is a

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

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 ...

. , the city 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 607,373 in 293,582 households and a

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...

of 9800 persons per km². The total area of the city is . It is the

Greater Tokyo Area The Greater Tokyo Area is the most populous metropolitan area in the world, consisting of the Kantō region of Japan (including Tokyo Metropolis and the prefectures of Chiba, Gunma, Ibaraki, Kanagawa, Saitama, and Tochigi) as well as the ...

's 8th most populated city (after passing Hachioji), and second largest in Saitama Prefecture.

Geography

Kawaguchi is located near the center of the

Kantō Plain The is the largest plain in Japan, and is located in the Kantō region of central Honshū. The total area of 17,000 km2 covers more than half of the region extending over Tokyo, Saitama Prefecture, Kanagawa Prefecture, Chiba Prefecture, ...

in southern Saitama Prefecture, and is bordered by the Tokyo wards of Kita-ku and

Adachi-ku is a special ward located in Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. It is located to the north of the heart of Tokyo. The ward consists of two separate areas: a small strip of land between the Sumida River and Arakawa River and a larger area north of the A ...

to the south. The city area is mostly flat and mainly residential except for the Omiya tableland, which occupies part of the north and east area. The

Arakawa River or Ara River may refer to: * Arakawa River (Kanto) or Ara River may refer to: * Arakawa River (Kanto), which flows from Saitama Prefecture and through Tokyo to Tokyo Bay * Arakawa River (Uetsu), which flows from Yamagata Prefecture and throu ...

runs across the border with Kita-ku to the south.

Surrounding municipalities

Koshigaya is a city located in Saitama Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 345,353 in 158,022 households and a population density of 5700 persons per km². The total area of the city is . It is famous for producing daruma dolls ...

Sōka is a city in Saitama Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 249,645 in 118,129 households and a population density of 9100 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Geography Situated in the southeast corner of Sa ...

* Saitama * Warabi * Toda

Tokyo Metropolis Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...

* Kita * Adachi

Climate

Kawaguchi has a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...

(Köppen ''Cfa'') characterized by warm summers and cool winters with light to no snowfall. The average annual temperature in Kawaguchi is 14.8 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1482 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 26.6 °C, and lowest in January, at around 3.2 °C.

Demographics

As of May 1, 2010, registered population was 516,409, including 20,808 alien residents, continuing a trend of population growth in the city since 1933 when the city was founded. There has been a gradual increase in the number of non-Japanese residents living in the city because of the convenient location to Tokyo and relatively low rent. Now, the number of people from China is the largest, followed by Korea and Philippines. Kawaguchi is a typical suburb city in the

Tokyo metropolitan area The Greater Tokyo Area is the most populous metropolitan area in the world, consisting of the Kantō region of Japan (including Tokyo Metropolis and the prefectures of Chiba, Gunma, Ibaraki, Kanagawa, Saitama, and Tochigi) as well as the pre ...

, where population greatly changes between daytime and nighttime due to commute to big cities, especially to Tokyo. Its population growth rate declined in the mid-1990s, but recent apartment construction boom in the city has helped to increase the population growth rate again. The number of children continues to decrease in accordance with the declining number of births; in 2009 4,735 live births were recorded in the city, a marked decrease from the 1971 peak of 7,932 births. By contrast, the rate of people over the age of 65 is increasing, and stood at approximately 18.5% as of January 1, 2010, although this is still below the national average. In 2017, 33,000 people in Kawaguchi were not Japanese citizens; 60% of them held Chinese citizenship. Around that year there had been an influx of Chinese nationals to Kawaguchi.

History

After the last

ice age An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages and gree ...

, during early and middle

Jōmon period The is the time in Japanese history, traditionally dated between 6,000–300 BCE, during which Japan was inhabited by a diverse hunter-gatherer and early agriculturalist population united through a common Jōmon culture, which reached a c ...

