Nagoya, Aichi
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is the largest city in the
Chūbu region The , Central region, or is a region in the middle of Honshū, Japan's main island. In a wide, classical definition, it encompasses nine prefectures (''ken''): Aichi, Fukui, Gifu, Ishikawa, Nagano, Niigata, Shizuoka, Toyama, and Ya ...
of Japan. It is the fourth-most populous city in Japan, with a population of 2.3million in 2020, and the principal city of the
Chūkyō metropolitan area , or the , is a major metropolitan area in Japan that is centered on the city of Nagoya (the "Nagoya#Etymology, Chūkyō", i.e., the "capital in the middle") in Aichi Prefecture. The area makes up the most urbanized part of the Tōkai region. The ...
, which is the third-most populous metropolitan area in
Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
with a population of 10.11million. Located on the
Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is bounded by the cont ...
coast in central
Honshu , historically known as , is the largest of the four main islands of Japan. It lies between the Pacific Ocean (east) and the Sea of Japan (west). It is the list of islands by area, seventh-largest island in the world, and the list of islands by ...
, it is the capital and most populous city of
Aichi Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Aichi Prefecture has a population of 7,461,111 () and a geographic area of with a population density of . Aichi Prefecture borders Mie Prefecture to the ...
, with the
Port of Nagoya The , located in Ise Bay, is the largest and busiest trading port in Japan, accounting for about 10% of the total trade value of Japan. Notably, this port is the largest exporter of cars in Japan and where the Toyota Motor Corporation exports most ...
being Japan's largest seaport. In 1610, the warlord
Tokugawa Ieyasu Tokugawa Ieyasu (born Matsudaira Takechiyo; 31 January 1543 – 1 June 1616) was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan, which ruled from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was the third of the three "Gr ...
, a retainer of
Oda Nobunaga was a Japanese ''daimyō'' and one of the leading figures of the Sengoku period, Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods. He was the and regarded as the first "Great Unifier" of Japan. He is sometimes referred as the "Demon Daimyō" and "Demo ...
, moved the capital of
Owari Province was a province of Japan in the area that today forms the western half of Aichi Prefecture, including the modern city of Nagoya. The province was created in 646. Owari bordered on Mikawa, Mino, and Ise Provinces. Owari and Mino provinces w ...
from Kiyosu to Nagoya. This period saw the renovation of
Nagoya Castle is a Japanese castle located in Nagoya, Japan. Nagoya Castle was constructed by the Owari Domain in 1612 during the Edo period on the site of an earlier castle of the Oda clan in the Sengoku period. Nagoya Castle was the heart of one of the ...
. The arrival of the 20th century brought a convergence of economic factors that fueled rapid growth in Nagoya during 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 Imperial House of Japan, imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Althoug ...
, and it became a major industrial hub for Japan. The traditional manufactures of timepieces, bicycles, and sewing machines were followed by the production of special steels, ceramic, chemicals, oil, and petrochemicals, as the area's automobile, aviation, and shipbuilding industries flourished. These factors made the city a target for air raids during the
Pacific War The Pacific War, sometimes called the Asia–Pacific War or the Pacific Theatre, was the Theater (warfare), theatre of World War II fought between the Empire of Japan and the Allies of World War II, Allies in East Asia, East and Southeast As ...
. Following the war, Nagoya's economy diversified, but the city remains a significant centre for industry and transport in Japan. It is linked with Tokyo, Kyōto, and Osaka by the
Tokaido Shinkansen The is a Japanese high-speed rail line that is part of the nationwide Shinkansen network. Along with the San'yō Shinkansen, it forms a continuous high-speed railway through the Taiheiyō Belt, also known as the Tokaido corridor. Opening in 19 ...
, and is home to the
Nagoya Stock Exchange Nagoya Stock Exchange (名古屋証券取引所 ''Nagoya Shōken Torihikijo'', NSE) is a stock trading market in Nagoya, Japan. It is Japan's second largest exchange, behind the Tokyo Stock Exchange. It is operated by Nagoya Stock Exchange, Inc. ...
as well as the headquarters of
Brother Industries is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational electronics and electrical equipment company headquartered in Nagoya, Japan. Its products include Printer (computing), printers, multifunction printers, desktop computers, consumer and indu ...
,
Ibanez is a Japanese guitar brand owned by Hoshino Gakki. Based in Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture, Aichi, Japan, Hoshino Gakki was one of the first Japanese musical instrument companies to gain a significant foothold in import guitar sales in the United Stat ...
,
Lexus is the luxury vehicle division of the Japanese automaker Toyota, Toyota Motor Corporation. The Lexus brand is marketed in more than 90 countries and territories worldwide and is Japan's largest-selling make of premium cars. It has ranked amon ...
, and
Toyota Tsusho is a sōgō shōsha (trading company), a member of the Toyota Group. Toyota Tsusho has a worldwide presence through its many subsidiaries and operating divisions, including over 150 offices, and 900 subsidiaries and affiliates around the world. ...
, among others. Nagoya is home of educational institutes such as
Nagoya University , abbreviated to or NU, is a Japanese national research university located in Chikusa-ku, Nagoya. It was established in 1939 as the last of the nine Imperial Universities in the then Empire of Japan, and is now a Designated National Universit ...
, the Nagoya Institute of Technology, and Nagoya City University. Famous landmarks in the city include Atsuta Shrine, Higashiyama Zoo and Botanical Gardens,
Port of Nagoya Public Aquarium The is a public aquarium in Minato-ku, Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture, Japan. It is a member of the Japanese Association of Zoos and Aquariums (JAZA), and It is the public aquarium with the largest tank capacity and total area in Japan. It also own ...
,
Nagoya Castle is a Japanese castle located in Nagoya, Japan. Nagoya Castle was constructed by the Owari Domain in 1612 during the Edo period on the site of an earlier castle of the Oda clan in the Sengoku period. Nagoya Castle was the heart of one of the ...
, Hisaya Ōdori Park, and
Nagoya TV Tower The (formerly but still referred to as the ) is a TV tower in Nagoya, central Japan. History It is the oldest TV tower in Japan, and was completed in 1954. It is located in the centre of Hisaya Ōdori Park. The tower is 180 metres high, and ...
, one of the oldest TV towers in Japan. Nagoya will host the
2026 Asian Games The 2026 Asian Games (), also known as 20th Asian Games () and Aichi-Nagoya 2026 (), will be a multi-sport event celebrated around Aichi Prefecture in Japan from 19 September to 4 October 2026. The prefecture capital Nagoya will be the epicent ...
, making it the third Japanese city to host the Asian Games after Tokyo 1958 and Hiroshima 1994.


Toponymy

The city's name was historically written as or (both read as ''Nagoya''). One possible origin is the adjective , meaning 'calm'. The name , consisting of ''chū'' (middle) + ''kyō'' (capital) is also used to refer to Nagoya. Notable examples of the use of the name Chūkyō include the
Chūkyō Industrial Area The is another name for the Chūkyō Metropolitan Area and the surrounding prefectures, which have strong economic links to it. This industrial region includes the Aichi, Gifu, and Mie prefectures. One of the dominant companies of the regio ...
,
Chūkyō Metropolitan Area , or the , is a major metropolitan area in Japan that is centered on the city of Nagoya (the "Nagoya#Etymology, Chūkyō", i.e., the "capital in the middle") in Aichi Prefecture. The area makes up the most urbanized part of the Tōkai region. The ...
,
Chūkyō Television Broadcasting JOCH-DTV (channel 4), branded as , is the Chūkyō metropolitan area flagship station of the Nippon News Network and Nippon Television Network System (NNS), owned by , a subsidiary of Yomiuri Chukyo FS Broadcasting Holdings. Its studios are lo ...
,
Chukyo University is a private university in Aichi Prefecture, Japan, with campuses in Nagoya and Toyota. The main building is located in Yagoto, Shōwa-ku, Nagoya. Campus File:View of Chukyo University (1), Yamanote-tori Showa Ward Nagoya 2022.jpg, Nagoya C ...
and the Chukyo Racecourse.


History


Origins

;Jōmon period In the Jomon and
Yayoi period The Yayoi period (弥生時代, ''Yayoi jidai'') (c. 300 BC – 300 AD) is one of the major historical periods of the Japanese archipelago. It is generally defined as the era between the beginning of food production in Japan and the emergence o ...
, the Ōguruwa Shell Midden was discovered before the settlement of Nagoya. ;Kofun period In the
Kofun period The is an era in the history of Japan from about 300 to 538 AD (the date of the introduction of Buddhism), following the Yayoi period. The Kofun and the subsequent Asuka periods are sometimes collectively called the Yamato period. This period is ...
, Nagoya was settled and the Danpusan Kofun and Shiratori Kofun was built in this area. The Atsuta Shrine is of ancient origin, it is home to the
Imperial Regalia of Japan The are the imperial regalia of Japan and consist of the sword , the mirror , and the jewel . They represent the three primary virtues: valour (the sword), wisdom (the mirror), and benevolence (the jewel).
, the legendary sword '' Kusanagi no Tsurugi''. According to traditional sources, Yamato Takeru died in 113 AD. The possessions of the dead prince were gathered together along with the sword Kusanagi; and his widow venerated his memory in a shrine at her home. File:Oguruwa Kaizuka 20160815.jpg, The Ōguruwa Shell Midden was discovered before the settlement. File:Atsuta Shrine.jpg, The Atsuta Shrine, which dates back to c. 100 AD and houses the holy sword Kusanagi, one of the
Imperial Regalia of Japan The are the imperial regalia of Japan and consist of the sword , the mirror , and the jewel . They represent the three primary virtues: valour (the sword), wisdom (the mirror), and benevolence (the jewel).
File:Danpusan Kofun zenkei.JPG, The Danpusan Kofun was built in the 6th century.
;Heian period The Seigan-ji was built by the
Fujiwara clan The was a powerful family of imperial regents in Japan, descending from the Nakatomi clan and, as legend held, through them their ancestral god Ame-no-Koyane. The Fujiwara prospered since ancient times and dominated the imperial court until th ...
in the late
Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. It followed the Nara period, beginning when the 50th emperor, Emperor Kammu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). means in Japanese. It is a ...
. A member served as the head priest of the nearby Atsuta Shrine, one of the legendary shrines of Japan. It is believed that Yura-Gozen, also known as Urahime, a daughter of Fujiwara no Suenori, was married to Minamoto no Yoshitomo (1123–60) and their son
Minamoto no Yoritomo was the founder and the first shogun of the Kamakura shogunate, ruling from 1192 until 1199, also the first ruling shogun in the history of Japan.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Minamoto no Yoriie" in . He was the husband of Hōjō Masako ...
's birthplace is Nagoya, he is also the founder of the
Kamakura shogunate The was the feudal military government of Japan during the Kamakura period from 1185 to 1333. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Kamakura-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia'', p. 459. The Kamakura shogunate was established by Minamoto no Yori ...
. File:Seigan-ji (Nagoya) sanmon.JPG, The Seigan-ji former family villa was the birthplace of
Minamoto no Yoritomo was the founder and the first shogun of the Kamakura shogunate, ruling from 1192 until 1199, also the first ruling shogun in the history of Japan.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Minamoto no Yoriie" in . He was the husband of Hōjō Masako ...
, founder of the
Kamakura Shogunate The was the feudal military government of Japan during the Kamakura period from 1185 to 1333. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Kamakura-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia'', p. 459. The Kamakura shogunate was established by Minamoto no Yori ...
.


Feudal period

;Azuchi–Momoyama period
Oda Nobunaga was a Japanese ''daimyō'' and one of the leading figures of the Sengoku period, Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods. He was the and regarded as the first "Great Unifier" of Japan. He is sometimes referred as the "Demon Daimyō" and "Demo ...
and his protégés
Toyotomi Hideyoshi , otherwise known as and , was a Japanese samurai and ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) of the late Sengoku period, Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods and regarded as the second "Great Unifier" of Japan.Richard Holmes, The World Atlas of Warfare: ...
and
Tokugawa Ieyasu Tokugawa Ieyasu (born Matsudaira Takechiyo; 31 January 1543 – 1 June 1616) was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan, which ruled from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was the third of the three "Gr ...
were powerful warlords based in the Nagoya area who gradually succeeded in unifying Japan. In 1610, Tokugawa Ieyasu moved the capital of
Owari Province was a province of Japan in the area that today forms the western half of Aichi Prefecture, including the modern city of Nagoya. The province was created in 646. Owari bordered on Mikawa, Mino, and Ise Provinces. Owari and Mino provinces w ...
from Kiyosu, about away, to a more strategic location in present-day Nagoya. In May–June 1560, the Battle of Okehazama took place in Dengakuhazama,
Owari Province was a province of Japan in the area that today forms the western half of Aichi Prefecture, including the modern city of Nagoya. The province was created in 646. Owari bordered on Mikawa, Mino, and Ise Provinces. Owari and Mino provinces w ...
which was just outside of what would become Nagoya city. In this battle,
Oda Nobunaga was a Japanese ''daimyō'' and one of the leading figures of the Sengoku period, Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods. He was the and regarded as the first "Great Unifier" of Japan. He is sometimes referred as the "Demon Daimyō" and "Demo ...
defeated
Imagawa Yoshimoto was a Japanese ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) of the Sengoku period. Based in Suruga Province, he was known as ; he was one of the three ''daimyō'' that dominated the Tōkaidō region. He died in 1560 while marching to Kyoto to become Shogun. He ...
and established himself as one of the leading warlords in the
Sengoku period The was the period in History of Japan, Japanese history in which civil wars and social upheavals took place almost continuously in the 15th and 16th centuries. The Kyōtoku incident (1454), Ōnin War (1467), or (1493) are generally chosen as th ...
. File:Oda Nobunaga statue in Kiyosu park.jpg,
Oda Nobunaga was a Japanese ''daimyō'' and one of the leading figures of the Sengoku period, Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods. He was the and regarded as the first "Great Unifier" of Japan. He is sometimes referred as the "Demon Daimyō" and "Demo ...
File:Jousenji2.JPG,
Toyotomi Hideyoshi , otherwise known as and , was a Japanese samurai and ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) of the late Sengoku period, Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods and regarded as the second "Great Unifier" of Japan.Richard Holmes, The World Atlas of Warfare: ...
File:Bishū Okehazama-gassen.jpg, Battle of Okehazama (May–June 1560)


