Murata, Miyagi
Geography. Murata is located in south-central Miyagi Prefecture in the Tōhoku region of northern Japan. The Shiroishi River runs through the town. Neighboring municipalities. Miyagi Prefecture Climate. Murata has a humid climate (Köppen climate classification "Cfa") characterized by mild summers and cold winters. The average annual temperature in Murata is 12.5 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1271 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 25.0 °C, and lowest in January, at around 1.5 °C. Demographics. Per Japanese census data, the population of Murata  declined over the past 30 years. History. The area of present-day Murata was part of ancient Mutsu Province, and was part of the holdings of Sendai Domain under the Edo period Tokugawa shogunate. The modern village of Murata was established on April 1, 1889 with the establishment of post-Meiji restoration modern municipalities system. It was promoted to town status on October 31, 1895. The town merged with the neighboring towns on Tomioka and Numabe on April 20, 1955. Government. Murata has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral town council of  12 members. Murata, collectively with the other municipalities in Shibata District contributes two seats to the Miyagi Prefectural legislature. In terms of national politics, the town is part of Miyagi 3rd district of the lower house of the Diet of Japan. Economy. The economy of Murata is largely based on agriculture, and the town is especially known for its production of fava beans. Education. Murata has two public elementary schools and two public middle schools operated by the town government, and one public high school operated by the Miyagi Prefectural Board of Education.