Fukaya, Saitama

Fukaya (深谷市, Fukaya-shi) is a city located in northern Saitama Prefecture, Japan. In the Edo era, it was an inn-town on the Nakasendō (中山道), and grew during this period. It is in the prefecture's leading agricultural area, and claims to be the largest producer of welsh onions or negi (ネギ) in Japan. Fukaya-negi are famous. Shibusawa Eiichi, the founder of the first national bank in Japan, was born here. Akagi Nyugyo is a large ice cream company based in Fukaya. They make the famous Gari-Gari-kun ice-pop that tastes like soda, or other flavors. Takinomiya Jinja is a large Shinto shrine in Fukaya. The city was founded on January 1, 1955.

As of 2006, the city has an estimated population of 147,915 and a population density of 1,075 persons per km². The total area is 137.58 km².

On January 1, 2006, the towns of Hanazono, Kawamoto and Okabe (all from Ōsato District) were merged into Fukaya.

Transportation