Located at the head of Tokyo Bay, Tokyo is part of the Kantō region on the central coast of Honshu, Japan's largest island. Tokyo serves as Japan's economic center and the seat of both the Japanese government and the Emperor of Japan. The Tokyo Metropolitan Government administers Tokyo's central 23 special wards (which formerly made up Tokyo City), various commuter towns and suburbs in its western area, and two outlying island chains known as the Tokyo Islands. Despite most of the world recognising Tokyo as a city, since 1943 its governing structure has been more akin to a prefecture, with an accompanying Governor and Assembly taking precedence over the smaller municipal governments which make up the metropolis. Notable special wards in Tokyo include Chiyoda, the site of the National Diet Building and the Tokyo Imperial Palace, Shinjuku, the city's administrative center, and Shibuya, a commercial, cultural, and business hub in the city.
Tokyo's nominal gross domestic output was 113.7 trillion yen or US$1.04 trillion in FY2021 and accounted for 20.7% of the country's total economic output, which converts to 8.07 million yen or US$73,820 per capita.[17] Including the Greater Tokyo Area, Tokyo is the second-largest metropolitan economy in the world after New York, with a 2022 gross metropolitan product estimated at US$2.08 trillion.[18] Although Tokyo's status as a leading global financial hub has diminished with the Lost Decades since the 1990s, when the Tokyo Stock Exchange was the world's largest, with a market capitalisation about 1.5 times that of the NYSE,[19] the city is still a large financial hub, and the TSE remains among the world's top five major stock exchanges.[20] Tokyo is categorized as an Alpha+ city by the Globalization and World Cities Research Network. The city is also recognized as one of the world's most livable ones; it was ranked fourth in the world in Global Livability Ranking, published in 2021.[21]
Tokyo was originally known as Edo (江戸), a kanji compound of 江 (e, "cove, inlet") and 戸 (to, "entrance, gate, door").[22] The name, which can be translated as "estuary", is a reference to the original settlement's location at the meeting of the Sumida River and Tokyo Bay. During the Meiji Restoration in 1868, the name of the city was changed to Tokyo (東京, from 東tō "east", and 京kyō "capital"), when it became the new imperial capital,[23] in line with the East Asian tradition of including the word capital (京) in the name of the capital city (for example, Kyoto (京都), Keijō (京城), Beijing (北京), Nanjing (南京), and Xijing (西京)).[22] During the early Meiji period, the city was sometimes called "Tōkei", an alternative pronunciation for the same characters representing "Tokyo", making it a kanji homograph. Some surviving official English documents use the spelling "Tokei";[24] however, this pronunciation is now obsolete.[25]
History
Pre-1869 (Edo period)
Edo Castle in the 17th century, just after it became the seat of the shogunate
Tokyo was originally a village called Edo, part of the old Musashi Province. Edo was first fortified by the Edo clan in the late twelfth century. In 1457, Ōta Dōkan built Edo Castle to defend the region from the Chiba clan. After Dōkan was assassinated in 1486, the castle and the area came to be possessed by several feudal lords. In 1590, Tokugawa Ieyasu was granted the Kantō region by Toyotomi Hideyoshi and moved there from his ancestral land of Mikawa Province. He greatly expanded the castle, which was said to have been abandoned and in tatters when he moved there, and ruled the region from there. When he became shōgun, the de facto ruler of the country, in 1603, the whole country came to be ruled from Edo. While the Tokugawa shogunate ruled the country in practice, the Imperial House of Japan was still the de jure ruler, and the title of shōgun was granted by the Emperor as a formality. The Imperial House was based in Kyoto from 794 to 1868, so Edo was still not the capital of Japan.[26]
During the Edo period, the city enjoyed a prolonged period of peace known as the Pax Tokugawa, and in the presence of such peace, the shogunate adopted a stringent policy of seclusion, which helped to perpetuate the lack of any serious military threat to the city.[27] The absence of war-inflicted devastation allowed Edo to devote the majority of its resources to rebuilding in the wake of the consistent fires, earthquakes, and other devastating natural disasters that plagued the city. Edo grew into one of the largest cities in the world with a population reaching one million by the 18th century.[28]
This prolonged period of seclusion however came to an end with the arrival of American Commodore Matthew C. Perry in 1853. Commodore Perry forced the opening of the ports of Shimoda and Hakodate, leading to an increase in the demand for new foreign goods and subsequently a severe rise in inflation.[29] Social unrest mounted in the wake of these higher prices and culminated in widespread rebellions and demonstrations, especially in the form of the "smashing" of rice establishments.[30] Meanwhile, supporters of the Emperor leveraged the disruption caused by widespread rebellious demonstrations to further consolidate power, which resulted in the overthrow of the last Tokugawa shōgun, Yoshinobu, in 1867.[31] After 265 years, the Pax Tokugawa came to an end. In May 1868, Edo castle was handed to the Emperor-supporting forces after negotiation (the Fall of Edo). Some forces loyal to the shogunate kept fighting, but with their loss in the Battle of Ueno on 4 July 1868, the entire city came under the control of the new government.[32]
1869–1941
The first Imperial visit to Tokyo in September 1868
After the overthrow of the Tokugawa shogunate, for the first time in a few centuries, the Emperor ceased to be a mere figurehead and became both the de facto and de jure ruler of the country. Hisoka Maejima advocated for the relocation of the capital functions to Tokyo, recognising the advantages of the existing infrastructure and the vastness of the Kanto Plain compared to the relatively small Kyoto basin.[33] After being handed over to the Meiji government, Edo was renamed Tokyo (Eastern Capital) on 3 September 1868. The Emperor Meiji visited the city once at the end of that year and eventually moved there in 1869. Tokyo had already been the nation's political center for nearly three centuries,[34] and the emperor's residence made it a de facto imperial capital as well, with the former Edo Castle becoming the Imperial Palace.
