260px, Lake Shinsei is a

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

located 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 ...

. , the town 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 9,155 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 460 persons per km². The total area of the town is .

Geography

Nakai is located in the southwestern part of Kanagawa prefecture, at the eastern end of Ashigarakami district. One-third of the town area in the northwestern part of the Oiso Hills is forest, all of which is privately owned, with agricultural land and the town located along the river between the hills. The Nakamura River runs through the town in the west and the Kuzugawa River runs through the town in the east. Due to the landslide caused by the 1923

Great Kanto Earthquake Great may refer to: Descriptions or measurements * Great, a relative measurement in physical space, see Size * Greatness, being divine, majestic, superior, majestic, or transcendent People * List of people known as "the Great" *Artel Great (born ...

, the river in the north was blocked and Lake Shinsei. In the southwestern part of the town are hills of about 200 to 300 meters, and the slopes are dotted with

mandarin orange The mandarin orange (''Citrus reticulata''), also known as the mandarin or mandarine, is a small citrus tree fruit. Treated as a distinct species of orange, it is usually eaten plain or in fruit salads. Tangerines are a group of orange-coloured ...

fields.

Surrounding municipalities

Kanagawa Prefecture *

Hiratsuka 260px, Hiratsuka City Hall is a city located in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 257,316 and a population density of 3800 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Geography Hiratsuka is located ...

Odawara is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 188,482 and a population density of 1,700 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Geography Odawara lies in the Ashigara Plains, in the far western por ...

Hadano is a Cities of Japan, city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 163,787 and a population density of 1600 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Geography Hadano is located in the foothills of the ...

* Ninomiya * Ōi

Climate

Nakai 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 Nakai is 13.4 °C. The average annual rainfall is 2144 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 24.2 °C, and lowest in January, at around 2.9 °C.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data,Nakai population statistics
/ref> the population of Nakai grew in the 1970s and 1980s, and has now leveled off.

History

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 ...

, the area around present-day Nakai was part of

Odawara Domain 250px, Odawara Castle, Headquarters of the Odawara Domain was a Japanese domain of the Edo period, located primarily in western Sagami Province (modern-day Kanagawa Prefecture). It was centered on Odawara Castle in what is now the city of Odawar ...

Sagami Province was a province of Japan located in what is today the central and western Kanagawa Prefecture. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Kanagawa''" at . Sagami Province bordered the provinces of Izu, Musashi, and Suruga. It had access to the Paci ...

. 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 ...

, it became part of Ashigarakami District in Kanagawa Prefecture. Nakai village was formed on April 1, 1889 with the establishment of the modern municipalities system. It merged with neighboring Iguchi village on April 1, 1908. The village was elevated to town status on December 1, 1958.

Government

Nakai 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 ...

town council of 13 members. Nakai, together with the other municipalities in Ashigarakami District and Minamiashigara city, collectively contributes one member to the Kanagawa Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the town is part of Kanagawa 17th 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

The town economy is primarily agricultural, with

dairy farm Dairy farming is a class of agriculture for long-term production of milk, which is processed (either on the farm or at a dairy plant, either of which may be called a dairy) for eventual sale of a dairy product. Dairy farming has a history th ...

ing,

s predominating. An industrial zone established near the

Tōmei Expressway The is a national expressway on the island of Honshū in Japan. It is operated by Central Nippon Expressway Company. The expressway is designated as E1 under the "2016 Proposal for Realization of Expressway Numbering", because it parallels Nati ...

has attracted a number of industries, including

Fuji Xerox was a joint venture partnership between the Japanese photographic firm Fujifilm Holdings and the American document management company Xerox to develop, produce and sell xerographic and document-related products and services in the Asia-Pacifi ...

Terumo was founded in 1921 as Red Line Thermometer Corporation by a group of medical scientists led by Dr. Kitasato Shibasaburō to produce medical thermometers in Japan. The company's first product was "Jintan Taionkei", the first Japanese-made ther ...

and Nippon Express.

Education

Nakai has three public elementary schools operated by the town government. The town does not have any public middle school or high school.

Transportation

Nakai has no train service, and is not on a national highway, although the

bisects the town. Nakai can be reached by Kanagawa Prefectural Route 71 or 77.

Noted People from Nakai

Bassui Tokushō was a Rinzai Zen Master born in modern-day Kanagawa Prefecture who had trained with Sōtō and Rinzai Zen-masters. Bassui was unhappy with the state of Zen practice in Japan during his time, so he set out in life with the mission of revitalizing ...

, Muromachi period Zen priest *

Hiroko Sato , formerly known as , is a Japanese actress, singer and gravure idol. Biography Sato was born in Fukushima but grew up in Kanagawa. In 2002, Sato made her acting debut in the low budget horror movie ''Scare'' and began a career as a gravure ...

, singer, actress

References

External links

Official Website
{{Authority control Towns in Kanagawa Prefecture Nakai, Kanagawa