is a common name for the area around
Akihabara Station
is a railway station in Tokyo's Chiyoda ward. It is at the center of the Akihabara shopping district specializing in electronic goods.
Lines
Akihabara Station is served by the following lines.
JR East:
* Tōhoku Main Line
** Keihin-Tohoku Li ...
in the
of
Tokyo
Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...
, Japan. Administratively, the area called Akihabara mainly belongs to the and
Kanda-Sakumachō districts in Chiyoda. There exists an administrative district called Akihabara in the
Taitō
is a special ward located in Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. In English, it is known as Taitō City.
As of May 1, 2015, the ward has an estimated population of 186,276, and a population density of 18,420 persons per km2. The total area is . Thi ...
ward further north of Akihabara Station, but it is not the place people generally refer to as Akihabara.
The name Akihabara is a shortening of , which ultimately comes from , named after a fire-controlling deity of a firefighting shrine built after the area was destroyed by a fire in 1869.
[Cybriwsky, Roman. ''Historical dictionary of Tokyo.''Scarecrow Press, 2011.]
Akihabara gained the nickname shortly after
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
for being a major shopping center for household electronic goods and the post-war
black market
A black market, underground economy, or shadow economy is a clandestine market or series of transactions that has some aspect of illegality or is characterized by noncompliance with an institutional set of rules. If the rule defines the se ...
.
[Nobuoka, Jakob. "User innovation and creative consumption in Japanese culture industries: The case of Akihabara, Tokyo." ''Geografiska Annaler: Series B, Human Geography'' 92.3 (2010): 205–218.][Yamada, Kazuhito. ''Entrepreneurship in Akihabara.'']
Akihabara is considered by many to be the center of modern
Japanese popular culture
Japanese popular culture includes Japanese cinema, cuisine, television programs, anime, manga, video games, music, and doujinshi, all of which retain older artistic and literary traditions; many of their themes and styles of presentation can be t ...
and a major shopping district for
video games
Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device to gener ...
,
anime
is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...
,
manga
Manga (Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is u ...
,
electronics
The field of electronics is a branch of physics and electrical engineering that deals with the emission, behaviour and effects of electrons using electronic devices. Electronics uses active devices to control electron flow by amplification ...
and
computer
A computer is a machine that can be programmed to Execution (computing), carry out sequences of arithmetic or logical operations (computation) automatically. Modern digital electronic computers can perform generic sets of operations known as C ...
-related goods. Icons from popular anime and manga are displayed prominently on the shops in the area, and numerous
maid café
are a subcategory of cosplay restaurants found predominantly in Japan. In these cafés, waitresses, dressed in maid costumes, act as servants, and treat customers as masters (and mistresses) in a private home, rather than as café patrons. The f ...
s and some arcades are found throughout the district.
Geography
The main area of Akihabara is located on a street just west of
Akihabara Station
is a railway station in Tokyo's Chiyoda ward. It is at the center of the Akihabara shopping district specializing in electronic goods.
Lines
Akihabara Station is served by the following lines.
JR East:
* Tōhoku Main Line
** Keihin-Tohoku Li ...
, where most of the major shops are situated. Most of the electronics shops are just west of the station, and the anime and manga shops and the
cosplay cafés are north of them.
As mentioned above, the area called Akihabara now ranges over some districts in Chiyoda ward: , , and . There exists an administrative district called Akihabara in the
Taitō
is a special ward located in Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. In English, it is known as Taitō City.
As of May 1, 2015, the ward has an estimated population of 186,276, and a population density of 18,420 persons per km2. The total area is . Thi ...
ward further north of the station, but it is not the place which people generally refer to as Akihabara. It borders on Sotokanda in between Akihabara and
Okachimachi stations, but is half occupied by
JR tracks.
History
![Akihabara 1976](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/06/Akihabara_1976.jpg)
The area that is now Akihabara was once near a
city gate
A city gate is a gate which is, or was, set within a city wall. It is a type of fortified gateway.
Uses
City gates were traditionally built to provide a point of controlled access to and departure from a walled city for people, vehicles, goods ...
of
Edo and served as a passage between the city and northwestern Japan. This made the region a home to many craftsmen and tradesmen, as well as some low-class
samurai
were the hereditary military nobility and officer caste of medieval and early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in 1876. They were the well-paid retainers of the '' daimyo'' (the great feudal landholders). They h ...
. One of Tokyo's frequent fires destroyed the area in 1869, and the people decided to replace the buildings of the area with a shrine called Chinkasha (now known as Akiba Shrine ), meaning fire extinguisher shrine, in an attempt to prevent the spread of future fires. The locals nicknamed the shrine Akiba after the deity that could control fire, and the area around it became known as Akibagahara and later Akihabara.
After Akihabara Station was built in 1888, the shrine was moved to the
Taitō ward where it still resides today.
Since its opening in 1890,
Akihabara Station
is a railway station in Tokyo's Chiyoda ward. It is at the center of the Akihabara shopping district specializing in electronic goods.
Lines
Akihabara Station is served by the following lines.
JR East:
* Tōhoku Main Line
** Keihin-Tohoku Li ...
became a major freight transit point, which allowed a vegetable and fruit market to spring up in the district. Then, in the 1920s, the station saw a large volume of passengers after opening for public transport, and after World War II, the black market thrived in the absence of a strong government. This disconnection of Akihabara from government authority has allowed the district to grow as a market city and given rise to an excellent atmosphere for entrepreneurship.
