Namegawa (滑川町, Namegawa-machi) is a town located in Saitama Prefecture, Japan. As of 1 January 2021[update], the town had an estimated population of 19,594 in 8029 households and a population density of 660 persons per km2.[1] The total area of the town is 29.68 square kilometres (11.46 sq mi).
Geography
Namegawa is located in a hilly region of central Saitama Prefecture, approximately 60 kilometers from central Tokyo. The city measures 7.2 kilometers from north-to-south by 4.8 kilometers from east-to-west, and consists of a mixture of plateaus and hills, with an elevation of 30 to 130 meters above sea level. The Wada River runs near the border with Kumagaya at the northern end of the town, the Ichino River runs in the southern part of the town, and Namegawa (after which the town is named) runs almost through the center.
Namegawa has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa) characterized by warm summers and cool winters with light to no snowfall. The average annual temperature in Namegawa is 14.3 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1746 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 26.0 °C, and lowest in January, at around 2.7 °C.[2]
Demographics
Per Japanese census data,[3] the population of Namegawa has increased by roughly 150 percent over the past half century.
Historical population
Year
Pop.
±%
1920
6,545
—
1930
6,924
+5.8%
1940
7,130
+3.0%
1950
8,418
+18.1%
1960
7,785
−7.5%
1970
7,505
−3.6%
1980
9,295
+23.9%
1990
11,566
+24.4%
2000
12,836
+11.0%
2010
17,323
+35.0%
2020
19,732
+13.9%
History
The village of Namegawa was created on November 3, 1954 by the merger of the villages of Fukuda and Miyamae in Hiki District, Saitama. It was elevated to town status on November 3, 1984. Proposals to merge Namegawa with one or more of its neighbors have been made in 2003, 2004, 2007 and 2008 without success.
Government
Namegawa has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral town council of 14 members. Namegawa, together with the towns of Ranzan, Ogawa and Tokigawa, contributes one member to the Saitama Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the town is part of Saitama 10th district of the lower house of the Diet of Japan.
Economy
The economy of Namegawa is largely agricultural, although it is also a bedroom community to a significant percentage of the working population, who commute to nearby Saitama City or Tokyo.
Education
Namegawa has three public elementary schools and one public middle school operated by the town government, and one public high school operated by the Saitama Prefectural Board of Education.