Brick buildings in Tokyo, c.1910
Government ministries such as the Ministry of Finance were also relocated to Tokyo by 1871,[35] and the first railway line in the country was opened on 14 October 1872, connecting Shimbashi (Shiodome) and Yokohama (Sakuragicho), which is now part of the Tokaido line.[36] The 1870s saw the establishment of other institutions and facilities that now symbolise Tokyo, such as Ueno Park (1873), the University of Tokyo (1877) and the Tokyo Stock Exchange (1878). The rapid modernisation of the country was driven from Tokyo, with its business districts such as Marunouchi filled with modern brick buildings and the railway network serving as a means to help the large influx of labour force needed to keep the development of the economy.[37] The City of Tokyo was officially established on May 1, 1889. The Imperial Diet, the national legislature of the country, was established in Tokyo in 1889, and it has ever since been operating in the city.
On 1 September 1923, the Great Kanto Earthquake struck the city, and the earthquake and subsequent fire killed an estimated 105,000 citizens. The loss amounted to 37 per cent of the country's economic output.[38] On the other hand, the destruction provided an opportunity to reconsider the planning of the city, which had changed its shape hastily after the Meiji Restoration. The high survival rate of concrete buildings promoted the transition from timber and brick architecture to modern, earthquake-proof construction.[39][40] The Tokyo Metro Ginza Line portion between Ueno and Asakusa, the first underground railway line built outside Europe and the American continents, was completed on December 30, 1927.[16]
Although Tokyo recovered robustly from the earthquake and new cultural and liberal political movements, such as Taishō Democracy, spread, the 1930s saw an economic downturn caused by the Great Depression and major political turmoil. Two attempted military coups d'état happened in Tokyo, the May 15 incident in 1932 and the February 26 incident in 1936. This turmoil eventually allowed the military wings of the government to take control of the country, leading to Japan joining the Second World War as an Axis power. Due to the country's political isolation on the international stage caused by its military aggression in China and the increasingly unstable geopolitical situations in Europe, Tokyo had to give up hosting the 1940 Summer Olympics in 1938.[41]Rationing started in June 1940 as the nation braced itself for another world war, while the 26th Centenary of the Enthronement of Emperor Jimmu celebrations took place on a grand scale to boost morale and increase the sense of national identity in the same year. On 8 December 1941, Japan attacked the American bases at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, entering the Second World War against the Allied Powers. The wartime regime greatly affected life in the city.[42]
1942–1945
Children evacuating from a raided area in Tokyo with their mothers, January 1945
In 1943, Tokyo City merged with Tokyo Prefecture to form the Tokyo Metropolis (東京都, Tōkyō-to). This reorganisation aimed to create a more centralised and efficient administrative structure to better manage resources, urban planning, and civil defence during wartime.[43] The Tokyo Metropolitan Government thus became responsible for both prefectural and city functions while administering cities, towns, and villages in the suburban and rural areas.
Charred remains of citizens of Tokyo after the raid on 10 March 1945
Although Japan enjoyed significant success in the initial stages of the war and rapidly expanded its sphere of influence, the Doolittle Raid on 18 April 1942, marked the first direct foreign attack on Tokyo. Although the physical damage was minimal, the raid demonstrated the vulnerability of the Japanese mainland to air attacks and boosted American morale.[44] Large-scale Allied air bombing of cities in the Japanese home islands, including Tokyo, began in late 1944 when the US seized control of the Mariana Islands. From these islands, newly developed long-range B-29 bombers could conduct return journeys. The bombing of Tokyo in 1944 and 1945 is estimated to have killed between 75,000 and 200,000 civilians and left more than half of the city destroyed.[45]
A birds-eye view over the Ningyōchō district after the air raid of 10 March 1945
The deadliest night of the war came on March 9–10, 1945, the night of the American "Operation Meetinghouse" raid.[46] Nearly 700,000 incendiary bombs were dropped on the east end of the city (shitamachi, 下町), an area with a high concentration of factories and working-class houses. Two-fifths of the city were completely burned, more than 276,000 buildings were destroyed, 100,000 civilians were killed, and 110,000 more were injured.[47][48] Numerous Edo and Meiji-era buildings of historical significance were destroyed, including the main building of the Imperial Palace, Sensō-ji, Zōjō-ji, Sengaku-ji and Kabuki-za. Between 1940 and 1945, the population of Tokyo dwindled from 6,700,000 to less than 2,800,000, as soldiers were sent to the front and children were evacuated.[49]
After the war, Tokyo became the base from which the Allied Occupational Forces, under Douglas MacArthur, an American general, administered Japan for six years. The original rebuilding plan of Tokyo was based on a plan modelled after the Metropolitan Green Belt of London, devised in the 1930s but cancelled due to the war.[50] However, due to the monetary contraction policy known as the Dodge Line, named after Joseph Dodge, the neoliberal economic advisor to MacArthur, the plan had to be reduced to a minimal one focusing on transport and other infrastructure. In 1947, the 35 pre-war special wards were reorganised into the current 23 wards. Tokyo did not experience fast economic growth until around 1950, when heavy industry output returned to pre-war levels.[51][50]
The 1964 Olympics in Tokyo symbolised the transition of the city from bombed-out ruins to a modern metropolis.
