Fukushima · Core city
Koriyama
郡山市こおりやましKōriyama-shiRail crossroads, canal city and self-styled capital of music
Koriyama is the economic centre of Fukushima Prefecture and its main transport crossroads, a core city on the Asaka plain of central Nakadori that grew from a post town into a modern city after the Asaka Canal brought water from Lake Inawashiro in 1882.
Overview
Koriyama lies at the centre of Fukushima Prefecture, where the north–south corridor of the Tohoku Shinkansen and Tohoku Expressway meets the east–west routes linking Aizu and the Sea of Japan side with Iwaki on the Pacific. This position has made it the prefecture's commercial and logistics hub and one of its two largest cities, larger than the prefectural capital.
The city is a product of Meiji-era development. Until the 1870s the Asaka plain was dry upland of little agricultural value; the settlement of Kaisei-zan and the construction of the Asaka Canal, one of the major national public works of early modern Japan, turned it into rice land and laid the basis for industry. Today the city stretches west as far as the shore of Lake Inawashiro and the hot springs of Bandai-Atami.
Koriyama calls itself a city of music: its school choirs and brass bands are regular prize-winners at national competitions, and concerts and music education are central to civic life.
Landmarks
Kaiseizan Park
開成山公園Kaiseizan KōenPark laid out around a reservoir of the development era, planted with cherry trees; the city's main spot for hanami, next to Kaisei-zan Daijingu shrine.
Kaiseikan
開成館KaiseikanThree-storey pseudo-Western building of 1874, once the office of the Asaka development; now a museum of the canal and the settlement of the plain.
Asaka Canal
安積疏水Asaka SosuiCanal system drawing water from Lake Inawashiro through the mountains to the Asaka plain; part of the Japan Heritage story of the Asaka development.
Big-i
ビッグアイBiggu AiHigh-rise beside the station housing the Koriyama City Fureai Science Center with its planetarium and observation floor.
Koriyama City Museum of Art
郡山市立美術館Kōriyama Shiritsu BijutsukanMuseum in wooded grounds in the south of the city, with British art and Japanese modern art linked to the region.
Asaka-yama
安積山Asaka-yamaLow hill in the Hiwada district, named in a poem of the Man'yoshu anthology and linked to the legend of the court lady Uneme.
Nunobiki Plateau
布引高原Nunobiki KōgenUpland above Lake Inawashiro with a wind farm and summer fields of sunflowers and cosmos.
Districts
Station and city centre
Commercial centre around Koriyama Station and Big-i, with department stores, arcades and the main bus terminal.
Kaisei-zan area
開成KaiseiWest of the centre: the Meiji settlement with Kaiseizan Park, the Kaiseikan, the city hall and concert and sports facilities.
Bandai-Atami Onsen
磐梯熱海温泉Bandai-Atami OnsenHot-spring town in the west along the Gohyaku River, linked to the legend of Princess Hagi, who was cured by its water.
Konan and Lake Inawashiro
湖南KonanRural south-western area on the southern shore of Lake Inawashiro, with beaches, farms and the Nunobiki Plateau.
History
In the Edo period Koriyama was a post town on the Oshu Kaido highway within the Nihonmatsu domain, and a market for the surrounding villages. After the Meiji Restoration, Fukushima Prefecture and local merchants began developing the Asaka plain, founding the Kaisei-zan settlement in the early 1870s. The national government then took up the project: former samurai from several domains, among them Kurume and Tottori, were settled on the plain, and the Asaka Canal was dug to bring water from Lake Inawashiro through the Ou Mountains.
The arrival of the railway in 1887 and the Ban'etsu lines to Aizu and Iwaki made Koriyama a junction; spinning mills, chemical works and hydroelectric power followed. The city was incorporated in 1924, expanded greatly through a merger in 1965 and became a core city in 1997. After the 2011 earthquake it served as a major base for evacuees from the coast.
Edo period
Koriyama-juku develops as a post town on the Oshu Kaido in the Nihonmatsu domain.
1873
Founding of the Kaisei-sha development company and the Kaisei-zan settlement on the Asaka plain.
1874
Completion of the Kaiseikan, a Western-style building for the development project.
1879–1882
Construction of the Asaka Canal, bringing water from Lake Inawashiro; former samurai from several domains settle the plain.
