Information about Yokohama

Yokohama
横浜?

Location of Yokohama Yokohama's location in Kanagawa, Japan.
Location
Country	Japan
Region	Kantō
Prefecture	Kanagawa
Physical characteristics
Area	km ( sq mi)
Population (as of August 2007)
Total	3,625,000
Density	/km (/sq mi)
Location
Symbols
Tree	Camellia, Chinquapin, Sangoju Sasanqua, Ginkgo, Zelkova
Flower	Rose
Symbol of Yokohama Symbol of Yokohama
Yokohama Hall
Mayor	Hiroshi Nakada
Address	〒231-0017 1-1 Minato-chō, Naka-ku, Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa-ken
Phone number	045-671-2121
Official website: City of Yokohama

Yokohama (横浜市, Yokohama-shi) is the capital of Kanagawa Prefecture and, with a population of 3.6 million, Japan's largest incorporated city and second largest urban area after Tokyo^[1], located in the Kantō region of the main island of Honshū. Yokohama is a major commercial hub of the Greater Tokyo Area.

It developed rapidly as Japan's prominent port city following the end of Japan's isolation in the late 19th century, and is today one of its major ports along Kobe, Osaka, Nagoya, Hakata, Tokyo and Chiba.

History

Yokohama was a small fishing village up to the end of the feudal Edo period, a time when Japan held a policy of national seclusion, having little contact with Western foreigners. A major turning point in Japanese history happened in 1853 and again in 1854, when Commodore Matthew Perry arrived just south of Yokohama with a fleet of American warships, demanding that Japan open several ports for commerce, getting the ruling Tokugawa shogunate to agree in 1853. It was initially agreed that one of the ports to be opened to foreign ships would be the bustling town of Kanagawa-juku (in what is now Kanagawa Ward) on the Tōkaidō, a strategic highway which linked Edo to Kyoto and Osaka. However, the Tokugawa shogunate decided that the location of Kanagawa-juku was too close to the Tōkaidō for comfort, and port facilities were built across the inlet in the sleepy fishing village of Yokohama instead. The Port of Yokohama was opened on 2 June, 1859.



The Port of Yokohama quickly became the base of foreign trade in Japan. Japan's first English language newspaper, the Japan Herald, was first published in Yokohama in 1861. Foreigners occupied a district of the city called "Kannai" ("inside the barrier"), which was surrounded by a moat, and were protected by their extraterritoriality status both within and outside the moat. Many individuals crossed the moat, causing a number of problems. The Namamugi Incident, one of the events that preceded the downfall of the shogunate, took place in what is now Tsurumi Ward in 1862. Ernest Satow wrote about the incident in his A Diplomat in Japan.

After the Meiji Restoration of 1868, the port was developed for trading silk, with the main trading partner being Great Britain. Many Western influences first reached Japan in Yokohama, including Japan's first daily newspaper (1870) and Japan's first gas-powered street lamps (1872). Japan's first railway was constructed in the same year to connect Yokohama to Shinagawa and Shimbashi in Tokyo. In 1887, a British merchant, Samuel Cocking, built the city's first power plant, a coal burning plant, at first for his own use, but it became the basis for the Yokohama Cooperative Electric Light Company. The city was officially incorporated on April 1, 1889. By the time the extraterritoriality of foreigner areas was abolished in 1899, Yokohama was the most international city in Japan, with foreigner areas stretching from Kannai to the Yamate Bluff area and the large Yokohama Chinatown.

The early 20th century was marked by rapid growth of industry. Entrepreneurs built factories along reclaimed land to the north of the city towards Kawasaki, which eventually grew to be the Keihin Industrial Area. The growth of Japanese industry brought affluence to Yokohama, and many wealthy trading families constructed sprawling residences there, while the rapid influx of population from Japan and Korea also led to the formation of Kojiki-Yato, the largest slum in Japan at the time.

