(堺市; -shi) is a city located in
Osaka Prefecture ,
Japan . It has been one of the largest and most important
Seaport s of Japan since the Medieval era.
Following the February 2005 annexation of
Mihara Town in
Minamikawachi District , the city has grown further and is now the fifteenth most populous city in Japan.
The current city was legally founded on
April 1 ,
1889 according to the laws of
Imperial Japan . Sakai became a
Designated City on
April 1 2006 , giving it a greater measure of self-determination in governmental affairs. It is divided in seven
Districts .
Sakai is known for its keyhole-shaped burial mounds, or
Kofun , which date from the
5th Century . The largest of these, Daisen Kofun, is believed to be the grave of the
Emperor Nintoku and is the largest grave in the world (by volume). Sakai is also famous for the quality of its Japanese-style kitchen knives. Most high-quality
Japanese Cutlery originates in Sakai, and its production is a major industry in the city.
statue originally guarded the gate to
Ebaradera , a temple in Sakai.]]
In the
Muromachi Period Sakai was one of richest cities in Japan.
Sakai is located on the edge of
Osaka Bay and at the mouth of the Yamato River, which connected the Yamato region (now Nara Prefecture) to the sea. Sakai thus helped to connect foreign trade with inland trade.
Sakai was an autonomous city run by merchant citizens. In those days it was said that the richest cities were ''Umi Sakai, Riku Imai'' (tr. "along the sea, Sakai, inlands Imai"). The famous
Zen Buddhist priest
Ikkyu chose to live in Sakai because of its free atmosphere. In the
Sengoku Period some
Christian priests visited Sakai and documented its prosperity. After the coming of Europeans Sakai became a trade center of
Firearms , and a
Daimyo ,
Oda Nobunaga , was one of their important customers. During his ambitious attempt to unify Japan, Nobunaga attempted to take the autonomy privilege from Sakai. Sakai's citizens denied his order and pitched a desperate battle against his army. Most citizens fled; Sakai was burned and seized by Nobunaga. After the death of Nobunaga, one of his men,
Toyotomi Hideyoshi , seized power. Sakai became a prosperous city again under his reign.
Sen No Rikyu , known as the greatest master of the
Tea Ceremony , was originally a merchant of
Sakai. Because of the close relationship between the tea ceremony and Zen Buddhism, and because of the prosperity of its citizens, Sakai was one of the main centers of the tea ceremony in Japan.
Sakai was still an important trade center during the
Edo Period , but was involved only in inland trade due to the
Bakufu (Sakoku) policy of the Tokugawa government. At the end of this era Westerners again landed in Sakai, but it resulted in a tragic accident, because the Japanese citizenry and the foreigners were ignorant of each others' ways.
French sailors from the
''Dupleix'' and Sakai citizens clashed; some French were killed, and subsequently the Japanese responsible for these deaths were sentenced to death by
Seppuku . This accident is called the ''Sakai Incident'' (Sakai-jiken).
In modern times, Sakai is an industrial city with a large port. As such, its western area suffered widespread damage from bombing raids during the Second World War. It is now known for its knives and is the home of
Shimano bicycle parts. With a population of over 800,000, it is the largest suburb of
Osaka City and the fifteenth-largest city in Japan.
Sakai has 7
Wards (''ku''):
