, often shortened to is a public high school in

Saitama City is the capital and largest city of Saitama Prefecture, Japan. Its area incorporates the former cities of Urawa, Ōmiya, Yono and Iwatsuki. It is a city designated by government ordinance. , the city had an estimated population of 1,324,854 ...

Saitama Prefecture is a Landlocked country, landlocked Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Saitama Prefecture has a population of 7,338,536 (January 1, 2020) and has a geographic area of 3,797 Square kilometre, km2 ( ...

, Japan. It is one of the few public schools in the prefecture that does not have a

school uniform A school uniform is a uniform worn by students primarily for a school or otherwise an educational institution. They are common in primary school, primary and secondary schools in various countries and are generally widespread in Africa, Asia, O ...

. Until the 1970s, the school enjoyed prestigious position after Urawa High School and Urawa Ichijo High School. During the 80s and 90s, it was known as one of the best public schools and sent its alumni to the best universities in Japan, such as

Tokyo University The University of Tokyo (, abbreviated as in Japanese and UTokyo in English) is a public research university in Bunkyō, Tokyo, Japan. Founded in 1877 as the nation's first modern university by the merger of several pre-westernisation era ins ...

. Many applicants to the school are attracted by the no-school-uniform policy and by the liberal atmosphere that encourages students' independence.

Location

The school is located in Urawa-ku,

and situated in a quiet residential area behind the idyllic scene of Minuma. The closest train station, JR

Yono Station is a passenger railway station on the Keihin-Tohoku Line in Urawa-ku, Saitama, Saitama Prefecture, Japan, operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East). Lines Yono Station is served by the Keihin-Tōhoku Line and is 2.7 kilometers from and ...

, is within 20 minutes walking distance, 1.7 kilometers.

History

In 1934, Urawanishi High School was founded as a female school called . The school changed its name to in 1948. In 1950, Educational Reform abolished the prior policy and restarted the school as a coed institution with the current school name, Urawanishi High School. During this period, the institution was located at the western part of Urawa-ku (former Urawa City). In 1956, the school moved to its current site, but did not change its name (which literally means Urawa Western High School), although it no longer reflected its location.

Extracurricular activities

Urawanishi's 22 varsity athletic teams and 23 other clubs offer a wide range of opportunities for extracurricular activities. In the past, the school was known for its Soccer Team, which won the national title twice in 1956 and 1965. In recent years, Japanese Archery Team and Basketball Team have won many titles at the prefectural and regional levels.

Notable alumni

Asa Higuchi is a Japanese manga artist, born in Urawa, Saitama Prefecture (now part of Saitama City). She graduated from Saitama Prefecture's prestigious Urawanishi High School and Hosei University's department of psychology, with a major in sports psy ...

manga artist A manga artist, also known as a mangaka (), is a Cartoonist, comic artist who writes and/or illustrates manga. Most manga artists study at an art college or manga school or take on an apprenticeship with another artist before entering the indus ...

* Akira Nishino, soccer player *

Ryozo Suzuki is a former Japanese football player. He played for Japan national team. Club career Suzuki was born in Saitama on September 20, 1939. After graduating from Rikkyo University, he joined Hitachi in 1962. In 1965, Hitachi joined new league Japan ...

, soccer player *

Sakura Tsukuba is a Japanese mangaka, manga artist born in Saitama Prefecture, Japan. Biography Tsukuba made her professional debut as a manga artist by winning the 'Outstanding Work' award in the 5th LaLa Mangaka Grand Prix held in 1994 for her work, . Her w ...

, manga artist * Sumika Yamamoto, manga artist *

Toshiaki Imai is a Japanese football manager and former player. Early life Imai was born in Saitama Prefecture on December 29, 1954. He is a graduate of Waseda University. Playing career Imai played for Fujitsu (later ''Kawasaki Frontale'') from 1977 to 198 ...

, soccer player

References

* http://www.urawanishi-h.spec.ed.jp/ Official school website {{Coord, 35, 53, 23.4, N, 139, 39, 13.9, E, source:jawiki_region:JP, display=title Educational institutions established in 1934 High schools in Saitama Prefecture Schools in Saitama Prefecture 1934 establishments in Japan