Since around the time the Allied occupation of Japan ended in 1952, Tokyo's focus shifted from rebuilding to developing beyond its pre-war stature. From the 1950s onwards, Tokyo's Metro and railway network saw significant expansion, culminating in the launch of the world's first dedicated high-speed railway line, the Shinkansen, between Tokyo and Osaka in 1964. The same year saw the development of other transport infrastructure such as the Shuto Expressway to meet the increased demand brought about by the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, the first Olympic Games held in Asia. Around this time, the 31-metre height restriction, imposed on all buildings since 1920, was relaxed due to the increased demand for office buildings and advancements in earthquake-proof construction.[52] Starting with the Kasumigaseki Building (147 metres) in 1968, skyscrapers began to dominate Tokyo's skyline.
1973-Present
Shinjuku's development as a business district started in the 1970s
Although the 1973 Oil Crisis put an end to the rapid post-war recovery and development of Japan's economy, its position as the world's second-largest economy had seemed secure by that point, remaining so until 2010 when it was surpassed by China.[53] Tokyo's development was sustained by its status as the economic, political, and cultural hub of such a country. In 1978, after years of the intense Sanrizuka Struggle, Narita International Airport opened as the new gateway to the city, while the relatively small Haneda Airport switched to primarily domestic flights.[54]West Shinjuku, which had been occupied by the vast Yodobashi Water Purification Centre until 1965, became the site of an entirely new business district characterised by skyscrapers surpassing 200 metres during this period.[55]
The American-led Plaza Accord in 1985, which aimed to depreciate the US dollar, had a devastating effect on Japan's manufacturing sector, particularly affecting small to mid-size companies based in Tokyo.[56] This led the government to adopt a domestic-demand-focused economic policy, ultimately causing an asset price bubble. Land redevelopment projects were planned across the city, and real estate prices skyrocketed. By 1990, the estimated value of the Imperial Palace surpassed that of the entire state of California.[57] The Tokyo Stock Exchange became the largest stock exchange in the world by market capitalisation, with the Tokyo-based NTT becoming the most highly valued company globally.[19][58]
Azabudai Hills, completed in 2023, one of the most recently completed large-scale redevelopment projects
After the bubble bursted in the early 1990s, Japan experienced a prolonged economic downturn called the "Lost Decades", which was charactised by extremely low or negative economic growth, deflation, stagnant asset prices.[59] Tokyo's status as a world city is said to have depreciated greatly during these three decades. Nonetheless, Tokyo still saw new urban developments during this period. Recent projects include Ebisu Garden Place, Tennōzu Isle, Shiodome, Roppongi Hills, Shinagawa, and the Marunouchi side of Tokyo Station. Land reclamation projects in Tokyo have also been going on for centuries. The most prominent is the Odaiba area, now a major shopping and entertainment center. Various plans have been proposed[60] for transferring national government functions from Tokyo to secondary capitals in other regions of Japan, to slow down rapid development in Tokyo and revitalize economically lagging areas of the country. These plans have been controversial[61] within Japan and have yet to be realized.
The 2020 Olympics were postponed and held in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic
On September 7, 2013, the IOC selected Tokyo to host the 2020 Summer Olympics. Thus, Tokyo became the first Asian city to host the Olympic Games twice.[62] However, the 2020 Olympic Games were postponed and held from July 23 to August 8, 2021, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Under Japanese law, the prefecture of Tokyo is designated as a to (都), translated as metropolis.[63] Tokyo Prefecture is the most populous prefecture and the densest, with 6,100 inhabitants per square kilometer (16,000/sq mi); by geographic area it is the third-smallest, above only Osaka and Kagawa. Its administrative structure is similar to that of Japan's other prefectures. The 23 special wards (特別区, tokubetsu-ku), which until 1943 constituted the city of Tokyo, are self-governing municipalities, each having a mayor, a council, and the status of a city.
In addition to these 23 special wards, Tokyo also includes 26 more cities (市-shi), five towns (町-chō or machi), and eight villages (村-son or -mura), each of which has a local government. The Tokyo Metropolitan Government administers the whole metropolis including the 23 special wards and the cities and towns that constitute the prefecture. It is headed by a publicly elected governor and metropolitan assembly. Its headquarters is in Shinjuku Ward.
Municipalities
A map with Nishi-Tama District in greenA map of the Izu Islands with black labelsA map of the Ogasawara Islands with black labels
Since the completion of the Great Mergers of Heisei in 2001, Tokyo consists of 62 municipalities: 23 special wards, 26 cities, 5 towns and 8 villages. All municipalities in Japan have a directly elected mayor and a directly elected assembly, each elected on independent four-year cycles. The 23 Special Wards cover the area that had been Tokyo City until 1943, 30 other municipalities are located in the Tama area, and the remeining 9 are on Tokyo's outlying islands.
