Iwate Prefecture Kitakami has a humid climate (Köppen Cfa) characterized by mild summers and cold winters.

The area of present-day Kitakami was part of ancient Mutsu Province, and has been settled since at least the Jōmon period by the Emishi people.

The modern city of Kitakami was founded on April 1, 1954, by the merger of the town of Kurosawajiri, with the villages of Iitoyo, Futako, Saraki, Oniyanai, Aisari and Fukuoka.

The economy of Kitakami was traditionally agricultural; however, due to its ease of access with Sendai and Morioka via the Tōhoku Expressway, the area has rapidly developed into a light manufacturing and transshipment center, with numerous industrial parks.

Kitakami also boasts a site that is reputed to be the grave of the famous Heian period waka poet Izumi Shikibu.