Kisarazu, Chiba

Kisarazu
Kisarazu; 木更津市
	— City —
	Center of Kisarazu
	; Flag
	; Flag
	Location of Kisarazu in Chiba
	Kisarazu
	Coordinates: 35°22′33.51″N 139°55′0.59″E / 35.375975°N 139.9168306°ECoordinates: 35°22′33.51″N 139°55′0.59″E / 35.375975°N 139.9168306°E
Country	Japan
Region	Kantō
Prefecture	Chiba
	Government
• Mayor	Isao Mizukoshi (since April 2002)
	Area
• Total	138.73 km2 (53.56 sq mi)
	Population (September 2010)
• Total	126,906
• Density	915/km2 (2,370/sq mi)
Time zone	Japan Standard Time (UTC+9)
City Symbols
- Tree	Camellia
- Flower	Satsuki azalea
- Bird
Phone number	0438-23-7111
Address	1-1 Siomi, Kisarazu-shi, Chiba-ken 292-8501
Website	City of Kisarazu

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Kisarazu City Hall

This ukiyo-e by Hiroshige shows Mount Fuji across Edo Bay from Kisarazu.

Kisarazu (木更津市, Kisarazu-shi^?) is a city located in Chiba, Japan. As of September 2010, Kisarazu has an estimated population of 126,906 and a density of 915 persons per km². The total area was 138.73 km².

Kisarazu's profile has been raised in recent times by the popularity of the TV show and subsequent film, Kisarazu Cat's Eye, which were set and filmed in the city.

[edit] Geography

Kisarazu is located in the western part of the Bōsō Peninsula. The Tokyo Bay Aqua-Line, a bridge-tunnel across Tokyo Bay, connects Kisarazu and the cities of Kawasaki and Yokohama in Kanagawa Prefecture.

[edit] Neighboring municipalities

[edit] History

[edit] Early History

The area of modern Kisarazu has been inhabited since the Japanese Paleolithic period, and numerous remains from the Jomon, Yayoi and Kofun period have been found within the city limits. The area also is prominent in the Yamatotakeru mythology. Under the Ritsuryo system of the Nara period, the area became part of Kazusa Province. The area was contested between the Late Hōjō clan, Takeda clan and Satomi clan during the Sengoku period. During the Edo period under the Tokugawa shogunate, part of the area was under the control of the feudal domain of Jōzai, with large portions as tenryō territory controlled directly by the Shognate and administered by numerous hatamoto.

[edit] Meiji Restoration and Kisarazu Prefecture

Kisarazu was part of the complex reconfiguration of administrative areas at the start of the Meiji period. In 1871, as part of the abolition of the han system, the Sakurai Domain, located partly in Kisarazu, was absolished and Sakurai Prefecture was established.

In November of the same year, the prefecture was combined with the former Awa Province and Kazusa Province to form Kisarazu Prefecture. The prefectural seat was established in the present-day Kaifusa district of Kisarazu. Kisarazu Prefecture was established two years later in 1873. It was combined with Inba Prefecture to form present-day Chiba Prefecture.

[edit] World War II and Post-War Period

Kisarazu was developed as a center for military activity as part of the militarization of Japan in the 1930s. In 1935-1936 the Imperial Japanese Navy, established the Kisarazu Air Field for the Kisarazu Air Group on landfill in the northern part of Kisarazu to protect Tokyo, as capitol of the Japanese Empire, from attack. The base served as an arsenal for the IJN, and employed up to 17,000 workers during the war. The Nakajima "Kikka", Japan's first jet-powered aircraft, was tested at the base in 1945.The base was used by the United States Air Force from 1945 as "Kisarazu Air Base". In 1956, the base was officially transferred to the control of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF).

Kisarazu Town, originally founded on April 1, 1889, was expanded through merger with neighboring Aoyagi Town on March 31, 1955, and again through merger with Amaha Town and Osawa Town on April 25, 1971. Kisarazu attained city status on November 3, 1942.

[edit] Economy

Kisarazu has a mixed economy based on commercial fishing, agriculture, and heavy industry along its Tokyo Bay shoreline. It serves as the commercial center for central Bōsō Peninsula, and is increasingly a bedroom community of the Kawasaki – Yokohama metropolis across Tokyo Bay.