Kuki, Saitama

Kuki 久喜市
City
Kuki City Hall
Flag Seal
Location of Kuki in Saitama Prefecture
Kuki
Coordinates: 36°3′43.5″N 139°40′0.5″E
Country	Japan
Region	Kantō
Prefecture	Saitama
Town Settled	April 1, 1889
City Settled	October 1, 1971
Government
• Mayor	Shūichi Umeda (from April 2018)
Area
• Total	82.41 km^2 (31.82 sq mi)
Population  (December 2010)
• Total	152,569
• Density	1,900/km^2 (4,800/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+9 (Japan Standard Time)
Phone number	0480-22-1111
Address	85-3 Shimohayami, Kuki-shi, Saitama-ken 346-8501
Climate	Cfa
Website	Official website
Symbols
Flower	Pyrus pyrifolia
Tree	Ginkgo biloba

Gongendō Park

Kuki (久喜市, Kuki-shi) is a city located in Saitama Prefecture, Japan. As of 1 December 2020^[update], the city had an estimated population of 152,569 in 67,339 households and a population density of 1900 persons per km².^[1] The total area of the city is 82.41 square kilometres (31.82 sq mi).

Geography

Kuki is located in northeastern Saitama Prefecture, approximately 50 kilometers from downtown Tokyo in the alluvial plains of the Tone River.

Surrounding municipalities

Ibaraki Prefecture

• Goka
• Koga

Saitama Prefecture

• Hasuda
• Kazo
• Kōnosu
• Miyashiro
• Okegawa
• Satte
• Shiraoka
• Sugito

Climate

Kuki has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa) characterized by warm summers and cool winters with light to no snowfall. The average annual temperature in Kuki is 14.6 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1338 mm with September as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 26.7 °C, and lowest in January, at around 3.6 °C.^[2]

Climate data for Kuki (1991−2020 normals, extremes 1977−present)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °C (°F)	18.3 (64.9)	24.2 (75.6)	26.2 (79.2)	30.7 (87.3)	34.4 (93.9)	36.1 (97.0)	38.6 (101.5)	38.9 (102.0)	37.7 (99.9)	32.7 (90.9)	25.6 (78.1)	25.0 (77.0)	38.9 (102.0)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	9.4 (48.9)	10.4 (50.7)	13.9 (57.0)	19.5 (67.1)	23.9 (75.0)	26.5 (79.7)	30.4 (86.7)	31.8 (89.2)	27.6 (81.7)	21.9 (71.4)	16.5 (61.7)	11.6 (52.9)	20.3 (68.5)
Daily mean °C (°F)	3.6 (38.5)	4.6 (40.3)	8.1 (46.6)	13.4 (56.1)	18.4 (65.1)	21.8 (71.2)	25.5 (77.9)	26.7 (80.1)	22.9 (73.2)	17.2 (63.0)	11.1 (52.0)	5.8 (42.4)	14.9 (58.9)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	−1.6 (29.1)	−0.7 (30.7)	2.6 (36.7)	7.7 (45.9)	13.6 (56.5)	18.0 (64.4)	21.9 (71.4)	22.9 (73.2)	19.2 (66.6)	13.0 (55.4)	6.1 (43.0)	0.6 (33.1)	10.3 (50.5)
Record low °C (°F)	−9.4 (15.1)	−10.6 (12.9)	−4.6 (23.7)	−2.0 (28.4)	3.7 (38.7)	10.6 (51.1)	14.1 (57.4)	14.9 (58.8)	9.0 (48.2)	3.2 (37.8)	−2.9 (26.8)	−6.7 (19.9)	−10.6 (12.9)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	43.2 (1.70)	38.6 (1.52)	82.0 (3.23)	99.5 (3.92)	124.2 (4.89)	142.7 (5.62)	147.3 (5.80)	146.8 (5.78)	199.2 (7.84)	190.9 (7.52)	65.4 (2.57)	41.6 (1.64)	1,321.4 (52.02)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm)	3.9	4.8	8.5	9.2	10.3	11.6	11.6	8.4	11.3	10.1	6.3	4.3	100.3
Mean monthly sunshine hours	204.3	191.0	191.5	188.7	187.6	132.4	150.8	178.6	136.3	140.9	162.1	186.0	2,050.2
Source: JMA[3][4]

Demographics

Per Japanese census data,^[5] the population of Kuki has recently plateaued after a long period of growth.

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±%
1950	59,114	—
1960	60,409	+2.2%
1970	74,477	+23.3%
1980	114,920	+54.3%
1990	141,400	+23.0%
2000	154,292	+9.1%
2010	154,310	+0.0%
2020	150,582	−2.4%

History

During the Sengoku period, the Koga kubō Ashikaga Masauji retired to the temple of Kantō-in, which is located within what is now Kuki. During the Edo period, Kuki Domain (10,000 koku) under the control of the Yonekitsu clan existed from 1684 to 1798. The town of Kuki was created within Minamisaitama District, Saitama with the establishment of the modern municipalities system on April 1, 1889. On July 1, 1954, Kuki merged with the neighboring villages of Ota, Ezura and Kiyoku. Kuki was elevated to city status on October 1, 1971. On March 23, 2010, Kuki absorbed the town of Shōbu (Minamisaitama District), and the towns of Kurihashi and Washimiya (both from Kitakatsushika District).^[6]

Government

Kuki has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral city council of 27 members. Kuki contributes two members to the Saitama Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city is divided between the Saitama 13th district and Saitama 14th districts of the lower house of the Diet of Japan.

Economy

Kuki remains primarily an agricultural area, with rice as the predominant crop. The city has three industrial parks.

Education

• Tokyo University of Science has a campus at Kuki.
• Kuki has 23 public elementary schools and 11 public middle schools operated by the city government, and five public high schools operated by the Saitama Prefectural Board of Education. The prefecture also operates one special education school for the handicapped.

Transportation

Railway

JR East – Utsunomiya Line (Tōhoku Main Line),

• Kuki – Higashi-Washinomiya – Kurihashi

Tōbu Railway – Tōbu Isesaki Line

• Kuki – Washinomiya

Tōbu Railway – Tōbu Nikkō Line

• Kurihashi – Minami-Kurihashi

Highway

• Ken-Ō Expressway – Shobu Parking Area – Kuki-Shiraoka Junction
• Tōhoku Expressway – Kuki-Shiraoka Junction – Kuki Interchange
• National Route 4
• National Route 122
• National Route 125

Local attractions

The city is famous as the setting of anime series Lucky Star and The Fruit of Grisaia, bringing thousands of anime tourists to see Washinomiya Shrine each year.^[7]

Sister cities

• Roseburg, Oregon, United States^[8]

References

1. "Kuki city official statistics" (in Japanese). Japan.
2. Kuki climate data
3. 観測史上1～10位の値（年間を通じての値）. JMA. Retrieved February 26, 2022.
4. 気象庁 / 平年値（年・月ごとの値）. JMA. Retrieved February 26, 2022.
5. Kuki population statistics
6. [1] Archived 2008-04-18 at the Wayback Machine Japanese government site
7. "Washinomiya Promotes The Fruit of Grisaia in New Year's Festival". Anime News Network. Retrieved 2018-10-09.
8. "International Exchange". List of Affiliation Partners within Prefectures. Council of Local Authorities for International Relations (CLAIR). Archived from the original on 4 January 2016. Retrieved 21 November 2015.

External links

• Official Website (in Japanese)
• Kuki-citizen website (in Japanese)