Kōriyama originated as a regional governmental center in the Nara period, when the area was on the frontier of Yamato settlement of the Tōhoku region. The surrounding area developed into "shōen" controlled by various samurai clans in the Heian and Kamakura periods. Nearby centers, such as Nihonmatsu developed into castle towns, Kōriyama remained as a commercial center and thrived as a post town because of its importance as a traffic focal point into the Edo period and was part of the territory of Nihonmatsu Domain.