Chōfu, Tokyo

Chōfu (調布市, Chōfu-shi) is a city in the Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. As of 1 February 2016, the city had an estimated population of 228,663, and a population density of 10,590 per km². Its total area is 21.58 square kilometres (8.33 sq mi).

Chōfu 調布市
City
Chōfu City Hall
Flag Seal
Location of Chōfu in Tokyo Metropolis
Chōfu
Coordinates: 35°39′2.21″N 139°32′26.4″E
Country	Japan
Region	Kantō
Prefecture	Tokyo Metropolis
Government
• Mayor	Yoshiki Nagatomo (since July 2002)
Area
• Total	21.58 km^2 (8.33 sq mi)
Population  (February 2016)
• Total	228,633
• Density	10,590/km^2 (27,400/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+9 (Japan Standard Time)
City symbols
• Tree	Cinnamomum camphora
• Flower	Lagerstroemia indica
• Bird	Japanese white-eye
Phone number	042-481-7111
Address	2-35-1 Kojima-cho, Chōfu-shi, Tokyo-to 182-8511
Website	www.city.chofu.tokyo.jp

Ajinomoto Stadium

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government Jindai Botanical Garden

Geography

Chōfu is approximately in the south-center of Tokyo Metropolis, approximately 20 kilometers west from downtown Tokyo, on the Musashino Terrace bordered by the floodplains of the Tama River and the Iruma River.

Surrounding municipalities

• Tokyo Metropolis
  • Setagaya-ku
  • Mitaka
  • Fuchu
  • Koganei
  • Komae
  • Inagi
• Kanagawa Prefecture
  • Kawasaki

History

The area of present-day Chōfu has been inhabited since Japanese Paleolithic times, and numerous remains from the Jōmon, Yayoi and Kofun periods have been discovered. During the Nara period, it became part of ancient Musashi Province. During the Sengoku period, the area was frequently contested between the Later Hōjō clan and Uesugi clan. During the Edo period, the area prospered as a post station on the Kōshū Kaidō and as a center for sericulture.

The in post-Meiji Restoration cadastral reform of April 1, 1889, Chōfu Town and neighboring Jindai Village were established within Kanagawa Prefecture. The entire district was transferred to the control of Tokyo Metropolis on April 1, 1893. Jindai was elevated to town status on November 3, 1952, and merged with Chōfu Town on April 1, 1955, to form the present city of Chōfu.

Economy

Chōfu is primarily a regional commercial center, and a bedroom community for central Tokyo. The headquarters of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) are also located in the city.

Transportation

Railway

• Keiō Line
  • Sengawa – Tsutsujigaoka – Shibasaki – Kokuryō – Fuda – Chōfu – Nishi-Chōfu – tobitakyū
• Keiō Sagamihara Line
  • Chōfu – Keiō-tamagawa

Highway

• Kōshū Kaidō (Japan National Route 20)
• Chūō Expressway

Airport

• Chofu Airport

Education

Colleges and universities:

• University of Electro-Communications
• Tokyo University of Foreign Studies
• Toho Gakuen School of Music
• Shirayuri Women's University
• Jikei University School of Medicine

Primary and secondary education

• Chōfu has 20 public and two private elementary schools, eight public and three private middle schools and four public and three private high schools.
• The American School in Japan also has a campus.

Local attractions

• Jindai Botanical Garden
• Jindai Temple
• Nogawa Park
• Tokyo Stadium (commonly known as Ajinomoto Stadium) in Chōfu hosts soccer games for two J.League teams: FC Tokyo and Tokyo Verdy.

Every July, Chōfu hosts the Chōfu City Fireworks Festival, attended by as many as 300,000 people along the banks of the Tamagawa River. The tiny Fuda Station on the Keio Line is inundated on this one day with tens of thousands of visitors.

Chōfu has a large cultural centre that supports many groups encouraging the integration of foreigners into Japanese society, providing free Japanese, Shodo, Ikebana, Karate (and many other) lessons.

There is a park and memorial hall commemorating the life of novelist Mushanokōji Saneatsu, a former resident of Chōfu.

For the 1964 Summer Olympics, the city served as part of the route for the athletic 50-kilometer walk and marathon events.[1]

Notable people from Chōfu

• Kondō Isami – Bakumatsu period samurai, born in the village of Kami-Ishihara in Musashi Province, now modern Chōfu
• Shigeru Mizuki – cartoonist, born in Sakaiminato, Tottori but lived in Chofu for roughly 50 years
• Saneatsu Mushanokōji – novelist, playwright, poet
• Shutaro Oku – director
• Junji Takada – actor

References

1. 1964 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 2. Part 1. pp. 74-5.

External links

• Chōfu City Official Website (in Japanese)