Chigasaki, Kanagawa
Encyclopedia
is a city
located in central, Kanagawa Prefecture
, Japan
. As of 2010, the city had an estimated population
of 234,400 and a density
of 6,540 persons per km². The total area is 35.71 km².
in south-central Kanagawa Prefecture, facing Sagami Bay
on the Pacific Ocean
to the south.
. The Tōkaidō
connecting Edo
with Kyoto
passed through what is now Chigasaki, but without a post station
. The area was part of the tenryō territory in Sagami Province
controlled directly by the Tokugawa Shogunate
through the Edo period.
After the start of the Meiji period
, the Tōkaidō Main Line
railway connected Chigasaki Station
with Tokyo
and Osaka
in 1898, which spurred the development of the area. Chigasaki village in Kōza District
, Kanagawa Prefecture became Chigasaki town in 1908. In 1921, the Sagami Line railway connected Chigaskai with Hashimoto
to the north. Chigasaki became a city
on October 1, 1947.
On April 1, 2003, the population of Chigasaki exceeded 200,000 and it became a special city
with increased local autonomy.
community for Tokyo and Yokohama
, and has been noted as a seaside resort community since the Meiji period. Tourism and summer leisure activities remain important to the local economy.
Companies headquartered in Chigasaki include:
area". A popular swimming destination, Chigasaki is well-known as the birthplace of Japanese surfing
. A shop called "Goddess," located only about 20 meters from the shoreline, claims to be the first surfboard
shop in Japan. Bicycles with metal fittings for holding surfboards are prominent in the area. A section of the beach in Chigasaki is called "Southern Beach," inspired by the Southern All Stars
, a famous J-Pop
singing group whose lead vocalist Keisuke Kuwata
hails from Chigasaki. The symbol of Southern Beach is Eboshi-iwa, a large hat-shaped rock that is visible from the coast.
Chigasaki is also famous for being the center of Japanese Hawaiian culture with many tropical and Hawaiian stores located mainly in the southern side of the town. Fridays in Chigasaki was called "Aloha Friday" in which consumers were able to have discounts in many stores and taxis.
Cities of Japan
||A is a local administrative unit in Japan. Cities are ranked on the same level as and , with the difference that they are not a component of...
located in central, Kanagawa Prefecture
Kanagawa Prefecture
is a prefecture located in the southern Kantō region of Japan. The capital is Yokohama. Kanagawa is part of the Greater Tokyo Area.-History:The prefecture has some archaeological sites going back to the Jōmon period...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. As of 2010, the city had an estimated population
Population
A population is all the organisms that both belong to the same group or species and live in the same geographical area. The area that is used to define a sexual population is such that inter-breeding is possible between any pair within the area and more probable than cross-breeding with individuals...
of 234,400 and a density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
of 6,540 persons per km². The total area is 35.71 km².
Geography
Chigasaki is located on the eastern bank of the Sagami RiverSagami 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...
in south-central Kanagawa Prefecture, facing Sagami Bay
Sagami Bay
Sagami Bay , also known as the Sagami Gulf or Sagami Sea, lies south of Kanagawa Prefecture in Honshū, central Japan, contained within the scope of the Miura Peninsula, in Kanagawa, to the east, the Izu Peninsula, in Shizuoka Prefecture, to the west, and the Shōnan coastline to the north, while the...
on the Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
to the south.
Surrounding municipalities
- FujisawaFujisawa, Kanagawais a city located in Kanagawa, Japan. As of 2010, the city had an estimated population of 407,731 and a population density of 5,870 people per km². The total area is 69.51 km²-Geography:...
- HiratsukaHiratsuka, Kanagawais a city located in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. As of 2010, the city had an estimated population of 259,991 and the density of 3,830 persons per km²...
- SamukawaSamukawa, Kanagawais a town located in Kōza District, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. As of 2010, the town had an estimated population of 47,739 and a density of 3,560 persons per km². The total area was 13.42 km².-Geography:...
History
The area around Chigasaki has been inhabited since prehistoric times. The area was largely pasture and farmland well into the Edo periodEdo period
The , or , is a division of Japanese history which was ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family, running from 1603 to 1868. The political entity of this period was the Tokugawa shogunate....
