Narashino (習志野市, Narashino-shi) is a city located in Chiba Prefecture, Japan.[1][2]
As of 30 November 2020[update], the city had an estimated population of 175,292 in 81,985 households and a population density of 8400 persons per km2.[3] The total area of the city is 20.97 square kilometres (8.10 sq mi)
Geography
Narashino is located in far northwestern Chiba Prefecture, bordered by Tokyo Bay to the southwest,[4] and the prefectural capital of Chiba to the east. It is approximately 20 to 30 kilometers from central Tokyo.
The city is located on the Shimōsa Plateau and reclaimed land fill on Tokyo Bay, with a large difference in elevation from the inland area to the coastal area.[2]
Narashino has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa) characterized by warm summers and cool winters with light to no snowfall. The average annual temperature in Narashino is 15.4 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1410 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 26.9 °C, and lowest in January, at around 4.9 °C.[5]
Demographics
Per Japanese census data,[6] the population of Narashino increased rapidly between 1950 and 1990 and has grown at a slower pace since.
Historical population
Year
Pop.
±%
1950
28,667
—
1960
42,167
+47.1%
1970
99,995
+137.1%
1980
125,155
+25.2%
1990
151,471
+21.0%
2000
154,036
+1.7%
2010
164,530
+6.8%
2020
176,167
+7.1%
History
The area around Narashino has been inhabited since prehistoric times. Archaeologists have found shell middens and numerous other remains from Jōmon period, as well as burial tumuli from the Kofun period. However, for most of its history, the area was a sparsely populated wetland and swamp along the northern shore of Edo Bay.
After the Meiji Restoration, Tsudanuma (津田沼村, Tsudanuma-mura) was founded within Chiba District on April 1, 1889 on the merger of five small hamlets with a total population of 4500 people. The area only began to develop with the coming of the railway, and Tsudanuma was raised to town status on March 3, 1903, with a population of 6000.
On August 1, 1954, Tsudanuma merged with a portion of the neighboring city of Chiba (the former town of Makuhari) to form the new city of Narashino.[7]
Narashino has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral city council of 30 members. Narashino contributes two members to the Chiba Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city is part of Chiba 2nd district of the lower house of the Diet of Japan.
Economy
Narashino is a regional commercial center and a bedroom community for nearby Chiba and Tokyo, with 32,7% of the residents commuting to Tokyo per the 2010 census, and 11.7% to Funabashi and 10.5% to Chiba. The coastal area, mostly on reclaimed land is part of the Keiyō Industrial Zone and is home to much heavy industry, especially related to chemical processing.
Narashino has 16 public elementary schools and eight public middle schools operated by the city government, and four public high schools operated by the Chiba Prefectural Board of Education.
Local attractions
This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (December 2012)
Akitsu Baseball Stadium
Chiba International General Swimming Center
Frontier Soccer Field (naming rights from April 1, 2015 to March 31, 2018), formerly known as Akitsu Soccer Stadium.
Yatsu Rose Garden (谷津バラ園), a rose garden which displays over 6,000 individual blossoms in May and October. The garden was founded with Yatsu Yūen (谷津遊園), an amusement park which was managed by Keisei Electric Railway and closed in 1982. When the park was closed, the city bought the garden, and has managed it since that time.
^ abc"習志野（市）" [Narashino]. Nihon Daihyakka Zensho (Nipponika) (in Japanese). Tokyo: Shogakukan. 2012. OCLC153301537. Archived from the original on 2007-08-25. Retrieved 2012-07-15.
^ ab"習志野" [Narashino]. Dijitaru Daijisen (in Japanese). Tokyo: Shogakukan. 2012. OCLC56431036. Archived from the original on 2007-08-25. Retrieved 2012-07-26.
^ ab"習志野" [Narashino]. Nihon Kokugo Daijiten (in Japanese). Tokyo: Shogakukan. 2012. OCLC56431036. Archived from the original on 2007-08-25. Retrieved 2012-07-12.
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