Early modern period

During this period
Nagoya Castle is a Japanese castle located in Nagoya, Japan. Nagoya Castle was constructed by the Owari Domain in 1612 during the Edo period on the site of an earlier castle of the Oda clan in the Sengoku period. Nagoya Castle was the heart of one of the ...
was constructed, built partly from materials taken from Kiyosu Castle. During the construction, the entire town around Kiyosu Castle, consisting of around 60,000 people, moved from Kiyosu to the newly planned town around Nagoya Castle. Around the same time, the nearby ancient Atsuta Shrine was designated as a waystation, called Miya (the Shrine), on the important Tōkaidō road, which linked the two capitals of
Kyoto Kyoto ( or ; Japanese language, Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan's largest and most populous island of Honshu. , the city had a population of 1.46 million, making it t ...
and
Edo Edo (), also romanized as Jedo, Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of Tokyo. Edo, formerly a (castle town) centered on Edo Castle located in Musashi Province, became the '' de facto'' capital of Japan from 1603 as the seat of the Tokugawa shogu ...
(now Tokyo). A town developed around the temple to support travelers. The castle and shrine towns formed the city. File:Aichi Osu Kannon hondo 2021-07 ac (1).jpg, Ōsu Kannon is a Buddhist temple, originally built in 1333, later relocated in 1612. File:180405 Tenshu and Honmaru Goten of Nagoya castle 2.jpg,
Nagoya Castle is a Japanese castle located in Nagoya, Japan. Nagoya Castle was constructed by the Owari Domain in 1612 during the Edo period on the site of an earlier castle of the Oda clan in the Sengoku period. Nagoya Castle was the heart of one of the ...
was constructed as the seat of the Owari branch of the ruling
Tokugawa clan The is a Japanese dynasty which produced the Tokugawa shoguns who ruled Japan from 1603 to 1868 during the Edo period. It was formerly a powerful ''daimyō'' family. They nominally descended from Emperor Seiwa (850–880) and were a branch of ...
. File:Shikemichi Nagoya (1).JPG, Edo era buildings in Shikemichi (四間道) File:Tokaido41 Miya.jpg, Miya-juku ( Atsuta Shrine) in the 1830s, as depicted by
Hiroshige or , born Andō Tokutarō (; 1797 – 12 October 1858), was a Japanese ''ukiyo-e'' artist, considered the last great master of that tradition. Hiroshige is best known for his horizontal-format landscape series '' The Fifty-three Stations ...
File:Arimatsushibori.JPG, Arimatsu Town File:Hongan-ji Nagoya Betsuin - Owari Meisho Zue.png, Woodcut print of Hongan-ji Nagoya Betsuin (Nishi-Honganji)


Modern period

;Meiji period During 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 Imperial House of Japan, imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Althoug ...
Japan's provinces were restructured into prefectures and the government changed from family to bureaucratic rule. Nagoya was proclaimed a city on October 1, 1889, and designated a city on 1 September 1956, by government ordinance. Nagoya became an industrial hub for the region. Its economic sphere included the famous
pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other raw materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. The place where such wares are made by a ''potter'' is al ...
towns of
Tokoname is a Cities of Japan, city in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 57,872 in 24,872 households, and a population density of 1,035 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Geography Tokoname is located on ...
, Tajimi and Seto, as well as
Okazaki Okazaki may refer to: *Okazaki (surname) *Okazaki, Aichi, a city in Japan *Okazaki Castle, a castle in Japan *Okazaki fragments Okazaki fragments are short sequences of DNA nucleotides (approximately 150 to 200 base pairs long in eukaryotes) w ...
, one of the only places where
gunpowder Gunpowder, also commonly known as black powder to distinguish it from modern smokeless powder, is the earliest known chemical explosive. It consists of a mixture of sulfur, charcoal (which is mostly carbon), and potassium nitrate, potassium ni ...
was produced under the
shogunate , officially , was the title of the military rulers 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, except during parts of the Kamak ...
. Other industries included
cotton Cotton (), first recorded in ancient India, is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure ...
and complex mechanical dolls called '' karakuri ningyō''. ;Taisho period Mitsubishi Aircraft Company was established in 1920 in Nagoya and became one of the largest aircraft manufacturers in Japan. The availability of space and the central location of the region and the well-established connectivity were some of the major factors that lead to the establishment of the aviation industry there. File:Photo of Nagoya Town, 1880-1890.jpg, Photo of Nagoya, 1880–1890 File:Nagoya Station 1886.jpg,
Nagoya Station is a major railway station in Nakamura-ku, Nagoya, Japan. It is Japan's, and one of the world's largest train stations by floor area (410,000 m2), and houses the headquarters of the Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central). Much of this space ...
in 1886 File:Nagoya-Hirokoji_in_the_Meiji_era.JPG, Hirokoji in Nagoya during the
Meiji era The was an Japanese era name, era of History of Japan, Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868, to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feu ...
File:御大典奉祝名古屋博覧会 正門.jpg, Main Gate of the Nagoya Expo in
Tsuruma Park Tsuruma Park (鶴舞公園) is a park located in Shōwa-ku, Nagoya, Shōwa-ku, Nagoya, Nagoya city, Aichi Prefecture, Japan. History The park's history goes back to the year 1909. In 1910, the 10th Kansai Area Prefectural Union Joint Exposit ...
, 1928 File:Nagoya map circa 1930.PNG, Nagoya map circa 1930 File:Toyota Motor Corporation Koromo plant in 1938.jpg,
Toyota Motor Corporation is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on August 28, 1937. Toyota is the List of manuf ...
Koromo plant (now the Toyota Commemorative Museum of Industry and Technology) in 1938 File:TBCN Kakunai Line.JPG, Nagoya City Hall in the Showa period
;Pacific War and post-war years Nagoya was the target of air raids during the
Pacific War The Pacific War, sometimes called the Asia–Pacific War or the Pacific Theatre, was the Theater (warfare), theatre of World War II fought between the Empire of Japan and the Allies of World War II, Allies in East Asia, East and Southeast As ...
. The population of Nagoya at this time was estimated to be 1.5million, fourth among Japanese cities and one of the three largest centers of the Japanese aircraft industry. It was estimated that 25% of its workers were engaged in aircraft production. Important Japanese aircraft targets (numbers 193, 194, 198, 2010, and 1729) were within the city itself, while others (notably 240 and 1833) were to the north of Kagamigahara. It was estimated that they produced between 40% and 50% of Japanese combat aircraft and engines, such as the vital
Mitsubishi A6M Zero The Mitsubishi A6M "Zero" is a long-range carrier-capable fighter aircraft formerly manufactured by Mitsubishi Aircraft Company, a part of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. It was operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) from 1940 to 1945. The ...
fighter. The Nagoya area also produced machine tools, bearings, railway equipment, metal alloys, tanks, motor vehicles and processed foods during the war. Air raids began on April 18, 1942, with an attack on a
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational engineering, electrical equipment and electronics corporation headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. MHI is one of the core companies of the Mitsubishi Group and its automobile division is the prede ...
aircraft works, the Matsuhigecho oil warehouse, the Nagoya Castle military barracks and the Nagoya war industries plant. The bombing continued through the spring of 1945, and included large-scale
firebombing Firebombing is a bombing technique designed to damage a target, generally an urban area, through the use of fire, caused by incendiary devices, rather than from the blast effect of large bombs. In popular usage, any act in which an incendiary d ...
. Nagoya was the target of two of
Bomber Command Bomber Command is an organisational military unit, generally subordinate to the air force of a country. The best known were in Britain and the United States. A Bomber Command is generally used for strategic bombing (although at times, e.g. during t ...
's attacks. These incendiary attacks, one by day and one by night, devastated . The
XXI Bomber Command The XXI Bomber Command was a unit of the Twentieth Air Force in the Mariana Islands for strategic bombing during World War II. The command was established at Smoky Hill Army Air Field, Kansas on 1 March 1944. After a period of organization and ...
established a new U.S. Army Air Force record with the greatest tonnage ever released on a single target in one mission—3,162 tons of incendiaries. It also destroyed or damaged twenty-eight of the numbered targets and raised the area burned to almost one-fourth of the entire city. Nagoya Castle, which was being used as a military command post, was hit and mostly destroyed on May 14, 1945, followed by the Yokkaichi bombing in June 1945. Reconstruction of the main building was completed in 1959. Later in the same year on July 26, 1945, the ''
Enola Gay The ''Enola Gay'' () is a Boeing B-29 Superfortress bomber, named after Enola Gay Tibbets, the mother of the pilot, Colonel (United States), Colonel Paul Tibbets. On 6 August 1945, during the final stages of World War II, it became the Atomi ...
'' also dropped a conventional pumpkin bomb in the Yagoto area of Nagoya as part of a bombing raid in order to train for their mission to
Hiroshima is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 1,199,391. The gross domestic product (GDP) in Greater Hiroshima, Hiroshima Urban Employment Area, was US$61.3 billion as of 2010. Kazumi Matsui has b ...
. In 1959, the city was flooded and severely damaged by the
Ise-wan Typhoon Typhoon Vera, also known as the , was an exceptionally intense tropical cyclone that struck Japan in September 1959, becoming the strongest and deadliest typhoon on record to make landfall (meteorology), landfall on the country, as well as ...
.


Contemporary period

After the war the city was able to rebuild and take up its role again as one of the country's leading industrial and manufacturing centers, it became known as the "
Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...
and
Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...
of the Orient". It also plays an increasing role in the
meetings, incentives, conferencing, exhibitions Meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions tourism (MICE tourism) is a type of tourism in which large groups, usually planned well in advance, are brought together. Recently there has been an industry trend toward using the term "meetin ...
(MICE) industry, hosting the
Expo 2005 Expo 2005 was a world expo held for 185 days between Friday, March 25 and Sunday, September 25, 2005, in Aichi Prefecture, Japan, east of the city of Nagoya. Japan has also hosted Expo '70 Osaka (World Expo), Expo '75 Okinawa (Specialised Expo) ...
and the
Nagoya Protocol The Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization to the Convention on Biological Diversity, also known as the Nagoya Protocol on Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS), is ...
conference in 2010. File:Burning Nagoya Castle-2.JPG, Nagoya Castle on fire 1945 File:Nagoya after the 1945 air raid.JPG, View of Nagoya after the
bombing A bomb is an explosive weapon that uses the exothermic reaction of an explosive material to provide an extremely sudden and violent release of energy. Detonations inflict damage principally through ground- and atmosphere-transmitted mechan ...
in 1945 File:Typhoon Vera 1959 CBC Location.jpg, Damage from the Ise-wan Typhoon (
Typhoon Vera Typhoon Vera, also known as the , was an exceptionally intense tropical cyclone that struck Japan in September 1959, becoming the strongest and deadliest typhoon on record to make landfall (meteorology), landfall on the country, as well as ...
) in 1959 File:Expo2005 Overview.jpg, The
Expo 2005 Expo 2005 was a world expo held for 185 days between Friday, March 25 and Sunday, September 25, 2005, in Aichi Prefecture, Japan, east of the city of Nagoya. Japan has also hosted Expo '70 Osaka (World Expo), Expo '75 Okinawa (Specialised Expo) ...
was the second
world's fair A world's fair, also known as a universal exhibition, is a large global exhibition designed to showcase the achievements of nations. These exhibitions vary in character and are held in different parts of the world at a specific site for a perio ...
held in Japan. File:Nagoya-city-1945-post-WWII-GAG01.jpg, 1945, after WWII


Geography and administrative divisions


Geography

Nagoya lies north of
Ise Bay is a bay located at the mouth of the Kiso Three Rivers between Mie prefecture, Mie and Aichi prefecture, Aichi Prefectures in Japan. Ise Bay has an average depth of and a maximum depth of . The mouth of the bay is and is connected to the small ...
on the Nōbi Plain. The city was built on low-level
plateau In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; : plateaus or plateaux), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. ...
s to ward off floodwaters. The plain is one of the nation's most fertile areas. The Kiso River flows to the west along the city border, and the
Shōnai River The is a Class 1 river flowing through Gifu and Aichi prefectures in Japan. In Gifu Prefecture, it is also referred to as the Toki River (土岐川 ''Toki-gawa''); around the city of Kasugai in Aichi Prefecture, it is referred to as the Tam ...
comes from the northeast and turns south towards the bay at Nishi Ward. The human-made Hori River was constructed as a canal in 1610. It flows from north to south, as part of the Shōnai River system. The rivers allowed for trade with the hinterland. The Tempaku River feeds from a number of smaller river in the east, flows briefly south at Nonami and then west at Ōdaka into the bay. The city's location and its position in the centre of Japan allowed it to develop economically and politically. File:Nobi_Plain_from_Mount_Miroku.JPG, Nagoya and Nobi Plain seen from Mirokuzan (
Kasugai city is a Cities of Japan, city in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 306,764, and a population density of 3,306 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . The city is sometimes called Owarikasugai to avoid confus ...
) File:Nobi Plain and Nagoya from Mount Sanpo 2008-9-24.jpg, View of the Nōbi Plain,
Kiso Three Rivers The are the three major rivers that make up the alluvial plain area of the Nōbi Plain of Japan. The three rivers are the Kiso River, the Ibi River and the Nagara River. Given their location, they are sometimes referred to as the Nōbi Three R ...
and Nagoya from Mount Sanpo and Mount Yōrō File:Aerial photographs of Nagoya Night view.jpg, Aerial photographs of Nagoya File:Nagoya_Port_Aichi_pref_Japan01s8.jpg, Nagoya Port in 2013


Climate

Nagoya has a
humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...
(
Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...
: ''Cfa'') with hot, humid summers and cool winters. The summer is noticeably wetter than the winter, although rain falls throughout the year.