. The Tōkaidō
Tokaido (road)
The ' was the most important of the Five Routes of the Edo period, connecting Edo to Kyoto in Japan. Unlike the inland and less heavily travelled Nakasendō, the Tōkaidō travelled along the sea coast of eastern Honshū, hence the route's name....
connecting Edo
Edo
, also romanized as Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of the Japanese capital Tokyo, and was the seat of power for the Tokugawa shogunate which ruled Japan from 1603 to 1868...
with Kyoto
Kyoto
is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...
passed through what is now Chigasaki, but without a post station
Shukuba
were post stations during the Edo period in Japan, generally located on one of the Edo Five Routes or one of its sub-routes. They were also called shukueki . These post stations were places where travelers could rest on their journey around the nation...
. The area was part of the tenryō territory in Sagami Province
Sagami Province
was an old province in the area that is today the central and western Kanagawa prefecture. It was sometimes called . Sagami bordered on Izu, Musashi, Suruga provinces; and had access to the Pacific Ocean through Sagami Bay...
controlled directly by the Tokugawa Shogunate
Tokugawa shogunate
The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the and the , was a feudal regime of Japan established by Tokugawa Ieyasu and ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family. This period is known as the Edo period and gets its name from the capital city, Edo, which is now called Tokyo, after the name was...
through the Edo period.
After the start of the Meiji period
Meiji period
The , also known as the Meiji era, is a Japanese era which extended from September 1868 through July 1912. This period represents the first half of the Empire of Japan.- Meiji Restoration and the emperor :...
, the Tōkaidō Main Line
Tokaido Main Line
The is the busiest trunk line of the Japan Railways Group , connecting Tōkyō and Kōbe stations. It is long, not counting its many freight feeder lines around the major cities...
railway connected Chigasaki Station
Chigasaki Station
is a station in Chigasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is operated by the East Japan Railway Company. It is 56.8 rail kilometers from Tokyo Station.-History:...
with Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
and Osaka
Osaka
is a city in the Kansai region of Japan's main island of Honshu, a designated city under the Local Autonomy Law, the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and also the biggest part of Keihanshin area, which is represented by three major cities of Japan, Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe...
in 1898, which spurred the development of the area. Chigasaki village in Kōza District
Koza District, Kanagawa
is an administrative district of Japan located in central Kanagawa Prefecture. It currently consists of only one town, Samukawa.- History :Kōza District was one of the ancient subdivisions of Sagami Province, extending from Sagami Bay north to the border of Musashi Province between the Sagami River...
, Kanagawa Prefecture became Chigasaki town in 1908. In 1921, the Sagami Line railway connected Chigaskai with Hashimoto
Hashimoto Station (Kanagawa)
is a major stop on the East Japan Railway Company Yokohama Line, Sagami Line and the Keio Sagamihara Line straddling the city of Sagamihara in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan.- JR East:- Keiō :-Surrounding area:*Midori Ward Office...
to the north. Chigasaki became a city
Cities of Japan
||A is a local administrative unit in Japan. Cities are ranked on the same level as and , with the difference that they are not a component of...
on October 1, 1947.
On April 1, 2003, the population of Chigasaki exceeded 200,000 and it became a special city
Special cities of Japan
of Japan are cities with populations of at least 200,000, and are delegated a subset of the functions delegated to core cities.This category was established by the Local Autonomy Law, article 252 clause 26...
with increased local autonomy.
Economy
Chigasaki is largely a bedroomBedroom
A bedroom is a private room where people usually sleep for the night or relax during the day.About one third of our lives are spent sleeping and most of the time we are asleep, we are sleeping in a bedroom. To be considered a bedroom the room needs to have bed. Bedrooms can range from really simple...
community for Tokyo and Yokohama
Yokohama
is the capital city of Kanagawa Prefecture and the second largest city in Japan by population after Tokyo and most populous municipality of Japan. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of Tokyo, in the Kantō region of the main island of Honshu...
, and has been noted as a seaside resort community since the Meiji period. Tourism and summer leisure activities remain important to the local economy.
Companies headquartered in Chigasaki include:
- Toho Titanium Corporation
- ULVAC
- Miyata Industrial Co LtdMiyataMiyata is a Japanese bicycle and unicycle manufacturer that has been in operation since 1892.Miyata claims to have been the first Japanese manufacturer of flash-butt welded frame tubes and the first to use electrostatic painting ....
