260px, Abiko City Hall is a

city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

located in

Chiba Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Chiba Prefecture has a population of 6,278,060 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of . Chiba Prefecture borders Ibaraki Prefecture to the north, Saitama ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. , the city had an estimated

population Population is a set of humans or other organisms in a given region or area. Governments conduct a census to quantify the resident population size within a given jurisdiction. The term is also applied to non-human animals, microorganisms, and pl ...

of 131,183 in 62,193 households and a

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), 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 geog ...

of 3000 persons per km². The total area of the city is .

Geography

Abiko is located in the northwestern part of Chiba prefecture, about 30 kilometers from the prefectural capital of Chiba, and within 30 to 40 kilometers of central Tokyo. It is separated from

Ibaraki Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Ibaraki Prefecture has a population of 2,828,086 (1 July 2023) and has a geographic area of . Ibaraki Prefecture borders Fukushima Prefecture to the north, ...

in the north by the

Tone River The is a river in the Kantō region of Japan. It is in length (the second longest in Japan after the Shinano River) and has a drainage area of (the largest in Japan). It is nicknamed Bandō Tarō (); ''Bandō'' is an obsolete alias of the ...

. The city is located on the Shimosa Plateau, with an average elevation of about 20 meters above sea level. The city stretches about 14 kilometers east-to-west and about 4 to 6 kilometers north-to-south.

Neighboring municipalities

Chiba Prefecture *

Inzai 260px, Inzai City Hall is a city located in Chiba Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 111,266 in 45,717 households and a population density of 900 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Geography Inzai is loca ...

Kashiwa is a Cities of Japan, city located in Chiba Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 435,578 in 199,926 households and a population density of 3800 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . The name of the city is w ...

Toride 260px, Ohori-no-watashi is a city located in Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 103,717 in 47,545 households and a population density of 1482 persons per km2. The percentage of the population aged over 65 was 34 ...

Tone Tone may refer to: Visual arts and color-related * Tone (color theory), a mix of tint and shade, in painting and color theory * Tone (color), the lightness or brightness (as well as darkness) of a color * Toning (coin), color change in coins * ...

Climate

Abiko has a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...

(Köppen ''Cfa'') characterized by warm summers and cool winters with light to no snowfall. The average annual temperature in Abiko is 14.7 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1345 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 26.3 °C, and lowest in January, at around 3.8 °C.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data,Abiko population statistics
/ref> the population of Abiko has recently plateaued after a long period of growth.

History

The area around Abiko has been inhabited since

Japanese Paleolithic The is the period of human inhabitation in Japan predating the development of pottery, generally before 10,000 BC. The starting dates commonly given to this period are from around 40,000 BC, with recent authors suggesting that there is good evi ...

times, and archaeologists have found

stone tool Stone tools have been used throughout human history but are most closely associated with prehistoric cultures and in particular those of the Stone Age. Stone tools may be made of either ground stone or knapped stone, the latter fashioned by a ...

s dated from 30,000 years ago. During the

Edo period The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...

, Abiko was a river port on the

and a post station on the ''Mito Kaidō'', a highway connecting

Edo Edo (), also romanized as Jedo, Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of Tokyo. Edo, formerly a (castle town) centered on Edo Castle located in Musashi Province, became the '' de facto'' capital of Japan from 1603 as the seat of the Tokugawa shogu ...

with Mito. 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 Imperial House of Japan, imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Althoug ...

, Abiko Town was created in Minamisoma District, Chiba Prefecture on April 1, 1889, along with the town of Fusa and village of Kohoku with the establishment of the modern municipalities system. Abiko was transferred to Higashikatsushika District in 1897. From the Taisho period to the early Showa period, Abiko was sometimes called "Kamakura in the north" as many prominent cultural figures such as

Naoya Shiga was a Japanese writer active during the Taishō and Shōwa periods of Japan, whose work was distinguished by its lucid, straightforward style and strong autobiographical overtones. Early life Shiga was born in Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture, ...

, Saneatsu Mushanokoji, Soetsu Yanagi, and

Bernard Leach Bernard Howell Leach (5 January 1887 – 6 May 1979) was a British studio potter and art teacher. He is regarded as the "Father of British studio pottery". Biography Early years (Japan) Leach was born in Hong Kong. His mother Eleanor (n� ...

had villas in the town, which became a center for the

Shirakabaha The was an influential Japanese literary coterie, which published the literary magazine ''Shirakaba'', from 1910 to 1923. History In 1910, a loose association of alumni of the prestigious Gakushuin Peer’s School in Tokyo began a literary soc ...

literary coterie. On November 1, 1954, it annexed neighboring Tomise village from the same district. On April 29, 1955, Abiko annexed Fusa Town and Kohoku Village. Abiko achieved city status on July 1, 1970. In 2003, a proposal to merge Abiko with neighboring city of Kashiwa and the town of

