Saitama

The name Saitama originally comes from the Sakitama District (埼玉郡) of what is now the city of Gyōda in the northern part of what is now known as Saitama Prefecture. Sakitama has an ancient history and is mentioned in the famous 8th century poetry anthology Man'yōshū. The pronunciation has changed from Sakitama to Saitama over the years. With the 2001 merger of Urawa, Ōmiya, and Yono, it was decided that a new name, one fitting for this newly created prefectural capital, was needed. The prefectural name "Saitama" (埼玉県) was changed from kanji into hiragana, thus Saitama City (さいたま市) was born. It is the only prefectural capital in Japan whose name is always written in hiragana, and belongs to the list of hiragana cities. However, Saitama written in hiragana (さいたま市) actually finished in second place in public polling to Saitama written in kanji (埼玉市). …

The city was founded on May 1, 2001, and was designated on April 1, 2003 as a government ordinance. For the histories of Urawa, Ōmiya and Yono before the merger, see: Urawa-ku, Saitama Ōmiya-ku, Saitama and Yono, Saitama, respectively. On April 1, 2005, Saitama absorbed the city of Iwatsuki to its east, which became a new ward, Iwatsuki-ku. The city evaded the major impact of the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami.

The city is located 20 to 30 km north of central Tokyo, roughly at the center of the Kantō Plain. Situated in the southeast of Saitama Prefecture, the city is topographically comprised by lowlands and plateaus, at mostly less than 20 m above sea level, with no mountain ranges or hills within the city boundaries. The western portion of the city lies on the lowland created by the Arakawa River along with those created by small rivers such as the Moto-Arakawa River, Shiba River, and Ayase River. The rest of the area mostly resides on the Ōmiya Plateau lying in the north-south direction. Dispersed in this region, major rivers flow southward, almost paralleling to one another. …

Mejiro University Nihon University Faculty of Law Nippon Institute of Technology The Open University of Japan Omiya Study Center Saitama University Shibaura Institute of Technology University of Human Arts and Sciences Urawa University Kokusai Gakuin Saitama Junior College Urawa University Junior College Omiya Law School Saitama Prefectural Board of Education operates prefectural high schools. The following municipal high schools are operated by the city: Saitama Municipal Ohmiya International Secondary School Saitama Municipal Omiya Kita High School Saitama Municipal Urawa Junior and Senior High School Saitama Municipal Urawa Minami High School Saitama was one of the host cities for the playoffs and the final of the official 2006 Basketball World Championship. It is home to two J. …

Saitama's economy is principally constituted by commercial business. The city is one of many commercial centers of the Greater Tokyo area and serves Saitama Prefecture, North Kanto, and northeast Honshu. Saitama is also home to various manufacturers, exporting automotive (Honda manufactures the Honda Legend at Sayama Plant), food, optical, precision and pharmaceutical products. Calsonic Kansei, a global automotive company is headquartered in the city. Iwatsuki is famous for manufacturing of hinamatsuri dolls and ornate kabuto (samurai helmets).

Akigase Park Besshonuma Park Hikawa Shrine Irumagawa stable Minuma Rice Paddies Minuma Tsūsen-bori Ōmiya Bonsai Village Railway Museum Saitama Museum of Modern Art Saitama New Urban Center Saitama Stadium 2002 Saitama Super Arena