The special wards (特別区, tokubetsu-ku) of Tokyo comprise the area formerly incorporated as Tokyo City. Each special ward has used the word "city" in their official English name in recent times (e.g. Chiyoda City), but their status is more akin to boroughs in London or New York. Certain municipal functions, such as waterworks, sewerage, and fire-fighting, are handled by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government rather than each ward. To pay for the added administrative costs, the Metropolitan Government collects municipal taxes, which would usually be levied by each ward.[64] The "three central wards" of Tokyo – Chiyoda, Chūō and Minato – are the business core of the city, with a daytime population more than seven times higher than their nighttime population.[65] Chiyoda Ward is occupied by many major Japanese companies and is also the seat of the national government, and the Emperor of Japan, yet is one of the least populated wards.[66]
To the west of the special wards, Tokyo Metropolis consists of cities, towns, and villages that enjoy the same legal status as those elsewhere in Japan. While serving as "bed towns" for those working in central Tokyo, some of them also have a local commercial and industrial base, such as Tachikawa. Collectively, these are often known as the Tama area or Western Tokyo. The far west of the Tama area is occupied by the district (gun) of Nishi-Tama. Much of this area is mountainous and unsuitable for urbanization. The highest mountain in Tokyo, Mount Kumotori, is 2,017 m (6,617 ft) high; other mountains in Tokyo include Takanosu (1,737 m (5,699 ft)), Odake (1,266 m (4,154 ft)), and Mitake (929 m (3,048 ft)). Lake Okutama, on the Tama River near Yamanashi Prefecture, is Tokyo's largest lake and serves as the primary reservoir for Tokyo's water supply. The district is composed of three towns (Hinode, Mizuho and Okutama) and one village (Hinohara). The Tokyo Metropolitan Government has designated Hachiōji, Tachikawa, Machida, Ōme and Tama New Town as regional centers of the Tama area.[67]
Okinotorishima, 1,740km (1,081mi) away from central Tokyo and the southernmost island of JapanTokyo has numerous outlying islands, which extend as far as 1,850 km (1,150 mi) from central Tokyo. Because of the islands' distance from the administrative headquarters of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government in Shinjuku, local subprefectural branch offices administer them. The Izu Islands are a group of volcanic islands and form part of the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park. The islands in order from closest to Tokyo are Izu Ōshima, Toshima, Nii-jima, Shikine-jima, Kōzu-shima, Miyake-jima, Mikurajima, Hachijō-jima, and Aogashima. The Izu Islands are grouped into three subprefectures. Izu Ōshima and Hachijojima are towns. The remaining islands are six villages, with Niijima and Shikinejima forming one village. The Ogasawara Islands include, from north to south, Chichi-jima, Nishinoshima, Haha-jima, Kita Iwo Jima, Iwo Jima, and Minami Iwo Jima. Ogasawara also administers two small outlying islands: Minami Torishima, the easternmost point in Japan and at 1,850 km (1,150 mi) the most distant island from central Tokyo, and Okinotorishima, the southernmost point in Japan.[68] Japan's claim on an exclusive economic zone (EEZ) surrounding Okinotorishima is contested by China and South Korea as they regard Okinotorishima as uninhabitable rocks which have no EEZ.[69] The Iwo chain and the outlying islands have no permanent population, but hosts Japan Self-Defense Forces personnel. Local populations are only found on Chichi-Jima and Haha-Jima. The islands form both Ogasawara Subprefecture and the village of Ogasawara, Tokyo.
Tokyo has enacted a measure to cut greenhouse gases. Governor Shintaro Ishihara created Japan's first emissions cap system, aiming to reduce greenhouse gas emission by a total of 25% by 2020 from the 2000 level.[72] Tokyo is an example of an urban heat island, and the phenomenon is especially serious in its special wards.[73][74] According to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government,[75] the annual mean temperature has increased by about 3 °C (5.4 °F) over the past 100 years. Tokyo has been cited as a "convincing example of the relationship between urban growth and climate".[73]
In 2006, Tokyo enacted the "10 Year Project for Green Tokyo" to be realized by 2016. It set a goal of increasing roadside trees in Tokyo to 1 million (from 480,000), and adding 1,000 ha (2,500 acres) of green space, 88 ha (220 acres) of which will be a new park named "Umi no Mori" (Sea Forest) which will be on a reclaimed island in Tokyo Bay which used to be a landfill.[76] From 2007 to 2010, 436 ha (1,080 acres) of the planned 1,000 ha of green space was created and 220,000 trees were planted, bringing the total to 700,000. As of 2014[update], roadside trees in Tokyo have increased to 950,000, and a further 300 ha (740 acres) of green space has been added.[77]
Geography
The mainland portion of Tokyo lies northwest of Tokyo Bay and measures about 90 km (56 mi) east to west and 25 km (16 mi) north to south. The average elevation in Tokyo is 40 m (131 ft).[78]Chiba Prefecture borders it to the east, Yamanashi to the west, Kanagawa to the south, and Saitama to the north. Mainland Tokyo is further subdivided into the special wards (occupying the eastern half) and the Tama area (多摩地域) stretching westwards. Tokyo has a latitude of 35.65 (near the 36th parallel north), which makes it more southern than Rome (41.90), Madrid (40.41), New York City (40.71) and Beijing (39.91).[79]
Within the administrative boundaries of Tokyo Metropolis are two island chains in the Pacific Ocean directly south: the Izu Islands, and the Ogasawara Islands, which stretch more than 1,000 km (620 mi) away from the mainland. Because of these islands and the mountainous regions to the west, Tokyo's overall population density figures far under-represent the real figures for the urban and suburban regions of Tokyo.[80]
Climate
The former city of Tokyo and the majority of Tokyo prefecture lie in the humid subtropical climate zone (Köppen climate classification: Cfa),[81] with hot, humid summers and mild to cool winters with occasional cold spells. The region, like much of Japan, experiences a one-month seasonal lag. The warmest month is August, which averages 26.9 °C (80.4 °F). The coolest month is January, averaging 5.4 °C (41.7 °F). The record low temperature was −9.2 °C (15.4 °F) on January 13, 1876. The record high was 39.5 °C (103.1 °F) on July 20, 2004.The record highest low temperature is 30.3 °C (86.5 °F), on August 12, 2013, making Tokyo one of only seven observation sites in Japan that have recorded a low temperature over 30 °C (86.0 °F).[82]
Annual rainfall averages nearly 1,600 millimeters (63.0 in), with a wetter summer and a drier winter. The growing season in Tokyo lasts for about 322 days from around mid-February to early January.[83] Snowfall is sporadic, and occurs almost annually.[84] Tokyo often sees typhoons every year, though few are strong. The wettest month since records began in 1876 was October 2004, with 780 millimeters (30 in) of rain,[85] including 270.5 mm (10.65 in) on the ninth of that month.[86] The most recent of four months on record to observe no precipitation is December 1995.[82] Annual precipitation has ranged from 879.5 mm (34.63 in) in 1984 to 2,229.6 mm (87.78 in) in 1938.[82]
The climates of Tokyo's offshore territories vary significantly from those of the city. The climate of Chichijima in Ogasawara village is on the boundary between the tropical savanna climate (Köppen classification: Aw) and the tropical rainforest climate (Köppen classification: Af). It is approximately 1,000 km (621 mi) south of the Greater Tokyo Area, resulting in much different climatic conditions.
