is a special ward located in

Tokyo Metropolis 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. The English translation of its Japanese self-designation is City of Kita. The ward was founded on March 15, 1947. As of May 1, 2015, the ward has an estimated population of 340,287, and a population density of 16,510 persons per km². The total area is 20.61 km².

Districts and neighborhoods

;Akabane-Iwabuchi Area * Akabane * * * * * * * * * * ;Ōji Area * * * * * * * * * * ;Takinogawa Area * * * * * * * * *

History

The area was a collection of rural villages and towns until the 1880s, when it was connected by rail to central Tokyo ( Oji Station opening in 1883). Parts of the area joined

Tokyo City was a municipality in Japan and part of 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 the Special Wards of Tokyo. The new merged gov ...

in 1932 as the Ōji (former Ōji and Iwabuchi towns) and Takinogawa (former Takinogawa town) Wards. Kita was officially formed in 1947 by the merger of these wards.

Geography

The name ''Kita,'' meaning "north," reflects the location among the wards of Tokyo. To its north lie the cities of Kawaguchi and Toda in

Saitama Prefecture is a landlocked prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Saitama Prefecture has a population of 7,338,536 (1 January 2020) and has a geographic area of 3,797 km2 (1,466 sq mi). Saitama Prefecture borders Tochigi Prefecture ...

. To the east, south and west lie other special wards: Adachi, Arakawa,

Itabashi is a special ward located in Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. In English, it calls itself Itabashi City. Itabashi has sister-city relations with Burlington, Ontario, in Canada; Shijingshan District of Beijing in the People's Republic of China; and ...

Bunkyō is a special ward located in Tokyo, Japan. Situated in the middle of the ward area, Bunkyō is a residential and educational center. Beginning in the Meiji period, literati like Natsume Sōseki, as well as scholars and politicians have lived th ...

, and

Toshima is a special ward in Tokyo, Japan. It is one of the eight central wards of the Tokyo Metropolitan area. Located in the northern area of Tokyo, Toshima is bordered by the wards of Nerima, Itabashi, and Kita in the north and Nakano, Shinjuku, ...

. Four rivers run through Kita: *

Arakawa River or Ara River may refer to: * Arakawa River (Kanto) or Ara River may refer to: * Arakawa River (Kanto), which flows from Saitama Prefecture and through Tokyo to Tokyo Bay * Arakawa River (Uetsu), which flows from Yamagata Prefecture and throu ...

Sumida River The is a river that flows through central Tokyo, Japan. It branches from the Arakawa River at Iwabuchi (in Kita-ku) and flows into Tokyo Bay. Its tributaries include the Kanda and Shakujii rivers. It passes through the Kita, Adachi, Ara ...

Shakujii River The is a river which flows through the northwest quadrant of central Tokyo, Japan. It is one of the tributaries of the Arakawa River. With a total length of and a drainage basin of , it is categorized as a Class A river by the Japanese gov ...

* Shingashi River

Famous sites

Asukayama Park is a public park in Kita, Tokyo, Japan. History In the early eighteenth century, Tokugawa shogunate, shōgun Tokugawa Yoshimune planted many Cherry blossoms, cherry trees in the area and opened up the land for the Hanami, enjoyment of the "Ed ...

* Ukima Park * Chūō Park (formerly Camp Oji) * Kyu-Furukawa Gardens, designated a National Place of Scenic Beauty. * Nanushi-no-taki Park *

Oji Shrine is a Shinto shrine located in the Kita-ku ward of Tokyo, Japan. Established during the Kamakura period, most likely around 1321-1324, the shrine gives the name of "Oji" to this area of the city. Most of the original buildings in the shrine pr ...

, one of the . * Oji Inari shrine

Economy

The head office of

Seiyu Group , or , is a Japanese group of supermarkets, shopping centers and department stores, headquartered in Akabane (赤羽), Kita, Tokyo.

is in Kita.

Education

The city's public elementary and middle schools are operated by the

City of Kita Board of Education City of Kita Board of Education (北区教育委員会 ''Kita-ku Kyōiku Iinkai'') is a city agency that operates public elementary and middle schools in Kita, Tokyo, Japan. Schools Junior high schools Tokyo Metropolitan Government Board of Education The Tokyo Metropolitan Government Board of Education (東京都教育委員会 ''Tōkyō-to Kyōiku Iinkai'') is the board of education in Tokyo, Japan. The board directly manages all of the public high schools in all 23 special wards, the Wester ...

