is the capital

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 ...

Gunma Prefecture is a landlocked Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Gunma Prefecture has a population of 1,937,626 (1 October 2019) and has a geographic area of . Gunma Prefecture borders Niigata Prefecture and Fuk ...

, in the northern

Kantō region The is a geography, geographical region of Honshu, the largest island of Japan. In a common definition, the region includes the Greater Tokyo Area and encompasses seven prefectures of Japan, prefectures: Chiba Prefecture, Chiba, Gunma Prefe ...

of Japan. , 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 335,352 in 151,171 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 1100 persons per km². The total area of the city is . It was the most populous city within

until

Takasaki is a Cities of Japan, city located in Gunma Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 372,369 in 167,345 households, and a population density of 810 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Takasaki is famous as th ...

merged with nearby towns between 2006 and 2009. Maebashi is known to be the "City of Water, Greenery and Poets" because of its pure waters, its rich nature and because it gave birth to several Japanese contemporary poets, such as Sakutarō Hagiwara.

Etymology

The Maebashi area was called ''Umayabashi'' () during the

Nara period The of the history of Japan covers the years from 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 capita ...

. This name finds its origins in the fact that there was a bridge (, ) crossing 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 ...

and not far from the bridge there was a small refreshment house with a stable (, ), often used by people travelling on the Tōzan-dō (the road connecting the capital to the eastern regions of Japan). The spelling was officially changed into ''Maebashi'' () in 1649 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 ...

when Maebashi became a

castle town A castle town is a settlement built adjacent to or surrounding a castle. Castle towns were common in Medieval Europe. Some examples include small towns like Alnwick and Arundel, which are still dominated by their castles. In Western Europe, ...

and the center of Maebashi Domain, a feudal domain under the

Tokugawa shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. The Tokugawa shogunate was established by Tokugawa Ieyasu after victory at the Battle of Sekigahara, ending the civil wars ...

History

The town of Maebashi was established within Higashigunma District, Gunma Prefecture on April 1, 1889, with the creation of the modern municipalities system 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 ...

. Maebashi was raised to city status on April 1, 1892. In 1901, it annexed a portion of Kamikawabuchi village from Seta District. On August 5, 1945, approximately 64.2% of the urban core of the city was destroyed during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

during air raids which followed the dropping of propaganda leaflets warning of the impending attacks. In 1951, a portion of Kaigaya Village from Seta District was merged into Maebashi. The city expanded further on April 1, 1954, by annexing the villages of Kamikawabuchi, Shimokawabuchi, Azuma, Minamitachibana, Kaigaya, Haga, Motosōja, and Sōja from Seta District, followed by a portion of Jōnan village in 1957. On April 1, 1960, a portion of Tamamura Town and another portion of Jōnan village were merged into Maebashi, which finally annexed the remainder of Jōnan village in 1967. Maebashi hosted the

1999 IAAF World Indoor Championships The 7th IAAF World Indoor Championships in Athletics were held in the Green Dome Maebashi stadium in Maebashi, Japan from March 5 to March 7, 1999. It was the first time the Championships were staged outside Europe or North America. Primo Nebi ...

. On April 1, 2001, Maebashi was designated a special city (''tokureishi'') with increased local autonomy. On December 5, 2004, the town of Ōgo, as well as the villages of Kasukawa and Miyagi (all from Seta District), were merged into Maebashi. On May 5, 2009, the village of Fujimi (Seta District) was merged into Maebashi. Seta District was dissolved as a result of this merger.
Maebashi became a Core cities of Japan, core city (''Chūkakushi'') on April 1, 2009.

Geography

Maebashi is located at the foot of Mount Akagi in the northeast corner of the

Kantō Plain The , in the Kantō region of central Honshu, is the largest plain in Japan. Its 17,000 km2 covers more than half of the region extending over Tokyo, Saitama Prefecture, Kanagawa Prefecture, Chiba Prefecture, Gunma Prefecture, Tochigi Prefe ...

