Maebashi

關於Maebashi

Maebashi is the capital city of Gunma Prefecture, in the northern Kantō region of Japan. As of 31 August 2020, the city had an estimated population of 335,352 in 151,171 households, and a population density of 1100 persons per km2. The total area of the city is 311.59 km2 (120.31 sq mi). It was the most populous city within Gunma Prefecture until Takasaki merged with nearby towns between 2006 and 2009. Maebashi is known to be the "City of Water, Greenery and Poets" because of its pure waters, its rich nature and because it gave birth to several Japanese contemporary poets, such as Sakutarō Hagiwara.

The Maebashi area was called Umayabashi (厩橋) during the Nara period. This name finds its origins in the fact that there was a bridge (hashi, 橋) crossing the Tone River and not far from the bridge there was a small refreshment house with a stable (umaya, 駅家), often used by people travelling on the Tōzan-dō (the road connecting the capital to the eastern regions of Japan). The spelling was officially changed into Maebashi (前橋) in 1649 during the Edo period when Maebashi...

Overview adapted from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA. Photography via Wikimedia Commons.