is one of the 7

wards Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a priso ...

of the city of Kawasaki in

Kanagawa Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Kanagawa Prefecture is the second-most populous prefecture of Japan at 9,221,129 (1 April 2022) and third-densest at . Its geographic area of makes it fifth-smallest. Kana ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. As of 2010, the ward had an estimated

population Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, whether it be a city or town, region, country, continent, or the world. Governments typically quantify the size of the resident population within their jurisdiction using a ...

of 167,792 and a

density Density (volumetric mass density or specific mass) is the substance's mass per unit of volume. The symbol most often used for density is ''ρ'' (the lower case Greek letter rho), although the Latin letter ''D'' can also be used. Mathematical ...

of 7,210 persons per km². The total area was 23.28 km².

Geography

Asao Ward is located in eastern Kanagawa Prefecture, in the far western corner of the city of Kawasaki, bordering on Tokyo. It is bordered to the north by the

Tama River The is a major river in Yamanashi, Kanagawa and Tokyo Prefectures on Honshū, Japan. It is officially classified as a Class 1 river by the Japanese government. Its total length is , and the total of the river's basin area spans . The river ...

. In March 1913, a fossil tooth from a Parastegodon (similar to the

Stegodon ''Stegodon'' ("roofed tooth" from the Ancient Greek words , , 'to cover', + , , 'tooth' because of the distinctive ridges on the animal's molars) is an extinct genus of proboscidean, related to elephants. It was originally assigned to the famil ...

genus) was found in what is now Yurigaoka 2-19 in the upper sedimentary layers of mudstone. It is thought to have been from the late

Pliocene The Pliocene ( ; also Pleiocene) is the epoch in the geologic time scale that extends from 5.333 million to 2.58Tama-ku, Kawasaki is one of the seven wards of the city of Kawasaki in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. As of 2010, the ward has an estimated population of 211,221 and a population density of 10,310 persons per km². The total area is 20.49 km². Geography Tama ...

Miyamae-ku, Kawasaki is one of the 7 wards of the city of Kawasaki in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. As of 2010, the ward had an estimated population of 217,251 and a density of 11,670 persons per km². The total area was 18.61 km². Geography Miyamae Ward is l ...

Aoba-ku, Yokohama is one of the 18 wards of the city of Yokohama in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. As of 2010, the ward had an estimated population of 302,643 and a density of 8,610 persons per km². The total area was 35.14 km². Geography Aoba is located in ...

Machida, Tokyo is a Cities of Japan, city located in West Tokyo, the western portion of Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 428,851, and a population density of 6,000 persons per km². The total area of the city was . Geography ...

Tama, Tokyo is a Cities of Japan, city located in the western portion of Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 148,285 in 73,167 households, and a population density of . The total area of the city was . Geography Tama is loca ...

Inagi, Tokyo 270px, Inagi City Hall is a city located in the western portion of Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 92,585 in 41,592 households, and a population density of 5200 persons per km². The total area of the city was . ...

History

Rice was grown in the area as early as the

Yayoi period The started at the beginning of the Neolithic in Japan, continued through the Bronze Age, and towards its end crossed into the Iron Age. Since the 1980s, scholars have argued that a period previously classified as a transition from the Jōmon p ...

. The name “Asao” appears in

Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. It followed the Nara period, beginning when the 50th emperor, Emperor Kanmu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). means "peace" in Japanese. ...

records, and as the name implies, the area was noted for its production of

hemp Hemp, or industrial hemp, is a botanical class of ''Cannabis sativa'' cultivars grown specifically for industrial or medicinal use. It can be used to make a wide range of products. Along with bamboo, hemp is among the fastest growing plants o ...

. Under

Ritsuryō , , is the historical law system based on the philosophies of Confucianism and Chinese Legalism in Japan. The political system in accord to Ritsuryō is called "Ritsuryō-sei" (律令制). ''Kyaku'' (格) are amendments of Ritsuryō, ''Shiki'' (� ...

system, it was part of

Musashi Province was a province of Japan, which today comprises Tokyo Metropolis, most of Saitama Prefecture and part of Kanagawa Prefecture. It was sometimes called . The province encompassed Kawasaki and Yokohama. Musashi bordered on Kai, Kōzuke, Sagami, S ...

. By the

Edo period The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional '' daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was characteriz ...

It was administered as ''

tenryō The Tokugawa shogunate (, Japanese 徳川幕府 ''Tokugawa bakufu''), also known as the , was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Tokugawa-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia ...

'' territory controlled directly by the

Tokugawa shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate (, Japanese 徳川幕府 ''Tokugawa bakufu''), also known as the , was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Tokugawa-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia ...

, but administered through various ''

hatamoto A was a high ranking samurai in the direct service of the Tokugawa shogunate of feudal Japan. While all three of the shogunates in Japanese history had official retainers, in the two preceding ones, they were referred to as ''gokenin.'' However ...

'', and was noted for its production of

charcoal Charcoal is a lightweight black carbon residue produced by strongly heating wood (or other animal and plant materials) in minimal oxygen to remove all water and volatile constituents. In the traditional version of this pyrolysis process, cal ...

. After the

Meiji Restoration The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored practical imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Although there were ...

