is a neighborhood in

Shinjuku is a special ward in Tokyo, Japan. It is a major commercial and administrative centre, housing the northern half of the busiest railway station in the world (Shinjuku Station) and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, the administration ...

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 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 ...

. It is a former ward (四谷区 ''Yotsuya-ku'') in the now-defunct

Tokyo City was a Cities of Japan, municipality in Japan and part of Tokyo Prefecture (1868–1943), Tokyo-fu which existed from 1 May 1889 until its merger with its prefecture on 1 July 1943. The historical boundaries of Tokyo City are now occupied by ...

. In 1947, when the 35 wards of Tokyo were reorganized into 23, it was merged with

Ushigome is the name of a neighborhood in Shinjuku, Tokyo, and a former ward (牛込区 ''Ushigome-ku'') in the now-defunct Tokyo City. In 1947, when the 35 wards of Tokyo were reorganized into 23, it was merged with Yotsuya ward of Tokyo City and Yodoba ...

ward of Tokyo City and

Yodobashi is one of the 35 former wards of Tokyo-Fu, Tokyo City. On October 1, 1932, the towns of Yodobashi, Okubo, Totsuka, and Ochiai were merged into Yodobashi ward. In 1947, it was merged with Yotsuya and Ushigome wards of Tokyo City to form the pres ...

suburban ward of

Tokyo-fu 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 ...

to form the modern Shinjuku ward.

Geography

Yotsuya is located in the southeastern part of Shinjuku. Prior to 1943, when Tokyo was still a

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 ...

, Yotsuya was one of its wards and had definite boundaries, but it is less clearly defined today. Yotsuya is generally defined as coinciding with the jurisdiction of the Shinjuku City Yotsuya Branch Office and the Yotsuya Police Station, which includes most of Shinjuku east of Meiji-dōri and south of Yasukuni-dōri. To the east lies the neighborhoods of

Banchō is an area in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan, consisting of the six "-banchō" districts, to , as well as parts of Kudanminami and Kudankita, and Fuijimi. The Banchō area is located to the west of the Imperial Palace. The historical area is roughl ...

in Chiyoda. For addressing purposes, the name Yotsuya is used for a part of Shinjuku located immediately west of

Yotsuya Station is a railway station in the Yotsuya district of Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan, operated jointly by East Japan Railway Company (JR East) and Tokyo Metro. Several parts of the station are also located in the Rokubancho and Kojimachi neighborhoods of C ...

; it is divided into four ''

chōme The Japanese addressing system is used to identify a specific location in Japan. When written in Japanese characters, addresses start with the largest geographical entity and proceed to the most specific one. When written in Latin characters, ad ...

''.

History

Before the growth of Edo, Yotsuya was a farming village outside the city. In 1634, with the digging of the outer moat around

Edo Castle is a flatland castle that was built in 1457 by Ōta Dōkan in Edo, Toshima District, Musashi Province. In modern times it is part of the Tokyo Imperial Palace in Chiyoda, Tokyo and is therefore also known as . Tokugawa Ieyasu established the ...

, many temples and shrines moved to Yotsuya. The moat had stone walls, and a ''mitsuke,'' or watch tower, was also built. Yotsuya Mitsuke stood near the present-day

. The relocation of the temples and construction of the ''mitsuke'' brought settlements of workers, and following the devastating

Meireki was a of the Edo period, after the '' Jōō'' era and before '' Manji'' era. This era's period spanned the years from April 1655 to July 1658. The reigning emperor was .Titsingh, Change of era * 1655 : The era name was changed to mark the ...

fire, many more people moved to Yotsuya, which had been spared. Gradually the area became part of the city of Edo. In 1695, the

shōgun , officially , was the title of the military dictators of Japan during most of the period spanning from 1185 to 1868. Nominally appointed by the Emperor, shoguns were usually the de facto rulers of the country, though during part of the Kamakur ...

