Shirakawa, Fukushima

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This article is about the town in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan. For other places with this name, see Shirakawa.

Shirakawa (白河市; Shirakawa-shi) is a town (according to the Japanese definition, a city) in Fukushima, Japan.

The 2003 estimated population was 48,297 and the density in that year was 410.44 persons per km². The total area was 117.67 km². However, on November 7th, 2005, Shirakawa-shi incorporated the neighbouring villages of Taishin, Higashi and Omotego, raising the population to about 66,000.

The city was founded on April 1, 1949.

Shirakawa has schools, middle schools, high schools, banks, a post office, and parks. Shirakawa is accessed by the nearby Tohoku Expressway and routes 289 and 294.

[edit] Claims to fame

Residents point to the local variation of rāmen as the town's main claim to fame, and some assert that it is the most famous in all of Japan. The main attractions of the town, aside from the restaurants, include Kominejō (literally "Small Peak Castle") and Nankō ("South Lake") Park.