Naraha, Fukushima

Naraha (楢葉町, Naraha-machi) is a town located in Futaba District, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan. As of December 2014, the town had an official registered population of 7,098 and a population density of 68.5 persons per km², although the current actual resident population is much lower. The total area of the town is 103.45 square kilometres (39.94 sq mi). From 2011 until 2015, the town was evacuated due to fallout from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster, although as of September 2015, all restrictions on residency have been removed as a result of cleanup efforts, allowing people to return.

Geography

Naraha is located in southern of Fukushima Prefecture, bordering on the Pacific Ocean to the east.

Surrounding municipalities

History

The area of present-day Naraha was part of Mutsu Province, and was included in the tenryo holdings of the Tokugawa shogunate during Edo period Japan. After the Meiji restoration, on April 1, 1889, the villages of Kido and Tatsuta was created within Naraha District, Fukushima. Naraha District became Futaba District in 1896. The villages of Kido and Tatsuta merged in 1956 to form the town of Naraha.