Amakusa, Kumamoto

Amakusa (天草市) is a city located in Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan.

As of March 2024, Amakusa has an estimated population of 72,623 and a population density of 110 persons per km2. The total area is 683.82 km. Amakusa has the distinction of being the fastest depopulating city in Japan since the last census (2005).

Amakusa covers the majority of two main islands, Kamishima (上島, "Upper Island") and Shimoshima (下島, "Lower Island") (天草諸島), and six smaller islands and islets. The modern city of Amakusa was established on March 27, 2006, from a merger between the former cities of Hondo and Ushibuka, and the towns of Amakusa, Ariake, Goshoura, Itsuwa, Kawaura, Kuratake, Shinwa and Sumoto from Amakusa District.

Amakusa Airlines is headquartered in Amakusa.

Climate
Amakusa has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa) with hot summers and cool winters. Precipitation is significant throughout the year, and is heaviest from May to August. The average annual temperature in Amakusa is 18.2 C. The average annual rainfall is 2109.8 mm with June as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 28.3 C, and lowest in January, at around 8.6 C. The highest temperature ever recorded in Amakusa was 39.6 C on 20 August 2013; the coldest temperature ever recorded was -7.0 C on 25 January 2016.

Demographics
Per Japanese census data, the population of Amakusa in 2020 is 75,783 people. Amakusa has been conducting censuses since 1920.

Sightseeing Spots

 * Alegria Gardens
 * Amakusa Christian Museum
 * Amakusa Dolphin Marine Land
 * Ōe Catholic Church
 * Sakitsu Church
 * Shimoda Onsen hot springs

Notable people

 * Sunao Sonoda, statesman
 * Hiroyuki Sonoda, statesman
 * Kundō Koyama, film writer
 * Michiko Ishimure, writer
 * Tochihikari Masayuki, sumo wrestler
 * Yoshiki Tanaka, novelist
 * Kenta Matsumoto, vocalist and bassist of WANIMA
 * Koushin Nishida, guitarist of WANIMA

Sister Cities

 * 🇺🇸 Encinitas, California, United States