Kitami 北見市

• Kitami (北見): The name comes from Kitami Province (北見国). The Meiji government created the province in 1869, and Kitami fell within its Tokoro District. The explorer Matsuura Takeshirō suggested the name. He said the coast had long been called the "north shore", so he used the character 北 (north), and Sakhalin could be seen (見) from here on clear days.¹⁰²¹ Nokkeushi town took the name "Kitami" when it became a city in 1942. The new name reflected its central place in the old province and its role as a commercial hub.²¹
• Nokkeushi (野付牛): This was the city's old name. The Hokkaido Government's list of Ainu place names derives it from nup-kes (ヌプケシ), "end of the plain".²¹ Place-name scholar Yamada Hidezō says the name first belonged to Tanno, where farming in the Kitami Basin began. The area of today's downtown was called Peteukopi, "where the rivers part from each other", after the meeting of the Tokoro and Muka rivers. The name Nokkeushi moved to the downtown later, when the village office and police station were built there.⁹
• Tanno (端野): The name is a Japanese translation of nup-kes ("plain + end").²²
• Tokoro (常呂): Old records spell it "Tsukoro". The list gives two readings. One is to-kor-pet, "river that has lakes". The other is tu-kor, "having a hill spur", and the list's comment rates tu-kor as more likely.²³
• Rubeshibe (留辺蘂): From ru-pes-pe, "the stream the road follows down". This refers to the valleys north of the Muka River that led over the hills to the Saroma River.²⁴
• Onneyu (温根湯): From onne-yu, "the big hot spring". The name set the spring apart from smaller springs nearby.²¹²⁵
• Wakka (ワッカ): From wakka-o-i, "place with water". The name refers to a freshwater spring in the middle of the sandbar.¹⁷

• Prehistory to Ainu era: Sites along the Tokoro coast span the Paleolithic, Jōmon, Epi-Jōmon, Satsumon and Okhotsk cultures and the Ainu period.²⁶ Graves at the Tokoro River mouth, from about 2,900 to 1,600 years ago, yielded 1,805 objects. These were designated a National Important Cultural Property in June 2023.²⁰²⁷ The Tokoro Chashi, an Ainu fortified site, dates from the 18th century.²⁸
• Edo period: In 1808, Kashiya Kihei (柏谷喜兵衛) and two others settled on the Tokoro coast as fishery contractors. In 1856, Matsuura Takeshirō travelled up the Tokoro River into the Kitami area.⁹
• Early Meiji: Seven Ainu-named villages were created under Tokoro District in 1872, among them Tokoro and Nokkeushi. Their names were written in kanji from 1875. A local government office for Tokoro and six other villages opened in 1883.¹⁰
• Roads and prisoners: Construction of the Central Road (中央道路) between Abashiri and the Kitami Pass began in 1891. It used convict labour from Abashiri Prison, and many prisoners died. The Kusarizuka (鎖塚, "chain mound") in Tanno's Hiushinai is believed to be their resting place.²⁹
• Settlers: A group of 29 households from Tosa (Kōchi) reached Tokoro in 1895.¹⁰ In 1897, the Hokkōsha (北光社) company settled 112 households from Kōchi. Sakamoto Naohiro (坂本直寛) was among those who founded it.⁹ Tondenhei (farmer-soldier) companies arrived in 1897 and 1898: 597 households settled in Tanno, Nokkeushi and Ainai. A group from Gifu came to Tokoro in 1898.¹⁰⁶
• Peppermint boom: Hokkōsha first grew peppermint in 1899.⁹ The Kitami peppermint-processing factory opened in 1934; its old office, donated by Hokuren, is now the Hakka Memorial Museum.⁴ At the 1938–39 peak, Kitami peppermint made up about 70% of the world market.¹⁰
• Railways: The line reached Nokkeushi Station in 1911 and was extended to Rubeshibe in 1912. The Sekihoku Line to Asahikawa was completed in 1932.¹⁰
• Town and city: Oketo and Buka (later Rubeshibe) split off from Nokkeushi in 1915, and Ainai and Tanno in 1921. Rubeshibe became a town in 1921, Tokoro in 1950 and Tanno in 1961.¹⁰⁶
• Mid-century industry: The Itomuka mercury mine in Rubeshibe was discovered in 1937 and closed in 1972.⁹ Kitami Institute of Technology opened as a junior college in 1960 and became a four-year university in 1966. Old Kitami passed 100,000 people in 1979.⁶
• Curling and scallops: Tokoro took up curling in 1980 after an exchange event with Alberta, Canada, held in Ikeda. Japan's first dedicated curling hall opened there in 1988.⁹ Scallop-farming trials in Lake Saroma began in 1933, and catches became stable in the 1970s.¹⁶
• Late 20th century: The JNR Yūmō Line through Tokoro closed in 1987.⁹ The Pierson Memorial Hall and the Wakka Natural Flower Garden were named Hokkaido Heritage sites in 2001, and the Tokoro Site followed in 2004.⁶
• 2006 merger: Kitami, Tanno, Tokoro and Rubeshibe merged on 5 March 2006.¹ The Furusato Ginga Line (the former Chihoku Line) closed the same year.⁹
• Recent years: The Yama-no-Suizokukan aquarium reopened at the roadside station on 7 July 2012.¹⁹ The new Adovics Tokoro Curling Hall opened in 2013. The Argo Graphics Kitami Curling Hall opened in 2020 and the new city hall in 2021.⁶ On 24 July 2025, Kitami recorded 39.0 °C, its highest temperature on record.³⁰

