Kobayashi, Yamashiro

Kobayashi (小林市) is the second-largest city of Yamashiro Province, Yamatai. It is located on the south-western coast of Ōshima, on the Honopi Peninsula at the mouth of the Aki Strait. As of 1 June 2019, the city had a population of 1,089,372.

The city was founded in 1600, Kobayashi was a vital port for trade boats and fishermen operating around the Varunan mouth of the Aki Strait. The city hosted a naval base for the Yamatai Imperial Navy between 1812 to 1921, before the base was closed and functions were shifted to the large naval base at Mitakishima, on the other side of the Aki Strait.

The official sport of the city is. Kobayashi is the site of the oldest Kendo school in Yamatai, and is a host of the annual Yamataian National Kendo Tournament, which rotates between Kobayashi, Kaga, Heian and Niihama. The city is also home to the Sato Honoka College of Music, which is well-known as having produced some of the most well-known Yamataian musicians. According to a 2018 online poll conducted by Akagi Shinbun, Kobayashi was voted as the most desirable city to live in amongst Yamataians aged 12 to 40, and the third-most desirable city to live in for 40 to 50 year olds.

Geography
Kobayashi city's area is 788.09 km², and largely occupies the Honopi Peninsula on the Varunan coast of Ōshima, extending into the Seki Plain in southern Yamashiro. The central areas of the city are hilly, though this tapers into flat farmlands towards the north-east. The highest point of the city is Nagaoka Hill, which is is only 163.63 metres above sea level. The Hiroka River flows 45 kilometres through Kobayashi. The river frequently flooded until the 1950s, but dams and levees constructed in the 1960s and 1970s have made such floods rare.

Transportation
Shin Kobayashi Station is the main transport hub for the city, and is operated by the Western National Railway Corporation. The station is served by seven National Railway lines and is a major station on the South-West Shinkyuko, which links Kobayashi to Okayama to the north and Mitakishima in the south. Since the completion of the railway extension in 2016, Kobayashi is also a major station on the Eastern Ōshima Shinkyuko, which immediately links to Okayama and Takase to the east.

Located to the east of Shin Kobayashi Station, Kobayashi Station is the terminus of the older Aki Coastal Line, which links to Takase along the coast of the Aki Strait and is primarily a freight and local train line. The Eastern Ōshima Shinkyuko also stops at Shin Kobayashi, as well as various local trains within Kobayashi.

The Kobayashi Monorail and several private aboveground local train lines serve as the main mass transit throughout the city. A public bus system also exists, as well as a loop bus called Kobus that runs between tourist hotspots throughout the city.

The city is served by Yamashiro Regional Airport, which is located in the north-west of the city and also serves Okayama, and the Port of Kobayashi. The National Road 34 expressway runs from north-west to south-east through north-eastern Kobayashi, and is connected to other highways that serve the city itself.

Ferries connecting to Mitakishima and Nagajima stop at the Port of Kobayashi.

Specialities
Kobayashi is claimed to be the origin of.