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is the capital
city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...
of Miyagi Prefecture, the largest city in the
Tōhoku region The , Northeast region, or consists of the northeastern portion of Honshu, the largest island of Japan. This traditional region consists of six prefectures (''ken''): Akita, Aomori, Fukushima, Iwate, Miyagi, and Yamagata. Tōhoku reta ...
. , the city had a population of 1,091,407 in 525,828 households, and is one of Japan's 20 designated cities. The city was founded in 1600 by the ''
daimyō were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast, hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and nominal ...
'' Date Masamune. It is nicknamed the ; there are
Japanese zelkova ''Zelkova serrata'' (Japanese zelkova, Japanese elm or keyaki or keaki; ja, 欅 (ケヤキ) keyaki /槻 (ツキ) tsuki; ; ko, 느티나무 neutinamu) is a species of the genus ''Zelkova'' native to Japan, Korea, eastern China and Taiwan.Flora ...
trees lining many of the main thoroughfares such as and . In the summer, the
Sendai Tanabata Festival , also known as the Star Festival ( 星祭り, ''Hoshimatsuri''), is a Japanese festival originating from the Chinese Qixi Festival. It celebrates the meeting of the deities Orihime and Hikoboshi (represented by the stars Vega and Altair res ...
, the largest Tanabata festival in Japan, is held. In winter, the trees are decorated with thousands of lights for the , lasting through most of December. On 11 March 2011, coastal areas of the city suffered catastrophic damage from a magnitude 9.0 offshore earthquake, US Geological Survey 9.0 assessment
/ref>UK Foreign Office 9.0 assessment

/ref> which triggered a destructive
tsunami A tsunami ( ; from ja, 津波, lit=harbour wave, ) is a series of waves in a water body caused by the displacement of a large volume of water, generally in an ocean or a large lake. Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and other underwater exp ...
.


History


Edo period

Although the Sendai area was inhabited as early as 20,000 years ago, the history of Sendai as a city begins from 1600, when the ''
daimyō were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast, hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and nominal ...
'' Date Masamune relocated. Masamune was not happy with his previous stronghold, Iwadeyama, which was located in the northern portion of his territories and was difficult to access from Edo (modern-day Tokyo). Sendai was an ideal location, being in the centre of Masamune's newly defined territories, upon the major road from Edo.
Tokugawa Ieyasu was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa Shogunate of Japan, which ruled Japan from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was one of the three "Great Unifiers" of Japan, along with his former lord Oda Nobunaga and fello ...
gave Masamune permission to build a new castle in Aobayama after the Battle of Sekigahara. The previous ruler of the Sendai area had used a castle located on Aobayama. At this time Sendai was written as ("a thousand generations"), because a temple with a used to be located in Aobayama. Masamune changed the ''
kanji are the logographic Chinese characters taken from the Chinese family of scripts, Chinese script and used in the writing of Japanese language, Japanese. They were made a major part of the Japanese writing system during the time of Old Japanese ...
'' to "", which later became "" (literally: "hermit/wizard" plus "platform/plateau" or figuratively, "hermit on a platform/high ground"). The character came from a Chinese poem that praised a palace created by the
Emperor Wen of Han China An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife ( empress consort), mother (empr ...
(reigned 180–157 BCE), comparing it to a mythical palace in the Kunlun Mountains. Tradition says that Masamune chose this ''kanji'' so that the castle would prosper as long as a mountain inhabited by an immortal hermit. Masamune ordered the construction of Sendai Castle in December 1600 and the construction of the surrounding
castle town A castle town is a settlement built adjacent to or surrounding a castle. Castle towns were common in Medieval Europe. Some examples include small towns like Alnwick and Arundel, which are still dominated by their castles. In Western Europe, a ...
in 1601. The grid plan roads in modern-day central Sendai are based upon his plans. File:Sendai castle01s3872.jpg,
Aoba Castle 260px, Layout of Aoba Castle is a Japanese castle located in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. Throughout the Edo period, Aoba Castle was home to the Date clan, ''daimyō'' of Sendai Domain. The castle was also known as or as . In 2003, the c ...
File:仙台城下絵図.jpg, Map of the Area around Sendai Castle File:Sendai Zuiho-den Tor 2.jpg,
Zuihōden in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan is the mausoleum complex of Date Masamune and his heirs, daimyō of the Sendai Domain. History When Date Masamune, known as and founder of the Sendai Domain, died in 1636, he left instructions for a mausoleu ...
File:Sendai Tōshō-gū haiden.jpg,
Sendai Tōshōgū is the memorial shrine of Tokugawa Ieyasu in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. Five of its buildings, all dating to 1654, have been designated Important Cultural Properties. The torii and gates were damaged in the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and ...
File:Statue-of-Date-Masamune-in-Aobayama-Park-Sendai-2016.jpg, Date Masamune


Modern era

The first railway line between Sendai and Tokyo, now the Tōhoku Main Line, opened in 1887, bringing the area within a day's travel from Tokyo for the first time in history. Tohoku Imperial University, the region's first university, was founded in Sendai in 1907 and became the first Japanese university to admit female students in 1913. Sendai was incorporated as a city on 1 April 1889, with the post-
Meiji restoration The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored practical imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Although there were ...
creation of the modern municipalities system following the abolition of the han system. At the time of incorporation, the city's area was and its population was 86,000. The city grew, however, through seven annexations that occurred between 1928 and 1988. The city became a designated city on 1 April 1989; the city's population exceeded one million in 1999. Sendai was considered to be one of Japan's greenest cities, mostly because of its great numbers of trees and plants. Sendai became known as The City of Trees before the
Meiji Restoration The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored practical imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Although there were ...
, after the feudal
Sendai Domain The , also known as the , was a domain of the Tokugawa Shogunate of Japan during the Edo period from 1600 to 1871. The Sendai Domain was based at Aoba Castle in Mutsu Province, in the modern city of Sendai, located in the Tōhoku region of the i ...
encouraged residents to plant trees in their gardens. As a result, many houses, temples, and shrines in central Sendai had , which were used as resources for wood and other everyday materials. In 1925, the
Senseki Line The is a railway line in Miyagi Prefecture, Japan, owned and operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). It connects Aoba-dōri Station in Sendai to Ishinomaki Station in Ishinomaki, and provides access to the central coast areas o ...
to Sendai Station became the first underground railway segment in Japan, preceding the opening of the Tokyo Metro Ginza Line (Asia's first subway line) by two years. The 2nd Infantry Division was known as the "Sendai Division" as it was based in Sendai, and recruited locally. During the Second World War it was involved in many different campaigns, but one of the most important was the
Battle of Guadalcanal The Guadalcanal campaign, also known as the Battle of Guadalcanal and codenamed Operation Watchtower by American forces, was a military campaign fought between 7 August 1942 and 9 February 1943 on and around the island of Guadalcanal in the ...
. During the bombing of Sendai during World War II by the United States on 10 July 1945, much of the historic center of the city was burned, with 2,755 inhabitants killed and 11,933 houses destroyed in the city. File:Sendai map circa 1930.PNG, A city map of 1927, Japanese language edition File:Tohoku Imperial University,1913.jpg, Tohoku Imperial University File:Basho no Tsuji circa 1930.JPG, Basho no Tsuji(1930) File:Sendai after the 1945 air raid.JPG, Bombing of Sendai during World War II File:Tohoku Daigaku Honbu.jpg, Tohoku University Katahira Campus


