Shōwa, Yamanashi Prefecture, Chūbu Region, Japan

🇯🇵 Shōwa (昭和町) is a town located in Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan. As of 31 May 2019, the town had an estimated population density of 2200 per km². The total area of the town is 9.08 square km (3.51 sq mi).

Geography Shōwa is located in central Yamanashi Prefecture, south-west of Kōfu, the prefectural capital. Japan National Route 20 marks the boundary with Kōfu. Shōwa-dōri is the main road that runs through the middle of Shōwa, despite being called Shōwa Bypass by residents of the town. The Chūō Expressway also cuts over Shōwa running from north to south. The town is part of the greater Kōfu urban area and many "Kōfu" branches of businesses are in fact in Showa, for instance Aeon mall and Toho cinema. The border between Kōfu and Shōwa is heavily built up and indistinct.

Neighboring municipalities Yamanashi Prefecture • Minami-Alps • Chūō • Kōfu • Kai.

Demographics Per Japanese census data, the population of Shōwa has grown rapidly over the past 50 years.

History The area of present-day Shōwa was part of a shōen in the late Heian period controlled by Minamoto no Yoshikiyo, the ancestor of the Takeda clan. In the Edo period, along with the rest of Kai Province, the area was tenryō territory controlled directly by the Tokugawa shogunate. After the Meiji restoration, the area was organized into villages within Nakakoma District, Yamanashi with the establishment of the modern municipalities system on July 1, 1889. Shōwa village was established in 1942 by the merger of Saijō, Jōei and Oshihara villages within Nakakoma District. The village was elevated to town status in June 1971.

Education Shōwa has three elementary Schools (Jōei, Oshihara and Saijōo) and one junior high school (Oshihara) operated by the town government, and one public high school operated by the Yamanashi Prefectural Board of Education. The local town promotes adult night classes and classes for pensioners. These include Japanese language for foreign residents.

Transport: Rail • Central Japan Railway Company - Minobu Line; ◦ Jōei - Kokubo

Transport: Road • Chūō Expressway