Kochi is asteroid #2396 and also known as 1981 CB. Kochi’s orbit is characterized by a semi-major axis of 2.80 Astronomical Units, an eccentricity of 0.07, a period of revolution of 1 706 days, and an inclination of 12.6 degrees. Kochi was discovered by Seki Tsutomu (関 勉) at the Geisei Observatory, where Seki Tsutomu (関 勉) is the director.

Kochi is named after Kōchi-shi (高知市) or the city of Kōchi (高知) in the prefecture of Kōchi (高知) in Japan. Kōchi (高知) City is the administrative seat of Kōchi (高知) Prefecture. Kōchi (高知) City also is a port city and a primate city, which means that it is disproportionately larger than any other city in Kōchi (高知) Prefecture. So Kōchi (高知) City also is the commercial and industrial center of Kōchi (高知) Prefecture. Industrial products of Kōchi (高知) City are paper, cement, and silk. Kōchi (高知) City has a castle, which still is original because it didn’t take damage during the Second World War, although Kōchi (高知) City got bombed. Living in Kōchi (高知) City is so boring that the inhabitants in 1954 invented the yosakoi (よさこい) dance, which has spread from there throughout Japan and also internationally. It is shown at many festivals and a yosakoi (よさこい) dancing festival is held in Kōchi (高知) City in August every year.

Kochi got named by its discoverer because Kōchi-shi (高知市) is the native city of Seki Tsutomu (関 勉). He named many asteroids after things or places from that area. The prefecture got honored by the naming of the asteroid Tosa. Kochi is a place name asteroid, that hints to Kōchi-shi (高知市). The name of the city can be translated as “high knowledge”. So the asteroid will also indicate where to look for the knowledge you could need for solving a problem.