Tokugawa Tsunayoshi was the fifth ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa dynasty of Japan. He was the younger brother of Tokugawa Ietsuna, as well as the son of Tokugawa Iemitsu, the grandson of Tokugawa Hidetada, and the great-grandson of Tokugawa Ieyasu.Nussbaum, Louis-Fr ...

ordered the establishment of a vast kennel. The purpose was to board stray dogs as part of his policy of showing mercy to animals. The facility outside the Yotsuya Gate occupied . Yotsuya developed rapidly due to its central location. In 1894, the Kōbu Railway, predecessor of the present-day Chūō Line, extended its existing railway line between

and

Tachikawa file:Autumn colors in Showa memorial park.jpg, 250px, Showa Memorial Park is a Cities of Japan, city located in the western portion of Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 184,383 in 93,428 households, and a populat ...

to Ushigome and opened Yotsuya and Shinanomachi stations. The railway enabled the easy transport of raw materials into the area; soon, pencil, tobacco and other industries moved in and began Yotsuya's rapid industrial development.

Culture

Many historic temples and graves are located in Yotsuya. Among them are Sainen-ji, where the grave of the ninja

Hattori Hanzō or ''Second Hanzō'', nicknamed , was a famous Ninja of the Sengoku era, who served the Tokugawa clan as a ninja, credited with saving the life of Tokugawa Ieyasu and then helping him to become the ruler of united Japan. He is often a subjec ...

and his lance are interred. The Korea Center is located in Yotsuya, and the Korea Education Institution ( ko, 동경한국교육원, ja, 東京韓国教育院), affiliated with the Embassy of South Korea, is inside.

Famous persons

Prime Minister Saito Makoto lived in Yotsuya. He was assassinated at his home on February 26, 1936. This was one of the events of the February 26 Incident. Other famous residents, past and present, include: *

Futabatei Shimei was a Japanese writer, translator, and literary critic. His writings are in the realist style popular in the mid to late 19th century. His work '' The Drifting Cloud'' (''Ukigumo'', 1887) is widely regarded as Japan's first modern novel. Bi ...

, author *

San'yūtei Enchō was a Japanese author and rakugo performer of the late Edo and early Meiji eras. Notable works include Japanese horror ("kaidan") classics: ''Kaidan botan dōrō'' (based on , and '' Shincho Kasane ga Fuchi'' (on which many Japanese horror fi ...

, writer and ''

rakugo is a form of ''yose'', which is itself a form of Japanese verbal entertainment. The lone sits on a raised platform, a . Using only a and a as props, and without standing up from the seiza sitting position, the rakugo artist depicts a long ...

ka''

Yotsuya in fiction

Yotsuya has figured prominently in various works of fiction. The

kabuki is a classical form of Japanese dance-drama. Kabuki theatre is known for its heavily-stylised performances, the often-glamorous costumes worn by performers, and for the elaborate make-up worn by some of its performers. Kabuki is thought to ...

play ''

Yotsuya Kaidan , the story of Oiwa and Tamiya Iemon, is a tale of betrayal, murder and ghostly revenge. Arguably the most famous Japanese ghost story of all time, it has been adapted for film over 30 times and continues to be an influence on Japanese horror ...

'' took place there, as did the novel ''Teisō Mondō'' by

Kan Kikuchi , also known as Kan Kikuchi (which uses the same kanji as his real name), was a Japanese author. He established the publishing company Bungeishunjū, the monthly magazine of the same name, the Japan Writer's Association and both the Akutagawa ...

. Yotsuya was the setting for the

Shōtarō Ikenami was a Japanese author. He wrote a number of historical novels. He won the Naoki Award for popular literature in 1960. Many of his historical novels were adapted for TV and cinema. Early life Born on January 25, 1923 in Sintencho, Asakusa-ku, T ...

historical novel Historical fiction is a literary genre in which the plot takes place in a setting related to the past events, but is fictional. Although the term is commonly used as a synonym for historical fiction literature, it can also be applied to other ty ...

''Kenkaku Shōbai'' and the ''

jidaigeki is a genre of film, television, video game, and theatre in Japan. Literally meaning "period dramas", they are most often set during the Edo period of Japanese history, from 1603 to 1868. Some, however, are set much earlier—''Portrait of Hel ...

'' television series based on it. It was also featured in the novel Norwegian Wood by

Haruki Murakami is a Japanese writer. His novels, essays, and short stories have been bestsellers in Japan and internationally, with his work translated into 50 languages and having sold millions of copies outside Japan. He has received numerous awards for his ...

References

External links

Shinjuku City official site

{{Authority control Neighborhoods of Tokyo Shinjuku