Echizen, Fukui

For the town located in Nyū District, Fukui, Japan, see Echizen, Fukui (town).

Template:Infobox City Japan Echizen (越前市, Echizen-shi) is a city located in Fukui, Japan.

As of August 1, 2008, the city has an estimated population of 86,562 and the density of 375 persons per km². The total area is 230.75 km².

Echizen has several large electronics and apparel factories, but it is known for the large number of small businesses that flourish there; indeed, the local joke that everyone in town addresses each other as "shacho" ("company president") is almost true. Echizen is home to a small but vibrant community of Brazilians, who mostly work in a ceramic capacitor factory, and a smaller Chinese community, largely linked to the garment industry. A large contingency of foreign English teachers also lives in Echizen teaching at local High schools, middle schools,and elementary schools. These foreigners can most easily be found at their local haunts, Matsuri Sushi, Tom's Toast, and various other restaurants around town.

History

Echizen city was incorporated in its present form on October 1, 2005, when the city of Takefu and the town of Imadate (from Imadate District) merged to form the new city, although it has been an important regional center for over 1500 years. It has two former castle sites and some prehistoric archeological sites. Echizen is known for its well over 300 shrines and temples. It was the home (for a year) of Murasaki Shikibu, the celebrated author of The Tale of Genji. Her father was governor of the Heian province of Echizen.

Famous Places

• Murasaki Shikibu Park
• Echizen Village, containing the old Taniguchi house, a National Treasure
• Echizen Washi Village
• Kojirou Park
• Kakio Park
• Takefu Knife Village
• Shikibu Public Spa
• Warehouse Street
• Teramachi Street
• Takefu Memorial Hall
• Komaru Castle Ruins
• Otaki Shrine, a national treasure
• Oshio Hachiman Shrine, a national treasure
• Omushi Shrine, a national treasure
• Okafuto Shrine
• Ryuuzenji Temple
• Insetsu Temple
• Ryuumonji Temple
• Goushouji Temple
• Joufukuji Temple Garden
• Honpojinya Ruins
• Minowaki no Tokimizu, one of Japan's 100 best views
• Murakuni Mountain, one of Japan's 100 best night views
• Uno Tea Ceremony Museum

Festivals & Events

• Echizen Manzai, one of Japan's National folk customs
• The Takefu International Music Festival
• Takefu Chrysanthemum Dolls exhibition, ranked among Japan's top 3 chrysanthemum dolls
• Takefu Summer Festival
• Souja Daijingu Festival
• Onigadake Fire Festival
• Mt. Hino Festival
• Imadate Exhibition of Contemporary Paper Art Works
• International Tannan Art Festival
• Tannan Industrial Crafts Fair

Specialty Products

Local Foods

• Echizen soba
• Echizen crab
• Habutae mochi and Habutae maki, a kind of Japanese sweet
• Satsukigase, a Japanese cookie
• Mizuyoukan, a Japanese sweet
• Kenkera, an old-fashioned Japanese sweet
• Volga rice, a pork cutlet on a rice omelet meant to look like a boat carrying packages on the Volga river in Russia
• Chrysanthemum soft cream and wine

Traditional Crafts

• Echizen washi
• Echizen cutlery
• Chrysanthemum dolls

Famous People

• Murasaki Shikibu, novelist, poet, author of one of the earliest novels in human history
• Keizan, one of the great founders of Sōtō Zen Buddhism
• Hiromoto (Kouki) Watanabe, governor of Tokyo and founder of Tokyo University
• Kinya Machimura, businessman and statesman
• Chihiro Iwasaki, children's book illustrator
• Ichibei Iwano, a paper maker and Living National Treasure
• Ryoichi Ikegami, manga artist
• Michiko Neya, voice acress
• Makara Naotaka, samurai
• Sasaki Kojirō, swordsman
• Machi Tawara, writer, translator, and poet
• Masatoki Minami (Fumitoshi Koshinaka), travel writer and railway photographer
• Hiroki Furuichi, member of THE LOOSE DOGS
• Akihisa Makida - professional baseball player on the Rakuten Golden Eagles
• Nobutoshi Shimada, professional baseball player on the Nippon Ham Fighters
• Yuka Amaya, freelance announcer

Images

• 
  A neighborhood called Kyomachi in the center of the city
• 
  Nishitakefu Station on the Fukui Railroad
• 
  Takefu-Shin Station on the Fukui Railroad
• 
  Mt. Hino during cherry blossom season
• 
  Takefu Chrysanthemum Doll Festival

External links

Media related to Echizen, Fukui at Wikimedia Commons

• Official homepage (in Japanese)