is a

district A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

located in

Saitama Prefecture is a landlocked prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Saitama Prefecture has a population of 7,338,536 (1 January 2020) and has a geographic area of 3,797 km2 (1,466 sq mi). Saitama Prefecture borders Tochigi Prefecture ...

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 2003, the district has 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 ...

755 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 77.58 persons per km². The total area is 796.03 km².

History

According to text in the ''Sendai Kuji Hongi'' (''

Kujiki , or , is a historical Japanese text. It was generally believed to have been one of the earliest Japanese histories until the middle of the Edo period, when scholars such as Tokugawa Mitsukuni and Tada Yoshitoshi successfully contended that it was ...

''), there was an area called Chichibu Province during the reign of

Emperor Sujin , also known as in the ''Kojiki'', and or in the '' Nihon Shoki'' was the tenth Emperor of Japan. While Sujin is the first emperor whose existence historians widely accept, he is still referred to as a "legendary emperor" due to a lack of info ...

. Since ancient times, Chichibu-jinja has been the main

Shinto shrine A is a structure whose main purpose is to house ("enshrine") one or more ''kami'', the deities of the Shinto religion. Overview Structurally, a Shinto shrine typically comprises several buildings. The '' honden''Also called (本殿, meani ...

in the district. In the

Nara period The of the history of Japan covers the years from CE 710 to 794. Empress Genmei established the capital of Heijō-kyō (present-day Nara). Except for a five-year period (740–745), when the capital was briefly moved again, it remained the cap ...

, copper was discovered in the district. Titsingh, Isaac. (1834)
''Annales des empereurs du Japon,'' p. 63
In 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 ...

, a pilgrimage route linked together 34 sacred sites of the old Chichibu ProvinceHarold Bolitho. (2003)
"Tokugawa Japan's Tourist Revolution,"
''Treasures of the Yenching: Seventy-fifth Anniversary of the Harvard-Yenching Library,'' p. 40.

Timeline

*708: Deposits of the metal

copper Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkis ...

was discovered in the region and offered to the Imperial Court. The

era name A regnal year is a year of the reign of a sovereign, from the Latin ''regnum'' meaning kingdom, rule. Regnal years considered the date as an ordinal, not a cardinal number. For example, a monarch could have a first year of rule, a second year o ...

Wadō (和銅, meaning "Japanese copper") was proclaimed in recognition of this welcome event in the initial months of

Empress Genmei , also known as Empress Genmyō, was the 43rd monarch of Japan, Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 元明天皇 (43) retrieved August 22, 2013. according to the traditional order of succession. Genmei's reign spanned the years 707 throug ...

's reign. The copper was used to mint '' Wadō Kaihō'' or ''Wadō Kaichin,'' which are amongst the oldest examples of coinage in Japan. *1884: The Chichibu incident: uprising of impoverished peasants under the influence of the

Freedom and People's Rights Movement The (abbreviated as ) or Popular Rights Movement was a Japanese political and social movement for democracy in the 1880s. It pursued the formation of an elected legislature, revision of the Unequal Treaties with the United States and European c ...

. Seven were sentenced to death and over 4,000 people were punished. *1889: Ōmiya town was founded. *1914:

Chichibu Railway The is a small-sector private railway company operating a railway line in northern Saitama Prefecture, Japan. In addition to its railway operations, the company deals in the real estate and tourism industries. It managed the Mitsumine Ropeway (� ...

was opened. *1916: Ōmiya town was renamed Chichibu town. *1946 (December 1): The town of Mino was split off to the town of Minano and the villages of Misawa, Kunikami, Hinozawa, Kanazawa and Ota. *1948 (April 1): The district transferred the village of Yano to Kodama District. *1950 (April 1): The town of Chichibu changed to

Chichibu is a city located in Saitama Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 61,159 in 26,380 households and a population density of . The total area of the city is . Geography Chichibu is in the westernmost part of Saitama. Unli ...

City. *1954: Chichibu City absorbed Harase, Haraya, Hisana, Kuna, Odamaki and Otasho villages. *1955 (February 11): Yokoze is created when Yokoze and Agakubo villages are merged; and Tokikawa is created when Okado, Hira and Ankaku villages are merged in Hiki District. *1955 (March 1):

Minano is a town located in Saitama Prefecture, Japan. , the town had an estimated population of 9,497 in 3994 households and a population density of 150 persons per km2. The total area of the town is . Geography Located in western Saitama Prefectur ...

is created when the town of Minano and the villages of Kunikami, Kanazawa and Hinozawa are merged. *1955 (April 1): The town of Ogano is expanded by absorbing the village of Nagawaka. *1956 (March 31): The town of Ogano is expanded by absorbing the villages of Kurao and Mitagawa *1956 (August 1):

Yoshida Yoshida (written: 吉田 lit. "lucky ricefield") is the 11th most common Japanese surname. A less common variant is 芳田 (lit. "fragrant ricefield"). Notable people with the surname include: *Ai Yoshida, Japanese sailor *, Japanese idol, singer ...

is expanded by absorbing Kamiyoshida village; and Higashichichibu is created by the merger of Tsukikawa and Okawahara villages. *1956 (September 30): The Town of Kagemori is created by the merger of Urayama and Kagemori villages. *1957: Chichibu City absorbed Takashino and Ōta villages. *1957 (March 31):

absorbed Misawa village. *1957 (May 3): Chichibu City absorbs Takajo and Ota villages. *1958 (May 31): Chichibu City absorbed Kagemori town. *1969:

Seibu Railway is a conglomerate based in Tokorozawa, Saitama, Japan, with principal business areas in railways, tourism, and real estate. Seibu Railway's operations are concentrated in northwest Tokyo and Saitama Prefecture; the name "Seibu" is an abbreviati ...

Seibu Chichibu Line The is a railway line in Saitama Prefecture, Japan, operated by Seibu Railway. It is an extension of the Seibu Ikebukuro Line, and connects Agano Station and Seibu-Chichibu Station. Stations All trains go via Agano Station to the Seibu Ikebu ...

was opened. *1972 (November 11): Nagatoro created by renaming the town of Nogami. *1984 (October 1): The village of Yokoze gained town status. *2005 (April 1): Chichibu City absorbs

and the villages of Arakawa and Ōtaki *2005 (October 1): Ogano absorbs the village of Ryōkami

Municipalities

Chichibu District has five municipalities: *

* Nagatoro * Ogano * Yokoze * Higashichichibu

History

Timeline

Municipalities

References

Further reading