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

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 city had an estimated population of 130,667 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 RosenberPopu ...

of 7,400 persons per km². The total area of the city is The city hosts the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, ...

Camp Zama is a United States Army post located in the cities of Zama and Sagamihara, in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, about southwest of Tokyo. Camp Zama is home to the U.S. Army Japan (USARJ), I Corps (Forward), U.S. Army Aviation Battalion Japan ...

base.

Geography

Located in central

, Zama is approximately 50 kilometers from the center of Tokyo and 20 kilometers from Yokohama. It is divided into an alluvial lowland along the

Sagami River The is a river in Kanagawa and Yamanashi Prefectures on the island of Honshū, Japan. The upper reaches of the river in Yamanashi prefecture are also sometimes known as the , and the portion near the river mouth as the . The river overall was ...

in the west and a plateau belonging to the Sagamino Plateau (Sagamihara Plateau) in the east. The

Hikiji River The is a Class B river in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is also called and . The mouth of the river is known unagi spawning. Geography The source of the Hikiji River is Izumi no Mori (literally "Forest of Springs"), a park located in near ...

, Mekushiri River, and the Hato River flow through Zama. The city is well known for its drinking water, which is cold in the summer and warm in the winter.

Surrounding municipalities

Kanagawa Prefecture *

Sagamihara is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. , the city has an estimated population of 723,470, with 334,812 households, and a population density of 1,220 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Sagamihara is the third-most-populous city ...

Atsugi is a city located in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 223,960 and a population density of 2400 persons per km². The total area of the city is . While the name "Atsugi" is often associated with the Unite ...

* Yamato * Ebina

Climate

Zama 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 Zama is 14.4 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1632 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 25.3 °C, and lowest in January, at around 3.6 °C.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data,Hadano population statistics
/ref> the population of Zama has grown steadily over the past 70 years.

History

The area around Zama has been settled since prehistoric times, and

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 ...

remains have been found. The hamlet of "Izama" was a post station on the ancient Tōkaidō road connecting

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 ...

with the provinces in the

Kantō region The is a geographical area of Honshu, the largest island of Japan. In a common definition, the region includes the Greater Tokyo Area and encompasses seven prefectures: Gunma, Tochigi, Ibaraki, Saitama, Tokyo, Chiba and Kanagawa. Sl ...

, and the area was part of the ''

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 within

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 Pac ...

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 character ...

administered 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 ...

through a number of ''

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 ...

-''class administrators. During the cadastral reforms 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 ...

in 1889, the area of present-day Zama consisted of five hamlets in Kōza District, Kanagawa Prefecture. The area remained very rural until the coming of the

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 Compa ...

in 1927 and the Sagami Railway in 1935, which spurred development, but the area was mostly farmland when the

Imperial Japanese Army Academy The was the principal officer's training school for the Imperial Japanese Army. The programme consisted of a junior course for graduates of local army cadet schools and for those who had completed four years of middle school, and a senior course f ...

was relocated to the Zama area in 1937. The increase in population led Zama Village to be promoted to Zama town the same year. However, in 1941, Zama Town and surrounding villages were merged into

. In 1944, the Kōza Naval Arsenal of the

Imperial Japanese Navy The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, when it was dissolved following Japan's surrender ...

was established in the area. It was closed with the end of

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 ...

, and the Imperial Japanese Army Academy was turned over to the

to become

. In September 1948, Zama regained its status as a town independent of Sagamihara. The local economy received a significant boost with the building of a

Nissan , trading as Nissan Motor Corporation and often shortened to Nissan, is a Japanese multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Nishi-ku, Yokohama, Japan. The company sells its vehicles under the Nissan, Infiniti, and Datsun bra ...

automobile assembly plant in Zama in 1965, along with other industries. Zama became a

on November 1, 1971.

Government

Zama 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 multi ...

city council of 22 members. Zama contributes one member to the Kanagawa Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city is part of Kanagawa 13th 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 paral ...

