Kemanai
Kemanai Town
毛馬内町 | |
|---|---|
Interactive map of Kemanai Town | |
| Established | 1 April 1889 |
| Abolished | 31 March 1955 |
Kemanai Town was formerly located in Kazuno, Akita Prefecture. It corresponds to the current Towada Kemanai, Towada Okada, and Towada Setaishi areas of Kazuno City.
History
On 1 April 1889, the implementation of the Town and Village system led to the creation of the town. The town was formed by the merger of the following villages: Kemanai Village, Okada Village, and Setaishi Village.[1]
Up until 1945, the town hosted a POW internment camp which hosted a significant amount of Italians, which were held captives after the events of the Japanese-Italian War. The camp was temporarily coordinated in its last months by Mario Indelli who made sure the civilians were kept safe up until the Allied Forces arrived.[2]
On 31 March 1955 the town would be formally abolished and merged with the now newly established Towada Town. Following a few years, on 1 April 1972, Towada Town merged with Hanawa Town, Osarizawa Town, and Hachimantai Village to form Kazuno.[1][3]
Town's name origins
The town ends with "nai", which is not that uncommon in Hokkaido and the northern areas of Honshu. Despite being located within Honshu, it seems the name follows a similar trend to the towns present within Hokkaido, thus, as traditionally done there, referring to a relatively large river. In fact, from old documents, Kemanai is thought to be the old name of the Kosaka River and to derive from local Ainu terms.[4]
Transportation and connections
Roads
- Prefectural Route Morioka Kemanai Line (currently National Route 282)[5]
Currently, the Towada Interchange on the Tohoku Expressway is located within the former town area.
Local events
- Kemanai Bon Dance
Famous people
Bibliography
- ^ a b "毛馬内 -JAPAN AKITA KAZUNO TOWADA KEMANAI-". kemanai.akita.jp. Retrieved 2025-11-11.
- ^ Memorandum signed by Erik von Sidow, chargé d'affaires of Sweden in Japan, in ASDMAE, AP, 1931–45, Japan, file 37
- ^ "毛馬内(けまない)とは？ 意味や使い方". コトバンク (in Japanese). Retrieved 2025-11-11.
- ^ Kadokawa Japanese Place Name Dictionary 5 Akita Prefecture
- ^ "鹿角市|鹿角市". www.city.kazuno.lg.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved 2025-11-11.