Kōzu-shima 神津島
| Island group | Izu Islands |
|---|---|
| Prefecture | Tokyo |
| Region | Kanto |
| Municipality | Kozushima |
| Population | 1,914 |
| Area | 18.24 km² (7.0 mi²) |
| Highest point | 574 m |
| Coordinates | 34.21667° N, 139.15° E |
Getting there: the article below outlines this island's usual ferry and flight routes. Timetables change with the season and sailings are cancelled in rough weather — always confirm the current schedule with the operator or the municipality before you travel.
Kōzu-shima (神津島) is a volcanic Japanese island in the Philippine Sea. The island is administered by Tōkyō and is located approximately 30 kilometres (19 mi) northwest of the Miyake-jima and 14 kilometres (8.7 mi) southwest of the Nii-jima. It is one of the Izu Seven Islands, a group of the seven northern islands of the Izu archipelago. Kōzushima is administratively part of Kōzushima Village (founded 1923), under Ōshima Subprefecture of Tokyo Metropolis. As of 2017, the island's population was 1,952. Kōzushima is within the boundaries of the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park.
Geology
Kōzu-shima is a compound volcanic island 6 km in length with a maximum width of 4 km. The island is formed from a cluster of eighteen lava domes, with rhyolite and pyroclastic ash deposits. The highest of these lava domes, Tenjō-san (天上山), has a height of 571 metres (1,873 ft), and was last active in 838 AD per the ancient Japanese history Shoku Nihon Kōki. Compared with most of the other islands in the Izu archipelago, Kōzu-shima is relatively flat, with small eroded hills, and lacks the high coastal cliffs found on the other islands. Earthquake swarms have occurred at Kōzu-shima during the 20th century.
Important Bird Area
The island has been recognised as an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International because it supports populations of Japanese wood pigeons, Tristram's storm petrels, Japanese murrelets, Ijima's leaf-warblers, Pleske's grasshopper warblers and Izu thrushes.
History
Kōzu-shima has been inhabited since at least the Japanese Paleolithic era, and archaeologists have found Jōmon period stone tools made from obsidian in Shizuoka and Yamanashi Prefectures. Under the Ritsuryō system of the early Nara period, the island was part of Suruga Province. It was transferred to Izu Province when Izu separated from Suruga in 680 AD. During the Heian period, obsidian was the primary export from the island.
In popular culture
The island is the hometown of the idol duet Sunny Passion in the franchise Love Live! Superstar!!. Several episodes of the corresponding anime TV series take place there.
In the film Weathering with You, Hodaka Morishima (the male protagonist) is from the island.
Text adapted from the English Wikipedia article Kōzu-shima by its contributors, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Population, area and location facts from Wikidata (CC0).