Area


Wards

Nagoya has 16 wards.


Demographics

One of the earliest
census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...
es, carried out in 1889, counted 157,496 residents. The population reached the 1million mark in 1934 and as of December 2010 had an estimated population of 2,259,993 with a
population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...
of . Also an estimated 1,019,859 households resided there—a significant increase from 153,370 at the end of the
Pacific War The Pacific War, sometimes called the Asia–Pacific War or the Pacific Theatre, was the Theater (warfare), theatre of World War II fought between the Empire of Japan and the Allies of World War II, Allies in East Asia, East and Southeast As ...
in 1945. The area is . Its
metropolitan area A metropolitan area or metro is a region consisting of a densely populated urban area, urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories which share Industry (economics), industries, commercial areas, Transport infrastructure, transport network ...
extends into the Mie and
Gifu is a Cities of Japan, city located in the south-central portion of Gifu Prefecture, Japan, and serves as the prefectural capital. The city has played an important role in Japan's history because of its location in the middle of the country. Durin ...
prefectures, with a total population of about 10million people, surpassed only by Osaka and Tokyo.


Surrounding municipalities

*
Aichi Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Aichi Prefecture has a population of 7,461,111 () and a geographic area of with a population density of . Aichi Prefecture borders Mie Prefecture to the ...
** Ama **
Kanie is a List of towns in Japan, town located in Ama District, Aichi, Ama District, Aichi Prefecture, Japan. , the town had an estimated population of 37,082 in 16,647 households, and a population density of 3,344 persons per km2. The total area of ...
** Kasugai ** Kitanagoya ** Kiyosu ** Nagakute ** Nisshin **
Ōbu is a Cities of Japan, city located in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 92,179 in 39,382 households, and a population density of 2,739 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Ōbu has been a member of the ...
** Ōharu ** Owariasahi ** Seto ** Tobishima ** Tōgō ** Tōkai ** Toyoake ** Toyoyama


Public services


Police

; Aichi Prefectural Police *Atsuta Police Station *Chikusa Police Station *Higashi Police Station *Kita Police Station *Meito Police Station *Midori Police Station *Minami Police Station *Minato Police Station *Mizuho Police Station *Moriyama Police Station *Naka Police Station *Nakagawa Police Station *Nakamura Police Station *Nishi Police Station *Showa Police Station *Tenpaku Police Station


Firefighting

;Nagoya City Fire Bureau *Atsuta Fire Department *Chikusa Fire Department *Higashi Fire Department *Kita Fire Department *Meito Fire Department *Midori Fire Department *Minami Fire Department *Minato Fire Department *Mizuho Fire Department *Moriyama Fire Department *Naka Fire Department *Nakagawa Fire Department *Nakamura Fire Department *Nishi Fire Department *Showa Fire Department *Tenpaku Fire Department


Health care

;Hospital *Chubu Rosai Hospital *Social Insurance Chukyo Hospital *Nagoya City East Medical Center * Nagoya City West Medical Center *Nagoya City University Hospital *Nagoya Daiichi Red Cross Hospital *Nagoya Daini Red Cross Hospital *Nagoya Ekisaikai Hospital *Nagoya Memorial Hospital *Nagoya University Hospital *National Hospital Organization Nagoya Medical Center


Post office

*Atsuta Post Office *Chikusa Post Office *Meito Post Office *Mizuho Post Office *Moriyama Post Office *Nagoya Central Post Office *Nagoya Higashi Post Office *Nagoya Jingu Post Office *Nagoya Kita Post Office *Nagoya Midori Post Office *Nagoya Minami Post Office *Nagoya Minato Post Office *Nagoya Naka Post Office *Nagoya Nishi Post Office *Nakagawa Post Office *Nakamura Post Office *Showa Post Office *Tenpaku Post Office


Library

*Aichi Prefectural Library *Nagoya City Library *Nagoya City Atsuta Library *Nagoya City Chikusa Library *Nagoya City Higashi Library *Nagoya City Kita Library *Nagoya City Kusunoki Library *Nagoya City Meito Library *Nagoya City Midori Library *Nagoya City Minami Library *Nagoya City Minato Library *Nagoya City Mizuho Library *Nagoya City Moriyama Library *Nagoya City Nakagawa Library *Nagoya City Nanyo Library *Nagoya City Nishi Library *Nagoya City Nakamura Library *Nagoya City Shidami Library *Nagoya City Tenpaku Library *Nagoya City Tokushige Library *Nagoya City Tomida Library *Nagoya City Tsuruma Library *Nagoya City Yamada Library


Playhouses and cultural facilities

* Aichi Arts Center *Atsuta Playhouse *Chikusa Playhouse * Chunichi Theatre *Higashi Playhouse *Kita Playhouse *Meito Playhouse *Midori Playhouse *Minami Playhouse *Minato Playhouse * Misono-za *Mizuho Playhouse *Moriyama Playhouse *Munetsugu Hall *Nagoya Citizens' Auditorium * Nagoya Noh Theater *Nakagawa Playhouse *Nakamura Playhouse *Nishi Playhouse *Osu Engeijo *Showa Playhouse *Shirakawa Hall *Tenpaku Playhouse File:国立名古屋医療センター - panoramio.jpg, National Hospital Organization Nagoya Medical Center File:JR Gate Tower and JP Tower Nagoya.jpg, JP Tower Nagoya (Nagoya central Post office) File:Aichi Prefectural Library 1F hall ac.jpg, Aichi Prefectural Library File:Misonoza-1.jpg, Misono-za


Sister cities

The
Nagoya International Center The Nagoya International Center (''Japanese: ''名古屋国際センター ''Nagoya Kokusai Sentaa'') is a non-profit organization based in Nakamura-ku, Nagoya, Japan. The center was established in 1984 and is known locally as the "NIC." Descr ...
promotes international exchange in the local community. It houses the U.S. Consulate on the 6th floor and the United Nations Centre for Regional Development (UNCRD) on the 7th floor. Nagoya is twinned with:


International

;Sister cities The sister city relationship with
Nanjing Nanjing or Nanking is the capital of Jiangsu, a province in East China. The city, which is located in the southwestern corner of the province, has 11 districts, an administrative area of , and a population of 9,423,400. Situated in the Yang ...
, China was suspended on February 21, 2012, following public comments by Nagoya mayor Takashi Kawamura denying the
Nanjing Massacre The Nanjing Massacre, or the Rape of Nanjing (formerly Chinese postal romanization, romanized as ''Nanking'') was the mass murder of Chinese civilians, noncombatants, and surrendered prisoners of war by the Imperial Japanese Army in Nanji ...
. ;Partner cities


National

;Partner city


Sister airport

Nagoya Airfield , also known as Komaki Airport or Nagoya Airport, is an airport within the local government areas of Toyoyama, Komaki, Kasugai and Nagoya in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. Prior to 2005 it was an international airport, but is now a domestic secon ...
's sister airport is: * Grant County International Airport, WA, United States (2016)


Economy

Nagoya is the center of Greater Nagoya, which earned nearly 70 percent of Japan's 2003 trade surplus.


Automotive industry

Nagoya's main industry is automotive.
Toyota is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on August 28, 1937. Toyota is the List of manuf ...
's luxury brand
Lexus is the luxury vehicle division of the Japanese automaker Toyota, Toyota Motor Corporation. The Lexus brand is marketed in more than 90 countries and territories worldwide and is Japan's largest-selling make of premium cars. It has ranked amon ...
,
Denso is a global automotive components manufacturer headquartered in the city of Kariya, Aichi Prefecture, Japan. After becoming independent from Toyota Motor, the company was founded as in 1949. About 25% of the company is owned by Toyota. Despi ...
,
Aisin Seiki Co. is a Japanese corporation that develops and produces components and systems for the automotive industry. Aisin is a Fortune Global 500 company, ranked 359 rankings. Aisin is a member of the Toyota Group of companies. Aisin was founded in 1965 ...
,
Toyota Industries is a Japanese machine maker. Originally, and still actively (), a manufacturer of automatic looms, it is the company from which Toyota Motor Corporation developed. It is the world's largest manufacturer of forklift trucks measured by revenues. ...
,
JTEKT JTEKT Corporation TYO: 6473.T is a Japanese corporation created in January 2006 upon the merger of two companies: Koyo Seiko Co. and ''Toyoda Machine Works''. Toyoda Machine Works, Machine tool sales for North, Central and South America, afterm ...
and Toyota Boshoku have their headquarters in or near Nagoya.
Mitsubishi Motors is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automobile manufacturer headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan.
has an R&D division in the suburb of
Okazaki Okazaki may refer to: *Okazaki (surname) *Okazaki, Aichi, a city in Japan *Okazaki Castle, a castle in Japan *Okazaki fragments Okazaki fragments are short sequences of DNA nucleotides (approximately 150 to 200 base pairs long in eukaryotes) w ...
. Major component suppliers such as
Magna International Magna International Inc. is a Canadian parts manufacturer for automakers. It is one of the largest companies in Canada and was recognized on the 2020 ''Forbes'' Global 2000. The company is the largest automobile parts manufacturer in North Amer ...
and PPG also have a strong presence here.
Spark plug A spark plug (sometimes, in British English, a sparking plug, and, colloquially, a plug) is a device for delivering electric current from an ignition system to the combustion chamber of a spark-ignition engine to ignite the compressed fuel/air ...
maker NGK and
Nippon Sharyo , formed in 1896, is a major rolling stock, Heavy equipment, heavy equipment, Diesel generator, generator, Special-purpose entity, special purpose vehicle and bridge manufacturer based in Nagoya, Japan. In 1996, it abbreviated its ...
, known for manufacturing
rolling stock The term rolling stock in the rail transport industry refers to railway vehicles, including both powered and unpowered vehicles: for example, locomotives, Railroad car#Freight cars, freight and Passenger railroad car, passenger cars (or coaches) ...
including the
Shinkansen The , colloquially known in English as the bullet train, is a network of high-speed railway lines in Japan. It was initially built to connect distant Japanese regions with Tokyo, the capital, to aid economic growth and development. Beyond lon ...
are headquartered there.


Aviation industry

The aviation history has historically been of importance since the industrialization. During the Second World War the
Mitsubishi A6M Zero The Mitsubishi A6M "Zero" is a long-range carrier-capable fighter aircraft formerly manufactured by Mitsubishi Aircraft Company, a part of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. It was operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) from 1940 to 1945. The ...
fighter was constructed in Nagoya. The aviation tradition continues with
Mitsubishi Aircraft Corporation , abbreviated MITAC, was a Japanese company that developed, produced, sold and supported the Mitsubishi SpaceJet (formerly MRJ) passenger airliners. The manufacturing of the aircraft was planned to be carried out by parent company Mitsubishi He ...
headquartered in the
Nagoya Airfield , also known as Komaki Airport or Nagoya Airport, is an airport within the local government areas of Toyoyama, Komaki, Kasugai and Nagoya in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. Prior to 2005 it was an international airport, but is now a domestic secon ...
's terminal building in
Komaki is a city located in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 148,872 in 68,174 households, and a population density of . The total area of the city was . Komaki is commonly associated with the former Komaki Airport, whi ...
. The Mitsubishi Regional Jet (MRJ) aircraft is produced at a factory adjacent to the airport. The MRJ is a partnership between majority owner Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Toyota with design assistance from Toyota affiliate
Subaru Corporation , formerly , is a Japanese multinational corporation and conglomerate primarily involved in both terrestrial and aerospace transportation manufacturing. It is best known for its line of Subaru automobiles. Founded in 1953, the company was nam ...
, already a manufacturer of aircraft. It is the first airliner designed and produced in Japan since the
NAMC YS-11 The NAMC YS-11 is a turboprop airliner designed and built by the Nihon Aircraft Manufacturing Corporation (NAMC), a Japanese consortium. It was the only post-war airliner to be wholly designed and manufactured in Japan until the development of t ...
of the 1960s.Anselmo, Joe.
Milestone for the MRJ
''
Aviation Week & Space Technology ''Aviation Week & Space Technology'', often abbreviated ''Aviation Week'' or ''AW&ST'', is the flagship magazine of the Aviation Week Network, a division of Informa. The weekly magazine is available in print and online, reporting on the aeros ...
'', 24 October 2014. Accessed: 25 October 2014.
Mecham, Michael & Anselmo, Joe.
Big ambitions
" ''
Aviation Week & Space Technology ''Aviation Week & Space Technology'', often abbreviated ''Aviation Week'' or ''AW&ST'', is the flagship magazine of the Aviation Week Network, a division of Informa. The weekly magazine is available in print and online, reporting on the aeros ...
'', 17 March 2008. Accessed: 25 October 2014.
The MRJ's first flight was on November 11, 2015.