• Shape and districts: The city covers the Tokoro River and Muka River basins and the Kitami Basin. It stretches about 110 km from the Daisetsu mountains to the Sea of Okhotsk.¹ It has four autonomous districts.¹ Kitami is the commercial and industrial center. Tanno is farmland on gentle hills. Tokoro faces the Sea of Okhotsk and Lake Saroma. Rubeshibe is forested and known for white beans, timber and the aquarium.
• Rivers and the "Great Divide": The Tokoro River rises on Mt. Mikuni (三国山, 1,541 m).⁹ Near its summit, where Kitami meets Kamikawa and Kamishihoro, lies the Hokkaido Daibunsuiten (北海道大分水点). The city describes it as the only point in Japan that drains to three seas: the Sea of Japan by the Ishikari River, the Pacific by the Tokachi River, and the Sea of Okhotsk by the Tokoro River. It was named in September 2005 and added to GSI's online maps in November 2019. The trail from Route 273 takes about 2 hours each way.³¹
• Mountains: Peaks include Mt. Mukka (武華山, 1,759 m), Kitami Fuji (1,291 m) and Mt. Nikoro (仁頃山, 829 m).⁹
• Lakes and coast: The Kitami share of Lake Saroma is 52.51 km², out of a total of 151.63 km².² The Wakka sandbar is 200–700 m wide and about 20 km long and separates the lake from the Sea of Okhotsk. Over 300 plant species grow there.¹⁷ Lake Tomisato (富里湖), the reservoir of Tomisato Dam at the foot of Mt. Nikoro, has a campground and ice fishing for smelt in winter.⁹³²
• Protected areas: The Wakka area lies in Abashiri Quasi-National Park (網走国定公園).¹⁷ The city's western end reaches Daisetsuzan National Park and the Sekihoku Pass.³³ Ezo-murasaki azaleas grow wild on Tsutsuji-yama at Onneyu; the colony is a Hokkaido natural monument.³⁴
• Climate (Kitami station, 1991–2020 normals): The annual mean is 6.4 °C. January averages −8.0 °C, with a mean daily low of −14.2 °C. August averages 20.2 °C, with a mean daily high of 25.4 °C. Annual precipitation is only 774.8 mm. Snowfall totals 414 cm a year, and the usual deepest snow is 83 cm.³⁵
• Extremes: The highest temperature on record is 39.0 °C (24 July 2025). The lowest is −30.9 °C (17 February 1978). The deepest snow was 171 cm (16 January 2004).³⁰ Rubeshibe is colder and snowier, with about 507 cm of snowfall a year.⁹

• Structure: The 2020 Census counted 49,777 workers. About 73% worked in services (36,556), 16% in the secondary sector (8,212) and 6% in farming, forestry and fishing (3,219).⁶ Kitami is the retail and service hub of the Okhotsk region.³
• Agriculture: MAFF estimates farm output at ¥38.32 billion in 2024. Vegetables, mostly onions, account for ¥22.36 billion and dairy cattle for ¥4.62 billion.³⁶ Onions are the city's signature crop: about 244,000 t in 2020, about 25% of Hokkaido's total and the most of any municipality in Japan.³ Onion growing arrived in 1917 and replaced peppermint after the war.³⁷ Other crops in 2025 included 25,600 t of wheat on 5,620 ha and 166,800 t of sugar beet.³⁶ Rubeshibe grows about 70% of Japan's white runner beans, but planting is falling because of labour shortages.¹⁴
• Fisheries: Tokoro fishers land scallops, salmon and hairy crab in the Sea of Okhotsk. In Lake Saroma they harvest oysters and Hokkai shrimp.¹⁶ In 2018 the catch was 38,328 t, including 32,020 t of shellfish (9.7% of Hokkaido's shellfish).³⁶ In 2023 there were 107 fishing businesses employing 361 people.⁶
• Forestry: Forests cover 94,281 ha.⁶ Local timber is made into building and packing lumber and wood products.³
• Manufacturing and research: There are 132 factories with 2,591 workers, and shipments were worth ¥97.78 billion in the 2024 survey.⁶ Firms cluster in the Kitami Industrial Complex and Kitami High-Tech Park. Kitami Institute of Technology leads joint research with local industry.³ Local processors include Greens Kitami, which makes onion products.³⁷
• Tourism: In FY2025 Kitami had 1,177,800 visitors, down 3.9% from the previous year. Of these, 277,600 came from outside Hokkaido. Overnight stays totalled 592,400 guest-nights, and foreign overnight guests numbered 14,412.³⁸ Since 1985 the city has attracted sports training camps, starting with Meiji University's rugby team. Rugby, athletics, skiing and curling camps now come in summer and winter.⁹³⁹
• Demographics: At the end of FY2025, 35.7% of residents were 65 or older and the average age was 51.9.⁶ The population fell 6.2% between the 2020 and 2025 censuses.⁷
• Revitalization: Hometown-tax (furusato nōzei) gifts began in December 2015.⁴⁰ Since 4 December 2023, visitors can also make a hometown-tax donation on the spot and receive "Kitami e-Machi Gift KITANO", an e-coupon for local shops.⁴¹ The city's MY LOVE campaign promotes local food and tourism.³⁷