. * (東京都立飛鳥高等学校) * (東京都立赤羽商業高等学校) * (東京都立桐ケ丘高等学校) * (東京都立王子総合高等学校) The following private domestic schools are in the ward: * Seigakuin Junior & Senior High School (for boys) – * Joshi Seigakuin Junior & Senior High School (for girls) – NakazatoEnglish
" Joshi Seigakuin Junior & Senior High School. Retrieved on January 10, 2019. "Joshi Seigakuin Junior & Senior High School 3-12-2 Nakazato, Kita-ku, Tokyo 114-8574 JAPAN" The following international schools are in the ward: * Lycée Français International de Tokyo (French) * (French-English) *

Tokyo Korean Junior and Senior High School Tokyo Korean Middle and High School (東京朝鮮中高級学校 ''Tōkyō Chōsen Chūkōkyūgakkō''; Korean: Hanja: ) is a Chōsen gakkō, Korean international school in (十条台), Kita-ku, Tokyo, Kita-ku, Tokyo.Tokyo University of Social Welfare *

Tokyo Seitoku University is a private university in Kita, Tokyo, 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, whil ...

Transportation

Rail

JR East The is a major passenger railway company in Japan and is the largest of the seven Japan Railways Group companies. The company name is officially abbreviated as JR-EAST or JR East in English, and as in Japanese. The company's headquarters ar ...

Tōhoku Main Line The Tōhoku Main Line ( ja, 東北本線, ) is a long railway line in Japan operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). The line starts from Tokyo Station in Chiyoda, Tokyo and passes through such cities as Saitama, Utsunomiya, Fuku ...

Takasaki Line The Takasaki Line ( ja, 高崎線, ) is a Japanese railway line which connects Ōmiya Station in Saitama, Saitama Prefecture and Takasaki Station in Takasaki, Gunma Prefecture. It is owned and operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East) ...

Utsunomiya Line The Utsunomiya Line ( ja, 宇都宮線, ) is the name given to a 163.5 kilometer section of the Tōhoku Main Line between Tokyo Station in Tokyo and Kuroiso Station in Nasushiobara, Tochigi, Japan. It is part of the East Japan Railway Company ...

: Oku, Akabane Stations **

Saikyō Line The Saikyō Line ( ja, 埼京線, ) is a Japanese railway line operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). It connects Ōsaki Station in Shinagawa, Tokyo, and Ōmiya Station in Saitama Prefecture. The line's name is an abbreviation o ...

(

Akabane Line Akabane may refer to: *Akabane virus * Akabane, a neighborhood in Kita, Tokyo *Akabane Station is a railway station in Kita, Tokyo, Japan, operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). Lines Akabane Station is served by the following l ...

): Itabashi, Jujo, Akabane, Kita Akabane, Ukima Funado Stations ** Keihin-Tōhoku Line: Tabata, Kami Nakazato, Ōji, Higashi Jujo, Akabane Stations **

Yamanote Line The Yamanote Line ( ja, 山手線, Yamanote-sen) is a loop service in Tokyo, Japan, operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). It is one of Tokyo's busiest and most important lines, connecting most of Tokyo's major stations and urban c ...

: Tabata Station *

Tokyo Metropolitan Bureau of Transportation The , also known as , is a bureau of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government which operates public transport services in Tokyo. Among its services, the Toei Subway is one of two rapid transit systems which make up the Tokyo subway system, the othe ...

Tokyo Sakura Tram The , branded as the , is a hybrid light rail/tram line in Tokyo, Japan, operated by the Tokyo Metropolitan Bureau of Transportation (Toei). The Arakawa Line is the sole survivor of Tokyo's once-extensive Tokyo Toden streetcar system. It is on ...

: Nishigahara-yonchome, Takinogawa-ichome, Asukayama, Oji-ekimae, Sakaecho, Kajiwara Stations * Tokyo Metro Namboku Line: Nishigahara, Ōji, Ōji Kamiya, Shimo, Akabane Iwabuchi Stations *

Saitama Rapid Railway Line The is a mostly underground rapid transit line in Japan operated by the third sector operating company Saitama Railway Corporation. Funded by Saitama Prefecture, local municipal governments, and Tokyo Metro, it forms a continuation of the Tok ...

