Toba, Mie

Toba 鳥羽市
City
Overview of Toba
Flag Seal
Location of Toba in Mie Prefecture
Country	Japan
Region	Kansai
Prefecture	Mie Prefecture
Government
• -Mayor	Kusuichi Kida
Area
• Total	108.03 km2 (41.71 sq mi)
Population  (September 2012)
• Total	20,557
• Density	190/km2 (500/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+9 (Japan Standard Time)
City symbols
- Tree	Tachibana
- Flower	Dianthus
- Bird	Common gull
Phone number	0599-25-1112
Address	3-1-1 Toba, Toba-shi, Mie-ken 517-0011
Website	www.city.toba.mie.jp

Toba City Hall

Toba (鳥羽市, Toba-shi) is a city located in Mie Prefecture, Japan.

As of September 2012, the city has an estimated population of 20,557 and a population density of 190 persons per km². The total area is 108.03 km².

Geography

Toba is located on the northern half of Shima Peninsula in far eastern Mie Prefecture, facing Ise Bay of the Pacific Ocean. The area is famous for oysters and for cultured pearls. Much of the city is within the borders of the Ise-Shima National Park.

Toba administers numerous islands in the Ise Bay, the most important of which are:

• Kamishima
• Kozukumi Island
• Ōzukumi-jima
• Sugashima
• Tōshijima
• Sakatejima
• Mitsujima

Neighboring municipalities

• Ise, Mie
• Shima, Mie

History

The area of modern Toba has been continuous inhabited since before the Jomon period. During the Sengoku period, the area was under the control of pirates, from whom emerged Kuki Yoshitaka (from Nakiri district) as a dominant ruler. After having dominated the Japanese seas, he established Toba as his capital and built a castle there. Under the Tokugawa shogunate, the castle became the center for Toba Domain.

In the Edo period, Toba flourished in trade and as a transshipment port between Osaka and Edo. The modern city of Toba was formed on November 1, 1954, by the merger of the town of Toba with five villages in Shima District.

Transportation

Railway

• JR Central – Sangū Line
  • Toba
• Kintetsu – Kintetsu Toba Line
  • Ikenoura • Toba
• Kintetsu – Kintetsu Shima Line
  • Toba • Nakanogō • Shima-Akasaki • Toba • Mie • Mie • Shiraki

Highway

• Japan National Route 42
• Japan National Route 167
• Japan National Route 259

Ferry

• Ise-wan Ferry

Education

• Toba National College of Maritime Technology is one of the five maritime technology colleges in Japan and offers merchant marine programs such as Deck officer, Marine Engineering and other advanced programs related to maritime education.

Local attractions

• Mikimoto Pearl Island
• Toba Aquarium
• Toba Castle

Sister city relations

• - Santa Barbara, California, since 1966.
• - Sanda, Hyōgo, Friendship city since July 1, 1971

Noted people

• Mikimoto Kōkichi – Entrepreneur and businessman
• Mitsuru Hattori – Manga artist

External links

• Toba travel guide from Wikivoyage
• Toba City official website Template:Ja icon
• A Day Tripper's Guide to Ise and Toba Japanzine By Zack Davisson