- Autech Japan Co LtdAutech, is a pro tuner of Nissan cars.Autech was founded in 1986 as a subsidiary of Nissan Motor Co. Ltd.. Nissan named Shinichiro Sakurai, the former general manager of Nissan's Advanced Vehicle Design Department, as president designate of the new subsidiary...
Highway
- Route 1Route 1 (Japan)National Route 1 is a major highway on the island of Honshū in Japan. It connects Chūō, Tokyo in the Kantō region with the city of Osaka, Osaka Prefecture in the Kansai region, passing through the Chūbu region en route. It follows the old Tōkaidō westward from Tokyo to Kyoto, and the old Kyo Kaidō...
, to TokyoTokyo, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
or KyotoKyotois a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:... - Japan National Route 134Japan National Route 134National Route 134 is a national highway connecting the city of Yokosuka and the town of Ōiso in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan....
, to YokosukaYokosuka, Kanagawais a city located in Kanagawa, Japan. As of 2010, the city had an estimated population of 419,067 and a population density of 4,160 people per km². It covered an area of 100.62 km²...
via KamakuraKamakura, Kanagawais a city located in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, about south-south-west of Tokyo. It used to be also called .Although Kamakura proper is today rather small, it is often described in history books as a former de facto capital of Japan as the seat of the Shogunate and of the Regency during the...
, or HiratsukaHiratsuka, Kanagawais a city located in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. As of 2010, the city had an estimated population of 259,991 and the density of 3,830 persons per km²...
Railway
- JR EastEast Japan Railway Companyis the largest passenger railway company in the world and one of the seven Japan Railways Group companies. The company name is officially abbreviated as JR East in English, and as in Japanese. The company's headquarters are in Yoyogi, Shibuya, Tokyo....
- Tōkaidō Main LineTokaido Main LineThe is the busiest trunk line of the Japan Railways Group , connecting Tōkyō and Kōbe stations. It is long, not counting its many freight feeder lines around the major cities...
- Chigasaki StationChigasaki Stationis a station in Chigasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is operated by the East Japan Railway Company. It is 56.8 rail kilometers from Tokyo Station.-History:...
- Chigasaki Station
- JR EastEast Japan Railway Companyis the largest passenger railway company in the world and one of the seven Japan Railways Group companies. The company name is officially abbreviated as JR East in English, and as in Japanese. The company's headquarters are in Yoyogi, Shibuya, Tokyo....
- Sagami Line- Kita-Chigasaki StationKita-Chigasaki Stationis a train station in the city of Chigasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is 1.3 rail kilometers from the terminal station of the Sagami Line, .-History:...
- Kagawa StationKagawa Station (Kanagawa)is a train station in the city of Chigasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is 3.4 rail kilometers from the terminal station of the Sagami Line, .-History:...
- Kita-Chigasaki Station
Local attractions
The shoreline from Chigasaki to Kamakura is called the "ShōnanShonan
is the name of a region along the coast of Sagami Bay in central Japan. Centered on Enoshima, an island about 50 kilometers southwest of Tokyo, the Shōnan region stretches from Ōiso in the west to Hayama in the east, including Chigasaki, Kamakura and Hiratsuka...
area". A popular swimming destination, Chigasaki is well-known as the birthplace of Japanese surfing
Surfing
Surfing' is a surface water sport in which the surfer rides a surfboard on the crest and face of a wave which is carrying the surfer towards the shore...
. A shop called "Goddess," located only about 20 meters from the shoreline, claims to be the first surfboard
Surfboard
A surfboard is an elongated platform used in the sport of surfing. Surfboards are relatively light, but are strong enough to support an individual standing on them while riding a breaking wave...
shop in Japan. Bicycles with metal fittings for holding surfboards are prominent in the area. A section of the beach in Chigasaki is called "Southern Beach," inspired by the Southern All Stars
Southern All Stars
, also known by the abbreviations or SAS, is a Japanese pop/rock band that formed in the mid 1970s.The band is composed of Keisuke Kuwata , Yuko Hara , Kazuyuki Sekiguchi , Hiroshi Matsuda and Hideyuki "Kegani" Nozawa...