Postwar development

Following World War II, the city was rebuilt, and Sendai became a vital transportation and logistics hub for the Tōhoku region with the construction of major arteries such as the
Tōhoku Expressway The is a south-north national expressway, and the longest expressway in Japan at . Its southern terminus is in Kawaguchi, Saitama in the Greater Tokyo Area, at the Tokyo Gaikan Expressway and Kawaguchi Route near Araijuku Station, and its no ...
and
Tōhoku Shinkansen The is a Japanese high-speed Shinkansen rail line, connecting Tokyo with Aomori in Aomori Prefecture in a route length of , making it Japan's longest Shinkansen line. It runs through the more sparsely populated Tōhoku region of Japan's main ...
. In the early 1950s, the
United States Army, Japan United States Army, Japan (USARJ) is a Major Command of the United States Army. It consists of operating port facilities and a series of logistics installations throughout Honshū and Okinawa. USARJ participates actively with the Japan Ground Se ...
operated Camp Schimmelpfennig and Camp Sendai in the city. Sendai has been subject to several major earthquakes in recent history, including the
1978 Miyagi earthquake The occurred at 17:14 local time (08:14 UTC) on 12 June. The epicentre was offshore of Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. It had a surface wave magnitude of 7.7, JMA magnitude 7.4, and triggered a small tsunami. The earthquake reached a maximum inten ...
, which was a catalyst for the development of Japan's current earthquake resistance standards, and the 2005 Miyagi earthquake. Most recently, the coastal area of Sendai, including
Sendai Airport is an international airport located in the city of Natori, Miyagi, south southeast of Sendai metropolis, Sendai, Japan. The airport is alternatively referred to as . History In 1940, the Imperial Japanese Army built Sendai Airport in order ...
, was severely damaged in the
2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami The occurred at 14:46 JST (05:46 UTC) on 11 March. The magnitude 9.0–9.1 (M) undersea megathrust earthquake had an epicenter in the Pacific Ocean, east of the Oshika Peninsula of the Tōhoku region, and lasted approximately six mi ...
. The tsunami reportedly reached as far as Wakabayashi Ward Office, from the coastline. Thousands were killed, and countless more were injured and/or made homeless. Sendai's port was heavily damaged and temporarily closed, reopening on 16 April 2011. File:Sendai City War Reconstruction Memorial Hall cropped.jpg, Sendai City War Reconstruction Memorial Hall File:SH-60B helicopter flies over Sendai.jpg, An aerial view of Sendai harbour after the earthquake, 12 March 2011 File:Hinomaru-Sendai Bus OP-13 and OP-11 Rakuten Eagles Victory Parade 2013.jpg, Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles(2013)


Geography

Sendai is located at lat. 38°16'05" north, long. 140°52'11" east. The city's area is , and stretches from the Pacific Ocean to the
Ōu Mountains The are a mountain range in the Tōhoku region of Honshū, Japan. The range is the longest range in Japan and stretches south from the Natsudomari Peninsula of Aomori Prefecture to the Nasu volcanoes at the northern boundary of the Kantō ...
, which are the east and west borders of Miyagi Prefecture. As a result, the city's geography is quite diverse. Eastern Sendai is a plains area, the center of the city is hilly, and western areas are mountainous. The highest point in the city is Mount Funagata which stands above sea level. Unique among Japan's large coastal cities, Sendai's city core is built on a terrace at elevation. The Sendai basin area is (the mountainous area is , the plain area is and the water body is ). The basin consists of urban areas, paddy fields and forests. The mid and upstream areas have forests. The
Natori River The is a river located in central Miyagi prefecture, in the Tōhoku region of northern Japan. It starts at Mount Kamuro in the Ōu Mountains and flows in an easterly direction through the cities of Natori and Sendai. The river's headwaters start ...
flows through the area and reaches Sendai Bay after . The flows through Sendai. The river is well known as a symbol of Sendai, especially because it appears in the lyrics of Aoba-jō Koi-uta (青葉城恋唄; literally, ''The Aoba Castle Love Song''), a popular song sung by Muneyuki Satō.
Aoba Castle 260px, Layout of Aoba Castle is a Japanese castle located in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. Throughout the Edo period, Aoba Castle was home to the Date clan, ''daimyō'' of Sendai Domain. The castle was also known as or as . In 2003, the c ...
was built close to the river to use the river as a natural moat. The river frequently flooded until the 1950s, but dams and levees constructed in the 1960s and 1970s have made such floods rare. Most mountains in Sendai are dormant volcanoes, much older than the more famous
Mount Zaō The , commonly called Mount Zaō, are a complex cluster of stratovolcanoes on the border between Yamagata Prefecture and Miyagi Prefecture in Japan. The central volcano of the group includes several lava domes and a tuff cone, Goshiki-dake, which ...
and Naruko volcanoes in nearby municipalities. However, many hot springs can be found in the city, indicating hydrothermal activity. The Miyagi Oki
earthquake An earthquake (also known as a quake, tremor or temblor) is the shaking of the surface of the Earth resulting from a sudden release of energy in the Earth's lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, fr ...
occurs offshore Sendai once every 25 to 40 years. The 7.2 magnitude 2005 Miyagi earthquake, which occurred on August 16, 2005, had an epicenter close to the ''Miyagi Oki'' earthquake area. However, the Headquarters for Earthquake Research Promotion concluded that it was not the ''Miyagi Oki'' earthquake, saying "...the recent event is not thought to be this earthquake. This is because the magnitude of the earthquake was small, and the source area, which was estimated from the aftershock distribution and seismic waves, didn't cover the whole expected source region. Although, the recent event ruptured a part of the focal region of the expected earthquake." In 2011, the 9.0 magnitude 2011 Tōhoku earthquake occurred offshore Sendai, resulting in a devastating tsunami.