. It is also surrounded by Mount Haruna and Mount Myōgi. Two rivers run through the city: the

, Japan's second-longest, and the Hirose River. Although it is located inland more than 100 kilometers away from the coast, the elevation of the southern part of the city is only around 100 meters. The highest elevation is 1823 meters above sea level on the south side of Mt. Kurohino, a peak of Mount Akagi. Maebashi is the farthest from the sea (about 120 km) of all Japanese prefectural capitals. The surrounding cities comprise an urban zone of over 1 million people, separated by farmland to the south from the built up areas of Greater Tokyo.

Surrounding municipalities

* Isesaki * Kiryū * Numata * Shibukawa *

Shintō , also called Shintoism, is a religion originating in Japan. Classified as an East Asian religion by scholars of religion, it is often regarded by its practitioners as Japan's indigenous religion and as a nature religion. Scholars sometimes ...

* Tamamura * Yoshioka

Climate

Maebashi 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 climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

''Cfa''). In the winter, the karakkaze, or "dry wind" blows through Maebashi from the north. This is due to the snow clouds coming from the Sea of Japan being blocked by the Echigo Mountain Range between Gunma and

Niigata Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture in the Chūbu region of Honshu of Japan. Niigata Prefecture has a population of 2,131,009 (1 July 2023) and is the List of Japanese prefectures by area, fifth-largest prefecture of Japan by geographic area ...

s. Because of this, the city has a dry winter and is one of the sunniest places in Japan at over 2,210 hours of sunshine per year. In the summer, it is hot since the location is inland, although less hot than coastal

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

on average. On July 24, 2001, Maebashi hit , the fifth-hottest temperature ever in Japan.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data, the population of Maebashi has recently plateaued after a long period of growth.

Government

Maebashi 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 38 members. Maebashi contributes eight members to the Gunma Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city is part of Gunma 1st 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 ...

Successive mayors

Source:Maebashi City

Economy

Maebashi Metropolitan Employment Area 2010

As of 2010, Greater Maebashi, Maebashi Metropolitan Employment Area, has a GDP of US$59.8 billion. The air conditioning system and

compressor A compressor is a mechanical device that increases the pressure of a gas by reducing its volume. An air compressor is a specific type of gas compressor. Many compressors can be staged, that is, the gas is compressed several times in steps o ...

manufacturing company

Sanden Corporation is a Japanese, Isesaki, Gunma-based automotive equipment and electrical equipment manufacturing company and is listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. History Kaihei Ushikubo founded the company, Sankyo Electric Company (Sankyo Denki Co), in Jul ...

as well as the

tofu or bean curd is a food prepared by Coagulation (milk), coagulating soy milk and then pressing the resulting curds into solid white blocks of varying softness: ''silken'', ''soft'', ''firm'', and ''extra (or super) firm''. It originated in Chin ...

and tofu products company Sagamiya Foods have manufacturing sites in the city. The Gunma Bank is headquartered in Maebashi.

Education

Universities

* Maebashi Institute of Technology * Maebashi Kyoai Gakuen College *

Gunma Prefectural College of Health Sciences is a public university in Maebashi, Gunma, 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 th ...

* Gunma University * Gunma University of Health and Welfare

Primary and secondary schools

Maebashi has 54 public elementary schools and 21 public middle schools operated by the city government, and two private elementary and two private middle schools. The city has nine public high schools operated by the Gunma Prefectural Board of Education and one by the city government. There are five private high schools and one private combined middle/high school. International schools: * – North Korean school

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 ...

–

Jōetsu Line The is a major railway line in Japan, owned by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). It connects Takasaki Station in Gunma Prefecture with Miyauchi Station (Niigata), Miyauchi Station in Niigata Prefecture, linking the northwestern Kanto regi ...

* -

–

Ryōmō Line The is a Japanese railway line connecting Oyama, Tochigi, Oyama in Tochigi Prefecture with Maebashi, Gunma, Maebashi in Gunma Prefecture. long, the line is owned and operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). The name refers to the ...