Much of Yokohama was destroyed on 1 September, 1923 by the Great Kantō earthquake, killing an estimated 23,000 people within the city boundaries. In the aftermath of the quake, mass murder of Koreans by vigilante mobs occurred in the Kojiki-yato slum, fuelled by rumours of rebellion and sabotage. Martial law was in place until 19 November. Rubble from the quake was used to reclaim land for parks, the most famous of which is the Yamashita Park on the waterfront which opened in 1930.

Yokohama was rebuilt, only to be destroyed again by 30-odd U.S. air raids during World War II. An estimated 7,000–8,000 people were killed in a single morning on 29 May, 1945 in what is now known as the Great Yokohama Air Raid, when B-29s dropped firebombs over the city and in the space of just 1 hour and 9 minutes reduced 34% of the city to rubble.

During the American occupation, Yokohama was a major transshipment base for American supplies and personnel, especially during the Korean War. After the occupation, most local U.S. naval activity moved from Yokohama to an American base in neighboring Yokosuka.

The city was designated by government ordinance on September 1, 1956.

The city's tram and trolleybus system was abolished in 1972, the same year as the opening of the first line of Yokohama Municipal Subway.

Construction of Minato Mirai 21 ("Port Future 21"), a major urban development project on reclaimed land, started in 1983. Minato Mirai 21 hosted the Yokohama Exotic Showcase in 1989, which saw the first public operation of maglev trains in Japan and the opening of CosmoClock 21, at the time the largest ferris wheel in the world. 1989 also saw the opening of the 860m-long Yokohama Bay Bridge.

In 1993, Minato Mirai saw the opening of the Yokohama Landmark Tower, the tallest building in Japan.

The 2002 FIFA World Cup final was held in June at the International Stadium Yokohama.

Geography

Yokohama is centered on an inlet on the western side of Tokyo Bay, 30 kilometers (18 miles) from Tokyo, to which it is connected by a half-dozen railway lines as well as expressways and surface streets via the city of Kawasaki. Neighboring cities include Yokosuka , Kamakura, Fujisawa, Zushi, Yamato, and Machida of Tokyo.

A major industrial zone known as the Keihin Industrial Area stretches along the reclaimed coastline to the north of the central area towards Kawasaki and Tokyo beyond.

The historic port area of Kannai used to be the centre of Yokohama, but the area around the transportation hub of Yokohama Station is now the most prominent commercial district. In between is a major harbourside redevelopment called Minato Mirai 21. Much of the suburban areas consist of hills. A major residential development called Kohoku New Town, housing about 300,000, is located 12 km north of the city centre. [1]

Economy

The city has a strong local economic base, especially in the shipping, biotechnology, and semiconductor industries. Nissan will move its headquarters to Yokohama from Chūō, Tokyo by 2010.[2]

Places of interest

The places of interest are mainly around the historic port area of Kannai. Next to the waterfront Yamashita Park is Yokohama Marine Tower, the tallest lighthouse in the world. Further inland lies Yokohama Chinatown, the largest Chinatown in Japan and one of the largest in the world. Also in the vicinity is the Yokohama Stadium, the Silk Center, the Yokohama Doll Museum.^[2] There is also a large immigration office, near Yamashita Park. Nearby Isezakicho and Noge areas offer many colourful shops and bars and, with their restaurants and stores catering to residents from China, Thailand, South Korea, and other countries, have an increasingly international flavour. The small but fashionable Motomachi shopping area (where there are various shops starting with Cyrillus, Godiva, and so on) leads up to Yamate, or "The Bluff" as it used to be known, a 19th/early 20th century Westerners' settlement overlooking the harbour, scattered with foreigners' mansions. A foreigners' cemetery and the Harbour View Park is in the area. The Rose Garden can be found in the park.

There are various points of interest in the futuristic Minato Mirai 21 harbourside redevelopment. The highlights are the Landmark Tower which is the tallest building in Japan, Queen's Square Yokohama (a shopping mall) and the Cosmo Clock, which was the largest ferris wheel in the world when it was built in 1989 and which also doubles as "the world's biggest clock".

