Chino, Nagano Prefecture, Chūbu Region, Japan

🇯🇵 Chino (茅野市, Chino-shi) is a city located in Nagano Prefecture, Japan.

Geography Chino is located in a mountainous area of the east-central Nagano prefecture. Notable mountains within the city limits include Mount Yatsugatake, Mount Tateshina, and Mount Kirigamine. Chino city hall is located at an elevation of 801 meters and is thus the highest city hall location in Japan.

Surrounding municipalities Nagano Prefecture ◦ Suwa ◦ Saku ◦ Ina ◦ Koumi ◦ Minamimaki ◦ Sakuho ◦ Tateshina ◦ Nagawa ◦ Fujimi ◦ Hara; Yamanashi Prefecture ◦ Hokuto.

Demographics Per Japanese census data, the population of Chino has recently plateaued after a long period of growth.

History The area of present-day Chino was part of ancient Shinano Province and was part of Suwa Domain under the Tokugawa shogunate in the Edo period. The village of Eimei in Suwa District was established by the creation of the municipalities system on April 1, 1889. It was elevated to town status and renamed Chino on May 3, 1948. On February 1, 1955, the town of Chino annexed the neighboring villages of Miyakawa, Kanzawa, Tamagawa, Toyohira, Azumino, Kitayama, Kohigashi, and Yonezawa. Chino was elevated to city status on August 1, 1958.

In 2018, the Chino Municipal Government created a "Bond Diary" program (Yui Nikki, also known as Kōkan Nikki) for citizens over the age of 20. The program romantically matches area residents with non-residents via "old fashioned" means of the written word.

Government Chino has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral city legislature of 18 members.

Economy Chino is noted for its production of kanten, a type of agar, and the growing of celery and lettuce. Manufacturing includes precision instruments and electronics. The mountains of the Tateshina Highlands are a popular destination for seasonal tourism.

Education Chino has nine public elementary schools and four public middle schools. There is one public high school operated by the Nagano Prefectural Board of Education and one private high school. The Tokyo University of Science, Suwa is also located in Chino.

Transport: Rail • East Japan Railway Company - Chūō Main Line; ◦ Aoyagi - Chino.

Transport: Road • Chūō Expressway • National Route 20 • National Route 152 • National Route 299.

Local attractions • Suwa Taisha • Mount Yatsugatake • Lake Shirakaba • Togariishi Museum of Jōmon Archaeology • Komagata ruins, Jōmon period settlement trace, National Historic Site • Uenodan stone age ruins, Jōmon period settlement trace, National Historic Site.