一九二八年生于鸟取县。一九五一年毕业于东京大学理学系数学专业。专攻经济学。一九五六年起在美国斯坦佛大学、芝加哥大学等执教十四年。一九九七年荣获日本文化勋章。他以“社会共有资本”理念为出发点，就环境问题、儿童问题等提出了很多独到的见解。著述众多，主要有《创造富裕国家》（岩波书店）、《经济学与人类情感》（东洋经济新报社）、《社会共有资本》《对日本教育的细考》（两者均为岩波新书）等。

主要学术贡献

"On Preferences and Axioms of Choice", 1956, Annals of Statistical Mathematics.

"On the Rational Selection of Decision Functions", 1957, Econometrica.

"On the Menger-Wieser Theory of Imputation", 1958, ZfN.

Studies in Linear and Non-Linear Programming with K.J.Arrow and Leonid Hurwicz, 1958.

"Prices of Factors of Production in International Trade", 1959, Econometrica.

"Locally Most Powerful Rank Tests for Two-Sample Problems", 1960, Annals of Mathematical Statistics.

"Preference and Rational Choice in the Theory of Consumption", 1960, in Arrow, Karlin and Suppes, editors, Mathematical Models in Social Science.

"Walras' Tatonnement in the Theory of Exchange", 1960, RES.

"Market Mechanisms and Mathematical Programming", 1960, Econometrica.

"Stability and Non-Negativity in a Walrasian Adjustment Process" with H. Nikaido, 1960.

"Constraint Qualifications in Non-Linear Programming", with K.J. Arrow and L. Hurwicz, 1961, Naval Research Logistics Quarterly

"On a Two-Sector Model of Economic Growth, I", 1961, RES.

"Natural Inventions and the Stability of Growth Equilibrium", 1961, RES.

"The Stability of Dynamic Processes", 1961, Econometrica

"On the Stability of Edgeworth's Barter Process", 1962, IER.

"Walras's Existence Theorem and Brouwer's Fixed Point Theorem", 1962, Economic Studies Quarterly.

"Aggregative Convexity and the Existence of Competitive Equilibrium", 1962, Economic Studies Quarterly.

"Production Functions with Constant Elasticities of Substitution", 1962, RES.

"On a Two-Sector Model of Economic Growth, II", 1963, RES.

"On Separability in Demand Analysis", with S.M. Goldman, 1964, Econometrica.

"On Professor Solow's Model of Technical Progress", 1964, Economic Studies Quarterly.

"Optimal Growth in a Two-Sector Model of Capital Accumulation", 1964, RES.

"Duality Principles in the Theory of Cost and Production", 1964, IER.

"On an Akerman-Wicksellian Model of Capital Accumulation", with T. Yasui, 1964 Economic Studies Quarterly.

"Optimum Technical Change in an Aggregative Model of Economic Growth", 1965, IER.

"Patterns of Trade and Investment in a Dynamic Model of International Trade", with H. Oniki, 1965, RES.

"On a Neoclassical Model of Economic Growth", 1966, Economic Studies Quarterly.

"Market Allocation and Optimum Growth", Australian EP.

"The Penrose Effect and Economic Growth", 1968, Economic Studies Quarterly.

"Time Preference, the Consumption Function and Optimum Asset Holdings", 1968, in Wolfe, editor, Value, Capital and Growth.

"Time Preference and the Penrose Effect in a Two-Class Model of Economic Growth", 1969, JPE.

"Optimum Fiscal Policy in an Aggregative Model of Economic Growth", 1969, in Adelman and Thorbecke, editors, Theory and Design of Economic Development.

"On the Integrability of Demand Functions", with L. Hurwicz, 1971, in Preferences, Utility and Demand.

"Diffusion of Inflationary Processes in a Dynamic Model of International Trade", 1971, Economic Studies Quarterly.

"Towards a Keynesian Model of Monetary Growth", 1973, in Mirrlees and Stern, editors, Models of Economic Growth.

"Optimum Investment in Social Overhead Capital", 1974, in Economic Analysis of Environmental Problems.

"La theorie economique du capital collectif social", 1974, Cahier d'econometrie et economique.

"On the Dynamic Stability of Economic Growth", 1974, in Trade, Stability and Growth.

"Disequilibrium Analysis and Keynes's General Theory", 1976.

Preference, Production and Capital: Selected papers of Hirofumi Uzawa., 1988.

Optimality, Equilibrium and Growth: Selected papers of Hirofumi Uzawa, 1988.

An Endogenous Rate of Time Preference, the Penrose effect, and dynamic optimality of environmental quality, 1996, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.