* - - - * Jōmō Electric Railway Company –

Jōmō Line The is a railway line in Gunma Prefecture, Japan, operated by Jōmō Electric Railway Company (上毛電気鉃道 ''Jōmō dentetsu''). Its terminus stations are in the cities of Maebashi and Kiryū, extending 25.4 km. Eighteen of its st ...

** - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Highway

* – Maebashi Interchange * – Maebashi-Minami Interchange * * * *

Sports

Thespa Gunma at

Shoda Shoyu Stadium Gunma (formerly Gunma Shikishima Athletic Stadium, renamed on June 1, 2008 for naming rights) is a multi-purpose stadium in Maebashi, Japan. It is currently used mostly for football (soccer), football matches. Sponsored by soy sauce maker , which has ...

was originally formed in Kusatsu, but plays in Maebashi due to J.League stadium requirements.

Local attractions

* Gunma Prefectural Government Building * Kōzuke Kokubun-ji ruins, a National Historic Site * Maebashi Castle * Maebashi Tōshō-gū * Michaelsoft Binbows * Shikishima Park

Festivals

* Ogo Gion Festival

Notable people

* Tōru Furusawa, voice actor * Great-O-Khan, Japanese professional wrestler (Real Name: Tomoyuki Oka,

Nihongo is the principal language of the Japonic language family spoken by the Japanese people. It has around 123 million speakers, primarily in Japan, the only country where it is the national language, and within the Japanese diaspora worldwide. ...

: 岡倫之, ''Oka Tomoyuki'') * Sakutarō Hagiwara, poet * Gran Hamada, Japanese professional wrestler (Real Name: Hiroaki Hamada,

: 浜田広秋, ''Hamada Hiroaki'') * Hajime Hosogai, professional football player * Shigesato Itoi, game designer, copywriter, essayist, lyricist, and actor * Nobuyuki Kojima, professional soccer player *

Nigo is a Japanese fashion designer, disc jockey (DJ), record producer and entrepreneur. He is best known as the creator of the streetwear brand, A Bathing Ape (Bape), and currently serves as artistic director for Kenzo. Additionally he is a member ...

(Real Name: Tomoaki Nagao,

: 長尾智明, ''Nagao Tomoaki''), fashion designer, DJ, record producer, and entrepreneur * Kamiizumi Nobutsuna, founder of '' Shinkage-ryū'' martial arts school and master of Yagyū Munetoshi, who later introduced ''Shinkage-ryū'' to

Tokugawa Ieyasu Tokugawa Ieyasu (born Matsudaira Takechiyo; 31 January 1543 – 1 June 1616) was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan, which ruled from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was the third of the three "Gr ...

.Yagyū, Toshinaga (1957, 1989) ''Shōden Shinkage-ryū''. Kōdansha, reprinted by Shimazu Shobō, . * Kōhei Oguri, film director and screenwriter * Tetsuya Ota, race car driver * Sho Sakurai, singer, actor and newscaster * Genichiro Sata, politician *

Takashi Shimizu Takashi Shimizu (清水崇 ''Shimizu Takashi'', born 27 July 1972) is a Japanese people, Japanese filmmaker. He is best known for being the creator of the Ju-On, ''Ju-On'' franchise, and directing four of its films, internationally, in both Jap ...

, film director and creator of the ''Ju-On'' franchise. * Atsuko Tanaka, voice actress * Yutaka Yoshie, professional wrestler

Sister cities

Maebashi is twinned with: *

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

, United States In addition, Maebashi has friendly relations with Menasha, United States and

Orvieto Orvieto () is a city and ''comune'' in the Province of Terni, southwestern Umbria, Italy, situated on the flat summit of a large butte of volcanic tuff. The city rises dramatically above the almost-vertical faces of tuff cliffs that are compl ...

, Italy.

References

External links

Official Website

Maebashi Living Guide
{{Authority control Cities in Gunma Prefecture