, a famous J-Pop
J-pop
, an abbreviation for Japanese pop, is a musical genre that entered the musical mainstream of Japan in the 1990s. Modern J-pop has its roots in 1960s music, such as The Beatles, and replaced kayōkyoku in the Japanese music scene...
singing group whose lead vocalist Keisuke Kuwata
Keisuke Kuwata
has gained fame as a Japanese multi-instrumentalist, singer-songwriter, and frontman for the Southern All-Stars, as well as his own solo band, the Kuwata band. He has also done significant amount of scoring music for films. He went to Aoyama Gakuin University....
hails from Chigasaki. The symbol of Southern Beach is Eboshi-iwa, a large hat-shaped rock that is visible from the coast.
Chigasaki is also famous for being the center of Japanese Hawaiian culture with many tropical and Hawaiian stores located mainly in the southern side of the town. Fridays in Chigasaki was called "Aloha Friday" in which consumers were able to have discounts in many stores and taxis.
Noted people from Chigasaki
- Keisuke KuwataKeisuke Kuwatahas gained fame as a Japanese multi-instrumentalist, singer-songwriter, and frontman for the Southern All-Stars, as well as his own solo band, the Kuwata band. He has also done significant amount of scoring music for films. He went to Aoyama Gakuin University....
: Southern All StarsSouthern All Stars, also known by the abbreviations or SAS, is a Japanese pop/rock band that formed in the mid 1970s.The band is composed of Keisuke Kuwata , Yuko Hara , Kazuyuki Sekiguchi , Hiroshi Matsuda and Hideyuki "Kegani" Nozawa...
lead pop singer - Soichi NoguchiSoichi Noguchiis a Japanese aeronautical engineer and a JAXA astronaut. His first spaceflight was as a Mission Specialist aboard STS-114 on 26 July 2005 for NASA's first "return to flight" Space Shuttle mission after the Columbia disaster. He was most recently in space as part of the Soyuz TMA-17 crew and...
: JAXA astronaut; NASANASAThe National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
STS-114STS-114-Original crew:This mission was to carry the Expedition 7 crew to the ISS and bring home the Expedition 6 crew. The original crew was to be:-Mission highlights:...
crew member - Ailes GilmourAiles GilmourAiles Gilmour was a Japanese American dancer who was one of the young pioneers of the American Modern Dance movement of the 1930s. She was one of the first members of Martha Graham's dance company. Ailes' older brother was sculptor Isamu Noguchi.-Early life:Ailes, born 1912 in Yokohama, Japan, and...
: early pioneer of the American Modern DanceModern danceModern dance is a dance form developed in the early 20th century. Although the term Modern dance has also been applied to a category of 20th Century ballroom dances, Modern dance as a term usually refers to 20th century concert dance.-Intro:...
movement - Isamu NoguchiIsamu Noguchiwas a prominent Japanese American artist and landscape architect whose artistic career spanned six decades, from the 1920s onward. Known for his sculpture and public works, Noguchi also designed stage sets for various Martha Graham productions, and several mass-produced lamps and furniture pieces,...
: sculptor and landscape architect - Richard BozulichRichard BozulichRichard Bozulich is an American author and publisher of go books in English. He co-founded the Ishi Press. He has worked with several Japanese professional players....
: author and publisher of books about go - Kōsuke ToriumiKosuke Toriumi, born on May 16, 1973 in Chigasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture, is a seiyū employed by Arts Vision.-Profile:* Sometimes credited as Fube Tomomi** Nickname: , , -Anime:1999*Di Gi Charat 2000*Saiyuki Reload: Burial 2001...
: seiyū - Hitoshi DoiHitoshi Doiwas born October 17, 1963 in Chigasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. Doi was a Japanese baseball player, winning several awards during his career. He also runs an English language anime and seiyū information website, which was established on June 10, 1994....
- Hagiwara Masato
- Yūzō KayamaYuzo Kayamais a Japanese popular musician and film star, born on 11 April 1937. His father, Ken Uehara, was a film star during the 1930s. Yuzo Kayama became a big star in the 1960s in the Wakadaishō film series....
- MoominMoomin (singer)MOOMIN is a Japanese reggae artist. Along with a number of colleagues, he is responsible for the growth and popularity of Japan's reggae scene.He is originally from Chigasaki, Kanagawa, and is married with two children...
: singer
External links
- Official website in Japanese