The Shin-Yokohama district, where the Shinkansen station is located, is some distance away from the harbour area, and features the 17,000 capacity Yokohama Arena, the Shin-Yokohama Raumen Museum, and Nissan Stadium, once known as the International Stadium Yokohama when it was the setting for the final for the 2002 FIFA World Cup held on June 30, 2002.

The city is also home to the Central League baseball team, the Yokohama BayStars, and the soccer teams, Yokohama F Marinos and Yokohama FC.

Politics and government

The Yokohama Municipal Assembly consists of 92 members elected from 18 Wards. The LDP has minority control with 30 seats with Democratic Party of Japan with a close 29. The mayor is Hiroshi Nakada.

Wards

Yokohama has 18 wards (ku):

Aoba-ku (青葉区) Asahi-ku (旭区) Hodogaya-ku (保土ヶ谷区) Isogo-ku (磯子区) Izumi-ku (泉区) Kanagawa-ku (神奈川区) Kanazawa-ku (金沢区) Kōhoku-ku (港北区) Kōnan-ku (港南区)

Midori-ku (緑区) Minami-ku (南区) Naka-ku (中区) Nishi-ku (西区) Sakae-ku (栄区) Seya-ku (瀬谷区) Totsuka-ku (戸塚区) Tsurumi-ku (鶴見区) Tsuzuki-ku (都筑区)

Sister cities

Yokohama has sister city agreements with the following cities: ^[3]

• Constanţa, Romania
• Lyon, France
• Odessa, Ukraine
• Manila, Philippines
• Mumbai, India
• San Diego, California, U.S.
• Shanghai, China
• Vancouver, Canada

Education

Public elementary and middle schools are operated by the city of Yokohama.

Public high schools are operated by the Kanagawa Prefectural Board of Education.

See also

• Foreign cemeteries in Japan
• Osanbashi Pier
• Yokohama Rubber Company, manufacturer of tyres

References

External links

• Official website (English)
• City of Yokohama New York Representative Office (English)
• Naka Ward Office (English)
• The Yokohama Times —Upcoming events and announcements, by the Yokohama Conventions & Visitors Bureau
• Yokohama Hostel Village (English)
• Yokohama guide in Pictures ( Minato Mirai, Chinatown, Yamashita park, Sakuragicho, Stadium, Cosmo World )

Kanagawa Prefecture
Cities
Atsugi | Ayase | Chigasaki | Ebina | Fujisawa | Hadano | Hiratsuka | Isehara | Kamakura | Kawasaki | Minamiashigara | Miura | Odawara | Sagamihara | Yamato | Yokohama (capital) | Yokosuka | Zama | Zushi
Districts
Aiko | Ashigarakami | Ashigarashimo | Koza | Miura | Naka
See also: Towns and villages by district [ edit]

•  • [ e] Regions and administrative divisions of Japan

Regions Hokkaidō Tōhoku Kantō Chūbu (Hokuriku • Kōshin'etsu • Tōkai • Chūkyō) Kansai Chūgoku Shikoku Kyūshū Ryūkyū Prefectures Aichi Akita Aomori Chiba Ehime Fukui Fukuoka Fukushima Gifu Gunma Hiroshima Hokkaidō Hyōgo Ibaraki Ishikawa Iwate Kagawa Kagoshima Kanagawa Kōchi Kumamoto Kyoto Mie Miyagi Miyazaki Nagano Nagasaki Nara Niigata Ōita Okayama Okinawa Osaka Saga Saitama Shiga Shimane Shizuoka Tochigi Tokushima Tokyo Tottori Toyama Wakayama Yamagata Yamaguchi Yamanashi Designated cities Special wards of Tokyo Chiba Fukuoka Hamamatsu Hiroshima Kawasaki Kitakyushu Kobe Kyoto Nagoya Niigata Osaka Saitama Sakai Sapporo Sendai Shizuoka Yokohama