Ogawa, Nagano

Ogawa 小川村
Village
Ogawa Village Hall
Flag Seal
Location of Ogawa in Nagano Prefecture
Ogawa
Coordinates: 36°37′2″N 137°58′29″E
Country	Japan
Region	Chūbu (Kōshin'etsu)
Prefecture	Nagano
District	Kamiminochi
Area
• Total	58.11 km^2 (22.44 sq mi)
Population  (April 2019)
• Total	2,585
• Density	44/km^2 (120/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+9 (Japan Standard Time)
Symbols
Phone number	026-269-2323
Address	8800-8 Takafu, Ogawa-mura, Kamiminochi-gun, Nagano-ken 381-3302
Website	Official website

Furusato Land Ogawa

Ogawa (小川村, Ogawa-mura) is a village located in Nagano Prefecture, Japan. As of 1 April 2019^[update], the village had an estimated population of 2,585 in 1074 households,^[1] and a population density of 44 persons per km². The total area of the village is 58.11 square kilometres (22.44 sq mi). Ogawa is listed as one of The Most Beautiful Villages in Japan.^[2]

Geography

Ogawa is located in the mountains of northwestern Nagano Prefecture.

Surrounding municipalities

• Nagano Prefecture
  • Hakuba
  • Nagano
  • Ōmachi

Climate

The village has a humid continental climate characterized by short, hot and humid summers, and cold winters with heavy snowfall (Köppen climate classification Cfa). The average annual temperature in Ogawa is 10.3 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1273 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 23.8 °C, and lowest in January, at around -2.3 °C.^[3]

Demographics

Per Japanese census data,^[4] the population of Ogawa has declined by more than three-quarters from its peak around 1950.

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±%
1940	8,846	—
1950	9,436	+6.7%
1960	8,283	−12.2%
1970	6,163	−25.6%
1980	5,132	−16.7%
1990	4,133	−19.5%
2000	3,620	−12.4%
2010	3,046	−15.9%
2020	2,215	−27.3%

History

The area of present-day Ogawa was part of ancient Shinano Province. The villages of Kita-Ogawa and Minami-Ogawa were created with the establishment of the modern municipalities system on April 1, 1889. The two villages merged to form the village of Ogawa on April 1, 1955.

Economy

The economy of Ogawa is agricultural, primarily rice cultivation and horticulture.

Education

Ogawa has one public elementary school and one public middle school operated by the village government. The village does not have a high school.

Transportation

Railway

• Ogawa does not have any passenger railway service.

Highway

• National Route 406

Local attractions

• Furusato Land Ogawa, local history museum

References

1. Ogawa Village official statistics(in Japanese)
2. The Most Beautiful Villages in Japan Archived 2015-02-15 at the Wayback Machine (in Japanese)
3. Ogawa climate data
4. Ogawa population statistics

External links

• Media related to Ogawa, Nagano at Wikimedia Commons
• Official Website (in Japanese)