Yamagata (山形市; Yamagata-shi, lit. mountain shape) is the capital city of Yamagata Prefecture in Japan.

The famed temple of Yamadera (Ryushakuji) lies within the city limits, 15 minutes by train from the center.

The Hanagasa festival (花笠祭り; Hanagasa Matsuri), one of Tohoku's major summer festivals, is held in the city every August 5, 6 and 7. Yamagata also hosts the bi-annual Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival. An autumn tradition is Imoni-kai (taro potato party). Taro potatoes, thin-sliced meat, and vegetables are cooked in a large pot at picnic spots. The banks of the Mamigasaki River are popular. Once a year, on the first Sunday in September, the city government serves thousands of bowls from its giant iron imoni pot, which is serviced by a building crane.　In 2009, 30,000 servings were prepared and served, and still a crowd waited in line.

Yamagata City is served by the Yamagata Shinkansen (bullet train) from Tokyo, which detaches from the Tohoku Shinkansen at Fukushima City. The express train takes just under three hours, and the one-way cost is about 10,000 yen.

Yamagata City is located in a wide central valley (bonchi) that can heat up quickly in spring and summer and is often grey and humid, while to the east in Miyagi Prefecture on the Pacific coast it is usually clearer and more temperate. The opposite is the case in winter with the valley seeing frequent snow and the Pacific coast remaining clear and fine.

In the center of town northwest of the train station is the extensive Kajo park, the grounds of castle keep of feudal warlord Mogami Yoshiaki (最上義光, 1544 - 1614). While most of the park is athletic fields and public function buildings, the rebuilt walls, eastern main gate, and surrounding moat of the former castle are impressive.The Mogami Yoshiaki Historical Museum (free admission )nearby features items from Yoshiaki's time like his battle helmet and other fine swords and armor, and good information on these exhibits and the history of the castle town is also available in English. In spring, the park is filled with cherry blossoms and clouded with many people. It also contains a small public museum with nice displays of natural and social history.

The city is also the home of the Kojirakawa Campus and Iida Campus of Yamagata University. The Kojirakawa Campus houses the Faculty of Literature & Social Science, the Faculty of Science and the Faculty of Education, Art & Science. The Iida Campus includes the Faculty of Medicine, which also includes the School of Nursing and the University Hospital.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yamagata,_Yamagata