Shōnan is the name of a region along the coast of Sagami Bay in Kanagawa Prefecture, central Japan. Centered on Sagami River, about 60 kilometers southwest of Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and ...

was defeated by a public referendum. Parts of the city were damaged by

soil liquefaction Soil liquefaction occurs when a cohesionless saturated or partially saturated soil substantially loses Shear strength (soil), strength and stiffness in response to an applied Shear stress, stress such as shaking during an earthquake or other s ...

due to the

2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami On 11 March 2011, at 14:46:24 Japan Standard Time, JST (05:46:24 UTC), a 9.0–9.1 Submarine earthquake, undersea megathrust earthquake occurred in the Pacific Ocean, east of the Oshika Peninsula of the Tōhoku region. It lasted approx ...

Government

Abiko 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 consisting of one house or assembly that legislates and votes as one. Unicameralism has become an increasingly common type of legislature, making up nearly ...

city council of 24 members. Abiko contributes two members to the Chiba Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city is part of Chiba 8th district of the

lower house A lower house is the lower chamber of a bicameral legislature, where the other chamber is the upper house. Although styled as "below" the upper house, in many legislatures worldwide, the lower house has come to wield more power or otherwise e ...

of the

Diet of Japan , transcription_name = ''Kokkai'' , legislature = 215th Session of the National Diet , coa_pic = Flag of Japan.svg , house_type = Bicameral , houses = , foundation=29 November 1890(), leader1_type ...

Economy

Although agriculture still plays a significant role in the local economy, Abiko is largely a regional commercial center and from the 1970s developed into 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 o ...

for nearby Chiba and Tokyo. The commuting rate is 32.3% for central Tokyo and 12.4% for Kashiwa City (both according to the 2010 census).

Education

Universities

Chuo Gakuin University is a private university in Abiko, Chiba, Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the ...

* Kawamura Gakuen Women's University

Primary and secondary education

Abiko has 13 public elementary schools and six public middle schools operated by the city government, and two public high schools operated by the Chiba Prefectural Board of Education. There are also two private high schools. The prefecture also operates one special education school for the handicapped.

Transportation

Railway

JR East The is a major passenger railway company in Japan and 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 in ...

–

Jōban Line The is a railway line in Japan operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). The line officially begins at Nippori Station in Arakawa, Tokyo before the line officially ends at Iwanuma Station in Iwanuma, Miyagi. However, following ...

* –

–

Narita Line The Narita Line () is the name for a combination of three railway lines located in Chiba Prefecture, Japan, operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). The main line connects Sakura Station (Chiba), Sakura Station and Matsugishi Stati ...

* - - - -

Highway

* * *

Point of interest

* Abiko City Museum of Birds * Akebonoyama Park *

Yamashina Institute for Ornithology The is a non-profit scientific research organization in Japan, specializing in ornithology. History The Yamashina Institute for Ornithology was founded by Dr. Yoshimaro Yamashina at his home in Shibuya, Tokyo as a private museum to store his co ...

Notable people

Isao Aoki is a Japanese professional golfer. He was elected to the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2004. Early life Aoki was born in Abiko, Chiba, Japan. He was introduced to golf while caddying at the Abiko Golf Club as a schoolboy. Professional career I ...

, professional golfer * Morinosuke Chiwaki, founder of Japan Dental Association *

Seiji Ebihara is a Japanese professional golfer. Ebihara was born in Abiko, Chiba, Japan. He won one tournament on the Japan Golf Tour and had career earnings of over ¥260 million. Ebihara joined the European Seniors Tour in 2000 and has won six tournam ...

, professional golfer * Makoto Kaneko, professional baseball player *

Hajime Meshiai is a Japanese professional golfer. Meshiai was born in Chiba. He turned professional in 1978. He won 11 tournaments on the Japan Golf Tour and led the money list in 1993. He is 14th on the career money list (through 2013). Professional wins ...

, professional golfer * Ryo Takeuchi, filmmaker *

Muga Takewaki was a Japanese actor. Filmography Film * ''Assassination'' (1964) * '' Kyu-chan no Dekkai Yume'' (1967) * ''Mito Kōmon'' (1978) * ''Shōsetsu Yoshida Gakkō'' (1983) - Eisaku Satō * ''Four Sisters'' (1985) Television * ''Sannin Kazoku'' (1 ...

, actor * Asuka Tono, Takarazuka musician *

Keito Nakamura is a Japanese professional footballer who plays for Ligue 2 club Reims and the Japan national team. He plays either as a left winger or a forward. Club career Gamba Osaka Nakamura joined Gamba Osaka from Kantō Soccer League side Mitsubishi ...

, professional soccer player

References

External links

Official Website

{{Authority control Cities in Chiba Prefecture