Wards

Sendai has five wards ("ku"), which were created when it became a designated city in 1989. The city consciously avoided names that included directions (e.g., north , center ) when it chose names for the new wards.


Cityscape

File:DownTown of SendaiCity01.jpg, View of Sendai from AER (2019) File:Night view from Mukaiyama.JPG, Sendai night skyline from Mukaiyama (2012) File:211028 Sendai Station Sendai Miyagi pref Japan02s5.jpg, Sendai Station (2021) File:Kokubuncho-dori ave. viewed from Jozenji-dori ave. cropped.jpg, Kokubunchō (2010) File:Koutoudai Park3.jpg, Kōtōdai Park (2007)


Climate

Sendai has a humid subtropical climate (
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (born 1951), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author and ...
''Cfa''), which features warm and wet summers, and cool and dry winters. Sendai summers are not as hot as
Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...
to the south, while the winters are much milder than
Sapporo ( ain, サッ・ポロ・ペッ, Satporopet, lit=Dry, Great River) is a city in Japan. It is the largest city north of Tokyo and the largest city on Hokkaido, the northernmost main island of the country. It ranks as the fifth most populous cit ...
to the north, but retains significant seasonal differences in temperature and rainfall. Extremes range from . Of Japan's prefectural capitals, Sendai experiences the fewest days of extreme temperatures (highs outside ) at 19.6 per year, compared to Tokyo's average of 49. Winters are cool and relatively dry, with January temperatures averaging . Snowfall is much lower than cities on the Sea of Japan coast, such as Niigata and Tottori. Summers are very warm and much of the year's precipitation is delivered at this time, with an August average of . The city is rarely hit by typhoons, and experiences only 6 days with more than of rainfall on average. Sendai's monsoon season usually begins in late April to early October, which is later than in most cities in Japan. During this season, cold winds from the Okhotsk air mass, called "
Yamase Yamase (written: 山瀬) is a Japanese surname. Notable people with the surname include: *, Japanese footballer *, Japanese musician *, Japanese footballer See also * Yamase Station, a railway station in Yoshinogawa, Tokushima Prefecture, Japan * ...
", blow in and depress daytime highs.


Demographics

In 2020 the city had an estimated population of 1,091,407 and a population density of 1,400 persons per km2. The city's total area was 786.30 km2. Most people in the city at this time lived in urban areas close to train and subway stations. The 2000 National Census revealed that 88.5% of the city's population (892,252 people) lived in a 129.69 km2 area, which is 16.6% of the city's total area. The population density in this area was 6,879.9 persons per km2, more than 5 times higher than the city's average population density at that time, 1,286.6 persons per km2. Approximately 10,000 people in Sendai were non-Japanese citizens. Sendai had 525,828 households in 2020. The average household had approximately 2.07 members. The average household was becoming smaller every year, because single-member households were increasing. At this time Sendai had more people in their early 50s and in their 20s and early 30s than in other age groups. This is a result of the first and second baby booms in Japan, and university students. The average age in Sendai is 38.4, which makes the city one of the youngest major cities in Japan.


Governance

Sendai's political system is similar to other cities in Japan, because the
Local Autonomy Law The , passed by the House of Representatives and the House of Peers on March 28, 1947 and promulgated as Law No. 67 of 1947 on April 17,Ministry of Justice, Japanese Law Translation Database SystemLocal Autonomy Act/ref> is an Act of devolution t ...
makes all municipalities uniform in terms of organization and power. However, Sendai is a designated city, so it has the same jurisdiction as
prefectures A prefecture (from the Latin ''Praefectura'') is an administrative jurisdiction traditionally governed by an appointed prefect. This can be a regional or local government subdivision in various countries, or a subdivision in certain international ...
in some areas. Sendai has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a
unicameral Unicameralism (from ''uni''- "one" + Latin ''camera'' "chamber") is a type of legislature, which consists of one house or assembly, that legislates and votes as one. Unicameral legislatures exist when there is no widely perceived need for multi ...
city legislature. The Sendai City Assembly members are elected from 5 elective districts, which correspond to the city's 5 wards. The number of assembly members allocated to each ward is based upon population. As of May 2005, the city has 60 assembly members; 17 from Aoba Ward, 11 from Miyagino, 8 from Wakabayashi, 13 from Taihaku, and 11 from Izumi. The City Assembly elects an Assembly Chairperson and Vice Chairperson. Sendai has two vice mayors, who are not elected by the populace. Miyagi contributes 24 seats to the Miyagi Prefectural legislature. In terms of national politics, the city is divided between the Miyagi 1st district and the Miyagi 2nd district of the lower house of the Diet of Japan.


List of Mayors of Sendai (1889 to present)


Economy

Sendai is the center of the Tōhoku region's economy, and is the base of the region's logistics and transportation. The
GDP Gross domestic product (GDP) is a monetary measure of the market value of all the final goods and services produced and sold (not resold) in a specific time period by countries. Due to its complex and subjective nature this measure is ofte ...
in Greater Sendai, Sendai
Metropolitan Employment Area is a definition of metropolitan areas used in Japan, defined by the Center for Spatial Information Service of the University of Tokyo. Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry defined 233 areas for the UEAs of Japan. It is different from ...
(1.6 million people), is US$61.7 billion in 2010. Sendai city by itself has a nominal GDP of approximately US$50 billion as of 2015. The city's economy heavily relies upon retail and services – the two industries provide approximately two thirds of the employment and close to half of the establishments. Sendai is frequently called a branch-office economy, because very few major companies are headquartered in the city. Various authorities are cooperating to alleviate this problem, primarily by encouraging high-tech ventures from Tohoku University, which is well known for its science and engineering departments. There are also incentives for startups available from the prefectural government. Tohoku Electric Power, a major regional supplier of electric power, has its headquarters in Sendai and also operates the Shin-Sendai Thermal Power Station located within the city. Sendai's economic growth rate has stabilized since the 2011 Japan earthquake. The growth rate was only 0.4% in 2011 after the quake created economic turmoil in coastal areas. The year after, in 2012 the rate spiked to 10.4% after reconstruction efforts. It has since fallen to a closer trend to what is expected of 3.7% in 2013. Tourism in 2016 attracted an estimated 2.229 million visitors to Sendai.