Climate data for Chichijima, Ogasawara, Tokyo, 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1896–present
Tokyo's easternmost territory, the island of Minamitorishima in Ogasawara village, is in the tropical savanna climate zone (Köppen classification: Aw). Tokyo's Izu and Ogasawara islands are affected by an average of 5.4 typhoons a year, compared to 3.1 in mainland Kantō.[98]
Tokyo is near the boundary of three plates, making it an extremely active region for smaller quakes and slippage which frequently affect the urban area with swaying as if in a boat, although epicenters within mainland Tokyo (excluding Tokyo's 2,000 km (1,243 mi)–long island jurisdiction) are quite rare. It is not uncommon in the metro area to have hundreds of these minor quakes (magnitudes 4–6) that can be felt in a single year, something local residents merely brush off but can be a source of anxiety not only for foreign visitors but for Japanese from elsewhere as well. They rarely cause much damage (sometimes a few injuries) as they are either too small or far away as quakes tend to dance around the region. Particularly active are offshore regions and to a lesser extent Chiba and Ibaraki.[99]
Tokyo has been hit by powerful megathrust earthquakes in 1703, 1782, 1812, 1855, 1923, and much more indirectly (with some liquefaction in landfill zones) in 2011;[100][101] the frequency of direct and large quakes is a relative rarity. The 1923 earthquake, with an estimated magnitude of 8.3, killed 142,000 people, the last time the urban area was directly hit.
Volcanic eruptions
Mount Fuji has posed the primary volcanic threat to Tokyo's citizens for centuries.
Mount Fuji is about 100 km (62 mi) southwest of Tokyo. There is a low risk of eruption. The last recorded was the Hōei eruption which started on December 16, 1707, and ended about January 1, 1708 (16 days).[102] During the Hōei eruption, the ash amount was 4 cm in southern Tokyo (bay area) and 2 cm to 0.5 cm in central Tokyo.[103]Kanagawa had 16 cm to 8 cm ash and Saitama 0.5 to 0 cm.[103] If the wind blows north-east it could send volcanic ash to Tokyo metropolis.[104] According to the government, less than a millimeter of the volcanic ash from a Mount Fuji eruption could cause power grid problems such as blackouts and stop trains in the Tokyo metropolitan area.[104] A mixture of ash with rain could stick to cellphone antennas, power lines and cause temporary power outages.[104] The affected areas would need to be evacuated.[104]
Tokyo is located on the Kantō Plain with five river systems and dozens of rivers that expand during each season.[105] Important rivers are Edogawa, Nakagawa, Arakawa, Kandagawa, Megurogawa and Tamagawa.[106] In 1947, Typhoon Kathleen struck Tokyo, destroying 31,000 homes and killing 1,100 people.[105] In 1958, Typhoon Ida dropped 400 mm (16 in) of rain in a single week, causing streets to flood.[105] In the 1950s and 1960s, the government invested 6–7% of the national budget on disaster and risk reduction.[105] A huge system of dams, levees and tunnels was constructed.[105] The purpose is to manage heavy rain, typhonic rain, and river floods.[105]
The MAOUDC is the world's largest underground floodwater diversion facility.
Tokyo has currently the world's largest underground floodwater diversion facility called the Metropolitan Area Outer Underground Discharge Channel (MAOUDC).[107][105] It took 13 years to build and was completed in 2006. The MAOUDC is a 6.3 km (3.9 mi) long system of tunnels, 22 meters (72 ft) underground, with 70-meter (230 ft) tall cylindrical tanks, each tank being large enough to fit a space shuttle or the Statue of Liberty.[105] During floods, excess water is collected from rivers and drained to the Edo River.[106] Low-lying areas of Kōtō, Edogawa, Sumida, Katsushika, Taitō and Arakawa near the Arakawa River are most at risk of flooding.[106]
Edo, 1865 or 1866. Photochrom print. Five albumen prints joined to form a panorama. Photographer: Felice Beato.
Demographics
Tokyo metropolis population pyramid in 2020
Historical population
Year
Pop.
