Funabashi

Coordinates: 35°41′40.4″N 139°58′57.2″E / 35.694556°N 139.982556°E / 35.694556; 139.982556
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Funabashi
船橋市
Chiba Port (Funabashi Port)) View from Tsudanuma Station Funabashi Station Funabashi H. C. Andersen Park Funabashi Ōmiya Jinja lighthouse Funabashi Face Building LaLaport Tokyo-Bay Wakamiya Housing from Minami-Funabashi Station
Chiba Port (Funabashi Port))
View from Tsudanuma Station Funabashi Station
Funabashi H. C. Andersen Park Funabashi Ōmiya Jinja lighthouse Funabashi Face Building
LaLaport Tokyo-Bay Wakamiya Housing from Minami-Funabashi Station
Flag of Funabashi
Official seal of Funabashi
Map
Location of Funabashi in Chiba Prefecture]
Location of Funabashi
Funabashi is located in Japan
Funabashi
Funabashi
 
Coordinates: 35°41′40.4″N 139°58′57.2″E / 35.694556°N 139.982556°E / 35.694556; 139.982556
CountryJapan
RegionKantō
PrefectureChiba
First official recorded110 AD
City SettledApril 1, 1937
Government
 • MayorToru Matsudo
Area
 • Total85.62 km2 (33.06 sq mi)
Population
 (December 1, 2020)
 • Total644,668
 • Density7,500/km2 (20,000/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+9 (Japan Standard Time)
Postal code(s)
273 or 274
Area code047-4
Phone number047-436-2111
Address2-10-25 Minato-cho, Funabashi-shi, 273-8501
ClimateCfa
WebsiteOfficial website
Symbols
FlowerCamellia sasanqua
TreeCamellia sasanqua
Funabashi City Hall

Funabashi (船橋市, Funabashi-shi) is a city located in Chiba Prefecture, Japan. As of 1 December 2020, the city had an estimated population of 644,668 in 309,238 households and a population density of 7,500 inhabitants per square kilometre (19,000/sq mi).[1] The total area of the city is 85.62 square kilometres (33.06 sq mi). It is the Greater Tokyo Area's 7th most populated city (after passing Kawaguchi, Hachioji and Chiba), and second largest in Chiba Prefecture.

Geography[edit]

Funabashi is located in northwestern Chiba Prefecture approximately 20 kilometers in either direction from the prefectural capital at Chiba and downtown Tokyo. The central area forms a flat diluvial upland of the Shimōsa Plateau. The city sits at an elevation of 20 to 30 meters above sea level, and is relatively flat. The highest point is 32.3 meters in Narashino 3-chome, and the lowest point is 0.2 meters in Minatomachi 1-chome. Funabashi is crossed by the Tone River, and the small Ebi River is located entirely within city limits. Funabashi formerly had wide, shallow beaches, but much of the coast has been industrialized and transformed by reclaimed land. The city extends for 13.86 kilometers east–west and 14.95 kilometers north–south.

Neighboring municipalities[edit]

Chiba Prefecture

Climate[edit]

Funabashi has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa) characterized by warm summers and cool winters with light to no snowfall. The average annual temperature in Funabashi is 15.5 °C (59.9 °F). The average annual rainfall is 1,466.1 mm (57.72 in) with October as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 26.8 °C (80.2 °F), and lowest in January, at around 4.8 °C (40.6 °F).[2]

Climate data for Funabashi (1999−2020 normals, extremes 1999−present)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 18.6
(65.5)
24.7
(76.5)
24.5
(76.1)
27.1
(80.8)
33.2
(91.8)
34.8
(94.6)
38.0
(100.4)
39.0
(102.2)
35.6
(96.1)
32.2
(90.0)
25.2
(77.4)
23.5
(74.3)
39.0
(102.2)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 9.5
(49.1)
10.3
(50.5)
13.8
(56.8)
18.7
(65.7)
23.1
(73.6)
25.9
(78.6)
29.7
(85.5)
31.3
(88.3)
27.5
(81.5)
21.9
(71.4)
16.7
(62.1)
11.7
(53.1)
20.0
(68.0)
Daily mean °C (°F) 4.8
(40.6)
5.7
(42.3)
9.0
(48.2)
13.8
(56.8)
18.5
(65.3)
21.6
(70.9)
25.4
(77.7)
26.8
(80.2)
23.4
(74.1)
17.8
(64.0)
12.2
(54.0)
7.1
(44.8)
15.5
(59.9)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 0.4
(32.7)
1.4
(34.5)
4.4
(39.9)
9.3
(48.7)
14.5
(58.1)
18.4
(65.1)
22.4
(72.3)
23.7
(74.7)
20.2
(68.4)
14.3
(57.7)
8.2
(46.8)
2.8
(37.0)
11.7
(53.0)
Record low °C (°F) −5.4
(22.3)
−4.7
(23.5)
−2.0
(28.4)
−0.6
(30.9)
7.4
(45.3)
10.7
(51.3)
15.7
(60.3)
16.6
(61.9)
9.5
(49.1)
6.0
(42.8)
−1.1
(30.0)
−3.6
(25.5)
−5.4
(22.3)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 63.0
(2.48)
61.4
(2.42)
103.0
(4.06)
114.5
(4.51)
129.8
(5.11)
155.3
(6.11)
121.9
(4.80)
111.4
(4.39)
189.7
(7.47)
239.9
(9.44)
97.4
(3.83)
63.3
(2.49)
1,466.1
(57.72)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) 4.9 6.2 9.5 10.0 10.2 11.7 9.8 7.8 10.9 10.9 8.4 5.9 106.2
Mean monthly sunshine hours 192.0 166.0 182.8 185.3 185.3 128.0 162.6 194.1 143.8 137.7 145.9 177.3 1,999.9
Source: Japan Meteorological Agency[3][2]