Education

Sendai is sometimes called an because the city has many universities relative to its population. Universities located within Sendai include: * Tohoku University *
Tohoku Gakuin University is a private university in Sendai, Japan. It was founded under a Christian background (specifically the German Reformed Church, which later was known as the Reformed Church in the United States. A large part of the Reformed Church in the United S ...
* Miyagi University *
Miyagi Gakuin Women's University is a private university in Aoba-ku, Sendai, Miyagi, Japan. History The Miyagi Girls' School was founded by the Reformed Church in the United States in Japan with the assistance of missionaries Masayoshi Oshikawa Masayoshi Oshikawa (押川方義 ...
* Miyagi University of Education *
Tohoku Fukushi University is a Japanese private university in Sendai. Notable alumni Politics *Shintaro Ito * Itsunori Onodera Sports *Baseball **Mamoru Kishida ** Takashi Saito ** Kazuhiro Sasaki **Kazuhiro Wada ** Ken Kadokura **Tomoaki Kanemoto *Figure skating ** Aki ...
* Tohoku Medical and Pharmaceutical University Schools in the city include Tohoku International School.


Transport


Airport

The city is served by
Sendai Airport is an international airport located in the city of Natori, Miyagi, south southeast of Sendai metropolis, Sendai, Japan. The airport is alternatively referred to as . History In 1940, the Imperial Japanese Army built Sendai Airport in order ...
(located in neighboring Natori), which has international flights to several countries, and the Port of Sendai. A rail link to Sendai began service on March 18, 2007.


Railway

JR East's Sendai Station is the main transport hub for the city. The station is served by seven JR lines and is a major station on the Tōhoku and Akita Shinkansen lines. An underground passage connects the station to the
Sendai Subway The is a rapid transit system in Sendai, Japan. It is operated by the Sendai City Transportation Bureau. The subway consists of two lines, the north-south Namboku Line, which opened in July 1987, and the east-west Tozai Line, which opened in ...
. The subway has two lines— Namboku ("north-south") and Tōzai ("east-west") with a total of 30 stations. When completed in 2015, Yagiyama station became the highest-elevated subway station in the country at 136.4 meters. * East Japan Railway Company (JR East) **
Tōhoku Shinkansen The is a Japanese high-speed Shinkansen rail line, connecting Tokyo with Aomori in Aomori Prefecture in a route length of , making it Japan's longest Shinkansen line. It runs through the more sparsely populated Tōhoku region of Japan's main ...
: ** Tōhoku Main Line: – – – – ** Jōban Line: – – **
Senzan Line The is a railway line in Japan. Part of the East Japan Railway Company (JR East) system, it runs from Sendai Station in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture to Uzen-Chitose Station in Yamagata, Yamagata Prefecture, acting as a connector between th ...
: – – – – – – – – – – – – – **
Senseki Line The is a railway line in Miyagi Prefecture, Japan, owned and operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). It connects Aoba-dōri Station in Sendai to Ishinomaki Station in Ishinomaki, and provides access to the central coast areas o ...
: – – – – – – – – – *
Sendai Subway The is a rapid transit system in Sendai, Japan. It is operated by the Sendai City Transportation Bureau. The subway consists of two lines, the north-south Namboku Line, which opened in July 1987, and the east-west Tozai Line, which opened in ...
(All stations)


Bus

In addition to the public bus system, a loop bus called Loople runs between tourism hotspots around the city.


Highways

The
Tōhoku Expressway The is a south-north national expressway, and the longest expressway in Japan at . Its southern terminus is in Kawaguchi, Saitama in the Greater Tokyo Area, at the Tokyo Gaikan Expressway and Kawaguchi Route near Araijuku Station, and its no ...
runs north–south through western Sendai, and is connected to other highways, such as the Sendai-Nambu Road, Sendai-Tobu Road, Sanriku Expressway (Sendai-Matsushima Road), and Sendai Hokubu Road. * * * * * * * * * * * *


Port

Ferries connecting Tomakomai and
Nagoya is the largest city in the Chūbu region, the fourth-most populous city and third most populous urban area in Japan, with a population of 2.3million in 2020. Located on the Pacific coast in central Honshu, it is the capital and the most po ...
stop at the Port of Sendai. File:211028 Sendai Airport Sendai Miyagi prefecture Japan01bs.jpg,
Sendai Airport is an international airport located in the city of Natori, Miyagi, south southeast of Sendai metropolis, Sendai, Japan. The airport is alternatively referred to as . History In 1940, the Imperial Japanese Army built Sendai Airport in order ...
File:Sendai Station west entrance 2020.jpg, Sendai Station File:International Center Station south1 exit 20160105.jpg, International Center Station File:Miyakoh-Sendai-Highwaybuscenter.jpg, Sendai Highway Buscenter File:MiyagiKendo23Go2007-10.jpg, Sendai-Tōbu RoadGurutto Sendai) File:SendaiPortCentralPark and Port of Sendai.JPG, Sendai Port


Culture


Streets

The most well-known streets in Sendai, and , are both lined with Japanese zelkovas. These are symbols of "The City of Trees". Jozenji-Dori has a promenade and a few sculptures. It is a place of relaxation. Many events and festivals, such as the Sendai Pageant of Starlight and the Jozenji Street Jazz Festival, take place on Jozenji-Dori and in . Aoba-Dori is the main business road in Sendai. Other major roads in the city include Hirose-Dori (
ginkgo ''Ginkgo'' is a genus of non-flowering seed plants. The scientific name is also used as the English name. The order to which it belongs, Ginkgoales, first appeared in the Permian, 270 million years ago, and is now the only living genus with ...
), and Higashi-Nibancho-Dori.


