30
• National Route 430

Sister cities

• Tongyeong, South Gyeongsang, Republic of Korea since August 3, 1981 ^[5]
• Jiujiang, Jiangxi , China, friendship city since 1996 ^[6]
• Gloucester, Massachusetts, United States, since July 23, 2004

Notable people from Tamano

• Yukari Ichijo, manga artist
• Hisaichi Ishii, manga artist
• Ukita Kōkichi, aviation pioneer
• Taiyo Sugiura, actor
• Tetsuo Takashima, author
• Katsuya Terada, artist
• Hiroshi Yagi, baseball player