city, Aichi ken (prefecture), Honshu, Japan. Handa lies on the Chita Peninsula, facing Chita Bay of the Pacific Ocean. It served as an important commercial port during the Tokugawa period (1603–1867), when the local production of processed foods and cotton began. An irrigation system in the hills behind the city was opened in 1962. Vegetables, fruit, and flowers are raised in the vicinity for the market in Nagoya, to which Handa is connected by two rail lines. The city's industries include brewing, food processing, and the manufacture of cotton goods using cotton cultivated in the hinterland. Pop. (2005) 115,845.