Shōkawa (荘川村, Shōkawa-mura) was a village located in Ōno District, Gifu Prefecture, Japan.
As of 2003, the village had an estimated population of 1,359 and a population density of 4.20 persons per km. The total area was 323.28 km.
On February 1, 2005, Shōkawa, along with the town of Kuguno, and the villages of Asahi, Kiyomi, Miya, Nyūkawa and Takane (all from Ōno District), the town of Kokufu, and the village of Kamitakara (both from Yoshiki District), was merged into the expanded city of Takayama and no longer exists as an independent municipality.
In Fall, the village puts on Japan's longest lion dance festival (Renjishi - 連獅子).
During the building of the Miboro dam, a portion of the village was submerged. One of the village's oldest cherry trees, which was threatened by the dam project, was transplanted to an area alongside the dam made lake.
Though it is merely a pit stop on the way to Shirakawa or Takayama, it boasts an onsen.
In 1999, a prehistoric reptile, Shokawa ikoi, was discovered and named after the town.
Climate
Shōkawa, including parts of Takasu-cho have a humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification Dfb), with four distinct seasons.
Some of the coldest settlements of mainland Japan (Honshu) can be found on this plateau, with a climate similar to that of Hokkaidō, boasting an average of 10 metres snowfall throughout the winter season and giving rise to a selection of ski resorts and winter activities.
| Climate data for Shōkawa, Gifu (1981～2010) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | −0.2 (31.6) |
0.7 (33.3) |
4.6 (40.3) |
12.1 (53.8) |
17.8 (64.0) |
21.2 (70.2) |
24.7 (76.5) |
26.1 (79.0) |
21.6 (70.9) |
15.6 (60.1) |
9.5 (49.1) |
3.0 (37.4) |
13.0 (55.4) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | −5.3 (22.5) |
−4.9 (23.2) |
−1.1 (30.0) |
5.2 (41.4) |
10.9 (51.6) |
15.4 (59.7) |
19.4 (66.9) |
20.3 (68.5) |
16.1 (61.0) |
9.2 (48.6) |
3.1 (37.6) |
−2.3 (27.9) |
7.2 (45.0) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −11.7 (10.9) |
−12.3 (9.9) |
−7.5 (18.5) |
−1.8 (28.8) |
3.5 (38.3) |
9.6 (49.3) |
14.7 (58.5) |
15.5 (59.9) |
11.3 (52.3) |
3.4 (38.1) |
−2.6 (27.3) |
−8.0 (17.6) |
1.2 (34.2) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 152.0 (5.98) |
135.4 (5.33) |
173.4 (6.83) |
175.9 (6.93) |
221.2 (8.71) |
262.4 (10.33) |
331.8 (13.06) |
233.6 (9.20) |
324.6 (12.78) |
165.4 (6.51) |
143.8 (5.66) |
137.1 (5.40) |
2,439.3 (96.04) |
| Mean monthly sunshine hours | 75.8 | 103.3 | 149.6 | 181.6 | 185.1 | 143.2 | 138.2 | 155.6 | 117.0 | 128.3 | 102.3 | 81.7 | 1,563.7 |
| Source: Japan Meteorological Agency | |||||||||||||
Notes
- 合併協定項目の協議状況一覧. Takayama official website (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 27 September 2011. Retrieved 18 August 2011.
- "Image". Archived from the original (JPG) on 24 July 2011. Retrieved 24 June 2023.
- "Image". 13 May 2008. Archived from the original (JPG) on 24 July 2011. Retrieved 24 June 2023.
- "Image". 29 April 2008. Archived from the original (JPG) on 24 July 2011. Retrieved 24 June 2023.
- "A choristoderan reptile from the Lower Cretaceous of Japan". ResearchGate. Retrieved 30 January 2021.
- "平年値（年・月ごとの値）". Japan Meteorological Agency. Retrieved 6 May 2012.
External links
- Official website of Takayama (in Japanese)
- The village's official site (in Japanese)