Matsumoto Basin

A basin in the mid-west of Nagano Prefecture. At an altitude of 560 to 730 meters, it is a complex alluvial fan formed by rivers such as the Takase River, which flows south from the Northern Alps, the Azusa River, which flows down from Kamikochi, and the Narai River, which flows north from the Kiso Valley. The basin is long and narrow, measuring 60 kilometers from north to south and 10 kilometers from east to west. Its western edge is the foothills of the Northern Alps, which are steep slopes, but the foothills of the Chikuma Mountains on its eastern edge are unclear. The area north of the Azusa River is called Azumino, and is a rice paddy region, one of the leading rice-producing areas in Nagano Prefecture. There are many roadside gods, depicting a man and a woman standing close together, and it has recently become a tourist destination. The southern side has a lot of farmland, and Kikyogahara is the prefecture's top producer of summer vegetables and grapes.

The center of the basin is Matsumoto City, with Omachi City to the north and Shiojiri City to the south. The JR Shinonoi Line, Oito Line, and National Routes 19 and 147 run roughly north-south through the basin, while National Route 158 runs east-west. Various factories, including electrical machinery factories, have been established along the national routes, and the entire basin has been designated a new industrial urban area. Matsumoto, Omachi City, and Azumino City serve as bases for mountain tourist destinations such as the Northern Alps in the surrounding area.

[Hiroyoshi Kobayashi]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

長野県の中西部にある盆地。標高560～730メートルで、北アルプスから南流する高瀬川、上高地(かみこうち)から流下する梓川(あずさがわ)、木曽(きそ)谷から北流する奈良井川(ならいがわ)などの河川が形成する複合扇状地。南北60キロメートル、東西10キロメートルの狭長な盆地で、西縁は北アルプスの山麓(さんろく)で急斜面であるが、東縁の筑摩(ちくま)山地の山麓線は明らかではない。梓川の北側は安曇野(あずみの)とよばれ、水田地帯をなし長野県内屈指の米作地。男女寄り添う双体の道祖神(どうそじん)が多く、最近は一つの観光地になっている。南側は畑地が多く、桔梗ヶ原(ききょうがはら)は夏野菜や県下一のブドウ産地である。

　盆地の中心は松本市で、北に大町市、南に塩尻(しおじり)市がある。盆地内をJR篠ノ井(しののい)線と大糸線、国道19号と147号がほぼ南北に走り、国道158号が東西方向に通じる。国道に沿って電気機械をはじめ各種工場が進出し、盆地全域が新産業都市地域に指定されている。周辺に北アルプスなどの山岳観光地を控え、松本、大町市や安曇野(あづみの)市などはその基地になっている。

［小林寛義］

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