Narashino

Narashino-shi, Chiba, Japan 習志野市
City
Area around JR Tsudanuma Station
Flag Seal
Location of Narashino in Chiba Prefecture
Narashino-shi, Chiba, Japan
Coordinates:
Country	Japan
Region	Kantō
Prefecture	Chiba Prefecture
Government
• Mayor	Taisuke Miyamoto (since May 2011)
Area
• Total	20.99 km2 (8.10 sq mi)
Population (April 1, 2012)
• Total	165,164
• Density	7,870/km2 (20,400/sq mi)
Time zone	Japan Standard Time (UTC+9)
- Tree	Acacia
- Flower	Hydrangea
Phone number	047-451-1151
Address	1-1 Saginuma, Narashino-shi, Chiba-ken 275-8601
Website	City of Narashino

Narashino (習志野市, Narashino-shi) is a city located in northern Chiba Prefecture, Japan.

As of February 2011, the city has an estimated population of 165,164 and a population density of 7,870 persons per km². The total area is 20.99 km².

Geography

Narashino is located in far northwestern Chiba Prefecture, bordered by Tokyo Bay to the southwest. The city is located on the Shimōsa Plateau and reclaimed land fill on Tokyo Bay.

Surrounding municipalities

• Chiba, Chiba
• Funabashi, Chiba
• Yachiyo, Chiba

History

The area around Narashino has been inhabited since prehistoric times. Archaeologists have found shell middens and numerous other remains from Jomon 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 6,000.

The Narashino area of Tsudanuma was used for cavalry maneuvers by the Imperial Guard and the early Imperial Japanese Army, and was visited by the Meiji Emperor early in the Meiji period (1868 – 1912). A prisoner of war camp was built in 1904 to house POWs from the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905 and World War I. The Imperial Japanese Army Narashino School was the main training school for cavalry, and later for tank warfare.

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.

Economy

Narashino is a regional commercial center and a bedroom community for nearby Chiba and Tokyo. 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.

Transportation

Railways

• East Japan Railway Company (JR East) - Sōbu Main Line
  • Higata - Asahi - Iioka - Kurahashi
• ■ East Japan Railway Company - ■ Sōbu Main Line
  • Tsudanuma -
• ■ Keiyō Line –
  • Shin-Narashino -
• ■ Keisei Electric Railway - Main Line
  • Yatsu - Keisei Tsudanuma - Keisei Ōkubo - Mimomi
• ■ Keisei Electric Railway - Chiba Line
  • Keisei Tsudanuma
• ■ Shin-Keisei Electric Railway - Shin-Keisei Line
  • Keisei Tsudanuma - Shin-Tsudanuma

Highways

• Japan National Route 126

Education

• Chiba Institute of Technology

Notable places

• Yatsu-higata (谷津干潟), a Ramsar Site and protected wetlands for migratory birds. The spring and summer months see an increase of jellyfish and small crabs to the wetlands.
• Yatsu Bara-en (谷津バラ園), a rose garden which displays over 6000 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.

Sister city relations

• Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States

Noted people from Narashino

• Daichi Suzuki – Olympic gold-medalist swimmer
• Masaaki Takada – professional soccer player
• Kota Hattori – professional soccer player
• Makoto Sunakawa – professional soccer player
• Hideaki Kitajima – professional soccer player

External links

• Narashino City official website (Japanese)
• Narashino City official website (English)