±%
1920
3,699,428
—
1925
4,485,144
+21.2%
1930
5,408,678
+20.6%
1935
6,369,919
+17.8%
1940
7,354,971
+15.5%
1945
3,488,284
−52.6%
1950
6,277,500
+80.0%
1955
8,037,084
+28.0%
1960
9,683,802
+20.5%
1965
10,869,244
+12.2%
1970
11,408,071
+5.0%
1975
11,673,554
+2.3%
1980
11,618,281
−0.5%
1985
11,829,363
+1.8%
1990
11,855,563
+0.2%
1995
11,773,605
−0.7%
2000
12,064,101
+2.5%
2005
12,576,601
+4.2%
2010
13,159,388
+4.6%
2015
13,515,271
+2.7%
2020
13,982,112
+3.5%
As of October 2012, the official intercensal estimate showed 13.506 million people in Tokyo, with 9.214 million living within Tokyo's 23 wards.[110] During the daytime, the population swells by over 2.5 million as workers and students commute from adjacent areas. This effect is even more pronounced in the three central wards of Chiyoda, Chūō, and Minato, whose collective population as of the 2005 National Census was 326,000 at night, but 2.4 million during the day.[111]
According to April 2024 official estimates, Setagaya (942,003), Nerima (752,608), and Ota (748,081) were the most populous wards and municipalities in Tokyo. The least inhabited of all Tokyo municipalities are remote island villages such as Aogashima (150), Mikurajima (289), and Toshima (306).[112]
Tokyo historical population since 1920
In 1889, the Home Ministry recorded 1,375,937 people in Tokyo City and a total of 1,694,292 people in Tokyo-fu.[113] In the same year, a total of 779 foreign nationals were recorded as residing in Tokyo. The most common nationality was English (209 residents), followed by American (182) and Chinese nationals (137).[114]
As of January 2024, Tokyo had 647,416 foreign nationals registered as residents, with China, South Korea, Vietnam, the Philippines, Nepal, Taiwan, and the United States each having more than 20,000 nationals living there as citizens.[115] Since the COVID-19 pandemic ended, Tokyo's foreign population has increased significantly, now nearly 20% above the January 2022 population of 546,436.[116]
Tokyo's gross regional product in 2021 was 113.7 trillion yen or US$1.04 trillion in FY2021 and accounted for 20.7% of the country's total economic output, which converts to 8.07 million yen or US$73,820 per capita.[17] As the Greater Tokyo Area, it has the second-largest metropolitan economy in the world, after Greater New York, with a gross metropolitan product estimated at US$2 trillion.
In 2023, 29 of the Fortune Global 500 companies were headquartered in Tokyo, which was the second highest concentration in the world after Beijing.[118] Notably, around 20 of them are based in Marunouchi, such as MUFG, Mitsubish Corp. and Hitachi.[119] Tokyo was rated by the Economist Intelligence Unit as the most expensive (highest cost-of-living) city in the world for 14 years in a row ending in 2006, when it was replaced by Oslo, and later Paris.[120][121] However, years of deflation and an extremely weak yen starting in 2022 due to Japan's low interest rates made the cost of living in Tokyo 31% cheaper than in New York City in 2023, which is roughly the same as in Beijing and Manchester according to the 2023 EIU rankings.[122]
Tokyo is a major international finance center;[123] it houses the headquarters of several of the world's largest investment banks and insurance companies, and serves as a hub for Japan's transportation, publishing, electronics and broadcasting industries. During the centralized growth of Japan's economy following World War II, many large firms moved their headquarters from cities such as Osaka (the historical commercial capital) to Tokyo, in an attempt to take advantage of better access to the government.
The Japanese financial market opened up slowly in 1984 and accelerated its internationalization with the "Japanese Big Bang" in 1998.[126] Despite the emergence of Singapore and Hong Kong as competing financial centers, the Tokyo IFC manages to keep a prominent position in Asia. The Tokyo Stock Exchange is Japan's largest stock exchange, and third largest in the world by market capitalization and fourth largest by share turnover. In 1990 at the end of the Japanese asset price bubble, it accounted for more than 60% of the world stock market value.[127]
Tourism
Sensoji in Asakusa, a popular tourist attractionTeamLab Planets, an interactive art facility
Tourism is a large contributor to Tokyo's economy. In 2019, 15.18 million foreigners visited Tokyo and they spent 1.26 trillion yen there according to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government. It accounted for slightly more than one per cent of Tokyo's total economic output.[128]
According to a 2019 government survey, the most visited areas in Tokyo were:[129]
The Toyosu Market in Tokyo is the largest wholesale fish and seafood market in the world since it opened on October 11, 2018.[131] It is also one of the largest wholesale food markets of any kind. It is located in the Toyosu area of Kōtō ward. The Toyosu Market holds strong to the traditions of its predecessor, the Tsukiji Fish Market and Nihonbashi fish market, and serves some 50,000 buyers and sellers every day. Retailers, whole-sellers, auctioneers, and public citizens alike frequent the market, creating a unique microcosm of organized chaos that still continues to fuel the city and its food supply after over four centuries.[132]
Tokyo had 8,460 hectares (20,900 acres) of agricultural land as of 2003,[133] according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, placing it last among the nation's prefectures. The farmland is concentrated in Western Tokyo. Perishables such as vegetables, fruits, and flowers can be conveniently shipped to the markets in the eastern part of the prefecture.
With 36% of its area covered by forest, Tokyo has extensive growths of cryptomeria and Japanese cypress, especially in the mountainous western communities of Akiruno, Ōme, Okutama, Hachiōji, Hinode, and Hinohara. Decreases in the price of timber, increases in the cost of production, and advancing old age among the forestry population have resulted in a decline in Tokyo's output. In addition, pollen, especially from cryptomeria, is a major allergen for the nearby population centers. Tokyo Bay was once a major source of fish. Most of Tokyo's fish production comes from the outer islands, such as Izu Ōshima and Hachijō-Jima. Skipjack tuna, nori, and aji are among the ocean products.[134]
Transportation
Shibuya Crossing symbolises the hustle and buslte of Tokyo.
Tokyo, which is the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, is Japan's largest domestic and international hub for rail and ground transportation. Public transportation within Tokyo is dominated by an extensive network of "clean and efficient"[135] trains and subways run by a variety of operators, with buses, monorails and trams playing a secondary feeder role. There are up to 62 electric train lines and more than 900 train stations in Tokyo.[136]Shibuya Crossing is the "world's busiest pedestrian crossing", with around 3,000 people crossing at a time.[137][138][139]
Rail
JR East operates the largest commuter train network in Tokyo as well as intercity services.The Shinkansen connects major cities around the country to Tokyo.
Rail is the primary mode of transportation in Tokyo,[140] which has the most extensive urban railway network in the world and an equally extensive network of surface lines. JR East operates Tokyo's largest railway network, including the Yamanote Line loop that circles central Tokyo. It operates rail lines throughout the entire metropolitan area of Tokyo and the rest of northeastern Honshu. JR East is also responsible for the Shinkansen high-speed rail lines that link Tokyo and Northeastern cities of Japan (Joetsu Shinkansen, Tohoku/Hokkaido Shinkansen, Yamagata Shinkansen, Akita Shinkansen, Hokuriku Shinkansen).[141] The Tokaido Shinkansen, which links Tokyo and Osaka via Nagoya and Kyoto, as well as western cities beyond, is operated by JR Central. The Chuo Shinkansen, the first-ever long-distance high-speed floating maglev line currently under construction, will also be operated by JR Central. Both JR companies were created from the privatisation of Japan National Railways in 1987. JR Freight does not own any part of the railway network but operates freight trains on the JR network.
Expansion of the underground railway network in Tokyo. Note that surface railway lines are displayed in grey.
Two different entities operate Tokyo's underground railway network: the privatised Tokyo Metro and the governmental Tokyo Metropolitan Bureau of Transportation. Tokyo Metro is entirely owned by the Japanese Government and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government since it was privatised in 2004 (it was previously a public entity called the Imperial Capital Rapid Transit Authority from 1941 to 2004), but it is scheduled to go public in 2024.[142] Other major railway operators in Tokyo include Odakyu, Tokyu, Keio, Seibu, Tobu, and Keisei. Although each operator directly owns its railway lines, through services that travel across different lines owned by different operators are common.
Tokyo once had an extensive tram network, with a total distance of 213 km (Tokyo Toden). However, similar to other major cities worldwide, the age of motorisation since the 1950s made it considered unfit to share busy roads with cars. Today, only one line, the Arakawa line, remains.[143]
Roads
Yasukuni dori, or the 302nd Metropolitan road
Tokyo has the lowest car ownership rate among all prefectures in Japan, with 0.416 cars per household compared to the national average of 1.025 per household. This is despite Tokyo being one of the most affluent areas in the country, with a nominal GDP per capita of around US$75,000.[144] A 2021 survey found that 81% of respondents without a car were satisfied with public transport and saw no need to own one.[145] However, those who do not own automobiles still benefit from the road infrastructure through the use of buses and logistics services.
Each road in Tokyo falls into one of the following categories depending on the type of ownership: private roads, municipal roads, metropolitan roads and expressways. As of April 1, 2022, the total length of roads in Tokyo is approximately 24,741 km (including 2,370 km of metropolitan roads), with a total area of approximately 190.31km2 (including 46.30km2 of metropolitan roads).[146]
Intercity expressways in and around Tokyo are managed by NEXCO East, while expressways that serve only within the Greater Tokyo Area (Shuto Expressway) are operated by the Metropolitan Expressway Company. Tolls are collected based on the distance travelled. The total length of the Shuto Expressway is 337.8 km, with speed limits usually set at 80 km/h or 60 km/h to reduce noise pollution and accommodate the relatively winding road shapes.[147]
Aviation
Narita International Airport
The mainland portion of Tokyo is served by two international airports: Narita International Airport in Chiba Prefecture and Haneda Airport in Ōta. Haneda has served as the primary airport for Tokyo since 1931. However, the Jet Age saw an exponential increase in flights, prompting the government to build a second airport. Narita was chosen as the site for this second airport in 1966, but local farmers and left-wing activists who sympathised with them protested vehemently for more than a decade (the Sanrizuka Struggle), delaying the new airport's opening until 1978. Almost all international flights were transferred to Narita Airport upon its completion, and Haneda became primarily a domestic airport.
A Boeing 747-400D, a model specifically designed for Japanese domestic routes, taxiing at Haneda Airport.
