is one of the seven wards 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. Kanag ...

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 n ...

. , 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 usi ...

of 216,826 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. Mathematicall ...

of 5,530 persons per km². The total area was . Kawasaki-ku has the home to the second largest

Koreatown A Koreatown ( Korean: 코리아타운), also known as a Little Korea or Little Seoul, is a Korean-dominated ethnic enclave within a city or metropolitan area outside the Korean Peninsula. History Koreatowns as an East Asian ethnic enclave have ...

in Japan.

Geography

Kawasaki Ward is located in northeastern Kanagawa Prefecture, in the northeast portion of the city of Kawasaki, bordering on 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 rive ...

and Tokyo to the north and

Tokyo Bay is a bay located in the southern Kantō region of Japan, and spans the coasts of Tokyo, Kanagawa Prefecture, and Chiba Prefecture. Tokyo Bay is connected to the Pacific Ocean by the Uraga Channel. The Tokyo Bay region is both the most populou ...

to the south and east. Much of the land area of the Ward is reclaimed land

Surrounding municipalities

* Saiwai-ku, Kawasaki *

Tsurumi-ku, Yokohama is one of the 18 ku (wards) of the city of Yokohama in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. As of 2010, the ward had an estimated population of 270,433 and a density of 8,140 persons per km². The total area is 33.23 km². Geography Tsurumi-ku i ...

* Ōta-ku, Tokyo

History

Under 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 c ...

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, what is now Kawasaki Ward became part of Tachibana District

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, ...

. 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 character ...

, 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.'' Howev ...

'', and prospered as Kawasaki-juku, a post station on the Tokaido highway connecting

Edo Edo ( ja, , , "bay-entrance" or "estuary"), also romanized as Jedo, Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of Tokyo. Edo, formerly a ''jōkamachi'' (castle town) centered on Edo Castle located in Musashi Province, became the ''de facto'' capital of ...

with

Kyoto Kyoto (; Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin metropolitan area along with Osaka and Kobe. , the c ...

. 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 urbanized with the development of Kawasaki Station on the Tokaido Main Line and became a center for heavy industry. The area was largely destroyed by the

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 ...

of 1923 and during American bombing during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. Kawasaki Ward was established with the division of the city of Kawasaki into wards on April 1, 1972. Long associated with grime, labor unrest, organized crime and pollution-related diseases, the local government undertook extensive efforts in the 1990s to revamp the area image.

Economy

The economy of Kawasaki Ward continues to be dominated by industry. *

Fuji Electric , operating under the brand name FE, is a Japanese electrical equipment company, manufacturing pressure transmitters, flowmeters, gas analyzers, controllers, inverters, pumps, generators, ICs, motors, and power equipment. History Fuji Electric ...

JFE Steel JFE Steel () is the second largest Japanese steel manufacturer. The company was created in 2002 through the merger of the steel manufacturing business of Kawasaki Steel and NKK (Nihon Kokan). It is owned by JFE Holdings, which is listed on the To ...

- Operates several major plants near

. JFE's main plant for eastern Japan is located on the border of Kawasaki-ku and

. *

Mitsubishi Chemical , or MCC, is a subsidiary of Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings Corporation. It is a Japanese corporation, that merged with Mitsubishi Pharma Corporation in 2005 to create Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings Corporation. Mitsubishi Chemical is the largest ...

* Showa Electric * Showa Shell Oil * Tokyo Electric Power *

Kao Corporation is a chemical and cosmetics company headquartered in Nihonbashi-Kayabacho, Chūō, Tokyo, Japan. History Kao was established in 1887 by Tomiro Nagase as a manufacturer of domestic toiletry soap. Until 1954, they were known as , and finally i ...

Ajinomoto is a Japanese multinational food and biotechnology corporation which produces seasonings, interlayer insulating materials for semiconductor packages for use in personal computers, cooking oils, frozen foods, beverages, sweeteners, amino acids, ...

Education

The Kawasaki City Board of Education (川崎市育委員会) operates municipal elementary and junior high schools, as well as . Municipal junior high schools: * Daishi ( 大師中学校) * Fujimi ( 富士見中学校) * Kawanakajima ( 川中島中学校) * Kawasaki JHS ( 川崎中学校) * Affiliated Junior High School of Kawasaki HS (川崎高等学校附属中学校) * Kyomachi ( 京町中学校) * Minami Daishi (南大師中学校) * Rinko (臨港中学校) * Sakuramoto ( 桜本中学校) * Tajima (田島中学校) * Watarida (渡田中学校) Municipal elementary schools: * Asada (浅田小学校) * Asahicho (旭町小学校) * Daishi (大師小学校) * Fujisaki ( 藤崎小学校) * Higashi Monzen (東門前小学校) * Higashi Oda (東小田小学校) * Higashi Oshima (東大島小学校) * Kawanakajima ( 川中島小学校) * Kawasaki ( 川崎小学校) * Kyomachi ( 京町小学校) * Miyamae ( 宮前小学校) * Mukai (向小学校) * Oda (小田小学校) * Oshima (大島小学校) * Sakura ( さくら小学校) * Shincho ( 新町小学校) * Tajima (田島小学校) * Tonomachi (殿町小学校) * Watarida (渡田小学校) * Yotsuya (四谷小学校) Former elementary schools: * Higashi Sakuramoto (東桜本小学校) - Closed on March 31, 2010 (

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, ...