Demographics[edit]

Per Japanese census data,[4] the population of Funabashi has increased rapidly over the past century.

Historical population
YearPop.±%
1920 34,119—    
1930 46,644+36.7%
1940 61,624+32.1%
1950 100,134+62.5%
1960 135,038+34.9%
1970 325,426+141.0%
1980 497,439+52.9%
1990 533,270+7.2%
2000 550,074+3.2%
2010 609,040+10.7%
2020 642,907+5.6%

History[edit]

The name "Funabashi" is mentioned in the Kamakura period chronicle Azuma Kagami. However, the name itself is even more ancient, dating from before the Nara period and the Yamatotakeru mythology. Archaeologists have found stone tools from the Japanese Paleolithic period and shell middens from the Jōmon period in the area, indicating continuous inhabitation for thousands of years. A number of Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples in the area claim to have been founded in the Nara period or Heian period. During the Muromachi periods, the area was controlled by the Chiba clan. During the Sengoku period, the Chiba clan fought the Satomi clan to the south, and the Late Hōjō clan to the west. After the defeat of the Chiba clan, the area came within the control of Tokugawa Ieyasu.[citation needed]

Under the Tokugawa shogunate, the area prospered as a post town on the river crossing of the Tone River, and was largely retained as tenryō under the direct control of the Shogunate and administered through a number of hatamoto. The area was also a favored hunting grounds for the Shōgun. During the Boshin War of the Meiji Restoration, Funabashi was the location of a minor skirmish between Tokugawa loyalists under Enomoto Takeaki and the pro-Imperial forces of Okayama Domain and Satsuma Domain, during which most of the town burned down.[citation needed]

After the abolition of the han system, the area eventually became part of Chiba Prefecture. Funabashi Town was one of several towns and villages created on April 1, 1889, under Inba District with the establishment of the modern municipalities system. The area developed rapidly due to its proximity to Tokyo and the presence of numerous military facilities in the area. On April 1, 1937, Funabashi was elevated to city status through merger with neighboring Katsushika Town and Yasakae, Hoden and Tsukada Villages. The new city was host to numerous military installations in World War II, and was bombed in the air raids on Japan in 1945.[citation needed]

The city developed rapidly in the postwar period, with the development of industries, public housing developments and port facilities. With the annexation of neighboring Ninomiya Town in 1953, the population exceeded 100,000. The population exceeded 300,000 in 1969 and 500,000 in 1982. Funabashi was designated a core city on April 1, 2005, with increased local autonomy from the central government. The population exceeded 600,000 in 2006.[citation needed]

Government[edit]

Funabashi has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral city council of 50 members. Funabashi contributes seven members to the Chiba Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city is divided between the Chiba 4th district and the Chiba 13th districtof the lower house of the Diet of Japan.

Economy[edit]

Funabashi is a regional commercial center and, due to its numerous train connections, a bedroom community for nearby Chiba and Tokyo. Approximately 34.5% of the working population commutes to Tokyo, per the 2015 census.

Companies from Funabashi[edit]

Education[edit]

  • Nihon University branch campus
  • Funabashi has 54 public elementary schools and 27 public middle schools operated by the city government, and 11 public high schools operated by the Chiba Prefectural Board of Education. There are also one private elementary school, one private middle school and four private high schools. The prefecture also operates one special education school for the handicapped.

Transportation[edit]

Railway[edit]

JR EastMusashino Line

JR EastKeiyō Line

JR EastChūō-Sōbu Line

Keisei Electric Railway - Keisei Main Line

Shin-Keisei Electric Railway - Shin-Keisei Line

Hokusō Railway -Hokusō Line

Tobu RailwayTobu Noda Line

Tōyō Rapid Railway - Tōyō Rapid Line

Tokyo Metro Tōzai Line

Highway[edit]

Sister city relations[edit]

Local attractions[edit]

Notable structures[edit]

Notable places [edit]

Notable people from Funabashi[edit]

Eponym[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Funabashi city official statistics" (in Japanese). Japan.
  2. ^ a b 気象庁 / 平年値(年・月ごとの値). JMA. Retrieved April 3, 2022.
  3. ^ 観測史上1~10位の値(年間を通じての値). JMA. Retrieved April 3, 2022.
  4. ^ Funabashi population statistics
  5. ^ a b "International Exchange". List of Affiliation Partners within Prefectures. Council of Local Authorities for International Relations (CLAIR). Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 21 November 2015.

External links[edit]