is a city in Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 74,414 in 31119 households and a population density of 6200 persons per km². The total area of the city is . The city's name is spelled "たつの," using hiragana, but the name of Tatsuno Station uses the kanji characters "竜野," while the historic name for the place uses the characters "龍野." According to the Harima no Kuni Fudoki, the origin of the name "Tatsuno" was that upon the death of Nomi no Sukune in Ibo District (now in the city of Tatsuno), many came from Izumo and used rock from the Ibo River to make a grave, standing stones in a row on the plain. Thus, it was called "立野," with characters meaning "stand" and "plain," from which it is thought to have changed to "龍野". Nomi no Sukune Shrine is located at the place said to be his grave. Geography Tatsuno is located in southwestern Hyōgo Prefecture extending largely south to north. The city's northern region is mountainous, the southern region faces the Seto Inland Sea, and the Ibo River runs through from north to south. Mountains: Mt. Ayabe (in Mitsu-chō) Rivers: Ibo River, Kurisu River Passes and Hills: Aisaka Pass (Japan National Route 179), Futagi Pass (Prefectural Route 5), Azawara Pass, Iwami Pass Neighboring Municipalities North: Shisō; Sayō, Sayō District West: Aioi; Kamigōri, Akō District East: Himeji; Taishi, Ibo District South: Himeji (Ieshima Islands) Climate Tatsuno has a Humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa) characterized by warm summers and cool winters with light to no snowfall. The average annual temperature in Tatsuno is 14.4 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1519 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 25.7 °C, and lowest in January, at around 3.7 °C. Demographics Per Japanese census data, the population of Tatsuno has remained relatively constant over the past 40 years. History The Tatsuno area was part of ancient Harima Province and was an important location for traffic on the Izumo Kaidō highway running along the Ibo River, and was the location of Kinoyama Castle, a stronghold of the Akamatsu clan in the Muromachi period. After Oda Nobunaga gained supremacy during the Sengoku period, the area became the territory of the Ikeda clan, who ruled Himeji Domain in the early Edo period. Following Ikeda Toshitaka's death, his lands were