Festivals

The most famous festival in Sendai is Tanabata, which attracts more than 2 million visitors every year and is the largest Tanabata Festival in Japan. It is relatively quiet compared to other traditional Japanese festivals, because its main attractions are intricate Tanabata decorations. The Aoba Matsuri Festival follows more typical Japanese festival traditions, with a mikoshi, floats, a samurai parade, and traditional dancing. Local people burn their
New Year New Year is the time or day currently at which a new calendar year begins and the calendar's year count increments by one. Many cultures celebrate the event in some manner. In the Gregorian calendar, the most widely used calendar system to ...
decorations and pray for health in the new year during the Dontosai Festival, the oldest festival in Miyagi Prefecture. Various contemporary festivals also take place in Sendai, such as the Jōzenji Streetjazz Festival, the Michinoku Yosakoi Festival, and the Sendai Pageant of Starlight. The Jōzenji Streetjazz Festival is one of the largest amateur music festivals in Japan. It began as a jazz festival in 1991, but soon began to accept applications from all genres. The Michinoku Yosakoi festival is a dance festival, derived from the Yosakoi Festival that takes place in Kōchi. Trees in downtown Sendai are decorated with lights during the Sendai Pageant of Starlights. The event provided the idea for the Festival of Lights annually held in Riverside, Sendai's sister city. In 2005, the streets were lit up with one million miniature bulbs.


Specialties and crafts

Sendai is the origin of several foods, including '' gyūtan'' (beef tongue, usually grilled), hiyashi chūka (cold Chinese noodles), and robatayaki (Japanese-style barbecue). However, robatayaki was later introduced to
Kushiro is a city in Kushiro Subprefecture on the island of Hokkaido, Japan. It serves as the subprefecture's capital and it is the most populated city in the eastern part of the island. Geography Mountains * Mount Oakan * Mount Meakan * Mount Akan ...
, which developed and popularized the dish. As a result, many people believe Kushiro is the origin of Robatayaki. Zundamochi (ずんだ餅,
mochi is a Japanese rice cake made of , a short-grain japonica glutinous rice, and sometimes other ingredients such as water, sugar, and cornstarch. The rice is pounded into paste and molded into the desired shape. In Japan, it is traditionally ma ...
balls with sweet, bright green edamame paste), and sasakamaboko (笹かまぼこ, kamaboko shaped like bamboo leaves) are also considered to be Sendai specialties. Sendai is also known for good sashimi,
sushi is a Japanese dish of prepared , usually with some sugar and salt, accompanied by a variety of , such as seafood, often raw, and vegetables. Styles of sushi and its presentation vary widely, but the one key ingredient is "sushi rice," also ...
, and
sake Sake, also spelled saké ( ; also referred to as Japanese rice wine), is an alcoholic beverage of Japanese origin made by fermenting rice that has been polished to remove the bran. Despite the name ''Japanese rice wine'', sake, and indee ...
. This is because Sendai is near several major fishing ports, such as
Kesennuma is a city in Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 59,803 and a population density of in 26,390 households. The total area of the city is . Large sections of the city were destroyed by the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake an ...
,
Ishinomaki is a city located in Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. , the city has an estimated population of 138,538, and a population density of 250 persons per km2 in 61,919 households. The total area of the city is . Geography Ishinomaki is in northeastern Miya ...
, and
Shiogama is a cities of Japan, city located in Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 52,662, and a population density of 3,032 persons per km² in 23,270 households. The total area of the city is . Geography Shiogama is in n ...
, and the fact that Miyagi Prefecture is a major producer of
rice Rice is the seed of the grass species '' Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima'' (African rice). The name wild rice is usually used for species of the genera '' Zizania'' and '' Porteresia'', both wild and domesticat ...
. There are many ramen restaurants in Sendai, and the area is known for a particular spicy miso ramen. Also, Sendai station offers the most types of ekiben of any station in Japan. In autumn, many people organise Imonikai, a sort of picnic by the river which involves making a potato stew called ''
Imoni is a type of taro and meat soup eaten traditionally in the autumn in the Tōhoku region of Japan. Yamagata Prefecture in particular is famous for its imoni, but other prefectures in the region also have their own different varieties. Imoni is ...
''. Many crafts from Sendai were originally created under the influence of the Date family during the
Edo period The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional '' daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was characte ...
. Examples are Sendai Hira, a hand woven silk fabric, Tsutsumiyaki pottery, and Yanagiu Washi paper. However, some crafts, such as umoregi zaiku (crafts created from fossil wood) were developed by low-ranking samurai who needed side jobs to survive. Kokeshi dolls were popularized by hot spring resorts that sold them as gifts. Some relatively recent developments include Sendai Tsuishu lacquerware and Tamamushinuri lacquerware, both of which were developed after the
Meiji Restoration The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored practical imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Although there were ...
. Sendai was also known for its production of
Tansu are traditional Japanese mobile storage cabinets. are commonly used for the storage of clothing, particularly kimono. were first recorded in the Genroku era (1688–1704) of the Edo period (1603–1867). The two characters, and , appear to h ...
, clothing drawers made from wood with elaborate ironwork.


Sites of interest

Sendai is home to historical sites related to the
Date clan The is a Japanese samurai kin group. Papinot, Jacques Edmond Joseph. (1906). ''Dictionnaire d’histoire et de géographie du Japon''; Papinot, (2003)"Date", ''Nobiliare du Japon'', p. 5 retrieved 2013-5-5. History The Date family was founded ...
. The ruins of Sendai Castle are close to downtown on Aobayama, which also gives a panoramic view of the city. The
Zuihōden in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan is the mausoleum complex of Date Masamune and his heirs, daimyō of the Sendai Domain. History When Date Masamune, known as and founder of the Sendai Domain, died in 1636, he left instructions for a mausoleu ...
is the tomb of Date Masamune and is home to artifacts related to the Date family. It is on a hill called Kyogamine, which is the traditional resting place for Date family members. In Aoba-ku, the Ōsaki Hachiman-gū ''shaden'', built in 1607 by Date Masamune, is designated a National Treasure. Mutsu Kokubun-ji Yakushidō is the provincial temple of Mutsu Province. Newer historical sites include the former home of Doi Bansui, a famous lyricist, and a monument at Sendai City Museum that commemorates the Chinese writer Lu Xun. Another statue of Lu Xun can be found in the Tohoku University Katahira Campus, where Lu Xun studied medical science. Older historical sites include the Tōmizuka Tomb, a tomb that dates back to the late 4th century or early 5th century, and the Tomizawa Preserved Forest site, where the excavated remains of a Stone Age human settlement ( Upper Palaeolithic – roughly 20,000 years ago) have been protected by a large museum structure, built in 1996. The nearby Site of Tagajō was an important early fort and administrative centre.