, the area was divided between Tachibana District and Tsuzuki District in the new

on April 1, 1889. These areas were annexed by the neighboring city of Kawasaki from 1938-1939. The area became part of a huge government sponsored housing project from the 1950s and 1960s, resulting in the Yurigaoka Danchi and other suburban developments. The area became part of Tama Ward with the division of the city of Kawasaki into wards from April 1972. In July 1982, Asao Ward was separated from Tama Ward. A new Ward Office was completed in 1997.

Economy

Asao Ward is largely a regional commercial center and

bedroom community A commuter town is a populated area that is primarily residential rather than commercial or industrial. Routine travel from home to work and back is called commuting, which is where the term comes from. A commuter town may be called by many o ...

for central Kawasaki and Tokyo. Traditionally (through the Meiji period, the area was known for its production of Japanese persimmons.

Company headquarters

Sigma Corporation is a Japanese company, manufacturing cameras, lenses, flashes and other photographic accessories. All Sigma products are produced in the company's own Aizu factory in Bandai, Fukushima, Japan. Although Sigma produces several camera models, ...

Company Summary
" ''

''. Retrieved on September 28, 2015

Transportation

Railroads

* Keiō Corporation –

Keiō Sagamihara Line The is a Japanese railway line operated by the private railway operator Keio Corporation, connecting Hashimoto Station (Kanagawa), Hashimoto Station in Sagamihara, Kanagawa, Sagamihara, Kanagawa Prefecture and Chōfu Station (Tokyo), Chōfu Sta ...

Wakabadai Station is a passenger railway station located in the Kurokawa neighborhood of Asao-ku, Kawasaki, Kanagawa, Japan and operated by the private railway operator Keio Corporation. Lines Wakabadai Station is served by the Keio Sagamihara Line, and is lo ...

Odakyu Electric Railway , commonly known as Odakyū, is a major railway company based in Tokyo, Japan, best known for its ''Romancecar'' series of limited express trains from Tokyo to Odawara, Enoshima, Tama New Town, and Hakone. The Odakyu Electric Railway Company fo ...

–

Odakyū Odawara Line The is the main line of Japanese private railway operator Odakyu Electric Railway. It extends 82.5 km from Shinjuku in central Tokyo through the southwest suburbs to the city of Odawara, the gateway to Hakone in Kanagawa Prefecture. It is ...

** - - *

– Odakyū Tama Line ** - - - -

Highways

Prefecture roads

*Kanagawa Prefectural Road 3 *Kanagawa Prefectural Road 12 *Kanagawa Prefectural Road 19 *Kanagawa Prefectural Road 124 *Kanagawa Prefectural Road 137

Education

* Den-en Chofu University * Showa Academia Musicae *

Tokyo City University , often called or TCU for short, is an engineering, environmental and information sciences focused private university located in Tokyo, Japan. The university has four campuses, the Setagaya campus close to the Tama River at Oyamadai, Setagay ...

– Department of Nuclear Engineering The Kawasaki City Board of Education (川崎市育委員会) operates municipal elementary and junior high schools. Municipal junior high schools: * Asao ( 麻生中学校) * Haruhino ( はるひ野中学校) * Kakio (柿生中学校) * Kanahodo ( 金程中学校) * Nagasawa ( 長沢中学校) * Nishiikuta ( 西生田中学校) * Ozenji Chuo ( 王禅寺中央中学校) * Shiratori (白鳥中学校) Former junior high schools: * Hakusan ( 白山中学校) - Closed March 31, 2008 (

Heisei The is the period of Japanese history corresponding to the reign of Emperor Emeritus Akihito from 8 January 1989 until his abdication on 30 April 2019. The Heisei era started on 8 January 1989, the day after the death of the Emperor Hirohito, ...

20) * Ozenji ( 王禅寺中学校) - Closed March 31, 2008 (Heisei 20) Municipal elementary schools: * Asao ( 麻生小学校) * Chiyogaoka ( 千代ヶ丘小学校) * Haruhino ( はるひ野小学校) * Higashi Kakio (東柿生小学校) * Kakio (柿生小学校) * Kanahodo (金程小学校) * Katahira ( 片平小学校) * Kurigidai ( 栗木台小学校) * Minami Yurigaoka ( 南百合丘小学校) * Nagasawa (長沢小学校) * Nijigaoka ( 虹ヶ丘小学校) * Nishiikuta ( 西生田小学校) * Okagami (岡上小学校) * Ozenji Chuo ( 王禅寺中央小学校) * Shinpukuji (真福寺小学校) * Yurigaoka ( 百合丘小学校) Former elementary schools: * Hakusan ( 白山小学校) - Closed March 31, 2009 (Heisei 21) * Ozenji (王禅寺小学校) - Closed March 31, 2009 (Heisei 21)

Noted people from Asao Ward

Chinami Tokunaga (born May 22, 1992) is a Japanese singer. She is a former member of the J-pop idol group Berryz Kobo. History Tokunaga was born in Kanagawa, Japan. In 2002, she passed the Hello! Project Kids audition and became a member of Hello! Project. ...

, singer *

Ayumi Shibata (born February 22, 1984) is a Japanese female singer. She is a former member of Melon Kinenbi, an all-girl J-pop group which is part of the Hello! Project. She joined the group Tanpopo with Morning Musume members Asami Konno and Risa Niigaki i ...

, singer

References

External links

Asao Ward Office

in English {{DEFAULTSORT:Asao-Ku, Kawasaki Wards of Kawasaki, Kanagawa