, most of the area which is now Kawaguchi was under sea level except for the area which is now Omiya Tableland. Ancient peoples living in this area left several

shell midden A midden (also kitchen midden or shell heap) is an old dump for domestic waste which may consist of animal bone, human excrement, botanical material, mollusc shells, potsherds, lithics (especially debitage), and other artifacts and eco ...

s, in which shells,

Jōmon pottery The is a type of ancient earthenware pottery which was made during the Jōmon period in Japan. The term "Jōmon" () means "rope-patterned" in Japanese, describing the patterns that are pressed into the clay. Outline Oldest pottery in Jap ...

, and pit houses have been discovered by archaeologists. Many

Kofun period The is an era in the history of Japan from about 300 to 538 AD (the date of the introduction of Buddhism), following the Yayoi period. The Kofun and the subsequent Asuka periods are sometimes collectively called the Yamato period. This period is ...

barrows were also found in Kawaguchi, however many have also been destroyed by urban development. From the

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. ...

onwards, Kawaguchi 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 ...

. The name "Kawaguchi" appears in the

Kamakura period The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first ''shōgun'' Minamoto no Yoritomo after the conclusion of the Genpei War, which saw the struggle bet ...

chronicle ''

Gikeiki The , "The Chronicle of Yoshitsune", is a Japanese gunki monogatari ("war-tale") that focuses on the legends of Minamoto no Yoshitsune and his followers. Thought to have been written during the Nanboku-chō period, it has provided inspiration to ...

'', but it is not proven that this name designated current area of Kawaguchi. During 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 ...

, Kawaguchi-juku developed as a post station on the

Nikkō Onari Kaidō was established during the Edo period as a subroute to Nikkō Kaidō. It was built for the ''shōgun'' to use as he traveled to Nikkō Tōshō-gū. It is also referred to as the Nikkō Onarimichi and the Iwatsuki Kaidō. Stations of the Nikkō Ona ...

, a highway used by the Tokugawa shōgun and daimyō to visit

Nikkō Tōshō-gū is a Tōshō-gū Shinto shrine located in Nikkō, Tochigi Prefecture, Japan. Together with Futarasan Shrine and Rinnō-ji, it forms the Shrines and Temples of Nikkō UNESCO World Heritage Site, with 42 structures of the shrine included in the n ...

. Towards the

Bakumatsu period was the final years of the Edo period when the Tokugawa shogunate ended. Between 1853 and 1867, Japan ended its isolationist foreign policy known as and changed from a feudal Tokugawa shogunate to the modern empire of the Meiji govern ...

and into the

Meiji period The is an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868 to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonization ...

, the demand for metal products increased. Because of proximity to Tokyo and convenient water transportation using

, Kawaguchi became the center of

metal casting In metalworking and jewelry making, casting is a process in which a liquid metal is delivered into a mold (usually by a crucible) that contains a negative impression (i.e., a three-dimensional negative image) of the intended shape. The metal is ...

industry, for which it has remained famous until modern times. The town of Kawaguchi was established within Kitaadachi District, Saitama on April 1, 1889 with the establishment of the modern municipalities system. Kawaguchi was elevated to city status on April 1, 1933 by the merger of Kawaguchi with the neighboring villages of Aoki, Minami-Hirayanagi and Yokozone. The city expanded by annexing the town of Hatogaya and villages of Shiba, Kamine and Shingō in 1940. However, Hatogaya separated from Kawaguchi in 1948 in accordance with the results of a referendum. Kawaguchi has experienced many disasters, including flood, earthquake and war. The Arakawa River has inundated Kawaguchi countless times and ruined agriculture, which resulted in famines. Also, the

1923 Great Kantō earthquake The struck the Kantō Plain on the main Japanese island of Honshū at 11:58:44 JST (02:58:44 UTC) on Saturday, September 1, 1923. Varied accounts indicate the duration of the earthquake was between four and ten minutes. Extensive firestorms an ...

damaged buildings in Kawaguchi, killing 99 people. Currently, the population of Kawaguchi continues to increase, and many tall apartment buildings are being built around train stations. This is because many casting foundries moved to suburban

industrial park An industrial park (also known as industrial estate, trading estate) is an area zoned and planned for the purpose of industrial development. An industrial park can be thought of as a more "heavyweight" version of a business park or office park, ...