Ceramics

Japanese pottery and porcelain is one of the oldest Japanese crafts and art forms, dating back to the Neolithic period. Types have included earthenware, pottery, stoneware, porcelain, and blue-and-white ware. Japan has an exceptionally long and successful history of cer ...
has a long tradition due to suitable clay being available in
Owari Province was a province of Japan in the area that today forms the western half of Aichi Prefecture, including the modern city of Nagoya. The province was created in 646. Owari bordered on Mikawa, Mino, and Ise Provinces. Owari and Mino provinces w ...
. Before and during the
Edo period The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...
there were two main kilns in the region: Seto and
Tokoname is a Cities of Japan, city in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 57,872 in 24,872 households, and a population density of 1,035 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Geography Tokoname is located on ...
. In Nagoya Castle a type of ''oniwa-yaki'' (literally "garden ware") called Ofukei ware was produced by the feudal lord's court. Almost every feudal lord had his own ''oniwa-yaki'', also to have gifts made. In the town itself Toyoraku ware and
Sasashima ware Sasashima ware (笹島焼 ''Sasashima-yaki'') is a type of Japanese pottery from Nagoya, Owari province, later Aichi prefecture, central Japan. History It was based in the Sasashima-chō neighbourhood, not far from Nagoya Station, today a par ...
Japanese tea utensils were made with refined tastes. Ofukei ware started under the first Owari lord Tokugawa Yoshinao and was interrupted once, but continued on until the end of the
Edo period The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...
. It became widely known in Japan. The lord's taste in ceramics was also imitated by other Owari samurai, such as Hirasawa Kurō and Masaki Sōzaburō, who made their own pieces. Toyoraku ware continued on until the
Taishō era The was a period in the history of Japan dating from 30 July 1912 to 25 December 1926, coinciding with the reign of Emperor Taishō. The new emperor was a sickly man, which prompted the shift in political power from the old oligarchic group ...
under the 8th generation. Colourful pieces and gorgeous tea utensils were highly valued. Sasashima ware also experienced its heyday during this time. Colourful and soft ceramic items such as sake and tea utensils and objects were produced and intently collected. An early type of manufactured production was the blue-and-white Kawana ware. With the advent of industrialization during the
Meiji era The was an Japanese era name, era of History of Japan, Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868, to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feu ...
of the late 19th century, some export wares were produced. Industrial-scale export porcelain was made by old Noritake, also ''Nagoya E-tsuke'' () became popular. Production of industrial ceramics continues to be an important economic factor with companies such as INAX, NGK, and NGK Insulators.


Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, Exhibitions (MICE)

The city has an increasing role in the
meetings, incentives, conferencing, exhibitions Meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions tourism (MICE tourism) is a type of tourism in which large groups, usually planned well in advance, are brought together. Recently there has been an industry trend toward using the term "meetin ...
(MICE) industry. It hosted in 1989 the World Design Expo (世界デザイン博覧会) for which the Nagoya Congress Center was constructed. It hosted the
Expo 2005 Expo 2005 was a world expo held for 185 days between Friday, March 25 and Sunday, September 25, 2005, in Aichi Prefecture, Japan, east of the city of Nagoya. Japan has also hosted Expo '70 Osaka (World Expo), Expo '75 Okinawa (Specialised Expo) ...
and the
Nagoya Protocol The Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization to the Convention on Biological Diversity, also known as the Nagoya Protocol on Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS), is ...
conference in 2010, as well as the
G20 The G20 or Group of 20 is an intergovernmental forum comprising 19 sovereign countries, the European Union (EU), and the African Union (AU). It works to address major issues related to the global economy, such as international financial stabil ...
Aichi-Nagoya Foreign Ministers' Meeting in November 2019, which was held at the Nagoya Kanko Hotel and Kawabun.


Technology

Mechanized puppets, called " karakuri ningyō", are a traditional craft from the area.
Robot A robot is a machine—especially one Computer program, programmable by a computer—capable of carrying out a complex series of actions Automation, automatically. A robot can be guided by an external control device, or the robot control, co ...
technology is another rapidly developing industry. A
materials engineering Materials science is an Interdisciplinarity, interdisciplinary field of researching and discovering materials. Materials engineering is an engineering field of finding uses for materials in other fields and industries. The intellectual origi ...
industry is developing.
Brother Industries is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational electronics and electrical equipment company headquartered in Nagoya, Japan. Its products include Printer (computing), printers, multifunction printers, desktop computers, consumer and indu ...
, which is known for office electronics such as
multifunction printer An MFP (multi-function product/printer/peripheral), multi-functional, all-in-one (AIO), or multi-function device (MFD), is an office machine which incorporates the functionality of multiple devices in one, so as to have a smaller footprint in a ...
s is based in Nagoya, as is Hoshizaki Electric, which is known for commercial ice machines and refrigeration equipment. Many small
machine tool A machine tool is a machine for handling or machining metal or other rigid materials, usually by cutting, Boring (manufacturing), boring, grinding (abrasive cutting), grinding, shearing, or other forms of deformations. Machine tools employ some s ...
and electronics companies are also based in the area. The World Expo 2005, also known as Aichi Expo was held near Nagoya in the neighboring cities of Nagakute and Seto from March 25 to September 25, 2005.


Retail

Retail is of importance in the city. Traditional department stores with roots in Nagoya are
Matsuzakaya (Tokyo Stock Exchange, TYO: 8235, delisted) is a major Japanese Depato, department store chain operated by Daimaru Matsuzakaya Department Stores, a subsidiary of J. Front Retailing. When the chain was an independent company, , it had its headq ...
, Maruei and the
Meitetsu Department Store is a department store chain in the Chūbu region of Japan. It is headquartered in Nagoya is the largest city in the Chūbu region of Japan. It is the list of cities in Japan, fourth-most populous city in Japan, with a population of 2.3mil ...
. Oriental Nakamura was bought by Mitsukoshi from Tokyo in 1977.


Arts and crafts

The Owari province was historically well known for the ''
cloisonné Cloisonné () is an ancient technology, ancient technique for decorating metalwork objects with colored material held in place or separated by metal strips or wire, normally of gold. In recent centuries, vitreous enamel has been used, but inla ...
'' art form. The Ando Cloisonné Company continues the long tradition.


Others

The
confectionery Confectionery is the Art (skill), art of making confections, or sweet foods. Confections are items that are rich in sugar and carbohydrates, although exact definitions are difficult. In general, however, confections are divided into two bro ...
company Marukawa is well known. The city offers venues for conferences and congresses such as the Nagoya Congress Center and the Nagoya International Exhibition Hall.


Education

Nagoya has mostly state-run primary and secondary schools. The area in the city limits includes international schools such as the Nagoya International School and Colégio Brasil Japão Prof. Shinoda Brazilian school.


Universities

State and private colleges and universities primarily located in the eastern area. Some Western-style institutions were founded early in the
Meiji era The was an Japanese era name, era of History of Japan, Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868, to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feu ...
, with more opening during the Taishō and Shōwa eras.
Nagoya University , abbreviated to or NU, is a Japanese national research university located in Chikusa-ku, Nagoya. It was established in 1939 as the last of the nine Imperial Universities in the then Empire of Japan, and is now a Designated National Universit ...
was set up in 1871 as a medical school and has produced seven
Nobel Prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; ; ) are awards administered by the Nobel Foundation and granted in accordance with the principle of "for the greatest benefit to humankind". The prizes were first awarded in 1901, marking the fifth anniversary of Alfred N ...
laureates in science.
Nanzan University is a Private university, private, Catholic and Mixed-sex education, coeducational higher education institution run by the Society of the Divine Word (SVD) in the Shōwa-ku, Nagoya, Shōwa Ward of Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture, Japan. It is consi ...
was established by the Roman Catholic Society of the Divine Word in 1932 as a high school and expanded to include Nanzan Junior College and the Nanzan Institute for Religion and Culture. The main campus was designed in the 1960s by the renowned architect
Antonin Raymond Antonin Raymond (or ), born as Antonín Reimann (10 May 1888 – 25 October 1976)"Deaths Elsewhere", ''Miami Herald'', 30 October 1976, p. 10 was a Czech American architect. Raymond was born and studied in Bohemia (now part of the Czech Republic ...
. Some universities specialise in engineering and technology, such as Nagoya University Engineering school, Nagoya Institute of Technology and Toyota Technological Institute; these universities receive support and grants from companies such as
Toyota is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on August 28, 1937. Toyota is the List of manuf ...
. Other colleges and universities include: Aichi Prefectural College of Nursing & Health, Aichi Shukutoku Junior College, Aichi Toho University,
Chukyo University is a private university in Aichi Prefecture, Japan, with campuses in Nagoya and Toyota. The main building is located in Yagoto, Shōwa-ku, Nagoya. Campus File:View of Chukyo University (1), Yamanote-tori Showa Ward Nagoya 2022.jpg, Nagoya C ...
, Daido University, Doho University,
Kinjo Gakuin University is a private women's university in Moriyama-ku, Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture, Japan. History The predecessor of the school was founded in 1889. It was chartered as a university in 1949. The university is named after Nagoya Castle, which has h ...
, Kinjo Gakuin University Junior College,
Meijo University is a private university in Japan. Its main campus is in Tempaku-ku, Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture, and it has two other campuses in Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture. It had two faculty members who were Nobel laureates as of 2021. History The name Meij ...
, Nagoya City University, Nagoya College of Music, Nagoya Future Culture College, Nagoya Gakuin University, Nagoya Management Junior College, Nagoya Women's University, St. Mary's College, Nagoya, Sugiyama Jogakuen University, Sugiyama Jogakuen University Junior College, Tokai Gakuen Women's College. Various universities from outside Nagoya have set up satellite campuses, such as Tokyo University of Social Welfare. The
Hōsa Library The Hōsa Library (蓬左文庫) is a library located on the compound of the ''Ōzone Shimoyashiki'' in Nagoya, central Japan. History Tokugawa Yoshinao, the first lord of the Owari Domain, established it as an official archive. It was transfe ...
dates to the 17th century and houses 110,000 items, including books of classic literature such as historic editions of ''
The Tale of Genji is a classic work of Japanese literature written by the noblewoman, poet, and lady-in-waiting Murasaki Shikibu around the peak of the Heian period, in the early 11th century. It is one of history's first novels, the first by a woman to have wo ...
'' that are an heirloom of the Owari Tokugawa and were bequeathed to the city. The Nagoya City Archives store a large collection of documents and books. Tsuruma Central Library is a public library and
Nagoya International Center The Nagoya International Center (''Japanese: ''名古屋国際センター ''Nagoya Kokusai Sentaa'') is a non-profit organization based in Nakamura-ku, Nagoya, Japan. The center was established in 1984 and is known locally as the "NIC." Descr ...
has a collection of foreign-language books. ;National Universities * * ;Prefectural University * * ;Private Universities * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *


Transport


Airways


Airport

Nagoya is served by
Chubu Centrair International Airport is an international airport on an artificial island (which also houses the ) in Ise Bay, Tokoname City in Aichi Prefecture, south of Nagoya in central Japan. The airport covers about 470 hectares (1,161 acres) of land and has one runway. ...
(NGO), built on an artificial island in
Tokoname is a Cities of Japan, city in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 57,872 in 24,872 households, and a population density of 1,035 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Geography Tokoname is located on ...
. The airport has international flights and a high volume of domestic flights. A second airport is
Nagoya Airfield , also known as Komaki Airport or Nagoya Airport, is an airport within the local government areas of Toyoyama, Komaki, Kasugai and Nagoya in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. Prior to 2005 it was an international airport, but is now a domestic secon ...
(Komaki Airport, NKM) near the city's boundary with
Komaki is a city located in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 148,872 in 68,174 households, and a population density of . The total area of the city was . Komaki is commonly associated with the former Komaki Airport, whi ...
and Kasugai. On February 17, 2005, Nagoya Airport's commercial international flights moved to Centrair Airport. Nagoya Airfield is now used for
general aviation General aviation (GA) is defined by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as all civil aviation aircraft operations except for commercial air transport or aerial work, which is defined as specialized aviation services for other ...
and as an
airbase An airbase (stylised air base in American English), sometimes referred to as a military airbase, military airfield, military airport, air station, naval air station, air force station, or air force base, is an aerodrome or airport used as a mi ...
and is the main
Fuji Dream Airlines is a Japanese regional airline headquartered in Shimizu-ku, Shizuoka, Shizuoka Prefecture. It operates a fleet of 15 Embraer E-Jets with bases at Fukuoka Airport, Kobe Airport, Nagoya Airfield and Shizuoka Airport. The airline commenced ...
hub.


Railways

Nagoya Station is a major railway station in Nakamura-ku, Nagoya, Japan. It is Japan's, and one of the world's largest train stations by floor area (410,000 m2), and houses the headquarters of the Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central). Much of this space ...
, the world's largest train station by floor area, is on the
Tōkaidō Shinkansen The is a Japanese high-speed rail line that is part of the nationwide Shinkansen network. Along with the San'yō Shinkansen, it forms a continuous high-speed railway through the Taiheiyō Belt, also known as the Tokaido corridor. Opening in 19 ...
line, the
Tōkaidō Main Line The Tōkaidō Main Line () is one of the most important railway corridors in Japan, connecting the major cities of Tokyo and Kobe via Shizuoka (city), Shizuoka, Nagoya, Kyoto and Osaka. The line, with termini at Tokyo Station, Tokyo and Kōbe St ...
, and the
Chūō Main Line The , commonly called the Chūō Line, is one of the major trunk railway lines in Japan. It connects Tokyo and Nagoya, although it is the slowest direct railway connection between the two cities; the coastal Tōkaidō Main Line is slightly faste ...
, among others.
JR Central is the main railway company operating in the Chūbu (Nagoya) region of central Japan. It is officially abbreviated in English as JR Central and occasionally as JR Tokai (). The term ''Tōkai'' refers to the southern portion of Central Japan, ...
, which operates the
Tōkaidō Shinkansen The is a Japanese high-speed rail line that is part of the nationwide Shinkansen network. Along with the San'yō Shinkansen, it forms a continuous high-speed railway through the Taiheiyō Belt, also known as the Tokaido corridor. Opening in 19 ...
, has its headquarters there.
Meitetsu , publicly trading as , is a private railway company operating around Aichi Prefecture and Gifu Prefecture of Japan. Some of the more famous trains operated by Meitetsu include the '' Panorama Car'' and the '' Panorama Car Super'', both of w ...
is also based in Nagoya, and along with Kintetsu provides regional rail service to the Tōkai and
Kansai region The or the lies in the southern-central region of Japan's main island Honshū. The region includes the prefectures of Nara, Wakayama, Kyoto, Osaka, Hyōgo and Shiga, often also Mie, sometimes Fukui, Tokushima and Tottori. The metropol ...
s.


High-speed rail

;
JR Central is the main railway company operating in the Chūbu (Nagoya) region of central Japan. It is officially abbreviated in English as JR Central and occasionally as JR Tokai (). The term ''Tōkai'' refers to the southern portion of Central Japan, ...
*
Tōkaidō Shinkansen The is a Japanese high-speed rail line that is part of the nationwide Shinkansen network. Along with the San'yō Shinkansen, it forms a continuous high-speed railway through the Taiheiyō Belt, also known as the Tokaido corridor. Opening in 19 ...
line


Conventional lines

;
JR Central is the main railway company operating in the Chūbu (Nagoya) region of central Japan. It is officially abbreviated in English as JR Central and occasionally as JR Tokai (). The term ''Tōkai'' refers to the southern portion of Central Japan, ...
*
Tōkaidō Main Line The Tōkaidō Main Line () is one of the most important railway corridors in Japan, connecting the major cities of Tokyo and Kobe via Shizuoka (city), Shizuoka, Nagoya, Kyoto and Osaka. The line, with termini at Tokyo Station, Tokyo and Kōbe St ...
*
Chūō Main Line The , commonly called the Chūō Line, is one of the major trunk railway lines in Japan. It connects Tokyo and Nagoya, although it is the slowest direct railway connection between the two cities; the coastal Tōkaidō Main Line is slightly faste ...
*
Kansai Main Line The is a railway line in Japan, which connects Nagoya Station with JR Namba Station in Osaka. It is jointly run by the Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central) and West Japan Railway Company (JR West), with the boundary between both compan ...


Subways

Nagoya Subway provides urban transit service.


Buses

Several private and public bus companies operate with of routes throughout the region. Most local bus routes complement existing rail service to form an effective intermodal transit network. * Nagoya Municipal Bus * Meitetsu Bus * Mie Kotsu


Roads


Expressways

*
Nagoya Expressway The is a network of urban Expressways of Japan, expressways in Japan serving the greater Nagoya area. It is owned and managed by . Overview The first section of the Nagoya Expressway network opened to traffic in 1979. As of 2008, of the networ ...
* Mei-Nikan Expressway * Tōmei Expressway *
Isewangan Expressway The is a national expressway in the Tōkai region of Japan. It is owned and operated by Central Nippon Expressway Company. Naming The route primarily follows the north shore of Ise Bay (wangan means bayshore in Japanese). Officially, the rou ...
* Higashi-Meihan Expressway *
Chitahantō Road The (lit. Chita Peninsula Road) is a 4-laned toll road in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. It is managed by Aichi Prefectural Road Public Corporation. Overview A portion of the road was opened to traffic in 1970 and the entire road was completed in 197 ...


Japan National Route

* * * * * * * * * * * *


Seaways


Seaport

Nagoya Port is the largest port by international trade value in Japan.
Toyota Motor Corporation is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on August 28, 1937. Toyota is the List of manuf ...
exports via this port. Nagoya is known for its orderly grid street plan for which the shōgun
Tokugawa Ieyasu Tokugawa Ieyasu (born Matsudaira Takechiyo; 31 January 1543 – 1 June 1616) was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan, which ruled from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was the third of the three "Gr ...
is ultimately responsible. File:Nagoya Station at night01.jpg,
Nagoya Station is a major railway station in Nakamura-ku, Nagoya, Japan. It is Japan's, and one of the world's largest train stations by floor area (410,000 m2), and houses the headquarters of the Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central). Much of this space ...
File:Oasis 21 - Spaceship Aqua - 01.JPG,
Oasis 21 Oasis 21 is a modern facility located adjacent to Nagoya TV Tower in Sakae, Nagoya which was opened to the public in 2002. It contains restaurants, stores, and a bus terminal, as well as an area for tourist information. The building is mostly un ...
bus terminal File:Shiyakusho Station 1060.JPG, Entrance to Shiyakusho Subway Station File:KAMIYASHIRO STATION.JPG,
Nagoya Municipal Subway The , also referred to as simply the Nagoya Subway, is a rapid transit system serving Nagoya, the capital of Aichi Prefecture in Japan. It consists of six lines that cover of route and serve 87 stations. Approximately 90% of the subway's total t ...
File:Airport Walk NAGOYA 01.JPG,
Nagoya Airfield , also known as Komaki Airport or Nagoya Airport, is an airport within the local government areas of Toyoyama, Komaki, Kasugai and Nagoya in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. Prior to 2005 it was an international airport, but is now a domestic secon ...
File:Nagoya Port 02.jpg,
Port of Nagoya The , located in Ise Bay, is the largest and busiest trading port in Japan, accounting for about 10% of the total trade value of Japan. Notably, this port is the largest exporter of cars in Japan and where the Toyota Motor Corporation exports most ...
File:Meikou.jpg,
Isewangan Expressway The is a national expressway in the Tōkai region of Japan. It is owned and operated by Central Nippon Expressway Company. Naming The route primarily follows the north shore of Ise Bay (wangan means bayshore in Japanese). Officially, the rou ...
File:Nagoya Expwy. Ring Route 20160401B.JPG,
Nagoya Expressway The is a network of urban Expressways of Japan, expressways in Japan serving the greater Nagoya area. It is owned and managed by . Overview The first section of the Nagoya Expressway network opened to traffic in 1979. As of 2008, of the networ ...


Sightseeing

Nagoya's two most famous sightseeing spots are Atsuta Shrine and
Nagoya Castle is a Japanese castle located in Nagoya, Japan. Nagoya Castle was constructed by the Owari Domain in 1612 during the Edo period on the site of an earlier castle of the Oda clan in the Sengoku period. Nagoya Castle was the heart of one of the ...
. * Atsuta Shrine is the second-most venerable shrine in Japan, after
Ise Grand Shrine The , located in Ise, Mie Prefecture of Japan, is a Shinto shrine dedicated to the solar goddess Amaterasu Ōmikami and the grain goddess Toyouke-hime (Toyouke Omikami). Also known simply as , Ise Shrine is a shrine complex composed of many Shi ...
. It is said to hold the Kusanagi sword, one of the three
imperial regalia of Japan The are the imperial regalia of Japan and consist of the sword , the mirror , and the jewel . They represent the three primary virtues: valour (the sword), wisdom (the mirror), and benevolence (the jewel).
, but it is not on public display. It holds around 70 festivals per year. The shrine hosts over 4,400 national treasures that span its 2,000-year history. * Nagoya Castle was built in 1612. Although a large part of it burned down during the Pacific War, the castle was restored in 1959, adding amenities such as elevators. The castle is famous for two magnificent on the roof, often used as the symbol of Nagoya. Other attractions include: * Gokiso Hachimangū shinto shrine *
Nagoya TV Tower The (formerly but still referred to as the ) is a TV tower in Nagoya, central Japan. History It is the oldest TV tower in Japan, and was completed in 1954. It is located in the centre of Hisaya Ōdori Park. The tower is 180 metres high, and ...
and Hisaya-Ōdori Park, located in the central Sakae district * JR Central Towers is part of the
Nagoya Station is a major railway station in Nakamura-ku, Nagoya, Japan. It is Japan's, and one of the world's largest train stations by floor area (410,000 m2), and houses the headquarters of the Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central). Much of this space ...
* Midland Square: The new international sales headquarters for
Toyota is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on August 28, 1937. Toyota is the List of manuf ...
features Japan's highest open-air observation deck. * The
Port of Nagoya The , located in Ise Bay, is the largest and busiest trading port in Japan, accounting for about 10% of the total trade value of Japan. Notably, this port is the largest exporter of cars in Japan and where the Toyota Motor Corporation exports most ...
area, which includes the former Italian-themed shopping mall called Italia Mura as well as the popular
Port of Nagoya Public Aquarium The is a public aquarium in Minato-ku, Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture, Japan. It is a member of the Japanese Association of Zoos and Aquariums (JAZA), and It is the public aquarium with the largest tank capacity and total area in Japan. It also own ...
. * Higashiyama Zoo and Botanical Gardens and the Higashiyama Sky Tower * The Toyota Commemorative Museum of Industry and Technology near Nagoya station * Danpusan Kofun : The largest burial mound (
Kofun are megalithic tombs or tumulus, tumuli in Northeast Asia. ''Kofun'' were mainly constructed in the Japanese archipelago between the middle of the 3rd century to the early 7th century AD.岡田裕之「前方後円墳」『日本古代史大辞 ...
) in Aichi. * The Noritake factory: The home of Noritake fine chinaware is open to visitors and allows people to learn about the history of the establishment. It includes a cafe, information/technology displays, and shopping facilities. It also holds a few unrestored areas that serve as reminders of devastation caused by the final stages of the Pacific War. * The SCMaglev and Railway Park * The
Ōsu is an area located in the Naka-ku, Nagoya, Naka ward of Nagoya, central Japan. Ōsu is a historic area which has many small shops offering everything from Japanese traditional food to handicrafts. A large department store is OSU301. It is pop ...
shopping district and nearby temples, Ōsu Kannon and
Banshō-ji Banshō-ji (万松寺) is a small temple located in Ōsu in central Nagoya, Japan. Lord Oda Nobuhide (1510?-1552) built this Sōtō Buddhist temple in the then village of Nagoya in 1540, and invited the priest Daiun to open it. Katō Kiyomasa ( ...
* The
Tokugawa Art Museum The is a private art museum, located on the former '' Ōzone Shimoyashiki'' compound in Nagoya, central Japan. Its collection contains more than 12,000 items, including swords, armor, Noh costumes and masks, lacquer furniture, Chinese and Japane ...
and the
Tokugawa Garden The Tokugawa Garden (徳川園 Tokugawa-en) is a Japanese garden in the city of Nagoya, central Japan. It is located next to the Tokugawa Art Museum. History In the early Edo period (1603-1867), Tokugawa Mitsutomo (1625-1700), the second lord o ...
, a surrounding Japanese garden * The Nagoya City Science and Art Museums, located in Shirakawa Park, not far from Fushimi Subway Station * The
MUFG is a Japanese bank holding and financial services company headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. MUFG was created in 2005 by merger between and UFJ Holdings (株式会社UFJホールディングス; ''kabushikigaisha yūefujei hōrudingusu'' ...
Money Museum, now located near the Akatsuka-shirakabe 赤塚白壁 bus stop on Dekimachi-dōri. * Legoland Japan Resort, Japan's first
Legoland Legoland (, trademarked in uppercase as LEGOLAND) is a chain of family amusement parks focusing on the Lego building toy brand. They are owned and operated by the British theme park company Merlin Entertainments, which shares a common owner ...
resort.


Gallery

File:Ferris Wheel at Sakae.jpg, Sakae Town File:愛知県名古屋市中村区名駅1丁目1 - panoramio.jpg, Meieki Town File:Kanayama Station south entrance 2020-10 ac (2).jpg, Kanayama Town File:名古屋ドームから - panoramio.jpg, Ozone Town File:Nagoya Imaike night view 2016.JPG, Imaike Town File:HoshigaokaTerrace West Upstairs.jpg, Hoshigaoka Town File:Yabacho.JPG, Yabacho Town File:Atsuta Shrine.jpg, Atsuta Shrine File:Tenshuhonmaru.jpg,
Nagoya Castle is a Japanese castle located in Nagoya, Japan. Nagoya Castle was constructed by the Owari Domain in 1612 during the Edo period on the site of an earlier castle of the Oda clan in the Sengoku period. Nagoya Castle was the heart of one of the ...
File:Jorakuden1.jpg, Honmaru Palace (Nagoya Castle) File:Osukannon.jpg, Ōsu Kannon File:Banshoji.jpg,
Banshō-ji Banshō-ji (万松寺) is a small temple located in Ōsu in central Nagoya, Japan. Lord Oda Nobuhide (1510?-1552) built this Sōtō Buddhist temple in the then village of Nagoya in 1540, and invited the priest Daiun to open it. Katō Kiyomasa ( ...
File:Arako kannon2.jpg, Arako Kannon File:Toyotasangyoukinen8.JPG, Toyota Commemorative Museum of Industry and Technology File:SCMaglev and Railway Park1.JPG, SCMaglev and Railway Park File:オアシス21から臨むテレビ塔(Night view of illuminated Nagoya TV Tower from Oasis 21) 23 Aug, 2015 - panoramio.jpg, The
Nagoya TV Tower The (formerly but still referred to as the ) is a TV tower in Nagoya, central Japan. History It is the oldest TV tower in Japan, and was completed in 1954. It is located in the centre of Hisaya Ōdori Park. The tower is 180 metres high, and ...
and
Oasis 21 Oasis 21 is a modern facility located adjacent to Nagoya TV Tower in Sakae, Nagoya which was opened to the public in 2002. It contains restaurants, stores, and a bus terminal, as well as an area for tourist information. The building is mostly un ...
File:Nagoya TV Tower4.jpg, Hisaya Ōdori Park
(Nagoya Central Park) File:Osu1.JPG, Ōsu shopping district File:Aquarium + Giant wheel + Fuji Icebreaker - view from the lighthouse - Nagoya Port - Japan (15676490678).jpg,
Port of Nagoya The , located in Ise Bay, is the largest and busiest trading port in Japan, accounting for about 10% of the total trade value of Japan. Notably, this port is the largest exporter of cars in Japan and where the Toyota Motor Corporation exports most ...

Garden Wharf File:Port of Nagoya Public Aquarium1.jpg,
Port of Nagoya Public Aquarium The is a public aquarium in Minato-ku, Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture, Japan. It is a member of the Japanese Association of Zoos and Aquariums (JAZA), and It is the public aquarium with the largest tank capacity and total area in Japan. It also own ...
File:Higashiyamashokubutu7.JPG, Higashiyama Zoo and Botanical Gardens File:Tougokusan2.JPG, Togokusan Fruits Park File:Shonai-ryokuchi05.jpg, Shōnai Greens File:Tsurumakouen1.JPG,
Tsuruma Park Tsuruma Park (鶴舞公園) is a park located in Shōwa-ku, Nagoya, Shōwa-ku, Nagoya, Nagoya city, Aichi Prefecture, Japan. History The park's history goes back to the year 1909. In 1910, the 10th Kansai Area Prefectural Union Joint Exposit ...
File:Tokugawa Museum.JPG,
Tokugawa Art Museum The is a private art museum, located on the former '' Ōzone Shimoyashiki'' compound in Nagoya, central Japan. Its collection contains more than 12,000 items, including swords, armor, Noh costumes and masks, lacquer furniture, Chinese and Japane ...
File:Sirotoriteien.JPG, Shirotori Park File:WILDFLOWER GARDEN BLUEBONNET.jpg, Nagoya Port Wildflower Garden BlueBonnet File:Arimatsu Historic Townscape, Midori Ward Nagoya 2013.jpg, Arimatsu File:Nakamurakouen1.JPG, Nakamura Park File:Hutabahouse.jpg, Cultural Path Futaba Museum (The residences of Sada Yacco) File:Toyotasasukehouse.jpg, Cultural Path Sasuke Toyoda House File:Nixtutaiji5.JPG, Nittai-ji Noritake garden2.jpg, Noritake Garden File:Nagoya Cty Science Museum 03, Sakae Naka Ward Nagoya 2020.jpg, Nagoya City Science Museum File:Danpusan-kofun 04.JPG, Danpusan Kofun File:Maker’s Pier Overview1 201706.jpg, Maker's Pier File:Legoland japan.jpg, Legoland Japan File:@NAGOYA.jpg, @NAGOYA( Sannomaru)


Surrounding area

Nagoya is a starting point for visits to the surrounding area, such as Inuyama, Little World Museum of Man, Meiji Mura,
Tokoname is a Cities of Japan, city in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 57,872 in 24,872 households, and a population density of 1,035 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Geography Tokoname is located on ...
, Himakajima, Tahara,
Toyohashi is a Cities of Japan, city in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 377,453 in 160,516 households and a population density of 1,400 persons per km2. The total area of the city was . By area, Toyohashi was Aichi Prefec ...
and
Toyokawa is a Cities of Japan, city in the eastern part of Aichi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 183,930 in 72,949 households, and a population density of 1,141 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Toyokawa, famou ...
and
Hamamatsu is a Cities of Japan, city located in western Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan. In September 2023, the city had an estimated population of 780,128 in 340,591 households, making it the prefecture's largest city, with a population density of over the t ...
. Reachable with at most a two-hour journey are
Gifu is a Cities of Japan, city located in the south-central portion of Gifu Prefecture, Japan, and serves as the prefectural capital. The city has played an important role in Japan's history because of its location in the middle of the country. Durin ...
, Gujo Hachiman, Gifu,
Ise Shrine The , located in Ise, Mie Prefecture of Japan, is a Shinto shrine dedicated to the solar goddess Amaterasu Ōmikami and the grain goddess Toyouke-hime (Toyouke Omikami). Also known simply as , Ise Shrine is a shrine complex composed of many Shi ...
,
Takayama, Gifu Takayama City Hall is a city located in Gifu Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 88,473 in 35,644 households, and a population density of 41 persons per km2. The total area of the city was making it the largest cit ...
, Gero Onsen and the hill stations in the Kiso Valley Magome and Tsumago.


Culture

Nagoya was a major trading city and political seat of the Owari lords, the most important house of the Tokugawa clan. They encouraged trade and the arts under their patronage, especially Tokugawa Muneharu, the 7th lord, who took a keen interest in drama and plays and lived lavishly. Under his rule, actors and actresses began to visit Nagoya. Arts and culture was further supported by the city's wealthy merchants. Culture flourished after the feudal
Edo period The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...
and the beginning of the Meiji era. During the Pacific War many old buildings and artefacts were destroyed. The region's economic and financial power in the post-war years rekindled the artistic and cultural scene. The city is recognized as a " Design City" by UNESCO. File:Tokugawabijutsukan1.JPG, The Tokugawa Art Museum, which houses some of the finest art treasures of Japan File:Toyotasangyoukinen5.JPG, Textile Machinery Pavilion in the Toyota Commemorative Museum of Industry and Technology File:SCMaglev and Railway Park in Aichi Prefecture.jpg, SCMaglev and Railway Park File:Shirakawa Park 20161119A.jpg, Nagoya City Science Museum File:Aichi Arts Center exterior ac.jpg, Aichi Arts Center in Sakae File:Tokugawaendashizoroe1.JPG, Tsutsui-chō/Dekimachi tennōsai File:Nagoyamatsuri7.JPG, Nagoya matsuri File:Arimatsu festival.jpg, Arimatsu autumn festival File:Osu-2008 Oiran-dochu-02.jpg, ''Daidō-chōnin Matsuri'' in
Ōsu is an area located in the Naka-ku, Nagoya, Naka ward of Nagoya, central Japan. Ōsu is a historic area which has many small shops offering everything from Japanese traditional food to handicrafts. A large department store is OSU301. It is pop ...
File:Nagoya obi.JPG, The Nagoya ''obi'', the most popular type for ''kimono'' throughout Japan


Museums

Nagoya has multiple museums, including traditional and modern art, handicrafts to industrial high-tech, natural and scientific museums. Nagoya Castle's collection is from the Owari Tokugawa era. The main tower is a museum that details the history of the castle and the city. The Honmaru Palace, destroyed in the Pacific War, was reconstructed in 2018; it is a prime example of the ''
Shoin-zukuri is a style of Japanese architecture developed in the Muromachi period, Muromachi, Azuchi–Momoyama period, Azuchi–Momoyama and Edo period, Edo periods that forms the basis of today's traditional-style Japanese houses. Characteristics of the ...
'' architecture of the feudal era.
Tokugawa Art Museum The is a private art museum, located on the former '' Ōzone Shimoyashiki'' compound in Nagoya, central Japan. Its collection contains more than 12,000 items, including swords, armor, Noh costumes and masks, lacquer furniture, Chinese and Japane ...
is a private museum belonging to the Owari Tokugawa, who lived in Nagoya castle for 16 generations. Among other things, it contains 10 designated
national Treasures of Japan Some of the National Treasures of Japan A is " Tangible Cultural Properties designated by law in modern Japan as having extremely high value." Specifically, it refers to buildings, arts, and crafts designated as especially valuable from ...
, including some of the oldest scrolls of ''
The Tale of Genji is a classic work of Japanese literature written by the noblewoman, poet, and lady-in-waiting Murasaki Shikibu around the peak of the Heian period, in the early 11th century. It is one of history's first novels, the first by a woman to have wo ...
''. The Nagoya Noh Theatre houses various precious objects of
Noh theatre is a major form of classical Japanese dance-drama that has been performed since the 14th century. It is Japan's oldest major theater art that is still regularly performed today. Noh is often based on tales from traditional literature featuri ...
. The
Nagoya City Museum The is a museum of the city of Nagoya in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. The Nagoya City Museum was established in 1977. Its collection includes archaeological materials, fine art, crafts, documents, books and folk materials including samurai armor a ...
showcases the history of the town.
Yōki-sō ''Yōki-sō'' (揚輝荘) is a Japanese villa and gardens located in Chikusa-ku, Nagoya, central Japan. It is close to Nittai-ji temple. History The grounds were built for Itō Suketami (1878-1940), the president of the Matsuzakaya Comp ...
is a villa and gardens located in Chikusa-ku, close to Nittai-ji. It was constructed in the Taishō era for Ito Jirozaemon Suketami XV, the first president of
Matsuzakaya (Tokyo Stock Exchange, TYO: 8235, delisted) is a major Japanese Depato, department store chain operated by Daimaru Matsuzakaya Department Stores, a subsidiary of J. Front Retailing. When the chain was an independent company, , it had its headq ...
. Paintings and sculpture are exhibited at the Nagoya City Art Museum. Modern art is displayed at the Aichi Arts Center. The Aichi Arts Center also is the venue of rotating exhibitions. The art of
porcelain Porcelain (), also called china, is a ceramic material made by heating Industrial mineral, raw materials, generally including kaolinite, in a kiln to temperatures between . The greater strength and translucence of porcelain, relative to oth ...
and ceramics can be seen at the Noritake Garden. Toyota has two museums in the city, the
Toyota Automobile Museum The is a large museum showcasing the history of Toyota as an automobile manufacturer. In addition to displaying its own vehicles that Toyota has manufactured over the years, numerous vehicles from other manufacturers of various makes are also be ...
which shows vintage cars, and the Toyota Commemorative Museum of Industry and Technology, which showcases company history, including its start as a
textile mill Textile manufacturing or textile engineering is a major industry. It is largely based on the conversion of fibre into yarn, then yarn into fabric. These are then dyed or printed, fabricated into cloth which is then converted into useful good ...
. The Nagoya City Tram & Subway Museum has trams and subway cars, as well as the Nagoya City Science Museum. The SCMaglev and Railway Park opened in March 2011 with various trains from the Central Japan Railway Company. Other art museums in Aichi prefecture are the Aichi Prefectural Ceramic Museum and the Toyota Municipal Museum of Art. Meiji Mura is an open-air museum with salvaged buildings from the Meiji, Taishō and Showa eras. Another museum in Nagoya is the Mandolin Melodies Museum. Other museums in the city include the International Design Centre Nagoya, the Japan Spinning Top Museum and the Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ Money Museum. The civic authorities promote tourism and have taken steps to safeguard architectural heritage by earmarking them as cultural assets. Apart from the castle, temples, shrines and museums in the city, a " Cultural Path" was instituted in the 1980s, located between the Tokugawa Art Museum and Nagoya Castle. This residential area has historic buildings such as the Nagoya City Archives, the Nagoya City Hall main building, the Aichi Prefectural Office main building, the Futaba Museum, the former residence of Sasuke Toyoda, the former residence of Tetsujiro Haruta and the Chikaramachi Catholic Church. Most buildings date from the Meiji and Taishō era and are protected.


Theatres

'' '' and ''
Kyōgen is a form of traditional Japanese comic theater. It developed alongside '' Noh'', was performed along with ''Noh'' as an intermission of sorts between ''Noh'' acts on the same stage, and retains close links to ''Noh'' in the modern day; there ...
'' theatre date back to the feudal times of the Owari Tokugawa lords. The Nagoya Noh Theater at Nagoya Castle continues that tradition and is a prominent feature in the cultural life of the city, with monthly performances. Developed during the Edo period, one of Japan's ''
kabuki is a classical form of Theatre of Japan, Japanese theatre, mixing dramatic performance with Japanese traditional dance, traditional dance. Kabuki theatre is known for its heavily stylised performances, its glamorous, highly decorated costumes ...
'' grand stages is Misono-za, which also hosts various other Japanese entertainment such as concerts. In 1912, the musician Gorō Morita invented the Nagoya harp music instrument. In 1992, the large, modern Aichi Arts Center was opened in Sakae. It is the main venue for
performing art The performing arts are arts such as music, dance, and drama which are performed for an audience. They are different from the visual arts, which involve the use of paint, canvas or various materials to create physical or static art objects. Pe ...
s, featuring a main hall that can be used for
opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...
and theatre and a concert hall. The
Nagoya Philharmonic Orchestra The is a symphony orchestra based in Nagoya, Japan, founded in 1966. The orchestra gives concerts primarily at the Aichi Prefectural Arts Theater Concert Hall and the Chukyo University Center for Culture & Arts Aurora Hall. The orchestra gave ...
performs there, as well as many visiting guest orchestras.


''Ikebana''

is a school of ''
Ikebana is the Japanese art of flower arrangement. It is also known as . The origin of ikebana can be traced back to the ancient Japanese custom of erecting Evergreen, evergreen trees and decorating them with flowers as yorishiro () to invite the go ...
'', or
Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
ese floral art. It was founded in 1922 and is headquartered in Nagoya.


Festivals

Apart from the main national
festivals A festival is an event celebrated by a community and centering on some characteristic aspect or aspects of that community and its religion or cultures. It is often marked as a local or national holiday, Melā, mela, or Muslim holidays, eid. A ...
and holidays, other festivals in Nagoya are unique to the city/region. Major events include the June Atsuta Festival, the July Port Festival, the August Nagoya Castle Summer Festival Castle and the October Nagoya Festival. Wards and areas host local festivals such as the in Ōsu.


Dialect

The is spoken in the western half of Aichi Prefecture, centering on Nagoya. It is also called . The Nagoya dialect is relatively close to
standard Japanese is the principal language of the Japonic languages, Japonic language family spoken by the Japanese people. It has around 123 million speakers, primarily in Japan, the only country where it is the national language, and within the Japanese dia ...
and to the
Kansai dialect The is a group of Japanese dialects in the Kansai region (Kinki region) of Japan. In Japanese, is the common name and it is called in technical terms. The dialects of Kyoto and Osaka are known as , and were particularly referred to as su ...
, differing in pronunciation and vocabulary.


Handicrafts

The industry of Japanese handicrafts in the city is centuries old. * Arimatsu and Narumi dye: during the construction of Nagoya Castle in the 17th century, the lords of Owari called in skilled craftsmen from
Bungo Province was a province of Japan in the area of eastern Kyūshū, corresponding to most of modern Ōita Prefecture, except what is now the cities of Nakatsu and Usa. Bungo bordered on Hyūga to the south, Higo and Chikugo to the west, and Chikuze ...
in
Kyushu is the third-largest island of Japan's Japanese archipelago, four main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands (i.e. excluding Okinawa Island, Okinawa and the other Ryukyu Islands, Ryukyu (''Nansei'') Ryukyu Islands, Islands ...
, known for their tie-dyed fabrics. These craftsmen and their families were treated generously by the Owari and settled in the Arimatsu und Narumi neighbourhoods. Only the base fabric is dyed, leaving parts that were knotted as white spots. This highly specialised process requires 6–12 months to complete. * ''
Geta Geta may refer to: Places *Geta (woreda), a woreda in Ethiopia's Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region *Geta, Åland, a municipality in Finland *Geta, Nepal, a town in Attariya Municipality, Kailali District, Seti Zone, Nepal *Get ...
''
clog Clogs are a type of footwear that has a thick, rigid sole typically made of wood, although in American English, shoes with rigid soles made of other materials are also called clogs. Traditional clogs remain in use as protective footwear in a ...
straps: wooden clogs called ''geta'' were the shoes of the feudal era. The Owari devised a unique pattern for the cotton straps of the clogs and ordered them to be made by local weavers. The technique has developed over the generations. The straps became stronger and more resilient but more comfortable for the feet with the discovery of cotton velvet. * ''Shippo'': the technique for
enamelware Vitreous enamel, also called porcelain enamel, is a material made by fusing powdered glass to a substrate by firing, usually between . The powder melts, flows, and then hardens to a smooth, durable vitreous coating. The word ''vitreous'' comes ...
called ''shippo'' arrived from the Netherlands towards the end of the Edo period. The patterns appear almost transparent and are often used on pottery. * Candles: wax is taken from a wax tree and painted around a rope made of grass and Japanese paper (''
washi is traditional Japanese paper processed by hand using fibers from the inner bark of the gampi tree, the mitsumata shrub (''Edgeworthia chrysantha''), or the paper mulberry (''kōzo'') bush. ''Washi'' is generally tougher than ordinary ...
'') over and over again into layers. When cut in half, the candle looks as if it grew like a tree with rings. Japanese candles produce less smoke and are harder to blow out, since the
wick Wick most often refers to: * Capillary action ("wicking") ** Candle wick, the cord used in a candle or oil lamp ** Solder wick, a copper-braided wire used to desolder electronic contacts Wick or WICK may also refer to: Places and placenames ...
tends to be larger. Artists paint the candles in coloured patterns. * ''Yuzen'': the art of
silk Silk is a natural fiber, natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be weaving, woven into textiles. The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is most commonly produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoon (silk), c ...
dyeing was introduced by craftsmen from Kyoto during the rule of Owari Togukawa. The initial designs were extravagant and brightly coloured, but over time became more muted and light-coloured. * ''Sekku Ningyo'': festival dolls were introduced by markets during the Meiji era. Nagoya craftsmen rank among the top producers. * The city also gave its name to a type of '' obi'', the sash that is used to tie a ''
kimono The is a traditional Japanese garment and the national dress of Japan. The kimono is a wrapped-front garment with square sleeves and a rectangular body, and is worn Garment collars in hanfu#Youren (right lapel), left side wrapped over ri ...
''. The term ''Nagoya obi'' can refer to an older type of ''obi'' used centuries ago. This type was cord-like. The current – or to differentiate from the ''fukuro Nagoya obi'', also called – is the most-used ''obi'' type today. It was developed by a seamstress living in Nagoya at the end of the 1920s. The new, easy-to-use obi gained popularity among Tokyo's geisha, from whom it then was adopted by fashionable city women for their everyday wear. The ''Nagoya obi'' was originally for everyday wear, not for ceremonial outfits, but one made from exquisite brocade can be accepted as semi-ceremonial wear. A more formal version is called the or , which is more formal. *
Japanese pottery and porcelain is one of the oldest Japanese crafts and art forms, dating back to the Neolithic period. Types have included earthenware, pottery, stoneware, porcelain, and blue-and-white ware. Japan has an exceptionally long and successful history of cer ...
has a long tradition due to suitable clay being available in
Owari Province was a province of Japan in the area that today forms the western half of Aichi Prefecture, including the modern city of Nagoya. The province was created in 646. Owari bordered on Mikawa, Mino, and Ise Provinces. Owari and Mino provinces w ...
.
Seto ware is a type of Japanese pottery, stoneware, and ceramics produced in and around the city of Seto, Aichi, Seto in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. The Japanese term for it, ''setomono'', is also used as a generic term for all pottery. Seto was the locatio ...
and Tokoname ware are from the region. In the town itself Ofukei ware, Toyoraku ware,
Sasashima ware Sasashima ware (笹島焼 ''Sasashima-yaki'') is a type of Japanese pottery from Nagoya, Owari province, later Aichi prefecture, central Japan. History It was based in the Sasashima-chō neighbourhood, not far from Nagoya Station, today a par ...
and Kawana ware were produced. * ''
Netsuke A is a miniature sculpture, originating in 17th century Japan. Initially a simply-carved button fastener on the cords of an box, later developed into ornately sculpted objects of craftsmanship.Yuji Yamashita (2014), ''Meiji no saimitsu kogei'' ...
'' artists such as Tametaka and Ikkan were well known during the Edo period.


Cuisine

The city and the region are known for their unique local . Dishes include: * ''Tebasaki'': chicken wings marinated in a sweet sauce with sesame seeds, basically a type of ''
yakitori is a Japanese type of skewered chicken. Its preparation involves attaching the meat to a skewer, typically made of steel, bamboo, or similar materials, after which it is grilled over a charcoal fire. During or after cooking, the meat is ty ...
'' * '' Tenmusu'': a rice ball wrapped with nori that is filled with deep-fried tempura shrimp * ''Kishimen'': flat ''
udon Udon ( or ) is a thick noodle made from wheat flour, used in Japanese cuisine. There are a variety of ways it is prepared and served. Its simplest form is in a soup as with a mild broth called made from dashi, soy sauce, and mirin. It is usual ...
'' noodles with a slippery texture, dipped in a light soy sauce soup and a sliced
leek A leek is a vegetable, a cultivar of ''Allium ampeloprasum'', the broadleaf wild leek (synonym (taxonomy), syn. ''Allium porrum''). The edible part of the plant is a bundle of Leaf sheath, leaf sheaths that is sometimes erroneously called a "s ...
or other flavouring added. It can be eaten cold or hot. * Red ''miso'': various dishes that use red ''
miso is a traditional Japanese seasoning. It is a thick paste produced by fermenting soybeans with salt and kōji (the fungus ''Aspergillus oryzae''), and sometimes rice, barley, seaweed, or other ingredients. It is used for sauces and spreads; p ...
'', such as ''miso katsu'' ( pork cutlet) with sweet ''miso'' sauce and ''miso nikomi udon'' (hard ''udon'' stewed in ''miso'' soup) * ''Hitsumabushi'': rice dish with ''
unagi is the Japanese word for freshwater eel, particularly the Japanese eel, . Unagi is a common ingredient in Japanese cooking, often as '' kabayaki''. It is not to be confused with saltwater eel, which is known as '' anago'' in Japanese. In J ...
'' in a lidded wooden container. This dish is enjoyed three ways; as ''
unadon is a dish originating in Japan. It consists of a '' donburi'' type large bowl filled with steamed white rice, and topped with fillets of eel ('' unagi'') grilled in a style known as '' kabayaki'', similar to teriyaki. The fillets are glazed with ...
'', with spice and as '' chazuke''. * ''Miso nikomi udon'': Firmer texture udon noodles. It is served in a Donabe pot and it usually arrives still bubbling and steaming hot at the table.


In popular culture

The world premiere of the first ''
Godzilla is a fictional monster, or ''kaiju'', that debuted in the eponymous 1954 film, directed and co-written by Ishirō Honda. The character has since become an international pop culture icon, appearing in various media: 33 Japanese films p ...
'' movie was in Nagoya on October 27, 1954. The city, especially Nagoya Castle, has been featured in two other Godzilla movies: '' Mothra vs. Godzilla'' and '' Godzilla vs. Mothra''. The city is also featured in '' Gamera vs. Gyaos'' and is the main setting of 2003 film '' Gozu.'' The 1995 film '' The Hunted'' starring Christopher Lambert and the 1992 film '' Mr. Baseball'' starring
Tom Selleck Thomas William Selleck (; born January 29, 1945) is an American actor. His breakout role was playing private investigator Thomas Magnum in the television series ''Magnum, P.I.'' (1980–1988), for which he received five Emmy Award nominations fo ...
were also filmed in the city. The city was the setting for the 2007 movie '' Ashita e no yuigon'' (translated as ''Best Wishes for Tomorrow''), in which a Japanese war criminal sets out to take responsibility for the execution of U.S. airmen. The anime '' The Wind Rises'' by
Hayao Miyazaki is a Japanese animator, filmmaker, and manga artist. He co-founded Studio Ghibli and serves as honorary chairman. Throughout his career, Miyazaki has attained international acclaim as a masterful storyteller and creator of Anime, Japanese ani ...
, released in 2013, is a highly fictionalized biography of the
Mitsubishi A6M Zero The Mitsubishi A6M "Zero" is a long-range carrier-capable fighter aircraft formerly manufactured by Mitsubishi Aircraft Company, a part of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. It was operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) from 1940 to 1945. The ...
's chief engineer
Jiro Horikoshi was a Japanese aeronautical engineer. He was the chief engineer of several Empire of Japan, Japanese Fighter aircraft, fighter aircraft designs used during World War II, most notably the Mitsubishi A6M Zero fighter, as well as the NAMC YS-11. E ...
and takes mostly place in Nagoya of the 1920s and 1930s. Nagoya is also the setting for the manga and anime series Yatogame-chan Kansatsu Nikki, which highlights many of the sites and traditions of the city. Haruki Murakami called Nagoya "another world" (異界, ikai) in the book "Tokyo Surume Club: Chikyuu no Hagurekata".


