Sayama, Saitama

Sayama (狭山市, Sayama-shi) is a city located in Saitama Prefecture, Japan. As of 1 February 2016, the city had an estimated population of 152,235, and a population density of 3110 persons per km². Its total area is 48.99 square kilometres (18.92 sq mi).

Sayama

狭山市
City
Sayama City Hall
Flag
Seal
Location of Sayama in Saitama Prefecture
Sayama
 
Coordinates: 35°51′10.7″N 139°24′43.9″E
CountryJapan
RegionKantō
PrefectureSaitama Prefecture
Government
 • MayorTeruo Yagasaki (since April 2012)
Area
 • Total48.99 km2 (18.92 sq mi)
Population
 (February 2016)
 • Total152,235
 • Density3,110/km2 (8,100/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+9 (Japan Standard Time)
- TreeCamellia sinensis (tea plant)
- FlowerAzalea
- BirdAzure-winged magpie
Phone number04-2953-1111
Address1-23-5 Irumagawa, Sayama-shi, Saitama-ken 350-1380
Websitehttp://www.city.sayama.saitama.jp/

Geography

Sayama is located in south-central Saitama Prefecture. The Iruma River flows through the city.

Surrounding municipalities

Population history
Historical population
YearPop.±% p.a.
197060,886—    
197598,548+10.11%
1980124,029+4.71%
1985144,366+3.08%
1990157,309+1.73%
1995162,240+0.62%
2000161,460−0.10%
2005158,074−0.42%
2010155,738−0.30%

History

During the Kamakura period, the area developed as a post station on the Kamakura Kaidō highway, as the dividing point on the routes to Kōzuke Province and Shimotsuke Province. The town of Irumagawa was established within Iruma District with the establishment of the municipalities system on April 1, 1889. On July 1, 1954, Irumagawa merged with the neighboring villages of Mizutomi, Kashiwahara, Okutomi, Hirokane, and Irima to create the city of Sayama.

The city was the location of the Sayama Incident, a 1963 murder and trial which resulted in the false accusation and conviction of an innocent man, a member of the Burakumin minority group, of murder.[1]

Economy

Sayama is one of the major industrial centers of Saitama Prefecture, although it is also a bedroom community with over 15% of its population commuting to Tokyo for work. The city, along with neighboring Iruma, is a well known tea growing region, producing Sayama Tea.

Honda assembly plant

Sayama is the location of an automobile assembly plant, which opened in 1964, for Honda/Acura vehicles, currently including the Fit, Honda Odyssey (international), CR-V, and RLX, and in the past the Accord, Prelude, Vigor, Inspire, Legend and Integra.[2][3] The plant was briefly closed, but not damaged, following the March 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, and restarted production in April 2011, albeit at lower production levels.[4]

Other businesses

The Lotte candy and food processing company operates a facility in Sayama.[5]

Dai Nippon Printing Company, Ltd. imaging media division operates a large coating facility in the city.

Sankyo Flute Company is located in Sayama.

Sayama Haselfoods is the only baklava manufacturing facility in Japan. Located in Aoyagi, Sayama, Haselfoods also imports food products from the Mediterranean.

Education

University

Primary and secondary education
  • Sayama has 16 elementary schools, 10 middle schools and six high schools

Transportation

Railway

Highway

Military facilities

Sister cities

Local attractions
Hirose bridge, over the Iruma River
  • Irumagawa Tanabata Matsuri.[8][9]
  • Sayama Ski Area, an Indoor ski slope[10]
  • Sayama Inariyama Park
  • Shimizu Hachiman-gu

Sports

The Secom Rugguts rugby union team, and the Saitama Soccer Club of the Kantō Soccer League, are located in Sayama

  • Asteroid 4461 Sayama was named after the city.

Noted people from Sayama

References
  1. "The Sayama Case ｜ IMADR". Imadr.org. Retrieved 2012-07-31.
  2. "Honda Worldwide | History". World.honda.com. Retrieved 2012-07-31.
  3. "Honda Worldwide | May 17, 2006 "Honda Builds New Automobile Plant in Japan With Annual Production Capacity of 200,000 units"". World.honda.com. 2006-05-17. Retrieved 2012-07-31.
  4. "The Assembly Line Is Rolling Again, Tenuously, at Honda in Japan". The New York Times. Retrieved 2013-10-29.
  5. "LOTTE". LOTTE. Retrieved 2012-07-31.
  6. Archived March 16, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  7. "International Exchange". List of Affiliation Partners within Prefectures. Council of Local Authorities for International Relations (CLAIR). Archived from the original on 4 January 2016. Retrieved 21 November 2015.
  8. "JNTO Japan event calendar|contents". Jnto.go.jp. Retrieved 2012-07-31.
  9. "Tanabata Festivals in Japan". Gojapan.about.com. 2012-04-09. Retrieved 2012-07-31.
  10. "Indoor Snowboarding in Japan". Paul Hartrick. 2008-11-17. Retrieved 2012-07-31.
  11. "Shiori Kazama". IMDb.com. Retrieved 2013-10-29.
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