s and the former sites were turned into residential areas. On April 1, 2001, Kawaguchi was designated a special city, with increased local autonomy. On October 11, 2011, Kawaguchi re-absorbed the city of Hatogaya. Toda_Arakawa_Arakawakyouryou_1

Government

Kawaguchi has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a

unicameral Unicameralism (from ''uni''- "one" + Latin ''camera'' "chamber") is a type of legislature, which consists of one house or assembly, that legislates and votes as one. Unicameral legislatures exist when there is no widely perceived need for multic ...

city council of 42 members. Kawaguchi contributes seven members to the Saitama Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city is divided between

Saitama 2nd district Saitama 2nd district (埼玉県第2区, ''Saitama-ken dai-niku '' or simply 埼玉2区, ''Saitama-ken niku '') is a single-member constituency of the House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many ...

and Saitama 15th district of the

lower house A lower house is one of two Debate chamber, chambers of a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the upper house. Despite its official position "below" the upper house, in many legislatures worldwide, the lower house has co ...

of the

Diet of Japan The is the national legislature of Japan. It is composed of a lower house, called the House of Representatives (, ''Shūgiin''), and an upper house, the House of Councillors (, '' Sangiin''). Both houses are directly elected under a paralle ...

Economy

Education

Universities and colleges

Saitama Gakuen University is a private university in Kawaguchi, Saitama, 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 J ...

Kawaguchi Junior College is a private junior college in Kawaguchi, Saitama, 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 ...

* Kawaguchi Art School of

Waseda University , abbreviated as , is a private university, private research university in Shinjuku, Tokyo. Founded in 1882 as the ''Tōkyō Senmon Gakkō'' by Ōkuma Shigenobu, the school was formally renamed Waseda University in 1902. The university has numerou ...

High schools

operates: * * * * * * The Kawaguchi Municipal Board of Education operates: *

Junior high schools

(all managed by the city) *Angyo Junior High School *Angyo-higashi Junior High School *Aoki Junior High School *Haimatsu Junior High School *Higashi Junior High School *Kamiaoki Junior High School *Kamine Junior High School *Kishikawa Junior High School *Kita Junior High School *Koyaba Junior High School *Minami Junior High School *Motogo Junior High School *Nakacho Junior High School *Nishi Junior High School *Ryoke Junior High School *Sachinami Junior High School *Shiba Junior High School *Shiba-higashi Junior High School *Shiba-nishi Junior High School *Shibazono Junior High School *Shiwasuda Junior High School *Tozuka Junior High School *Tozuka-nishi Junior High School *Zaike Junior High School *Hatogaya Junior High School *Sato Junior High School *Hachimangi Junior High School

Elementary schools

(all managed by the city) *Angyo Elementary School *Angyo-higashi Elementary School *Aoki-kita Elementary School *Aoki-chuo Elementary School *Asahi-higashi Elementary School *Asahi-nishi Elementary School *Funato Elementary School *Haramachi Elementary School *Higashihongo Elementary School *Higashiryoke Elementary School *Honcho Elementary School *Iinaka Elementary School *Iizuka Elementary School *Jirin Elementary School *Kamiaoki Elementary School *Kamiaoki-minami Elementary School *Kamine Elementary School *Kamine-higashi Elementary School *Kizoro Elementary School *Nakacho Elementary School *Namiki Elementary School *Negishi Elementary School *Hatogaya Elementary School *Sato Elementary School *Sakuramachi Elementary School *Tuji Elementary School *Nakai Elementary School *Minamihatogaya Elementary School *Ryoke Elementary School *Saiwaicho Elementary School *Sashima Elementary School *Shiba Elementary School *Shiba-chuo Elementary School *Shiba-fuji Elementary School *Shiba-higashi Elementary School *Shiba-hinotume Elementary School *Shiba-minami Elementary School *Shiba-nishi Elementary School *Shingo Elementary School *Shingo-higashi Elementary School *Shingo-minami Elementary School *Shiwasuda Elementary School *Tozuka Elementary School *Tozuka-ayase Elementary School *Tozuka-higashi Elementary School *Tozuka-kita Elementary School *Tozuka-minami Elementary School *Yanagisaki Elementary School *Zaike Elementary School

Special schools

Saitama Prefectural Kawaguchi Special Needs School may refer to: Places * Saitama (city), the capital and the most populous city of Saitama Prefecture, Japan * Saitama Prefecture, a prefecture of Japan in the Kantō region ** Kita-Saitama District, Saitama ** Minami-Saitama District, Saitama ...