Economy

After the Meiji era, mulberry fields and the raw silk industry dominated the local economy. Zama became heavily industrialized from the 1930s with production of equipment for the Japanese military, and this was followed in the 1950 and 1960s with automobile related production. However, with the economic recession in the 1990s Nissan production ended in 1995, and the economy of Zama suffered accordingly. The city has increasingly become a

commuter town 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 ...

for nearby Sagamihara, Yokohama and Tokyo. * Agriculture: 413 people (0.6%) * Manufacturing: 18,978 people (29.8%) * Service: 43,298 people (68.0%)

Education

Zama has 11 public elementary schools and six public middle schools operated by the city government. The city has three public high schools operated by the Kanagawa Prefectural Board of Education, and the prefecture also operates one special education school for the handicapped.

Transportation

Railway

–

Odakyu Odawara Line , 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 ...

* -

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 ...

–

Sagami Line The is a railway line in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East). It approximately parallels the east bank of the Sagami River. The line connects Hashimoto Station in Sagamihara and Chigasaki Station ...

Highway

Sister cities

* Smyrna, Tennessee,

United States of America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...

Local attractions

* Zama Yatoyama Park * Zama Park * Himawari Park * Kanigasawa Park * Fujiyama Park * ''

Onsen In Japan, are the country's hot springs and the bathing facilities and traditional inns around them. As a volcanically active country, Japan has many onsens scattered throughout all of its major islands. There are approximately 25,000 hot ...

'' (15 hot springs in the city)

Noted people from Zama

Akina Minami is a Japanese gravure idol and tarento signed to Free Style Company. Minami's recognition as a model has also spread beyond Japan and she was named as one of the "7 most irresistibly cute Japanese idols" by the Thailand version of FHM magazine ...

, Fashion Model, Gravure Idol, and Tarento (Originally from

Yokohama, Kanagawa is the second-largest city in Japan by population and the most populous municipality of Japan. It is the capital city and the most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a 2020 population of 3.8 million. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of T ...

) * Alcvin Ryuzen Ramos, Shakuhachi Flute Player/Maker *

Ami Suzuki is a Japanese recording artist, DJ, and actress from Zama, Kanagawa, Japan. Having been discovered at the talent TV show ''Asayan'', she was one of the most popular female teen Japanese idol, idols in the late 1990s. However, in 2000, Suzuki fac ...

, Singer/Songwriter, Actress and Dancer * Danny Lee Clark, Athlete, Television Personality, Author, Actor, and Producer *

Erina Mano is a Japanese idol singer and actress formerly associated with Hello! Project. She joined in 2006 as a member of Hello Pro Egg, as a trainee. In 2007, she became a member of the Hello! Project futsal team Gatas Brilhantes H.P. and its musical gr ...

, Actress and Singer *

Keiichiro Koyama is a Japanese musician and leader of the Johnny's Entertainment group NEWS. Biography Koyama, born in Sagamihara, Kanagawa as the youngest of two children, is the oldest member of NEWS and is often seen as the mother figure of the group. Upon ...

, Musician (Originally from

Sagamihara, Kanagawa is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. , the city has an estimated population of 723,470, with 334,812 households, and a population density of 1,220 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Sagamihara is the third-most-populous cit ...

) * Koyuki, Model and Actress * Nanako Matsushima, Actress and Model (Originally from

) * Naoya Inoue, Boxer, Bantamweight Champion * Saki Shimizu, Singer (Originally from

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.46 ...

) * Sakura Oda, Singer * Shinobu Ohno, Female Footballer *

Suzuka Ohgo is a Japanese actress. Biography Ohgo was born in Zama, Kanagawa. She began acting in 2000 when she was seven, then joined Sunflower (Himawari), a theatrical company. She debuted with the company at the Meiji-za in '' Story of a National Thie ...

, Actress * Tomoko Ishimura, Voice Actress

Gallery

Image:Hatogawa river 02.JPG, The Hato River Image:Zama manhole cover1.JPG, Manhole cover depicting symbols of Zama Image:Zama manhole cover2.JPG, Manhole cover depicting sunflowers, a symbol of Zama Image:Soubudai2.jpg, Neighborhood in the vicinity of Soubudai-mae train station Image:Zama community vegetable plots.jpg, Vegetable plots near Midori-ga-oka neighborhood Image:Zama distant mountains.JPG, View of the distant mountains Image:Zama residential neighborhood.JPG, View of a neighborhood within a short walk of Soubudai-mae train station

References

External links

Official Website
{{Authority control Cities in Kanagawa Prefecture