The situation changed when it was decided to expand Haneda Airport and build new runways in 2001. The new runway, Runway D, was constructed partly as a pier-like structure rather than a landfilled structure to avoid obstructing the flow of water in the bay. Its opening in 2010 marked the return of international flights to Haneda, which is much closer to central Tokyo. In 2023, Haneda handled 17.9 million international passengers and 60.8 million domestic passengers,[148] while Narita was used by 25.4 million international passengers and 7.7 million domestic passengers.[149] According to a 2023 survey, Haneda is the fifth busiest airport in the world by passenger traffic.
Tokyo is the educational, academic and cultural hub of the country. From primary to tertiary levels, a number of educational institutions that cater to the needs of various pupils operate in the city.
At the secondary level, 429 senior high schools are located in Tokyo, six of which are national, 186 are public, and 237 are private.[152] Some senior high schools, often prestigious national or private ones, run jointly with their affiliated junior high schools, providing six-year educational programmes (Chūkō Ikkan Kyōiku). The Kaisei Academy,[153]Komaba Junior & Senior High School, University of Tsukuba,[154]Azabu High School, and Oin Junior and Senior High School,[155] the largest sources of successful applicants to the nation's top university, the University of Tokyo,[156] are some examples of such.
Bancho Elementary School (public), Chiyoda
At the primary level, there are 1332 elementary schools in Tokyo. Six of them are national, 1261 are public, and 53 are private.[152]
Early-modern-established academies such as Gakushuin and Keio provide all-through educational programmes from primary schools to universities, originally to cater to the needs of traditionally affluent and powerful families.[157]
Tokyo has many theaters for performing arts. These include national and private theaters for traditional forms of Japanese drama. Noteworthy are the National Noh Theatre for noh and the Kabuki-za for Kabuki.[158] Symphony orchestras and other musical organizations perform modern and traditional music. The New National Theater Tokyo in Shibuya is the national center for the performing arts, including opera, ballet, contemporary dance and drama.[159] Tokyo also hosts modern Japanese and international pop, and rock music at venues ranging in size from intimate clubs to internationally known areas such as the Nippon Budokan.
Many different festivals occur throughout Tokyo. Major events include the Sannō at Hie Shrine, the Sanja at Asakusa Shrine, and the biennial Kanda Festivals. The last features a parade with elaborately decorated floats and thousands of people. Annually on the last Saturday of July, an enormous fireworks display over the Sumida River attracts over a million viewers. Once cherry blossoms bloom in spring, many residents gather in Ueno Park, Inokashira Park, and the Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden for picnics under the blossoms.
Harajuku, a neighborhood in Shibuya, is known internationally for its youth style, fashion[160] and cosplay.
In November 2007, Michelin released their first guide for fine dining in Tokyo, awarding 191 stars in total, or about twice as many as Tokyo's nearest competitor, Paris. As of 2017, 227 restaurants in Tokyo have been awarded (92 in Paris). Twelve establishments were awarded the maximum of three stars (Paris has 10), 54 received two stars, and 161 earned one star.[161]
Tokyo hosted the 1964 Summer Olympics, thus becoming the first Asian city to host the Summer Games. The National Stadium, also known as the Olympic Stadium, was host to a number of international sporting events. In 2016, it was to be replaced by the New National Stadium. With a number of world-class sports venues, Tokyo often hosts national and international sporting events such as basketball tournaments, women's volleyball tournaments, tennis tournaments, swim meets, marathons, rugby union and sevens rugby games, soccer exhibition games, judo, and karate. Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium, in Sendagaya, Shibuya, is a large sports complex that includes swimming pools, training rooms, and a large indoor arena. According to Around the Rings, the gymnasium has played host to the October 2011 artistic gymnastics world championships, despite the International Gymnastics Federation's initial doubt in Tokyo's ability to host the championships after the triple disaster hits Japan.[162] Tokyo was also selected to host a number of games for the 2019 Rugby World Cup, and to host the 2020 Summer Olympics and Paralympics, which had to be rescheduled to the summer of 2021 due to COVID-19 pandemic.
In popular culture
Akihabara is the most popular area for fans of anime, manga, and games.FCG Building, home of Fuji TV headquarters
As the largest population center in Japan and the site of the country's largest broadcasters and studios, Tokyo is frequently the setting for many Japanese movies, television shows, animated series' (anime), web comics, light novels, video games, and comic books (manga). In the kaiju (monster movie) genre, landmarks of Tokyo are usually destroyed by giant monsters such as Godzilla and Gamera.
Fowler, Edward. San'ya Blues: Labouring Life in Contemporary Tokyo. (1996) ISBN0-8014-8570-3.
Friedman, Mildred, ed. Tokyo, Form and Spirit. (1986). 256 pp.
Jinnai, Hidenobu. Tokyo: A Spatial Anthropology. (1995). 236 pp.
Jones, Sumie et al. eds. A Tokyo Anthology: Literature from Japan's Modern Metropolis, 1850–1920 (2017); primary sources excerpt
Perez, Louis G. Tokyo: Geography, History, and Culture (ABC-CLIO, 2019).
Reynolds, Jonathan M. "Japan's Imperial Diet Building: Debate over Construction of a National Identity". Art Journal. 55#3 (1996) pp. 38+.
Sassen, Saskia. The Global City: New York, London, Tokyo. (1991). 397 pp.
Sorensen, A. Land Readjustment and Metropolitan Growth: An Examination of Suburban Land Development and Urban Sprawl in the Tokyo Metropolitan Area (2000)
Waley, Paul. "Tokyo-as-world-city: Reassessing the Role of Capital and the State in Urban Restructuring". Urban Studies 2007 44(8): 1465–1490. ISSN0042-0980 Fulltext: Ebsco
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