In the 1930s, this climate turned Akihabara into a future-oriented market region specializing in household
electronics
The field of electronics is a branch of physics and electrical engineering that deals with the emission, behaviour and effects of electrons using electronic devices. Electronics uses active devices to control electron flow by amplification ...
, such as washing machines, refrigerators, televisions, and stereos, earning Akihabara the nickname "Electric Town".
As household electronics began to lose their futuristic appeal in the 1980s, the shops of Akihabara shifted their focus to home computers at a time when they were only used by specialists and hobbyists. This new specialization brought in a new type of consumer, computer nerds or ''otaku''.
The market in Akihabara naturally latched onto their new customer base that was focused on
anime
is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...
,
manga
Manga (Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is u ...
, and video games. The connection between Akihabara and otaku has survived and grown to the point that the region is now known worldwide as a center for otaku culture, and some otaku even consider Akihabara to be a sacred place.
[IMAI, Nobuharu. "The Momentary and Placeless Community: Constructing a New Community with regards to Otaku Culture." ''Inter Faculty 1'' (2010).]
''Otaku'' culture
The influence of ''
otaku
is a Japanese word that describes people with consuming interests, particularly in anime, manga, video games, or computers. Its contemporary use originated with a 1983 essay by Akio Nakamori in ''Manga Burikko''. may be used as a pejorativ ...
'' culture has shaped Akihabara's businesses and buildings to reflect the interests of ''otaku'' and gained the district worldwide fame for its distinctive imagery.
[The ultimate geek's guide to Tokyo](_blank)
CNN
CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by the M ...
travel (18 December 2018) Akihabara tries to create an atmosphere as close as possible to the game and anime worlds of customers' interest. The streets of Akihabara are covered with anime and manga icons, and cosplayers line the sidewalks handing out advertisements, especially for
maid café
are a subcategory of cosplay restaurants found predominantly in Japan. In these cafés, waitresses, dressed in maid costumes, act as servants, and treat customers as masters (and mistresses) in a private home, rather than as café patrons. The f ...
s. Release events, special events, and
conventions in Akihabara give anime and manga fans frequent opportunities to meet the creators of the works they follow and strengthen the connection between the region and ''otaku'' culture. The design of many of the buildings serves to create the sort of atmosphere that draws in ''otaku''. Architects design the stores of Akihabara to be more opaque and closed to reflect the general desire of many ''otaku'' to live in their anime worlds rather than display their interests to the world at large.
[Morikawa, Kaichiro. "Learning from Akihabara: The birth of a personapolis." ''Gentosha'', Tokyo (2003).]
Akihabara's role as a free market has also allowed a large amount of amateur work to find a passionate audience in the otaku who frequent the area. ''
Doujinshi
, also romanized as ', is the Japanese term for self-published print works, such as magazines, manga, and novels. Part of a wider category of '' doujin'' (self-published) works, ''doujinshi'' are often derivative of existing works and created by ...
'' (amateur or fanmade manga based on an anime/manga/game) has been growing in Akihabara since the 1970s when publishers began to drop manga that were not ready for large markets.
Comiket
, more commonly known as or , is a semiannual ''doujinshi'' convention in Tokyo, Japan. A grassroots market focused on the sale of '' doujin'' (self-published) works, Comiket is a not-for-profit fan convention administered by the volunteer-ru ...
is largest spot sale of ''
Doujinshi
, also romanized as ', is the Japanese term for self-published print works, such as magazines, manga, and novels. Part of a wider category of '' doujin'' (self-published) works, ''doujinshi'' are often derivative of existing works and created by ...
in
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
.''
See also
*
Akiba-kei
or is a Japanese slang term for Akihabara style. Akihabara is a district in Chiyoda, Tokyo where many otaku, or obsessive anime, manga, idol, and video game fans gather.
Definition
''Akiba-kei'' is a Japanese slang term meaning "Akihabara ...
*
Akihabara Trilogy
*
Kanda Shrine
, is a Shinto shrine located in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. The shrine dates back 1,270 years, but the current structure was rebuilt several times due to fire and earthquakes. It is situated in one of the most expensive estate areas of Tokyo. Kanda ...
, Shinto shrine near Akihabara
*
Nipponbashi
is a shopping district of Naniwa Ward, Osaka, Japan. The area is centered along Sakaisuji Avenue, extending from the Ebisu-chō Interchange of the Hanshin Expressway in the south, to Nansan-dōri (just east of Nankai Namba Station) in the ...
, in Osaka
*
Ōsu, in Nagoya
*
Tourism in Japan
Japan attracted 31.88 million international tourists in 2019. Japan has 21 World Heritage Sites, including Himeji Castle, Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto and Nara. Popular foreigner attractions include Tokyo and Hiroshima, Mount Fuji, ...
References
External links
Akihabara Area Tourism OrganizationAkihabara Electrical Town Organization website
{{Authority control
Chiyoda, Tokyo
Electronics districts
Neighborhoods of Tokyo
Otaku
Shopping districts and streets in Japan
Taitō
Tourist attractions in Tokyo