Museums

Sendai City Museum The is the main museum of Sendai, Japan, and is located in the former Third Bailey of Sendai Castle. The museum displays various artifacts related to the Date clan and the history of Sendai. Date Masamune's famous suit of armor and artifacts re ...
displays artifacts related to the Date family and the history of Sendai. Date Masamune's famous suit of armour and artifacts related to
Hasekura Tsunenaga was a kirishitan Japanese samurai and retainer of Date Masamune, the daimyō of Sendai. He was of Japanese imperial descent with ancestral ties to Emperor Kanmu. Other names include Philip Francis Faxicura, Felipe Francisco Faxicura, and Phi ...
's visit to Rome ( National Treasures of Japan) are sometimes on display. The Sendai Umino-Mori Aquarium, which opened in 2015 as a successor to the
Marinepia Matsushima Aquarium is a public aquarium located in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. It opened in 2015 as a successor to the Marinepia Matsushima Aquarium, which had been open for 88 years. Exhibits Inherited from the Marinepia Matsushima Aquarium are Commerson's ...
, is focusing on raising the
Sanriku , sometimes known as , lies on the northeastern side of the island of Honshu, corresponding to today's Aomori, Iwate and parts of Miyagi Prefecture and has a long history. The 36 bays of this irregular coastline tend to amplify the destructivenes ...
fish, the blue sharks. The Miyagi Museum of Art is Sendai's largest art museum. A total of 24 sculptures have been installed in public locations in Sendai through its 'City of Sculptures' project. The
Sendai City Tomizawa Site Museum The is an archaeology museum in the city of Sendai in northern Japan that preserves a fossilized forest, where the remains of human habitation that occurred 20,000 years ago were discovered during surveying work in 1988. The museum opened in ...
in the southern part of the city preserves a fossilized forest where the remains of human habitation from 20,000 years ago can be seen. The Sendai City War Reconstruction Memorial Hall is dedicated to remembering the air raid of July 1945 in which most of Sendai was destroyed. Other museums include the 3M Sendai City Science Museum, Sendai Literature Museum and Tohoku University's Museum of Natural History.


Natural sites

Western Sendai is home to many sites of natural beauty, many of them found around Akiu Onsen and
Sakunami is a hot spring resort district in northern Japan about to the northwest of downtown Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture. History Local legend attributes the foundation of Sakunami Onsen to the wandering Buddhist priest Gyōki in 721 AD In the early Kam ...
, which are hot spring resorts. Sites around the Akiu area include the
Akiu Great Falls is a waterfall located in Taihaku-ku, Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. It is a nationally designated Place of Scenic Beauty. It is one of " Japan’s Top 100 Waterfalls", in a listing published by the Japanese Ministry of the Environment in ...
, sometimes counted as one of Japan's three great waterfalls, and the Rairai Gorge, known for its autumn colours. The Futakuchi Gorge contains waterfalls that have been designated as natural monuments and the Banji Cliffs, an example of
columnar basalt Basalt (; ) is an aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the surface of a rocky planet or moon. More than 90% o ...
. The Sakunami area is also known for its natural environment, with cherry blossoms in the spring, and autumnal colours. The nearby Hōmei Shijuhachi Taki Falls is the name of waterfalls found in the higher reaches of the Hirose River. The origin of the name "Hōmei" (鳳鳴, " Chinese phoenix cry") is said to come from ancient local inhabitants' claim that the sound of the waterfalls was similar to the legendary bird's call. The Tatsunokuchi Gorge offers a view of a
petrified wood Petrified wood, also known as petrified tree (from Ancient Greek meaning 'rock' or 'stone'; literally 'wood turned into stone'), is the name given to a special type of '' fossilized wood'', the fossilized remains of terrestrial vegetation. ' ...
next to the Otamaya-bashi bridge. Nishi Park and Tsutsujigaoka Park are appreciated for their cherry blossom in the spring. The Hirose River and the Gamo tideland are home to diverse wildlife. Matsushima, which is one of the Three Views of Japan, is near Sendai, in Matsushima.


Other sites

Sendai Mediatheque is a multipurpose facility that houses the city library, galleries, and film studio facilities open for use by the general public. The building was designed by Toyo Ito and is known for its innovative architecture. The AER Building, Miyagi Prefectural Office, and SS30 Building have observation decks that offer panoramic views. The Sendai Trust Tower is the tallest building in Tohoku and
Hokkaido is Japan's second largest island and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by the undersea railway Seikan Tunnel. The lar ...
. Uminomori Aquarium opened in July 2015, built near the Port of Sendai. The Sendai Daikannon is an approximately high
Kannon Guanyin () is a Bodhisattva associated with compassion. She is the East Asian representation of Avalokiteśvara ( sa, अवलोकितेश्वर) and has been adopted by other Eastern religions, including Chinese folk religion. She w ...
statue. The statue was built during Japan's
bubble economy An economic bubble (also called a speculative bubble or a financial bubble) is a period when current asset prices greatly exceed their intrinsic valuation, being the valuation that the underlying long-term fundamentals justify. Bubbles can be ...
by a now defunct company. It was once the tallest statue in the world. Sendai also contains a Peace Pagoda, built by Nipponzan-Myōhōji-Daisanga in 1974.


Religion


Shinto

Shinto shrines in Sendai include Miyagiken Gokoku Shrine, Tsubonuma Hachiman Shrine,
Futahashira Shrine Futahashira Shrine (二柱神社, ''Futahashira jinja'') is a Shinto shrine located in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. The main kami enshrined here are Izanagi and Izanami. See also *List of Shinto shrines in Japan This is a list of notable ...
, and
Sendai Tōshōgū is the memorial shrine of Tokugawa Ieyasu in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. Five of its buildings, all dating to 1654, have been designated Important Cultural Properties. The torii and gates were damaged in the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and ...
, a memorial shrine of
Tokugawa Ieyasu was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa Shogunate of Japan, which ruled Japan from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was one of the three "Great Unifiers" of Japan, along with his former lord Oda Nobunaga and fello ...
.


Catholicism

The Catholic Church has been associated with Sendai since 1613, the year in which Date Masamune, ''daimyō'' of Sendai, built a galleon to send an embassy to the Pope in Rome headed by
Hasekura Tsunenaga was a kirishitan Japanese samurai and retainer of Date Masamune, the daimyō of Sendai. He was of Japanese imperial descent with ancestral ties to Emperor Kanmu. Other names include Philip Francis Faxicura, Felipe Francisco Faxicura, and Phi ...
. Although the embassy was successful in its aim of establishing relations with the Holy See, Masamune's plans were frustrated by the suppression of Christianity in Japan. The Diocese of Sendai (previously the Diocese of Hakodate) was established in 1891, only two years after the promulgation of a new constitution guaranteeing freedom of religion in Japan, in 1889. The Bishop of Sendai currently oversees the four northern prefectures of Miyagi, Fukushima, Iwate and Aomori, serving 11,152 Catholics in 56 parishes. Mototerakoji, the Cathedral of the diocese, is located a few blocks north of Sendai Station.


