Oji Town

A box-like device sits over the chimney.

D51 steam locomotive No. 895

Photo by Saigen Jiro (CC0)

01 ／ Mount Myojin (Hirume-yama)

Written "send-off and greeting," read "hirume."The origin of the name has several theories.

At 273.6 m, Mount Myojin lies on the Nara-Osaka prefectural border, with the Nara Basin to the east and the Osaka Plain to the west. In March 2025 it became the first Registered Monument (Places of Scenic Beauty) in Nara Prefecture. An Agency for Cultural Affairs document says the name is also thought to come from a story that, as Prince Shotoku traveled between Ikaruga and Kawachi, the messengers seeing him off and those welcoming him met here at lunchtime.

Registered Monument (Places of Scenic Beauty)
Elevation 273.6 m
Registered area 9,659 sq m

02 ／ Hatakeda Kofun

Of three gold rings unearthed,two are a copper-core, gold-plated pair.

Hatakeda Kofun is a round burial mound 15 m in diameter and more than 4 m high, with a double-sleeved horizontal-entry stone chamber, 5.9 m long, that opens to the south. Of the three gold rings found in the burial chamber, two form a set made of a copper core plated with gold. The town records that, judging from the finds and the construction method, it is thought to have been built in the early 7th century by an immigrant from the continent or someone with basic knowledge of continental culture.

Prefectural historic site, 2007
Stone chamber 5.9 m long
2 of 3 gold rings copper-core, gold-plated

03 ／ Kataoka-oji and Saian-ji temple sites

The town's name, Oji, is thoughtto come from Kataoka-oji Temple.

Kataoka-oji Temple, which stood in Honmachi 2-chome, is thought to have been founded in the first half of the 7th century. At the Saian-ji Temple site inside Funato Shrine, excavation has confirmed a pagoda base similar in size to the five-story pagoda of Horyu-ji Temple, and a south-facing Shitenno-ji style layout is suggested. It became a prefectural historic site in 2019. The foundation stones and platform have been backfilled.

Saian-ji site: prefectural historic site, 2019
Pagoda base similar in size to Horyu-ji's
Kataoka-oji: thought founded early 7th century

Living here

35 minutes from Osaka Station by Yamatoji Rapid.

about 20,000 people
Rural district town

On the JR Yamatoji Rapid, Osaka Station to Oji Station takes 35 minutes at the fastest (timetable). The town describes itself as a key transport point where JR and Kintetsu lines cross. Oji Station opened on 27 December 1890, when the first railway in Nara Prefecture opened between Oji and Nara. The JR Wakayama Line and Kintetsu's Ikoma and Tawaramoto lines branch out from here to link other areas.

People living here: 24,043people
Area: 7.01km²
Households: 10,031households
Rent (average for rentals): 43,302yen
Healthcare: 1 hospital ／ 29 clinics

Area and habitable land at the same scalee-Stat B1101 / B1103

Children waiting for childcare: —2 nurseries and similar
Home purchase subsidy: —
Average annual temperature: —

These 3 items are waiting on a nationwide data source. We do not fill them with estimates.

ACCESS

Where you can go from here.

Oji Town in Japan34.595°N 135.707°E

to OsakaJR Rapid35min

Travel times follow JR西日本『JRおでかけネット』区間時刻表（ページの日付 2026年10月14日）。①line-timetable/2298（大和路線（関西本線）(大阪／ＪＲ難波～加茂) 上り）で、大阪『発』→王寺『発』が同じ列車の列にあるものを数えた：56本（大阪発 06:22〜22:28）。王寺の行は『発』しか無いので到着時刻の代わりに王寺『発』を使った（停車時間は1分未満）。運転日注意の欄が空＝毎日運転の大和路快速は19本で、最短は35分（3346K 10:43→11:18・3348K 10:58→11:33・3350K 11:13→11:48・3354K 11:43→12:18・3356K 11:58→12:33 ほか）。3342K・3344K・3352K（10:13・10:28・11:28 大阪発）も35分だが『平』（平日のみ）。区間快速（平日24本・毎日1本）は35分より遅い。②line-timetable/2299（同下り）で、王寺『発』→大阪『着』：52本。毎日運転の最短は37分（大和路快速 3359K 11:15→11:52・3363K 11:45→12:22・3365K 12:00→12:37 ほか）。平日のみの3339K（08:48→09:24）は36分。町公式『移住定住』（トップから）は『JR大阪駅へ約35分』『JR天王寺駅へ最短約20分』 (checked 2026-10-14). They vary by time of day.

Shape

Borders 6 municipalities across 1 prefectures.

Territory of Oji Town

Boundaries: National Land Numerical Information (N03)

North to south

3.4km

Nara Prefecture: 香芝市, 三郷町, 河合町, 上牧町, 斑鳩町
Osaka Prefecture: 柏原市

Oji Town isthis kind of town.

01D51 steam locomotive No. 895, built in 1944, is preserved in Funato Children's Park. A smoke-collecting device, which sends smoke to the rear so it does not enter the cab in tunnels, is fitted over its chimney like a box, and in March 2024 the locomotive became a town-designated cultural property (historical materials)
02Oji Station opened on 27 December 1890 as a station on the first railway in Nara Prefecture, between Oji and Nara. Kudo, the neighborhood in front of the station, was a small settlement of 37 houses in 1877 and had 654 by 1935
03The Matsuura House near the station is thought to have been built around 1910 by Matsuura Otokichi, who took on railway tunnel construction. Six of its buildings, including the main house, became Registered Tangible Cultural Properties in 2010, and about 4,700 old documents survive

See the town as it is now.

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Source: Wikidata (P2002, P2003, P2013, P2397)

If something caught your eye, ask the town itself.

Oji Town official site ↗Wikipedia ↗