Shikama, Miyagi

Shikama 色麻町
Town
Haiden of Idate Jinja in Shikama
Flag Seal
Location of Shikama in Miyagi Prefecture
Shikama
Coordinates: 38°32′28″N 140°51′04″E / 38.54111°N 140.85111°ECoordinates: 38°32′28″N 140°51′04″E / 38.54111°N 140.85111°E
Country	Japan
Region	Tōhoku
Prefecture	Miyagi
District	Kami
Area
• Total	109.23 km^2 (42.17 sq mi)
Population (May 2014)
• Total	7,209
• Density	66/km^2 (170/sq mi)
Time zone	Japan Standard Time (UTC+9)
- Tree	Sakura
Phone number	0229-65-2111
Address	41 Yotsugama Kitatani, Shikama-chō, Kami-gun, Miyagi-ken 981-4122
Website	Official website

Shikama (色麻町 Shikama-chō) is a town located in Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. As of May 2014, the town had an estimated population of 7,209 and a population density of 66 persons per km². The total area was 109.23 km².

Geography

Shikama is located in west-central Miyagi Prefecture, bordered by the Ōu Mountains to the west.

Neighboring municipalities

• Miyagi Prefecture
  • Sendai, Miyagi
  • Ōsaki, Miyagi
  • Kami, Miyagi
  • Taiwa, Miyagi
  • Ōhira, Miyagi
• Yamagata Prefecture
  • Obanazawa, Yamagata

History

The area of present-day Shikama was part of ancient Mutsu Province, and has been settled since at least the Jomon period by the Emishi people. Per the Shoku Nihongi, following a huge earthquake in the year 715 AD, a large number of people migrated to this area from the southern Kantō region, forming numerous fortified settlements. The name of “Shikama” appears in Nara period records as one of these settlements. During the Sengoku period, the area was contested by various samurai clans before the area came under the control of the Date clan of Sendai Domain during the Edo period, under the Tokugawa shogunate.

The modern village of Shikama was created on April 1, 1889 with the establishment of the municipalities system. Shikama was raised to town status on April 1, 1978. A motion to merger with the neighboring three towns of Miyazaki, Nakaniida, and Onoda, all from Kami District, was defeated by a local referendum in April 2003.

Economy

The economy of Shikama is largely based on agriculture, primarily the cultivation of rice and Perilla frutescens.

Transportation

Railway

Shikama is not currently served by any railway lines.

Highway

National highways

• National Route 457

Noted people from Shikama

• Susumu Ojima – entrepreneur

External links

• www.town.shikama.miyagi.jp/%20official%20website (Japanese)