Everything about Saitama Prefecture totally explained
is a
prefecture of
Japan located on the island of
Honshū. The capital is the city of
Saitama.
This prefecture is part of the
Greater Tokyo Area, and most of Saitama's cities can be described as suburbs of
Tokyo, to which floods of residents commute each day.
History
Saitama Prefecture was formerly part of the old
Musashi Province.
In the fifth year of the
Keiun era (
708), deposits of copper were reported to have been found in the
Chichibu District of what is now Saitama Prefecture.
The Saitama area was historically known as a fertile agricultural region which produced much of the food for the Kantō region. During the
Edo period, many
fudai daimyo ruled small domains within the Saitama area.
After
World War II, as Tokyo expanded rapidly and modern transportation allowed longer commutes, the lack of available land in Tokyo led to the rapid development of Saitama Prefecture, whose population has nearly tripled since
1960. Most of the cities in the prefecture are closely connected to downtown Tokyo by metropolitan rail, and operate largely as residential and commercial suburbs of Tokyo.
Geography
Saitama Prefecture is bordered by
Tokyo,
Chiba,
Ibaraki,
Tochigi,
Gunma,
Nagano, and
Yamanashi.
Cities
Towns and villages
Towns and villages in each
district:
Mergers
Transportation
Radial transportation to and from Tokyo dominates transportation in the prefecture. Circular routes were constructed as bypasses to avoid congestion in central Tokyo.
Roads
The
Jōban,
Kan-etsu,
Shuto,
Tōhoku, and
Tokyo-Gaikan expressways form parts of the nationwide expressway network. National highway Routes
4,
16, and
17 are important routes in Kantō region.
Railways
Ōmiya Station in Saitama City forms
East Japan Railway Company's northern
hub station in the Greater Tokyo Area, offering transfers to and from
Shinkansen high-speed lines. The
Musashino and
Hachikō Lines serve as freight bypass lines as well as passenger lines.
Chichibu Railway the northwestern,
Seibu Railway the southwestern,
Tobu Railway the midwestern and the eastern,
the
New Shuttle and
Saitama Railway the southeastern
parts of the prefecture respectively.
The
Tsukuba Express line crosses the southeastern corner of the prefecture.
Airways
Haneda
Tokyo International Airport and
Narita International Airport are the closest major civil airports. Commuter helicopter flights from
Kawajima to Narita Airport are offered
.
Honda Airport for
general aviation and the
JASDF's Iruma Air Base, and Kumagaya Air Base offer no scheduled transport services.
Waterways
Rivers and canals including those developed in the
Edo period (17th - 19th centuries) in the east of the prefecture are largely disused following the introduction of motorised land transport. The traces of water transports are found on the
Tone River Kumagaya -
Chiyoda, Gunma border and
on
Arakawa River a tourist attraction in
Nagatoro, Chichibu District and
petroleum tankers from
Tokyo Bay to
Wakō.
Culture
Mass media
See
Mass media in Saitama Prefecture.
Sister relationships
Saitama Prefecture has a number of sister city relationships with states and a province as listed below (in chronological order).
(External Link
)
Mexico State (The United Mexican States), affiliated on October 2, 1979
Shanxi province (The People's Republic of China), affiliated on October 27, 1982
Queensland (Commonwealth of Australia), affiliated on October 27, 1984
Ohio (United States), affiliated on October 22, 1990
Brandenburg (Federal Republic of Germany), affiliated on August 26, 1998
Sports
The sports teams listed below are based in Saitama.
Football (soccer)
Urawa Reds (Saitama)
Omiya Ardija (Saitama)
Baseball
Saitama Seibu Lions (Tokorozawa)
Basketball
Saitama Broncos (Tokorozawa)
Volleyball
Takefuji Bamboo (Kitakatsushika District)
Rugby
Secom Rugguts (Sayama)
Tourism
Most of the popular tourist sites in Saitama are located in the northwestern part of the prefecture, which is known as the Chichibu Region. This region mostly consists of a hilly and moderately mountainous area, and is situated in a rich natural environment. The region is very popular among residents of Saitama and neighboring prefectures for short trips, as it's easily accessible via the railroad network.
Visitor attractions
Chichibu 34 Kannon Sanctuary
Chichibu Shrine
Gyoda City Provincial Museum
Iwatsuki Doll Museum
John Lennon Museum
Keyashi-hiroba Park
Kitain Temple
Omiya Bonsai Village
Saitama Super Arena
Sakitama Fudoki Hill
Events
Chichibu Night Festival (秩父夜祭)
This festival is held by Chichibu Shrine annually on 2 December and 3 December, and has been held for more than 300 years. It is famous for the parade of six traditional wooden floats (each one weighing more than 10 tons), and is counted as one of the three big traditional float festivals in Japan (along with Gion Festival (祇園祭) in Kyoto and Hida-Takayama Festival (飛騨高山祭) in Takayama, Gifu).
Mascot
Kobaton (コバトン) is the prefectural mascot, a Eurasian collared dove, which is also the prefectural bird. Kobaton was made originally as the mascot of the fifty- ninth annual national athletic meeting held in the prefecture in 2004, and was inaugurated as mascot of the prefecture in 2005 with an inauguration ceremony and a letter of appointment from the governor. A wheelchair-using version of Kobaton also exists. (External Link)Further Information
Get more info on 'Saitama Prefecture'.
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