Iwate District, Iwate


Iwate is a rural district located in Iwate Prefecture, Japan.
As of June 1, 2019, the district has an estimated population of 34,416 with a density of 24.5 per km² and an area of 1404.24 km². The entire city of Takizawa, the southern half of the city of Hachimantai and most of the city of Morioka were formerly part of Iwate District.

Towns and villages

The district consists of three towns:

Under Mutsu Province

Iwate District was the northernmost of the six districts of northern Mutsu Province
Iwate District was the northern frontier of Japan until the Enkyu-Emishi War of 1070, which extended the frontier to the northern coast of Honshu. As with the rest of the region, the early history of Iwate District is uncertain. Although Shiwa Castle was constructed in 803 as a major army base in the region, it fell into ruins only ten years later. The area came to be ruled by the Abe clan until the Former Nine Years War, followed by the Kiyohara clan until the Gosannen War and the Northern Fujiwara until 1189. During the Muromachi period, the area gradually came under the control of the Nanbu clan from Nukanobu District to the north.
Under the Tokugawa shogunate, Iwate county consisted of one town and 85 villages under the control of Morioka Domain.

Early Meiji period

Following the Meiji restoration, Iwate District came under Rikuchū Province and became part of Morioka Prefecture in 1871. Morioka Prefecture became Iwate Prefecture in 1872. In January 1879, Iwate District was divided into Kita-Iwate District with 47 villages, and Minimi-Iwate District with 38 villages.

Subsequent timeline