is a city located in Kōchi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 46‚459 in 22499 households and a population density of 370 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Geography Nankoku is located in the center of Kochi Prefecture on the island of Shikoku. The northern part of the city is in the southern end of the Shikoku Mountains and the southern part has an eight kilometer long coastline on the Pacific Ocean. In between is the Kochi Plain, with the Mononobe River flowing from north to south on the border with Konan. About half of the municipality is forested. Neighbouring municipalities Kōchi Prefecture Kōchi Kami Kōnan Motoyama Tosa Climate Nankoku has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa) with hot, humid summers and cool winters. There is significant precipitation throughout the year, especially during June and July. The average annual temperature in Nankoku is . The average annual rainfall is with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around , and lowest in January, at around . The highest temperature ever recorded in Nankoku was on 30 July 2004; the coldest temperature ever recorded was on 8 February 1984. Demographics Per Japanese census data, the population of Nankoku in 2020 is 46,664 people. Nankoku has been conducting censuses since 1960. History As with all of Kōchi Prefecture, the area of Nankoku was part of ancient Tosa Province. The Tosa Kokubun-ji was built during the Nara period, indicating that it was the center of Tosa Province and in proximity to the provincial capital During the Heian period, the nobleman Ki no Tsurayuki wrote the Tosa Diary while staying in what is now Nankoku. During the Sengoku period, Okō Castle was the stronghold of the Chōsokabe clan, who conquered most of Shikoku. During the Edo period, the area was part of the holdings of Tosa Domain ruled by the Yamauchi clan from their seat at Kōchi Castle. Following the Meiji restoration, the town of Goman (後免町) was established within Nagaoka District, Kōchi with the creation of the modern municipalities system on April 1, 1889. On September 30, 1956 the town expanded by annexing 5 neighboring villages. On October 1, 1959 Gomen merged with four neighboring villages to form the city of Nankoku. Government Nankoku has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor