is a

city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

Kanagawa Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Kanagawa Prefecture is the List of Japanese prefectures by population, second-most populous prefecture of Japan at 9,221,129 (1 April 2022) and third-dens ...

, Japan. , the city has an estimated population of 723,470, with 334,812 households, and a population density of 1,220 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Sagamihara is the third-most-populous city in the prefecture, after

Yokohama is the List of cities in Japan, second-largest city in Japan by population as well as by area, and the country's most populous Municipalities of Japan, municipality. It is the capital and most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a popu ...

and Kawasaki, and the fifth most populous suburb of the

Greater Tokyo Area The Greater Tokyo Area is the most populous metropolitan area in the world, consisting of the Kantō region of Japan (including Tokyo, Tokyo Metropolis and the prefectures of Chiba Prefecture, Chiba, Gunma Prefecture, Gunma, Ibaraki Prefecture, ...

. Its northern neighbor is Machida, with which a cross-prefectural merger has been proposed. On April 1, 2010, the city became the 19th

city designated by government ordinance A , also known as a or , is a Cities of Japan, Japanese city that has a population greater than 500,000 and has been designated as such by order of the Cabinet of Japan under Article 252, Section 19, of the Local Autonomy Law. Designated cit ...

. As a result of this, three wards were established: Midori-ku, Chūō-ku and Minami-ku.

Geography

Sagamihara covers a large area of northwestern Kanagawa Prefecture. The main areas of commercial activity in Sagamihara are located near Hashimoto Station on the

JR East The is a major passenger railway company in Japan and the largest of the seven Japan Railways Group companies. The company name is officially abbreviated as JR-EAST or JR East in English, and as in Japanese. The company's headquarters are in ...

Yokohama Line and Keio Sagamihara Line; Sagamihara Station on the Yokohama Line; and Sagami-Ōno Station on the Odakyu Odawara Line. Western Sagamihara is within the Tanzawa Mountains.

Wards

* Chūō-ku – administrative center * Midori-ku * Minami-ku

Surrounding municipalities

Kanagawa Prefecture * Aikawa * Atsugi * Kiyokawa * Yamakita * Yamato * Zama Tokyo * Hachioji * Hinohara * Machida Yamanashi Prefecture * Dōshi * Uenohara

Climate

Sagamihara has a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...

(Köppen ''Cfa'') characterized by warm summers and cool winters with light to no snowfall. The average annual temperature in Sagamihara is 12.6 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1906 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 23.9 °C, and lowest in January, at around 1.2 °C.

Demographics

Per Japanese census data, the population of Sagamihara has grown steadily over the past 70 years.

History

The area of modern Sagamihara has been settled since ancient times, and has a number of remains from the Japanese Paleolithic period and

Kofun period The is an era in the history of Japan from about 300 to 538 AD (the date of the introduction of Buddhism), following the Yayoi period. The Kofun and the subsequent Asuka periods are sometimes collectively called the Yamato period. This period is ...

have been found. It was home to the Yokoyama clan, one of the seven warrior clans of the Musashi region during the early

Kamakura period The is a period of History of Japan, Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura, Kanagawa, Kamakura by the first ''shōgun'' Minamoto no Yoritomo after the conclusion of the G ...

. During the

Edo period The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...

, the lands around Sagamihara were ''

tenryō The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. The Tokugawa shogunate was established by Tokugawa Ieyasu after victory at the Battle of Sekigahara, ending the civil war ...

'' territory theoretically administered directly by the

Tokugawa Shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. The Tokugawa shogunate was established by Tokugawa Ieyasu after victory at the Battle of Sekigahara, ending the civil wars ...

in Edo; however, in reality, the area was a patchwork of small fiefs held by various ''

hatamoto A was a high ranking samurai in the direct service of the Tokugawa shogunate of feudal Japan. While all three of the Shōgun, shogunates in History of Japan, Japanese history had official retainers, in the two preceding ones, they were referred ...

'', as well as exclaves under the control of the Ogino-Yamanaka Domain and Karasuyama Domain. After the

Meiji Restoration The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored Imperial House of Japan, imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Althoug ...

, the eastern portion was part of Kōza District, and the western portion was part of Tsukui District. The Kōza District portion was administratively divided into six villages on April 1, 1889 with the creation of the modern municipalities system. The area was the location of extensive training facilities and arsenals of the

Imperial Japanese Army The Imperial Japanese Army (IJA; , ''Dai-Nippon Teikoku Rikugun'', "Army of the Greater Japanese Empire") was the principal ground force of the Empire of Japan from 1871 to 1945. It played a central role in Japan’s rapid modernization during th ...

during the 1930s. These villages were merged on April 29, 1941, together with neighboring Zama Town to create Sagamihara Town. At the time of its formation, it was the largest town in Japan in terms of area. On September 1, 1948, Zama was administratively separated into Zama Town. The remaining portion became Sagamihara City on November 20, 1954. The city population had grown steadily, partly due to local industrial development, and partly due to the city's excellent transportation infrastructure connecting it to

, Tokyo and Hachiōji. It was designated a

core city In urban planning, a historic core city or central city is the municipality with the largest 1940 population in the present metropolitan area (metropolitan statistical area). This term was retired by the US census bureau and replaced by the term ...

with increased autonomy in 2003. On March 20, 2006, Sagamihara absorbed the towns of Tsukui and Sagamiko (both from Tsukui District). The merged city consisted of two geographically separate areas, as two other towns of Tsukui District ( Fujino and Shiroyama) elected to remain separate. A further merger on March 11, 2007, joined Fujino and Shiroyama with Sagamihara, thus geographically unifying the city, and dissolving former Tsukui District. In 2007, the population of Sagamihara exceeded 700,000. In 2010, Sagamihara was redesignated as a government ordinance city and split into three wards Midori-ku, Chūō-ku, and Minami-ku. On July 25, 2016, 19 people were killed and 26 injured in a mass stabbing incident at a disabled care home in the city by Satoshi Uematsu, the perpetrator.

Government

Sagamihara has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a

unicameral Unicameralism (from ''uni''- "one" + Latin ''camera'' "chamber") is a type of legislature consisting of one house or assembly that legislates and votes as one. Unicameralism has become an increasingly common type of legislature, making up nearly ...

city council of 49 members. Sagamihara contributes eight members to the Kanagawa Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city was divided between the Kanagawa 14th district and Kanagawa 16th district of the

lower house A lower house is the lower chamber of a bicameral legislature, where the other chamber is the upper house. Although styled as "below" the upper house, in many legislatures worldwide, the lower house has come to wield more power or otherwise e ...

of the

Diet of Japan , transcription_name = ''Kokkai'' , legislature = 215th Session of the National Diet , coa_pic = Flag of Japan.svg , house_type = Bicameral , houses = , foundation=29 November 1890(), leader1_type ...

until the 2024 Japanese general election when it became represented by the Kanagawa 14th district and the newly formed Kanagawa 20th district.

Economy

In terms of economy and geography such as railroads and roads, Sagamihara has stronger ties with Tokyo than other cities in the prefecture, especially with the Tama area such as Machida and Hachioji. In addition, it is positioned by the national government as the core of the southwestern part of the Tokyo metropolitan area. However, due to the successive withdrawal of large factories in the city, the aspect of Sagimahara as a

commuter town A commuter town is a populated area that is primarily residential rather than commercial or industrial. Routine travel from home to work and back is called commuting, which is where the term comes from. A commuter town may be called by many o ...

has become stronger, and the percentage of commuters to work and school in Tokyo in 2015 was 24.6%.

Education

* Azabu University * Izumi Junior College * Sagami Women's University * Sagamihara has 13 public high schools and one combined middle/high school operated by the Kanagawa Prefectural Board of Education, and the prefecture also operates two special education schools for the handicapped. There are also two private high schools.

Transportation

Railway

– Yokohama Line * – – – –

– Sagami Line * – – – – – – Hashimoto

– Chūō Main Line * – OdakyuGroup logo2

Odakyu Electric Railway – Odakyu Odawara Line * – – KeioRailway logo

Keio Corporation is a private railway operator in Tokyo, Japan and the central firm of the that is involved in transport, retailer, retail, real estate and other industries. The Keio railway network connects western suburbs of Tokyo (Chōfu, Tokyo, Chōfu, Fuc ...

– Sagamihara Line * Hashimoto

Highways

* * * * * * *

Local attractions

* Lake Sagami * Sagamihara Prefectural Park * Sagamihara Vending Machine Park * , built in 1598

Sports

* Mitsubishi Sagamihara DynaBoars * SC Sagamihara * Nojima Stella Kanagawa Sagamihara * Nojima Sagamihara Rise

Sister cities

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, Canada since January 1, 1998 * Trail, British Columbia, Canada, since April 15, 1991 *

Wuxi Wuxi ( zh, s=无锡, p=Wúxī, ) is a city in southern Jiangsu, China. As of the 2024 census, it had a population of 7,495,000. The city lies in the southern Yangtze delta and borders Lake Tai. Notable landmarks include Lihu Park, the Mt. Lings ...

Jiangsu Jiangsu is a coastal Provinces of the People's Republic of China, province in East China. It is one of the leading provinces in finance, education, technology, and tourism, with its capital in Nanjing. Jiangsu is the List of Chinese administra ...

, China, since October 6, 1985

Notable people from Sagamihara

* Ryo Aitaka,

heavyweight Heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports and professional wrestling. Boxing Professional Male boxers who weigh over are considered heavyweights by 2 of the 4 major professional boxing organizations: the International Boxing Federation an ...

kickboxer * Jin Akimoto, retired

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting sport based on striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-stylistic contests took place t ...

* Jiro Akama,

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

* Hiroko Anzai,

actress An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...

, model and

gravure idol A model is a person with a Role (disambiguation), role either to display commercial product (business), products (notably fashion clothing in fashion shows) or to serve as an Model (art), artist's model. Modelling ("modeling" in British and ...

* Hayato Arakaki,

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Moder ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

and player (

Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters The are a Japanese professional Baseball in Japan, baseball team based in Kitahiroshima, Hokkaido, Kitahiroshima, Hokkaidō, in the Sapporo metropolitan area. They compete in the Pacific League of Nippon Professional Baseball, playing the major ...

Nippon Professional Baseball is a professional baseball league and the highest level of baseball in Japan. Locally, it is often called , meaning simply ''Professional Baseball''; outside of Japan, NPB is often referred to as "Japanese baseball". The roots of the league ...

–

Pacific League The , or , or the , due to sponsorship reasons, is one of the two professional baseball leagues constituting Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship competes against the winner in the Central League for the a ...

) * Akira Asahara, professional Magic: The Gathering player * Nana Eikura, model, actress, and radio show host * Tsuneo Enari,

photographer A photographer (the Greek φῶς (''phos''), meaning "light", and γραφή (''graphê''), meaning "drawing, writing", together meaning "drawing with light") is a person who uses a camera to make photographs. Duties and types of photograp ...

* Masato Fukae,

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to catch ...

* Tatsunori Hara, baseball manager (

Yomiuri Giants The are a Japanese professional baseball team competing in Nippon Professional Baseball's Central League. Based in Bunkyo, Tokyo, they are one of two professional baseball teams based in Tokyo, the other being the Tokyo Yakult Swallows. They h ...

) *

Tasuku Hatanaka is a Japanese actor, voice actor and singer. Biography Hatanaka is the son of Hiroshi Hatanaka and Keiko Fukushima. He voiced Yuma Tsukumo in the anime series ''Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal'', Ushio in '' Ushio and Tora'', Ikoma in '' Kabaneri of the Iro ...

, actor,

voice actor Voice acting is the art of Acting, performing a character or providing information to an audience with one's voice. Performers are often called voice actors/actresses in addition to other names. Examples of voice work include animation, animated, ...

and singer * Yūki Himura,

comedian A comedian (feminine comedienne) or comic is a person who seeks to entertainment, entertain an audience by making them laughter, laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting foolishly (as in slapstick), or employing prop c ...

, actor and voice actor * Akiko Ichikawa,

Japanese American are Americans of Japanese ancestry. Japanese Americans were among the three largest Asian Americans, Asian American ethnic communities during the 20th century; but, according to the 2000 United States census, 2000 census, they have declined in ...

interdisciplinary artist, editor, writer and activist * Akira Iida,

Super GT Super GT (stylized as SUPER GT) is a sports car racing series that began in 1993. Launched as the , generally referred to as the All Japan Grand Touring Car Championship (JGTC), the series was renamed to Super GT in 2005. It is the top level of ...

racing driver * Yu Inaba, actor (''

Kamen Rider Drive is a Japanese tokusatsu television series serving as the 16th Heisei period, Heisei Kamen Rider Series, and 25th series overall. Riku Sanjo returns to the Kamen Rider Series to serve as ''Drive''s lead screenwriter, with Ryuta Tasaki as director ...

'') * Megumi Inoue,

sport shooter Shooting sports is a group of competitive and recreational sporting activities involving proficiency tests of accuracy, precision and speed in shooting — the art of using ranged weapons, mainly small arms (firearms and airguns, in forms such ...

* Yōzaburō Kanari, manga story writer (''

Kindaichi Case Files is a Japanese mystery manga are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. ...

'') * Tsutomu Kashiwakura,

and sound director * Ukyo Katayama, former Formula One driver and team manager * Tsuyoshi Kawagishi, former

( Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles,

) * Hidetaka Kawagoe, former

* Tsuyoshi Kikuchihara, former baseball player * Yuna Kotani, female curler * Keiichiro Koyama, musician, leader of

NEWS News is information about current events. This may be provided through many different Media (communication), media: word of mouth, printing, Mail, postal systems, broadcasting, Telecommunications, electronic communication, or through the te ...

* Tomoyoshi Koyama, professional motorcycle road racer * Togi Makabe, professional wrestler (

New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) is a Puroresu, Japanese professional-wrestling Professional wrestling promotion, promotion founded on January 13, 1972, by Antonio Inoki, and based in Nakano, Tokyo. It is currently majority owned by card-game company Bushiroad, with TV As ...

) * Mai Murakami, Olympic gymnast *

Ayako Nishikawa is a Japanese female TV star, tarento, comedian, and cosmetic surgeon. She is unusual in Japan in that she is willing to appear on television, as medical practitioners are generally hesitant to appear. Early years Ayako was born in Sagamiha ...

, female TV star,

tarento Television personalities in Japan, known as in Japanese, are celebrities who regularly appear in mass media in Japan, especially as panelists on variety shows. During the Golden Age of Hollywood, bankable stars in the United States were descri ...

, and cosmetic surgeon * Hiroyuki Nishimura, internet entrepreneur, self-help author and TV personality * Yukio Ozaki, politician * Kenji Ozawa, world-famous conductor * Plaek Phibunsongkhram, former Thai Prime Minister died here in exile. * Reita, bassist for the Gazette (band) * Makoto Sasamoto, Greco-Roman wrestler * Shin'ya Satō, professional shogi player ranked 7- dan * Ryōichi Sekiya,

ultramarathon An ultramarathon is a footrace longer than the traditional marathon distance of . The sport of running ultramarathons is called ultra running or ultra distance running. Various distances, surfaces, and formats are raced competitively, from the ...

and marathon runner * Shinya Tasaki,

sommelier A ''sommelier'' ( , , ), ''chef de vin'' or wine steward, is a trained and knowledgeable wine professional, normally working in fine restaurants, who specializes in all aspects of wine service as well as wine and food pairing. The role of the ''s ...

Ai Tominaga is a Japanese model and actress. She has been described as one of the first Asian models to walk European catwalks, but there were models such as Sayoko Yamaguchi who walked the runways in the 1970s and 1980s. Career She has appeared on the ...

, fashion model and actress * Yuki Tsunoda,

Formula One Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...

racing driver * Momo Watanabe, professional wrestler ( World Wonder Ring Stardom) * Yuuya Watanabe, professional Magic: The Gathering player * Mika Yoshikawa, middle- and

long-distance runner Long-distance running, or endurance running, is a form of continuous running over distances of at least . Physiologically, it is largely Aerobic exercise, aerobic in nature and requires stamina as well as mental strength. Within endurance ru ...

References

External links

Official Website
* {{Authority control Cities in Kanagawa Prefecture Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan