Maebashi

Maebashi, the capital of Gunma Prefecture in northern Kantō, Japan, is nicknamed the "City of Water, Greenery and Poets" for its clean water, abundant natural surroundings, and as the hometown of modern poets like Sakutarō Hagiwara. As of the latest count, the city had about 335,352 people living in 151,171 households, with a population density of 1,100 persons per square kilometer. Its total area is 311.64 square kilometers. It was once Gunma’s most populous city until Takasaki merged with neighboring towns between 2006 and 2009.

The name Maebashi comes from the Nara period, when the area was called Umayabashi. This referred to a bridge over the Tone River near a small rest stop with a stable, used by travelers on the Tōzan-dō road. The spelling changed to Maebashi in 1649, when it became a castle town and the center of Maebashi Domain under the Tokugawa shogunate.

The modern town of Maebashi was created on April 1, 1889, under the new municipal system after the Meiji Restoration, and became a city on April 1, 1892. It absorbed part of Kamikawabuchi village in 1901. On August 5, 1945, about 64.2% of the city’s urban core was destroyed by air raids, which followed propaganda leaflets warning of the attacks. After the war, Maebashi grew by annexing parts of Kaigaya Village in 1951, and then the villages of Kamikawabuchi, Shimokawabuchi, Azuma, Minamitachibana, Kaigaya, Haga, Motosōja, and Sōja in 1954. It added part of Jōnan village in 1957, part of Tamamura Town and more of Jōnan in 1960, and the rest of Jōnan in 1967. Maebashi hosted the 1999 IAAF World Indoor Championships. It became a special city on April 1, 2001, gaining more local autonomy. The town of Ōgo and villages of Kasukawa and Miyagi merged into it on December 5, 2004, and the village of Fujimi followed on May 5, 2009, dissolving Seta District. Maebashi became a core city on April 1, 2009.

Geographically, Maebashi sits at the foot of Mount Akagi in the northeast corner of the Kantō Plain, surrounded by Mount Haruna and Mount Myōgi. The Tone River, Japan’s second-longest, and the Hirose River flow through it. Though over 100 kilometers inland, the southern part of the city is only about 100 meters above sea level. The highest point is 1,823 meters on the south side of Mt. Kurohino, a peak of Mount Akagi. Maebashi is the farthest prefectural capital from the sea, roughly 120 kilometers away. Neighboring cities include Isesaki, Kiryū, Numata, Shibukawa, Shintō, Takasaki, Tamamura, and Yoshioka. The urban zone around Maebashi has over a million people, separated from Greater Tokyo’s built-up area by farmland to the south.

The climate is humid subtropical. In winter, a dry north wind called karakkaze blows through, because snow clouds from the Sea of Japan are blocked by the Echigo Mountains between Gunma and Niigata. This makes winters dry and gives Maebashi over 2,210 hours of sunshine per year, one of the highest in Japan. Summers are hot due to the inland location, though slightly cooler than coastal Tokyo. On July 24, 2001, the temperature reached 40.9°C, the fifth-hottest ever recorded in Japan.

Population growth has recently leveled off after a long period of increase. The city has a mayor-council government with a directly elected mayor and a 38-member unicameral city council. It sends eight members to the Gunma Prefectural Assembly and is part of Gunma 1st district for the national Diet’s lower house.

As of 2010, Greater Maebashi’s Metropolitan Employment Area had a GDP of US$59.8 billion. Companies like Sanden Corporation (air conditioning and compressors) and Sagamiya Foods (tofu products) have manufacturing sites here. The Gunma Bank is headquartered in Maebashi.

Higher education includes Maebashi Institute of Technology, Maebashi Kyoai Gakuen College, Gunma Prefectural College of Health Sciences, Gunma University, and Gunma University of Health and Welfare. The city runs 54 public elementary schools and 21 public middle schools, plus two private elementary and two private middle schools. There are nine public high schools operated by the prefecture, one by the city, five private high schools, and one combined private middle/high school. There is also a North Korean international school.

Rail service comes from JR East’s Jōetsu Line and Ryōmō Line, as well as the Jōmō Electric Railway’s Jōmō Line. Highways include the Kan-etsu Expressway (Maebashi Interchange and Maebashi-Minami Interchange). The soccer team Thespa Gunma, originally from Kusatsu, plays at Shoda Shoyu Stadium Gunma in Maebashi because of J.League stadium requirements.