Matsuzaka

Japan

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Article History

Matsuzaka, city, Mie ken (prefecture), west-central Honshu, Japan. It is situated on the western shore of Ise Bay.

Matsuzaka was a castle town and commercial centre during the Edo (Tokugawa) period (1603–1867), when cotton spinning was introduced there. Agricultural products of the surrounding Ise Bay plain include rice, wheat, sweet potatoes, and tea. The city’s modern industries produce glass, electrical machinery, ships, and yarn. Matsuzaka is well known in Japan for its production of beef cattle, and mulberries are grown for sericulture (silkworm raising). Points of historic interest include the 17th-century castle and the home of the eminent scholar and poet Motoori Norinaga (1730–1801). Pop. (2005) 168,973; (2010) 188,017.