is a town in Nishitama District, Tokyo, Japan. As of 2005, it had a population of 16,023 and an area of 28.08 km², with a population density of 570.6/km².

Geography

The highest mountain is Mount Hinode at 902 m. The Hirai and Ōguno Rivers drain the town. Hinode borders the cities of Ōme and Akiruno, both of which are also in Tokyo.

History

The village of Hinode was formed in 1955 with the merger of the villages of Hirai and Ōguno. Hinode became a town in 1974.

Industry

Forestry and timber production are important industries. Cryptomeria and hinoki are economically important. Hinode produces 200,000 coffins annually, ranking first in Japan.

Education

Hinode has three public elementary schools (Hirai, Honjuku, and Ōguno) and two public middle schools (Hirai and Ōguno).

Tokyo Metropolitan Government Board of Education operates Mizuho High School in nearby Mizuho. The school district operates the following high schools in Akiruno:

• Akirudai High School
• Itsukaichi High School

The school district operates the following high schools in Ōme:

• Norin High School
• Ome Sogo High School
• Tama High School

Transportation

The Hinode Interchange of the Ken-O Expressway is in Hinode.

Topics

• Former Japanese prime minister Yasuhiro Nakasone had a cottage, Hinode Sansō in this town, and in 1983, when he was in the post, Nakasone invited US president Ronald Reagan there, and held US-Japan summit with friendly relationship. And, after his resign, Nakasone also met at his cottage, Chun Doo-hwan (ex-president of South Korea), Mikhail Gorbachev (ex-president of Soviet Union) and other many foreign VIPs, include several US ambassadors. Nakasone gave the historic place to the town in 2006, and it has opened as a public park now.

See also

References

External links

• Welcome to Hinode Home Page (in Japanese)