• Pierson Memorial Hall (ピアソン記念館): The American missionary couple the Piersons lived here for 15 years. William Merrell Vories designed the house in 1914, and it is preserved as the northernmost building he designed. The couple published an annotated Bible in Kitami and helped block a planned red-light district.⁶⁷
• Tondenhei dolls: In 1932, a nun at Shinzenkōji Temple (信善光寺) had 75 dolls made, modelled on real tondenhei soldiers. The temple still displays them, and they are a city cultural property.¹⁰
• Tokoro Shrine (常呂神社): Sells fortune slips with a mini curling-stone charm, and curling-themed ema votive plaques.⁶⁸

• Place names: Most district and river names have Ainu origins. They include nup-kes (Nokkeushi/Tanno), tu-kor (Tokoro), ru-pes-pe (Rubeshibe), onne-yu (Onneyu) and wakka-o-i (Wakka).^2122232417 The downtown's old name, Peteukopi, describes the parting of the Tokoro and Muka rivers.⁹
• Tokoro Chashi Site (トコロチャシ跡遺跡群): This 18th-century Ainu chashi sits on a bluff above the Tokoro River mouth, cut off by a dry moat and once fenced. The fence and a bridge over the moat have been rebuilt. The builders made use of the hollows of older Okhotsk-culture houses, and the hollows were used for mono-okuri rites (sending spirits of objects back). The site also has a reconstructed Okhotsk-culture house (8th–9th century) and graves showing the Okhotsk custom of covering the face of the dead with a pot. It is open from spring thaw to November, with a 600 m loop path.²⁸
• Tokoro Iseki-no-Yakata museum: Has an Ainu culture section alongside its Jōmon, Satsumon and Okhotsk displays.²⁶
• Today: No Ainu cultural center or regular Ainu events in Kitami today were found in the sources consulted.

Kitami has sister or friendship ties with eight cities and towns.⁹⁵

• Elizabeth, New Jersey, USA: 12 June 1969. It was the hometown of the missionary Pierson, the first foreigner to live in Kitami.⁶
• Poronaysk, Sakhalin, Russia: 13 August 1972, as northern neighbours.⁶
• Jinju, South Gyeongsang, South Korea: 16 May 1985. The tie grew out of private goodwill exchanges.⁶
• Barrhead, Alberta, Canada: 4 July 1991. The link was introduced through the Hokkaido–Alberta relationship.⁶
• Kōchi City, Kōchi Prefecture: 28 April 1986. It was the home of the Hokkōsha settlers.⁶
• Sakawa, Kōchi Prefecture: 6 November 1988. It was the home of the Tosa settlers in Tokoro.⁶
• Marumori, Miyagi Prefecture: 16 August 1996. It is the birthplace of Toyomi Kagura.⁶
• Ōno, Gifu Prefecture: 3 October 1998. It was the home of the Gifu settlers.⁶

• Mari Motohashi (本橋麻里): Curler from Tokoro. She competed at three Olympics and founded Loco Solare in 2010.⁹⁶⁹
• Satsuki Fujisawa (藤澤五月): Curler from Kitami who played for Loco Solare at the PyeongChang 2018 and Beijing 2022 Olympics, where the team won bronze and silver.⁹⁶
• Chinami Yoshida (吉田知那美) and Yurika Yoshida (吉田夕梨花): Sisters and Loco Solare curlers from Kitami who competed at the 2018 and 2022 Olympics.⁹⁶
• Yumi Suzuki (鈴木夕湖): Loco Solare curler from Kitami and a founding member of the team.⁹⁹⁶
• Ami Kikuchi (菊地亜美): TV personality from Kitami and a Kitami tourism ambassador.⁹⁷
• Rei Maruyama (丸山礼): Impressionist and comedian from Kitami, also a tourism ambassador.⁹⁷
• Ayako Sawada (沢田亜矢子): Actress and singer from Kitami, also a tourism ambassador.⁹⁷
• Jake Lee (ジェイク・リー): Professional wrestler from Kitami, also a tourism ambassador.⁹⁷