ku (ward), Nagoya city, Aichi ken (prefecture), Honshu, Japan. A port town and early religious centre, Atsuta in the Tokugawa period (1603–1867) was one of the most prosperous post towns on the Tōkaidō highway. It was incorporated into Nagoya in 1907 and became a ward in 1937. Based on a pre-World War II munitions industry, the ward currently produces automobiles, glass, musical instruments, rubber, and cedar products. Atsuta is home to the Shintō Atsuta Shrine, which contains the sword Kusanagi (“Grass-Mower”), one of Japan's three Imperial Treasures. Pop. (2005 prelim.) 63,608.