Kenji Miyazawa was a Japanese novelist, poet, and writer of children's literature from Hanamaki, Iwate, in the late Taishō and early Shōwa periods. He was also known as an agricultural science teacher, a vegetarian, cellist, devout Buddhist, and utopian social activist.

Hanamaki is a city in Iwate Prefecture, Japan. As of 31 March 2020, the city had an estimated population of 94,691, and a population density of 100 persons per km2, in 37,773 households. The total area of the city is 908.39 square kilometres (350.73 sq mi). Hanamaki is famous as the birthplace of Kenji Miyazawa and for its hot spring resorts.