Kōzuke Province
Kanra District was the name of one of the ancient districts of Kōzuke Province, mentioned in the "Shoku Nihongi" of 711 AD. Modern Minamikanra District was created on December 7, 1878 with the reorganization of Gunma Prefecture into districts. It included 25 villages, which were formerly part of the "tenryō" holdings in Kōzuke Province administered directly by the Tokugawa shogunate. With the establishment of the municipalities system on April 1, 1889 the area was organized as four villages: Mihara, Nakasato, Kamikawa, and Ueno