(Sainokuni Stadium Line): Akabane-Iwabuchi Station

Highways

Shuto Expressway is a network of toll expressways in the Greater Tokyo Area of Japan. It is operated and maintained by the . Most routes are grade-separated (elevated roads or tunnels) and central routes have many sharp curves and multi-lane merges that requi ...

C2 Central Loop (Itabashi JCT – Kasai JCT) * Route 17 (Nakasendō)

Notable people from Kita

* Kōbō Abe, Japanese writer, playwright, musician, photographer, inventor and novelist *

Elephant Kashimashi , sometimes abbreviated as , is a Japanese rock band from Kita, Tokyo, formed in 1981. It has consisted of vocalist and guitarist Hiroji Miyamoto, guitarist Toshiyuki Ishimori, bassist Seiji Takamidori and drummer Yoshiyuki Tominaga since 1986. ...

, rock band *

Kyoko Fukada is a very common feminine Japanese given name. Not to be confused with Kiyoko. Possible writings The final syllable "ko" is typically written with the kanji character for child, 子. It is a common suffix to female names in Japan. The first s ...

, model, actress, and singer *

Megumi Hayashibara is a Japanese voice actress, singer, lyricist and radio personality from Kita ward in Tokyo and is affiliated with self-founded Woodpark Office. One of the most prominent Japanese voice actresses since the 1990s, Hayashibara is best known for ...

seiyuu Voice acting in Japan is an industry where actors provide voice-overs as characters or narrators in media including anime, video games, audio dramas, commercials, and dubbing for non-Japanese films and television programs. In Japan, and a ...

, musician, singer, writer, radio DJ and TV talk show host, certified nurse * Hikaru Ijuin, radio and television personality * Kiyoshi Kodama, actor and TV personality *

Kazuya Yoshii is a Japanese musician and singer-songwriter. He is best known as lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the rock band The Yellow Monkey. When they went on hiatus in 2001, before officially disbanding three years later, Yoshii started a solo car ...

, singer-songwriter and musician (

The Yellow Monkey The Yellow Monkey, sometimes abbreviated as , is a Japanese rock band originally active from 1988 to 2001, before officially disbanding in 2004. They announced their reformation in 2016. The band's name was derived from the ethnic slur that J ...

) *

KOHH , better known by his stage name KOHH, is a Japanese hip hop recording artist from Oji, Kita, Tokyo. Early life Chiba was born in Oji, Kita, Tokyo. He was raised by a single mother along with his younger brother. His younger brother is also an ...

, rapper (Real Name: Yuki Chiba,

Nihongo is spoken natively by about 128 million people, primarily by Japanese people and primarily in Japan, the only country where it is the national language. Japanese belongs to the Japonic or Japanese- Ryukyuan language family. There have been m ...

: 千葉雄喜, ''Chiba Yūki'') *

Yuichi Nakamaru , is a Japanese singer-songwriter, actor, television personality, radio host, and a member of KAT-TUN. He joined the talent agency Johnny & Associates in 1998 and then officially debuted as part of KAT-TUN in 2006. Individually, he has acted ...

, singer-songwriter, actor, television personality, radio host, and a member of

KAT-TUN is a Japanese boy band formed under Johnny & Associates (Johnny's) in 2001. The group's name was originally an acronym based on the first letter of each member's family name: Kazuya Kamenashi, Jin Akanishi, Junnosuke Taguchi, Koki Tanaka, ...

International relations

Kita has a

sister city A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties. While there are early examples of inter ...

relationship with

Xuanwu District, Beijing Xuanwu District () was a district of the Municipality of Beijing, China. It was located southwest to the city center, outside of Xuanwu Gate. The district was merged into Xicheng District in July 2010. Located outside the Imperial Inner City an ...

, China. It is also twinned with the following cities in Japan. *

Sakata, Yamagata is a city located in Yamagata Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 106,244 in 39,320 households, and a population density of 180 people per km2. The total area of the city is . History The area of present-day Sakata was ...

Kanra, Gunma 250px, Old town of Obata in Kanra is a town located in Gunma Prefecture, Japan. , the town had an estimated population of 21,749 in 8311 households, and a population density of 220 persons per km². The total area of the town is . Geography Kanr ...

Nakanojō, Gunma 250px, Shima Onsen is a town located in Gunma Prefecture, Japan. , the town had an estimated population of 15,571 in 6737 households, and a population density of 35 persons per km². The total area of the town is . Geography Located in the nort ...

References

External links

Kita City Official Website
{{Authority control Wards of Tokyo