Sports

Although the
Lotte Orions The are a professional baseball team in Japan's Pacific League based in Chiba City, Chiba Prefecture, in the Kantō region, and owned by Lotte Holdings Co., Ltd. History The Marines franchise began in 1950 as the Mainichi Orions, an inaugural ...
briefly used Sendai as a temporary home for the franchise from 1973 to 1977, the city was largely ignored by professional sports until 1994. In that year, the Tohoku Electric Power football team was changed into a club team, Brummel Sendai, with the goal of eventually being promoted into the J.League. The team achieved this goal when the J. League expanded in 1999 with the creation of a second division. The name of the team was simultaneously changed to Vegalta Sendai. Currently the city also host semi-professional outfit Sony Sendai FC. In 2005, the number of professional sports teams based in Sendai suddenly increased to three. The Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles was introduced as a new Pacific League baseball franchise after widely publicized turmoil involving the merger of the Kintetsu Buffaloes and the Orix Blue Wave developed into the first strike in
Nippon Professional Baseball or NPB is the highest level of baseball in Japan. Locally, it is often called , meaning ''Professional Baseball''. Outside Japan, it is often just referred to as "Japanese baseball". The roots of the league can be traced back to the formation ...
. Additionally, the Japan Basketball League, which began its inaugural season in November 2005, included the
Sendai 89ers The Sendai 89ers (仙台89ERS) are a Japanese professional basketball team that compete in the first division of the B.League. They are based in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture. The team name is based on the city's founding year, 1889. Current roster ...
among its first six teams. Annual sporting events include the Sendai Cup, an international football tournament for U-18 teams, and the Sendai International
Half Marathon A half marathon is a road running event of —half the distance of a marathon. It is common for a half marathon event to be held concurrently with a marathon or a 5K race, using almost the same course with a late start, an early finish or shortcut ...
. In 2006 of the Sendai International half marathon, Mizuki Noguchi, who won the women's marathon gold medal at the 2004 Athens Olympic Games, took part in and won the race in a surprising course record. Various sporting venues can be found in Sendai, such as Hitomebore Stadium Miyagi (venue of 2002 FIFA World Cup),
Yurtec Stadium Sendai is a football stadium in the Nanakita Park, Izumi-ku, Sendai City, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. Built in 1997, it is home to Vegalta Sendai, Mynavi Sendai Ladies and Sony Sendai. The stadium was specifically designed for football, and the stands ...
,
Miyagi Baseball Stadium , officially Miyagi Baseball Stadium, is a baseball stadium located in Miyaginohara Sports Park in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. The 30,508-seat ballpark is owned by the prefecture and operated by Rakuten, which has used it as the home field ...
,
Sendai City Gymnasium is an indoor sporting arena located in Sendai, Miyagi, Japan. The capacity of the arena is 7,000. It hosted preliminary round games for the Basketball World Championship 2006, and is also the home arena of the Sendai 89ers of the Japan profes ...
, Sendai Athletic Stadium, Shellcom Sendai and Sendai Hi-Land Raceway. The city is also known as the origin of figure skating in Japan, and both 2006 Olympic gold medalist
Shizuka Arakawa is a retired Japanese figure skater. She is the 2006 Olympic champion and the 2004 World champion. Arakawa is the first Japanese skater to win an Olympic gold medal in figure skating and the second Japanese skater to win any Olympic medal in fi ...
and two-time Olympic gold medalist (2014, 2018)
Yuzuru Hanyu is a Japanese former competitive figure skater. He is a two-time Olympic champion (2014, 2018), a two-time World champion (2014, 2017), a four-time Grand Prix Final champion (2013–2016), the 2020 Four Continents champion, the 2010 World J ...
trained in Sendai during their childhood.
Tohoku Fukushi University is a Japanese private university in Sendai. Notable alumni Politics *Shintaro Ito * Itsunori Onodera Sports *Baseball **Mamoru Kishida ** Takashi Saito ** Kazuhiro Sasaki **Kazuhiro Wada ** Ken Kadokura **Tomoaki Kanemoto *Figure skating ** Aki ...
and Sendai Ikuei Gakuen High School are well known for their strong sports programs, the latter for
baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...
. In 2006, Sendai hosted some games of the
2006 FIBA World Championship The 2006 FIBA World Championship was the 15th FIBA World Championship, the international basketball world championship for men's national teams. The tournament was hosted by Japan and held from 19 August to 3 September 2006. It was co-organised by ...
. Before that, the city had some experience at hosting international basketball events such as the 1994 and 2004 editions of the FIBA Women's Asia Cup.
Sendai Girls' Pro Wrestling , often called , is a Japanese women's professional wrestling promotion. It is based in the city of Sendai, Miyagi in the Tohoku region. History Sendai Girls' Pro Wrestling was founded in 2005 by Meiko Satomura, a female professional wrestler ...
is a joshi wrestling company based in sendai.


Baseball

* Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles ( Pa.League)


Basketball

*
Sendai 89ers The Sendai 89ers (仙台89ERS) are a Japanese professional basketball team that compete in the first division of the B.League. They are based in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture. The team name is based on the city's founding year, 1889. Current roster ...
( B.League)


Football

* Vegalta Sendai ( J.League) *
MyNavi Sendai is a women's football club playing in Japan's football league, WE League. Its hometown is the city of Sendai. Kits Kit suppliers and shirt sponsors Stadium Their home stadium is Yurtec Stadium Sendai, in Izumi-ku, Sendai, although a few hom ...
WE.League


