Ōmiya derives its name from a famous
Shinto shrine, the
Hikawa Shrine, which has been a place of pilgrimage since at least the
Heian period. During the
Edo period, the area flourished as
Ōmiya-shuku, a
post station on the
Nakasendō highway, which connected
Edo with
Kyoto. Following the
Meiji restoration, it became part of Urawa Prefecture which merged with Iwatsuki, Urawa, and Oshi Prefectures in 1871 to form
Saitama Prefecture. The modern town of Ōmiya was officially created within
Kitaadachi District, Saitama with the establishment of the municipalities system on April 1, 1889. On November 3, 1940, Ōmiya merged with the neighboring villages of Mihashi, Osato, Miyahara and Nisshin and was elevated to city status. Ōmiya continued to expand after the end of the war, absorbing the villages of Sashiougi, Mamiya, Uemizu, Katayanagi, Haruoka, and Nanasato on January 1, 1955. On May 1, 2001, Ōmiya merged with
Urawa and
Yono to form Saitama City. In April 2003 Saitama became a
city designated by government ordinance, and now the area of former Ōmiya City was divided between
Kita-ku (north),
Minuma-ku (east),
Nishi-ku (west), and Ōmiya-ku (south). ==Education==