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Saitama (さいたま市; -shi) is the capital
city of
Saitama prefecture in
Japan. It was created by the merger of the cities of
Urawa,
Omiya, and
Yono.
As of
2003, the city has an estimated
population of 1,053,035 and a
population density of 6,255.78 persons per
km². The total area is 168.33 km².
The city was founded on
May 1,
2001 and was designated on
April 1,
2003 by
government ordinance.
The city has the following
wards:
Chuo,
Kita,
Midori,
Minami,
Minuma,
Nishi,
Omiya,
Sakura, and
Urawa.
Saitama is home to the
Urawa Reds, the popular
J-League football (soccer) team owned by
Mitsubishi. The new Saitama Stadium hosted many football games of the
2002 World Cup, including one of the semifinals.
Due to the World Cup, the Nanboku Line of the Tokyo Metro system was
extended from Akabane-Iwabuchi all the way to Urawa-Misono: however, the
name of the line changes from Nanboku to
Saitama Railway when the train passes the official boundary of Tokyo
and Saitama. The extension of the metro obviously gave a boost to the
neigborhood, and parts of Saitama are increasingly popular to live in for
people who can enjoy a 30 - 40 minute commute to central Tokyo.
Tokyo natives often refer to Saitama as "Dasaitama," a combination of
dasai (uncool) and Saitama. The Tokyo disdain for Saitama comes from
before
World War II, when Saitama was a rural area and considered to be
markedly less sophisticated than the capital.
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