22) * Sakuramoto (桜本小学校) - Closed on March 31, 2010 (Heisei 22) There is a North Korean school, Kawasaki Korean Primary School ( 川崎朝鮮初級学校).The Education System and Schools

. Government of Kanagawa Prefecture. Retrieved on October 13, 2015.

Transportation

Rail

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 ar ...

– Tokaido Main Line ** Kawasaki Station *

–

Nambu Line The Nambu Line ( ja, 南武線,) is a Japanese railway line which connects Tachikawa Station in Tachikawa, Tokyo and Kawasaki Station in Kawasaki, Kanagawa. For most of its length, it parallels the Tama River, the natural border between Tokyo an ...

** Kawasaki Station *

–

Nambu Branch Line The Nambu Line ( ja, 南武線,) is a Japanese railway line which connects Tachikawa Station in Tachikawa, Tokyo and Kawasaki Station in Kawasaki, Kanagawa. For most of its length, it parallels the Tama River, the natural border between Tokyo an ...

** Hatchōnawate - Kawasaki-Shimmachi - Hama-Kawasaki *

–

Tsurumi Line The Tsurumi Line ( ja, 鶴見線,) is a group of 3 railway lines operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East) in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. Originally built to service the port and adjacent industrial area, the lines provide passenger serv ...

Musashi-Shiraishi Station is a passenger railway station located in Kawasaki-ku, Kawasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East). Lines Musashi-Shiraishi Station is served by the Tsurumi Line, and is from the terminus of the lin ...

- Hama-Kawasaki - Shōwa - Ōgimachi *

– Tsurumi Branch Line ** Ōkawa * Keihin Electric Express Railway -

Keikyū Main Line The is a railway line in Japan, operated by the private railway operator Keikyu. The line connects the Tokyo wards of Minato, Shinagawa, Ōta, and the Kanagawa municipalities of Kawasaki, Yokohama and Yokosuka. The Keikyu Main Line began as ...

** Keikyū Kawasaki - Hatchōnawate * Keihin Electric Express Railway -

Keikyū Daishi Line The is a railway line in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, operated by the private railway operator Keikyu. It connects Keikyu Kawasaki Station and Kojimashinden Station, both located in Kawasaki-ku, Kawasaki. Service patterns Keikyu Daishi Line ...

** Keikyū Kawasaki - Minatochō - Suzukichō - Kawasaki-Daishi - Higashi-Monzen - Daishibashi - Kojimashinden * Tōkaidō Freight Line (freight only) * Kanagawa Rinkai Railway (freight only)

Road

* Tokyo Bay Aqua-Line *

Bayshore Route The signed as Route B, is one of the routes of the tolled Shuto Expressway system in the Greater Tokyo Area. The Bayshore Route is a stretch of toll highway that runs from the Kanazawa ward of Yokohama in the west, northeast to the city of ...

* Japan National Route 15 (Dai-ichi Keihin) * Japan National Route 132 * Route 357 (Japan) * Route 409 (Japan) *Kanagawa Prefectural Road 1 (

Shuto Expressway is a network of toll expressways in the Greater Tokyo Area of Japan. It is operated and maintained by the . Most routes are grade-separated (elevated roads or tunnels) and central routes have many sharp curves and multi-lane merges that requi ...

) *Kanagawa Prefectural Road 6 (

) *Kanagawa Prefectural Road 9 *Kanagawa Prefectural Road 101 *Kanagawa Prefectural Road 140

Local attractions

Kawasaki Daishi is the popular name of , a Buddhist temple in Kawasaki, Japan. Founded in 1128, it is the headquarters of the Chizan sect of Shingon Buddhism. Kawasaki Daishi is a popular temple for '' hatsumōde'' (the first visit to a place of worship in ...

Noted people from Kawasaki Ward

* Kaoru Abe, musician *

Hirokazu Ibata Hirokazu Ibata (Japanese:井端弘和, born May 12, 1975) is a Japanese former professional baseball player in the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). Baseball career Ibata played second base for the Yomiuri Giants and short stop for the Ch ...

, professional baseball player *

Kyu Sakamoto was a Japanese singer and actor. He was best known outside Japan for his international hit song "Ue o Muite Arukō" (known as " Sukiyaki" in English-speaking markets), which was sung in Japanese and sold over 13 million copies. It reached numbe ...

, singer

References

External links

Official Website
(Japanese) {{Authority control Wards of Kawasaki, Kanagawa