Kokubu (国分市; -shi) was a city located in Kagoshima, Japan. On November 7, 2005, the city merged with six towns from Aira District forming the city of Kirishima and no longer exists as an independent municipality. As of 2003, the city had an estimated population of 55,237 and the density of 450.88 persons per km². The total area was 122.51 km². The city was founded on February 1, 1955. Source: [wikipedia: kokubu, kagoshima]