1887
The railway reaches Koriyama, followed by lines to Aizu and the Pacific coast.
1924
Koriyama is incorporated as a city.
1965
Merger with surrounding towns and villages extends the city to Lake Inawashiro.
1982
The Tohoku Shinkansen begins serving Koriyama.
1997
Koriyama is designated a core city.
Culture
Music is Koriyama's civic signature: school choirs, brass bands and orchestras are strong, concert halls are well used, and the city presents itself as the "capital of music" (gakuto). The Meiji settlement is also remembered through the Japan Heritage story of the Asaka development, which links the canal, the Kaiseikan and the pioneers who came from distant domains. Summer brings the Uneme festival, rooted in an ancient poem and legend of the Asaka district.
Festivals
Uneme Festival
うねめまつりUneme MatsuriSummer festival in early August with thousands of dancers, based on the legend of Uneme, a court lady associated with the Asaka-yama poem of the Man'yoshu.
Cherry blossoms at Kaiseizan Park
開成山公園の桜Kaiseizan Kōen no sakuraIn mid-April the park's avenues of cherry trees become the city's main place for hanami, with evening illuminations.
Food
Carp dishes
鯉料理koi ryōriCarp raised in reservoirs of the Asaka plain, served simmered in sweet soy (umani), as sliced arai or in miso soup; the city promotes carp as its local food.
Usukawa manju
薄皮饅頭usukawa manjūSteamed buns with a thin brown-sugar skin and sweet bean paste, made by a Koriyama confectioner since the mid-nineteenth century.
Mamador
ままどおるmamadōruSoft baked cake with a milky filling, one of the best-known souvenir sweets of Fukushima.
Asaka rice
あさか舞Asaka maiKoshihikari and other rice grown on the canal-irrigated Asaka plain.
Getting around
- Koriyama Station is served by the Tohoku Shinkansen, about 80 minutes from Tokyo and about 40 minutes from Sendai.
- Conventional lines radiate from the station: the Tohoku Main Line north and south, the Ban'etsu West Line to Aizu-Wakamatsu, the Ban'etsu East Line to Iwaki and the Suigun Line towards Mito.
- The Tohoku and Ban-etsu expressways meet near the city; highway buses connect with Tokyo, Sendai, Niigata and Aizu.
- Fukushima Airport lies about 40 minutes south-east by road; local buses serve the city centre and Bandai-Atami Onsen.
Day trips
Miharu Takizakura
三春滝桜Miharu TakizakuraWeeping cherry in Miharu, more than a thousand years old, a National Natural Monument counted among Japan's three great cherry trees; in bloom in mid- to late April.
Abukuma Cave
あぶくま洞Abukuma-dōLimestone cave with stalactite halls in the Abukuma Highlands in Tamura.
Sukagawa
須賀川SukagawaNeighbouring city with a large peony garden and the birthplace of special-effects pioneer Tsuburaya Eiji, creator of Ultraman.
- 猪苗代湖Inawashiro-ko
Large lake at the foot of Mount Bandai, source of the Asaka Canal.
Castle town of the Aizu domain, a little over an hour by the Ban'etsu West Line.
Other cities in the prefecture
Frequently asked questions
Is Koriyama bigger than Fukushima city?
Yes. Koriyama has more inhabitants than the prefectural capital Fukushima and is the prefecture's economic centre; only Iwaki is comparable in size.
What is the Asaka Canal?
It is a canal system completed in 1882 that carries water from Lake Inawashiro through the Ou Mountains to the Asaka plain, turning dry upland into rice fields and enabling Koriyama's growth.
Why is Koriyama a good base for travel in Fukushima?
It is the rail and road crossroads of the prefecture: Shinkansen trains stop here, and lines lead west to Aizu, east to Iwaki and north to Fukushima city.
Why is Koriyama called a city of music?
Its school choirs and brass bands have long won national competitions, and the city promotes music education and concerts as a core part of its identity.
Related
Sources
- 1.令和2年国勢調査 (opens in a new tab) — Statistics Bureau of Japan
- 2.郡山市ホームページ (opens in a new tab) — 郡山市
- 3.福島県ホームページ (opens in a new tab) — 福島県