Esashi is asteroid #9368 and also known as 1993 BS3. Esashi was discovered by the Japanese amateur astronomers Mukai Masaru (向井 優) and Takeishi Masanori (武石 正憲) at the YCPM Kagoshima Station. Esashi’s orbit is characterized by a semi-major axis of 2.31 Astronomical Units, an eccentricity of 0.12, a period of revolution of 1 282 days, and an inclination of 6.9 degrees.

While most versions of the Wikipedia don’t dare, and of course other websites much less, to guess what the name Esashi could mean, the English part of the Wikipedia bravely (and wrongly) links to Esashi-chō (江差町), a town in and the capital of the sub-prefecture Hiyama (檜山). Asteroid #9368 has got a Japanese name, but this name isn’t Esashi (江差)! The name of this asteroid instead is Esashi (枝幸)! It is named after a town located in Esashi-gun (枝幸郡), a district (or county) of Sōya-sōgō-shinkō-kyoku (宗谷総合振興局), previously (from 1897 until 2010) Sōya-shichō (宗谷支庁), the northernmost sub-prefecture of Japan and a sub-prefecture of the prefecture Hokkaidō (北海道), that consists of the island of the same name. The misunderstanding probably came from the town Utanobori (歌登), that once had split of from the town Esashi (枝幸), getting merged with the town Esashi (枝幸) again in 2006, so that Esashi-chō (枝幸町) could seem to exist since only 2006. But Esashi-chō (枝幸町) exists since 1947 as a town. Esashi (枝幸) beforehand had existed as a village already since centuries.

The kanji for Esashi give no serious hint because they serve only for adopting Ainu words. Esashi as is the name of the capital of Hiyama (檜山) is the Ainu word for kelp (while the kanji would mean “creek-distinction”). Esashi-chō (枝幸町) in Esashi-gun (枝幸郡) in Sōya-sōgō-shinkō-kyoku (宗谷総合振興局) is, as well as the county too, named after the Ainu word esaushi, which means cape in the geographical sense (while the kanji would mean “branch-happiness”). Although the area is known for nothing else than the complex splits and mergers of towns and villages and districts, the official naming citation knows a good reason for naming the asteroid Esashi:

Named for a small town in northern Hokkaido, on the Sea of Okhotsk, not far from the home of the second discoverer. Known as “The Town of the Solar Eclipse”, it was visited by astronomers from all over the world during the total solar eclipses of 1896 Aug. 9 and 1936 June 19. After the former eclipse the American astronomer David P. Todd gave many books to the town, and these became the nucleus of the first public library to be established in Hokkaido.

Ref: Minor Planet Circ. 34353

So Esashi (枝幸) somehow is connected with solar eclipses too. Maybe also with fighting illiteracy. If Esashi represented solar eclipses, then it would be an opposing force to the Sun. A tough task for a little asteroid. The discoverers of Esashi made all their asteroid discoveries together and at the same observatory in Kagoshima. Hence these asteroids are likely to have a similar meaning. The discoverers prefer place names of places with historic meaning. Esashi-chō (枝幸町) was chosen to lend its name to the asteroid because Esashi-chō (枝幸町) is a place of historic meaning for astronomers and because it is town close to the hometown of one of the discoverers. Esashi hints to the northernmost coast of Japan. Esashi could also represent repeating an event or a place to meet colleagues or something interesting in the vicinity or an improvement in education.