SAITAMA

ken (prefecture), Honshu, Japan, bordering (south) on Tokyo Metropolis. Its area of 1,467 square miles (3,799 square km) includes extensive stretches of level land. Fruits, vegetables, and flowers are grown for the Tokyo market, and green tea is produced. The prefecture's machinery and textile industries evolved from its previous casting and sericulture industries. Cities in the south, including Urawa, Omiya, Kawagoe, and others, form the northern extremity of the Keihin Industrial Zone. Urawa is the prefectural capital and houses Saitama University (1949). The town of Chichibu, in the southwest within Chichibu-Tama National Park, is noted for its annual festival (December), in which large, elaborate floats are paraded through the streets. Pop. (1990) 6,405,319.