Futsal

* Voscuore SendaiF.League


Volleyball

*Ligare Sendai( V.League


International relations


Twin towns – sister cities

Sendai has a long history of international relationships. Its affiliation with
Riverside, California Riverside is a city in and the county seat of Riverside County, California, United States, in the Inland Empire metropolitan area. It is named for its location beside the Santa Ana River. It is the most populous city in the Inland Empire an ...
, on March 9, 1957, is the second oldest sister city partnership in Japan. Sendai is twinned with: * Acapulco,
Guerrero Guerrero is one of the 32 states that comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 81 municipalities and its capital city is Chilpancingo and its largest city is Acapulcocopied from article, GuerreroAs of 2020, Guerrero the pop ...
, Mexico (since October 1973) *
Bilbao ) , motto = , image_map = , mapsize = 275 px , map_caption = Interactive map outlining Bilbao , pushpin_map = Spain Basque Country#Spain#Europe , pushpin_map_caption ...
, Basque Country, Spain (since October 1970) * Changchun,
Jilin Jilin (; alternately romanized as Kirin or Chilin) is one of the three provinces of Northeast China. Its capital and largest city is Changchun. Jilin borders North Korea ( Rasŏn, North Hamgyong, Ryanggang and Chagang) and Russia (Prim ...
, China (since October 1980) *
Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
,
Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...
, United States (since August 1997) * Gwangju, South Korea (since April 2002) *
Minsk Minsk ( be, Мінск ; russian: Минск) is the capital and the largest city of Belarus, located on the Svislach and the now subterranean Niamiha rivers. As the capital, Minsk has a special administrative status in Belarus and is the admi ...
, Belarus (since April 1973) * Rennes,
Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica during the period ...
, France (since September 1967) * Riverside,
California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
, United States (since March 1957)


Friendship cities

Sendai also cooperates with: * Oulu,
North Ostrobothnia North Ostrobothnia ( fi, Pohjois-Pohjanmaa; sv, Norra Österbotten) is a region of Finland. It borders the Finnish regions of Lapland, Kainuu, North Savo, Central Finland and Central Ostrobothnia, as well as the Russian Republic of Karelia. ...
, Finland (since November 2005) *
Tainan Tainan (), officially Tainan City, is a special municipality in southern Taiwan facing the Taiwan Strait on its western coast. Tainan is the oldest city on the island and also commonly known as the "Capital City" for its over 200 years of his ...
, Taiwan (since January 2006)


International events

The
Sendai International Music Competition The Sendai International Music Competition is a triennial violin and piano music competition held in Sendai, Japan, presented in association with the Sendai International Music Competition Organizing Committee, City of Sendai and the Sendai Cul ...
takes place every three years, welcoming participants from around the world. Sendai has hosted international conferences about disaster management, as is recognized as a model city for disaster risk prevention.


Notable people

* Akitoshi Saito, Japanese professional wrestler who currently works for Pro Wrestling Noah (Currently lives in Nagoya, Aichi) *
Hirohiko Araki is a Japanese manga artist. He is best known for his long-running series ''JoJo's Bizarre Adventure'', which began publication in ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' in 1987 and has over 120 million copies in circulation, making it one of the best-selling ...
, manga artist; creator of ''
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Hirohiko Araki. It was originally serialized in Shueisha's ''shōnen'' manga magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' from 1987 to 2004, and was transferred to the monthly ''seinen'' manga ...
''. The fictional city of Morioh that appears in ''JoJo's Bizarre Adventure'' is based on Sendai. * Miho Arakawa, voice actress * Chris Broad, British YouTuber based in Sendai * Mika Doi, voice actress *
Mimori Yusa , (born February 20, 1964, in Sendai in Miyagi Prefecture), is a Japanese singer-songwriter. She made her nationwide debut at the age of 6 on the TV program Chibikko Nodojiman, which she recited the Takibi nursery rhyme. Shortly after graduati ...
, singer-songwriter *
Yuzuru Hanyu is a Japanese former competitive figure skater. He is a two-time Olympic champion (2014, 2018), a two-time World champion (2014, 2017), a four-time Grand Prix Final champion (2013–2016), the 2020 Four Continents champion, the 2010 World J ...
, figure skater and two time Olympic champion ( 2014-
2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the Unit ...
) * Eugen Herrigel lectured at Tohoku Imperial University from 1924 until 1929Shoji Yamada Shots in the Dark * Sharla Hinskens, Canadian YouTuber based in Sendai *
Kanata Hongō is a Japanese actor, voice actor and model. He is part of Stardust Promotion and has appeared several times in music videos, movies, TV series, and magazines. His major breakthrough role was as Ryoma Echizen in the live-action film adaptation ...
, actor and model *
Karen Iwata is an actress and former member of the Japanese idol girl group AKB48 under Team A. Biography Iwata was born on May 13, 1998 in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture. Her mother is Miwa Sugawara, who works as a TV personality in Sendai. As a child, Iwata ...
, member of girl-group AKB48 * Monkey Majik, band, formed and based in Sendai *
Hikaru Minegishi , also known by his nickname Pika, is a professional footballer who plays as a winger for Thai League 2 club Uthai Thani and the Philippines national team. Early life and education Minegishi was born on June 5, 1991. His Filipino mother is a ...
, footballer * Yūsei Oda, voice actor * Minene Sakurano, manga artist; creator of '' Mamotte Shugogetten'' * Kimi Sato, composer *
Somei Satoh is a Japanese composer of contemporary music. His compositions mix Japanese court music with European romanticism and electronic music. His musical career began with an experimental, mix media group called "Tone Field" in Tokyo. He studied at ...
, composer *
Satomi Satō is a Japanese voice actress and singer. Biography Satō is affiliated with Aoni Production's Junior Talent. She attended Tokyo Announce Gakuin Performing Arts College. She is known as , as means "sugar" in Japanese. She announced her marriage ...
, voice actress *
Shizuka Arakawa is a retired Japanese figure skater. She is the 2006 Olympic champion and the 2004 World champion. Arakawa is the first Japanese skater to win an Olympic gold medal in figure skating and the second Japanese skater to win any Olympic medal in fi ...
, figure skater and Olympic Champion ( 2006) * Yoko Kanno, composer * Ayumi Ishida, member of girl-group Morning Musume '17 * Ai Fukuhara, table tennis player * Tomokazu Harimoto, table tennis player * Shun Sato, figure skater and 2019 Junior Grand Prix Final Champion * Dash Chisako Wrestler in sendai girls pro wrestling *
Sendai Sachiko is a retired Japanese professional wrestler, better known by the ring name . She was trained by Meiko Satomura and made her debut for her Sendai Girls' Pro Wrestling promotion in July 2006. Her older sister Chisako is also a professional wrestl ...
former wrestler in sendai girls pro wrestling


References


External links

*
Official Website

Sendai traveling information
{{Authority control Cities in Miyagi Prefecture Populated places established in 1600 Port settlements in Japan Populated coastal places in Japan Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan