Waki, Yamaguchi

Waki 和木町
Town
Waki Town Office
Flag Emblem
Interactive map outlining Waki
Location of Waki in Yamaguchi Prefecture
Waki Location in Japan
Coordinates: 34°12′09″N 132°13′13″E
Country	Japan
Region	Chūgoku San'yō
Prefecture	Yamaguchi
District	Kuga
Area
• Total	10.58 km2 (4.08 sq mi)
Population  (May 31, 2023)
• Total	5,927
• Density	560/km2 (1,500/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+09:00 (JST)
City hall address	1-1-1 Waki, Waki-cho, Kuga-gun, Yamaguchi-ken 740-8501
Website	Official website
Symbols
Flower	Azalea
Tree	Myrica rubra

ENEOS refinery in Waki

Waki (和木町, Waki-chō) is a town in Kuga District, Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan. As of 31 May 2023, the town had an estimated population of 5,927 in 2684 households and a population density of 560 persons per km². The total area of the town is 10.58 square kilometres (4.08 sq mi).

Geography

Waki is located at the mouth of the right bank of the Oze River, which is also the prefectural border between Yamaguchi Prefecture and Hiroshima Prefecture. It is surrounded by Iwakuni city on the south side, and borders Ōtake city in Hiroshima Prefecture on the north side across the Oze River. In the eastern part of the town (Waki neighborhood), there are major public facilities, including the town hall, and lowlands that include reclaimed land, where most of the transportation and industrial facilities are located. Other areas (Seta neighborhood and Sekigahama neighborhood) are mostly mountainous areas, and old hamlets exist along the tributaries of the Oze River.

Neighbouring municipalities

Hiroshima Prefecture

• Ōtake

Yamaguchi Prefecture

• Iwakuni

Climate

Waki has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa) with very warm summers and cool winters. The average annual temperature in Waki is 15.2 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1658 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in July, at around 26.2 °C, and lowest in January, at around 4.6 °C.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data, the population of Waki has been steady for the past 50 years.

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±%
1940	2,346	—
1950	3,520	+50.0%
1960	5,627	+59.9%
1970	7,740	+37.6%
1980	7,516	−2.9%
1990	7,086	−5.7%
2000	6,732	−5.0%
2010	6,379	−5.2%
Waki population statistics

History

The area of Waki was part of an ancient Suō Province. During the Edo Period, the area was part of the holdings of Iwakuni Domain. Following the Meiji restoration, the area was organized into villages of Oze, Waki, Sekigahama, and Seta within Kuga District, Yamaguchi with the creation of the modern municipalities system on April 1, 1889. Waki as elevated to town status on April 1, 1973.

Government

Waki has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral town council of ten members. Waki, together with the city of Iwakuni contributes five members to the Yamaguchi Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the town is part of the Yamaguchi 2nd district of the lower house of the Diet of Japan.

Economy

Heavy industry, oil refineries and the chemical industry dominate the economy of the town, which occupies a corner of the Setouchi Industrial Area.

Education

Waki has one public elementary school and one public junior high school operated by the town government. The town does not have a high school.

Transportation

Railway

JR West (JR West) - San'yō Main Line

• Waki

Highways

• National Route 2

Sister cities

Waki has had a sister city relationship with the city of Eniwa, Hokkaido, since 1979, as a symbol of mass immigration of Waki residents to Eniwa in around 1886.

External links

• Media related to Waki, Yamaguchi at Wikimedia Commons
• Waki official website (in Japanese)