Ranzan Town

Named for a gorge like Kyoto's Arashiyama.

Musashi Ranzan gorge

Photo by 京浜にけ (CC BY-SA 3.0)

01 ／ Ranzan Gorge

Yosano Akiko wrote29 poems on this gorge.

At Ranzan Gorge (嵐山渓谷) the Tsuki River (槻川) runs between flat rock terraces. In 1928 the forestry scholar Honda Seiroku visited and, finding it much like Arashiyama in Kyoto, named it Musashi Ranzan (武蔵嵐山, "the Arashiyama of Musashi"); the name later became the town's own. In 1939 the poet Yosano Akiko came and left Hiki no Tani (比企の渓), 29 tanka on the gorge.

Named by Honda Seiroku, 1928
Musashi Ranzan became the town's name
Yosano Akiko's 29 poems, Hiki no Tani

02 ／ Bandō warriors

Kiso Yoshinaka was born here;Hatakeyama Shigetada kept a residence.

In 1153 Minamoto no Yoshikata moved into his residence at Ōkura (大蔵), and his son Kiso Yoshinaka is said to have been born that year. The Azuma Kagami, the Kamakura shogunate's chronicle, records that Hatakeyama Shigetada set out from his residence at Sugaya for his last battle. The Sugaya Residence site (菅谷館跡) is a National Historic Site; the earthworks and moats seen today belong to a castle of the Sengoku period.

Yoshinaka said to be born in 1153
Sugaya residence in the Azuma Kagami
Sugaya Residence site, National Historic Site

03 ／ Kijin Shrine

At a shrine that cherishes demons, the cry is"Fortune in, demons in, evil out."

Kijin Shrine (鬼鎮神社) in the Kawashima district is said by some to have been built by Hatakeyama Shigetada to guard the unlucky northeast of his Sugaya residence. Its worshippers ask strong demons to protect them from misfortune, so at the Setsubun festival the cry is "Fuku wa uchi, oni wa uchi, akuma soto" (fortune in, demons in, evil out). Iron clubs are offered, after the saying "a demon with an iron club", and students now come to pray for passing exams.

The cry "demons in"
Legend of guarding the unlucky northeast
Iron clubs as offerings

Living here

69 minutes from Ikebukuro by Tojo Line express.

about 20,000 people
90 min to a city centre
Rural district town

The town's station is Musashi-Ranzan Station on the Tobu Tojo Line, 69 minutes from Ikebukuro Station by express. The town office is about a 35-minute walk from the station. Eagle Bus services leave the station's west exit for Tokigawa. By car, it is about 30 minutes on the Kan-Etsu Expressway from Nerima IC to Ranzan-Ogawa IC.

People living here: 17,889people
Area: 29.92km²
Households: 7,421households
Rent (average for rentals): 48,301yen
Healthcare: 1 hospital ／ 13 clinics

Area and habitable land at the same scalee-Stat B1101 / B1103

Children waiting for childcare: —4 nurseries and similar
Home purchase subsidy: —
Average annual temperature: —

These 3 items are waiting on a nationwide data source. We do not fill them with estimates.

ACCESS

Where you can go from here.

Ranzan Town in Japan36.056°N 139.321°E

to IkebukuroTobu Tojo Line express69min

Travel times follow 町公式「町の概要　位置・交通」に載っている値（池袋駅から急行で武蔵嵐山駅まで）。いまも池袋直通の急行があることを時刻表（2026年3月14日現在）で確かめた (checked 2026-09-24). They vary by time of day.

Shape

Borders 8 municipalities.

Territory of Ranzan Town

Boundaries: National Land Numerical Information (N03)

North to south

11.5km

小川町, 滑川町, ときがわ町, 東松山市, 熊谷市, 鳩山町, 深谷市, 寄居町

Ranzan Town isthis kind of town.

01The gorge a forestry scholar named Musashi Ranzan, for its likeness to Kyoto's Arashiyama, gave the town its name
02Kiso Yoshinaka is said to have been born here, and the Sugaya Residence site of Hatakeyama Shigetada remains a National Historic Site
03Kijin Shrine, where the Setsubun cry is "fortune in, demons in, evil out", welcomes those who want a demon's protection

If something caught your eye, ask the town itself.

Ranzan Town official site ↗Wikipedia ↗