*Saitama Korean Kindergarten ( 埼玉朝鮮幼稚園) - North Korean school -- (Abolished on March 31, 2014 )

Transportation

Railway

JR East The is a major passenger railway company in Japan and is the largest of the seven Japan Railways Group companies. The company name is officially abbreviated as JR-EAST or JR East in English, and as in Japanese. The company's headquarters are ...

– Keihin-Tohoku line * - JR logo (east)

–

Musashino line The is a railway line operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). It links Tsurumi Station in Yokohama with Nishi-Funabashi Station in Chiba Prefecture, forming a 100.6 km unclosed loop around central Tokyo. Passenger operations ...

* 27px

Saitama Rapid Railway Line The is a mostly underground rapid transit line in Japan operated by the third sector operating company Saitama Railway Corporation. Funded by Saitama Prefecture, local municipal governments, and Tokyo Metro, it forms a continuation of the Tok ...

* - - - - -

Buses

Kawaguchi has a highly developed bus network, mainly operated by Kokusai Kogyo Bus. The east region of the city is relatively far from train stations, many people use buses to the nearest train stations. Some bus routes have over twenty bus services an hour in the morning.Kokusai Bus.com
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Bus operators

* Kokusai Kogyo Bus * Tobu Bus Central

Highway

* – Kawaguchi Junction * – Kawaguchi-Nishi Interchange, Kawaguchi-Chūō Interchange, Kawaguchi Junction, Kawaguchi-Higashi Interchange * Shuto Urban Expwy Sign S1

Kawaguchi Route The , signed as Route S1, is one of the routes of the Shuto Expressway system serving the Greater Tokyo Area. The route is a long radial highway running north from Adachi, Tokyo to Kawaguchi, Saitama. It primarily connects central Tokyo to the T� ...

– Kawaguchi Junction, Araijuku, Angyō, Shingo, Higashi Ryoke * *

Local attractions

Kawaguchi Green Center The , sometimes also called the Botanical Garden of Kawaguchi-City, is a city park and botanical garden located at Araijuku 700, Kawaguchi, Saitama, Japan. Admission is 300 yen for adults and 100 yen for children. The garden was established in 196 ...

* Kawaguchi Shrine * Former Tanaka Family Residence

Noted people from Kawaguchi

Yoshitaka Shindō is a Japanese politician of the Liberal Democratic Party, a member of the House of Representatives in the Diet (national legislature). Affiliated to the openly revisionist lobby Nippon Kaigi, Shindo is known for his committed stance on territ ...

, politician *

Yukio Tomioka is a Japanese politician of the Democratic Party of Japan, a former member of the House of Councillors in the Diet (national legislature). A native of Kawaguchi, Saitama and graduate of Waseda University, he worked at the Fuji Bank (now part of Mi ...

, politician *

Yukio Ninagawa was a Japanese theatre director, actor and film director, particularly known for his Japanese language productions of Shakespeare plays and Greek tragedies. He directed eight distinct renditions of ''Hamlet.'' Ninagawa was also emeritus of the ...

, stage director * Kumiko Ohba, actress *

Hiroyuki Endo is a retired Japanese badminton player. He competed at the 2016 Rio and 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics. In 2009, he joined the Unisys badminton team. Career Endo won the 1st point in the Thomas Cup finals with Kenichi Hayakawa beating Tan Bo ...

, retired badminton player

References

External links

Official Website
{{Authority control Cities in Saitama Prefecture