Sports

Nagoya is home to several professional sports teams: In 2007, the Chunichi Dragons won the
Japan Series The Japan Series ( , officially the Japan Championship Series, ), also the Nippon Series, is the annual championship series in Nippon Professional Baseball, the top baseball league in Japan. It is a best-of-seven series between the winning cl ...
baseball championship. In 2010, Nagoya Grampus won the J. League championship, their first in team history. Nagoya is also the home of the Nagoya Barbarians semi-pro
rugby football Rugby football is the collective name for the team sports of rugby union or rugby league. Rugby football started at Rugby School in Rugby, Warwickshire, England, where the rules were first codified in 1845. Forms of football in which the ball ...
club. A ''
honbasho A , or Grand Sumo Tournament in English, is an official professional sumo tournament. Only ''honbasho'' results matter in determining promotion and relegation for '' rikishi'' (sumo wrestlers) on the '' banzuke'' ranking. The number of ''honbash ...
''
sumo is a form of competitive full-contact wrestling where a ''rikishi'' (wrestler) attempts to force his opponent out of a circular ring (''dohyō'') or into touching the ground with any body part other than the soles of his feet (usually by th ...
tournament is held every July at the Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium. The city has hosted The Crowns golf tournament since 1960 and the women's Nagoya Marathon since 1984. In September 2016 the city was awarded the right to host the 2026
Asian Games The Asian Games, also known as Asiad, is a continental multi-sport event held every four years for athletes of Asia. The Games were regulated by Asian Games Federation from the 1951 Asian Games, first Games in New Delhi, India in 1951, until ...
after it was the only city to lodge a bid. It will be the third time Japan hosts the event after Tokyo in 1958 and
Hiroshima is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 1,199,391. The gross domestic product (GDP) in Greater Hiroshima, Hiroshima Urban Employment Area, was US$61.3 billion as of 2010. Kazumi Matsui has b ...
in 1994. The city had a bid to host the
1988 Summer Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and officially branded as Seoul 1988 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 17 September to 2 October 1988 in Seoul, South Korea. 159 nations were represe ...
but lost to
Seoul Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...
. The city hosted the official 1979 Asian Basketball Championship. Later, it became one of the host cities of the official
Women's Volleyball World Championship The FIVB Women's Volleyball World Championship is an international volleyball competition contested by the senior women's national teams of the members of ' (FIVB), the sport's global governing body. The initial gap between championships was var ...
for its
1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...
,
2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...
and
2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...
editions. The 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Games will be the next big event in the sports world following the 2020 Tokyo Olympic and
Paralympic Games The Paralympic Games or Paralympics is a periodic series of international multisport events involving athletes with a range of disability, disabilities. There are Winter Paralympic Games, Winter and Summer Paralympic Games, which since the 1988 ...
. It will be a very meaningful event for all of
Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
, as it would bring a chance to further deepen ties within
Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...
. In order to bid for the
Asian Games The Asian Games, also known as Asiad, is a continental multi-sport event held every four years for athletes of Asia. The Games were regulated by Asian Games Federation from the 1951 Asian Games, first Games in New Delhi, India in 1951, until ...
,
Aichi Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Aichi Prefecture has a population of 7,461,111 () and a geographic area of with a population density of . Aichi Prefecture borders Mie Prefecture to the ...
and
Nagoya City is the largest city in the Chūbu region of Japan. It is the list of cities in Japan, fourth-most populous city in Japan, with a population of 2.3million in 2020, and the principal city of the Chūkyō metropolitan area, which is the List of ...
made a 20th Asian Games Proposal. File:Nagoya Dome - 3.jpg,
Nagoya Dome The Nagoya Dome (ナゴヤドーム), known as Vantelin Dome Nagoya (バンテリンドーム ナゴヤ) for sponsorship reasons, is a domed baseball stadium, constructed in 1997, located in the city of Nagoya, Japan. The dome has the capacity of ...
File:Binnenkant van Nagoya Dome, -21 maart 2019 a.jpg,
Chunichi Dragons The are a professional baseball team based in Nagoya, the chief city in the Chūbu region of Japan. The team plays in the Central League of Nippon Professional Baseball. They have won the Central League pennant nine times (most recently in 2011 ...
File:Dolphins Arena 20180923-01.jpg, The Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium is used for Sumo wrestling and other events File:Dolphins Arena02.jpg, Nagoya Diamond Dolphins File:Mizuho Koen Stadium 20160815-02.jpg, Mizuho Athletic Stadium File:瑞穂陸上競技場1 - panoramio.jpg,
Nagoya Grampus ; formerly known as is a Japanese association football club that plays in the J1 League, and have for all but one season since the inauguration of the league, following promotion from the J2 League in 2017. Based in Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture an ...
File:Mizuho Rugby Stadium.jpg, Paloma Mizuho Rugby Stadium File:Toyota-Sports-Center-2.jpg, Toyota Verblitz


Notable people


Historical figures

Minamoto no Yoritomo was the founder and the first shogun of the Kamakura shogunate, ruling from 1192 until 1199, also the first ruling shogun in the history of Japan.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Minamoto no Yoriie" in . He was the husband of Hōjō Masako ...
was the first ''
shōgun , officially , was the title of the military rulers 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, except during parts of the Kamak ...
'' of the
Kamakura shogunate The was the feudal military government of Japan during the Kamakura period from 1185 to 1333. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Kamakura-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia'', p. 459. The Kamakura shogunate was established by Minamoto no Yori ...
. His family had roots as the high priests of Atsuta Shrine and he was born in the family villa what is Seigan-ji today. The three samurais who unified Japan in the 16th century all have strong links to Nagoya: *
Oda Nobunaga was a Japanese ''daimyō'' and one of the leading figures of the Sengoku period, Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods. He was the and regarded as the first "Great Unifier" of Japan. He is sometimes referred as the "Demon Daimyō" and "Demo ...
(1534–1582), from
Nagoya Castle is a Japanese castle located in Nagoya, Japan. Nagoya Castle was constructed by the Owari Domain in 1612 during the Edo period on the site of an earlier castle of the Oda clan in the Sengoku period. Nagoya Castle was the heart of one of the ...
in
Owari Province was a province of Japan in the area that today forms the western half of Aichi Prefecture, including the modern city of Nagoya. The province was created in 646. Owari bordered on Mikawa, Mino, and Ise Provinces. Owari and Mino provinces w ...
*
Toyotomi Hideyoshi , otherwise known as and , was a Japanese samurai and ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) of the late Sengoku period, Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods and regarded as the second "Great Unifier" of Japan.Richard Holmes, The World Atlas of Warfare: ...
(1536–1598), one of
Oda Nobunaga was a Japanese ''daimyō'' and one of the leading figures of the Sengoku period, Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods. He was the and regarded as the first "Great Unifier" of Japan. He is sometimes referred as the "Demon Daimyō" and "Demo ...
's top generals *
Tokugawa Ieyasu Tokugawa Ieyasu (born Matsudaira Takechiyo; 31 January 1543 – 1 June 1616) was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan, which ruled from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was the third of the three "Gr ...
(1543–1616), born in
Mikawa Province was an Provinces of Japan, old province in the area that today forms the eastern half of Aichi Prefecture.Louis-Frédéric, Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Mikawa''" in . Its abbreviated form name was . Mikawa bordered on Owari Province, O ...
, (the eastern half of modern Aichi prefecture) Other samurai include: *
Shibata Katsuie or was a Japanese samurai and military commander during the Sengoku period. He was retainer of Oda Nobuhide. He served Oda Nobunaga as one of his trusted generals, was severely wounded in the 1571 first siege of Nagashima, but then fought ...
(samurai of the
Sengoku period The was the period in History of Japan, Japanese history in which civil wars and social upheavals took place almost continuously in the 15th and 16th centuries. The Kyōtoku incident (1454), Ōnin War (1467), or (1493) are generally chosen as th ...
) * Niwa Nagahide (samurai of the Sengoku period) *
Maeda Toshiie was one of the leading generals of Oda Nobunaga following the Sengoku period of the 16th century extending to the Azuchi–Momoyama period. His preferred weapon was a yari and he was known as "Yari no Mataza" (槍の又左), Matazaemon (又左 ...
(samurai of the Sengoku period) *
Katō Kiyomasa was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the Azuchi–Momoyama period, Azuchi–Momoyama and Edo periods. His court title was . His name as a child was ''Yashamaru'', and first name was ''Toranosuke''. He was one of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, Hideyoshi's Seven ...
(samurai of the Sengoku period) *
Sassa Narimasa was a Japanese samurai lord of the Sengoku through Azuchi–Momoyama periods. He entered Oda Nobunaga's service at the age of 14 and remained in his service throughout Nobunaga's rise to power. He was a member of the so-called Echizen Sannin ...
(samurai of the Sengoku period) *
Sakuma Nobumori was a Samurai retainer of Oda Nobuhide. He was treated as Oda Nobunaga's most important retainer and would come to fight in every important battle under Nobunaga's command such as the 1567 Siege of Inabayama Castle, the 1571 and 1573 Siege o ...
(samurai of the Sengoku period) * Sakuma Morimasa (samurai of the Sengoku period) * Maeda Toshimasu (Maeda Keijirō, samurai of the Sengoku period)


Inventors and industrialists

* Sakichi Toyoda (1867–1930), prolific inventor from
Shizuoka Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu. Shizuoka Prefecture has a population of 3,555,818 and has a geographic area of . Shizuoka Prefecture borders Kanagawa Prefecture to the east, Yamanashi Pref ...
* Kiichiro Toyoda (1894–1952), son of Sakichi Toyoda, established
Toyota Motor Corporation is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on August 28, 1937. Toyota is the List of manuf ...
*
Akio Morita was a Japanese entrepreneur and co-founder of Sony along with Masaru Ibuka. Early life Akio Morita was born in Nagoya. Morita's family was involved in sake, miso and soy sauce production in the village of Kosugaya (currently a part of Toko ...
(1921–1999), co-founder of
Sony is a Japanese multinational conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at Sony City in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. The Sony Group encompasses various businesses, including Sony Corporation (electronics), Sony Semiconductor Solutions (i ...
*
Jiro Horikoshi was a Japanese aeronautical engineer. He was the chief engineer of several Empire of Japan, Japanese Fighter aircraft, fighter aircraft designs used during World War II, most notably the Mitsubishi A6M Zero fighter, as well as the NAMC YS-11. E ...
(1903–1982), worked in Nagoya as chief engineer of the
Mitsubishi A6M Zero The Mitsubishi A6M "Zero" is a long-range carrier-capable fighter aircraft formerly manufactured by Mitsubishi Aircraft Company, a part of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. It was operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) from 1940 to 1945. The ...
fighter *
Akio Toyoda is a Japanese business executive who is the chairman of Toyota Motor Corporation. He was previously the company's president and chief executive officer (CEO). Toyoda is a great-grandson of the industrialist, Sakichi Toyoda, and a grandson of bot ...
(born 1956), current
Chairman The chair, also chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the gro ...
and Former
president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...
&
CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...
of
Toyota Motor Corporation is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on August 28, 1937. Toyota is the List of manuf ...


Executive officers

*
Yoichi Wada is a former president and representative director of the Japanese video game and publishing company Square Enix as well as its subsidiary Taito. He is also the former chairman of the Computer Entertainment Supplier's Association (CESA), the f ...


Writers

* Yokoi Yayū (1702–1783), haiku poet and samurai in
Owari Domain The Owari-Han, also known as the Owari Domain, was a significant feudal domain in Tokugawa shogunate, Japan during the Edo period. Situated in the western region of what is now Aichi Prefecture, it covered portions of Owari Province, Owari, Mino ...
* Ryukichi Terao (born 1971), Hispanist and translator of Latin American literature


Scientists

*
Leonor Michaelis Leonor Michaelis (16 January 1875 – 8 October 1949) was a German biochemist, physical chemist, and physician. He is known for his work with Maud Menten on enzyme kinetics in 1913, as well as for work on enzyme inhibition, pH and quinones. ...
(1875–1949) German and American biochemist known for development of enzyme kinetics worked in Nagoya from 1922 to 1926 * Susumu Tonegawa (born 1939) Nobel prizewinner who discovered the genetic mechanism that produces antibody diversity * Tsuneko Okazaki (born 1933) pioneer of molecular biology known for her work on DNA replication


Performing artists of Japan


Musicians and composers

* Etsuko Hirose (born 1979), classical pianist * Moa Kikuchi (born 1999), Japanese musician, singer, dancer, model, and actress (member of the
kawaii metal Kawaii metal (also known as cute metal, J-pop metal, or kawaiicore) is a musical genre that blends elements of heavy metal and J-pop that was pioneered in Japan in the early 2010s. The genre combines both Eastern and Western influences that appe ...
group
Babymetal (stylized in all caps as BABYMETAL) is a Japanese kawaii metal band consisting of Suzuka Nakamoto as "Su-metal", Moa Kikuchi as "Moametal" and Momoko Okazaki as "Momometal". The band is produced by Kobametal from the Amuse Inc., Amuse talent a ...
and a former member of the idol group
Sakura Gakuin was a Japanese idol girl group formed in 2010 by the Amuse talent agency. The group's membership fell within the age range of Japanese compulsory education, typically containing between 10 and 12 members at a time who fall between the ages of ...
) *
Home Made Kazoku is a Japanese hip hop trio from Nagoya, formed in 1996. They are signed to Ki/oon Records, a subsidiary of Sony Music. The group has been on hiatus since 2016. History Home Made Kazoku is a trio consisting of members Micro, Kuro, and DJ U- ...
, Japanese
hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...
trio * Yōsei Teikoku, five-member Japanese musical unit * Spyair,
Japanese rock , sometimes abbreviated to , is rock music from Japan. Influenced by American and British rock of the 1960s, the first rock bands in Japan performed what is called group sounds, with lyrics almost exclusively in English. Folk rock band Happy End ...
band * Kiyoharu (born 1968), Japanese musician and singer-songwriter, known for his work with Kuroyume and Sads *
Koji Kondo is a Japanese composer and senior executive at the video game company Nintendo. He is best known for his contributions for the '' Super Mario'' and ''The Legend of Zelda'' series, with his ''Super Mario Bros.'' theme being the first piece of mu ...
(born 1961), Japanese
music composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and defi ...
,
pianist A pianist ( , ) is a musician who plays the piano. A pianist's repertoire may include music from a diverse variety of styles, such as traditional classical music, jazz piano, jazz, blues piano, blues, and popular music, including rock music, ...
, and
music director A music director, musical director or director of music is a person responsible for the musical aspects of a performance, production, or organization. This would include the artistic director and usually chief conductor of an orchestra or concert ...
who works for the
video game company The video game industry is the tertiary and quaternary sectors of the entertainment industry that specialize in the development, marketing, distribution, monetization, and consumer feedback of video games. The industry encompasses dozens ...
Nintendo is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto. It develops, publishes, and releases both video games and video game consoles. The history of Nintendo began when craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi ...
. *
Seamo is a Japanese hip hop recording artist better known by his stage name . He made his debut in 2002 using the alias , but later changed his name to Seamo. He made his solo debut in 2005 with the Japanese record label BMG Japan with the single . ...
(Real Name: Naoki Takada,
Nihongo is the principal language of the Japonic language family spoken by the Japanese people. It has around 123 million speakers, primarily in Japan, the only country where it is the national language, and within the Japanese diaspora worldwide. ...
: 高田 尚輝, ''Takada Naoki'', born 1975), Japanese
hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...
recording artist * Takanori Iwata (born 1989), Japanese dancer and actor (member of
J-pop J-pop (often stylized in all caps; an abbreviated form of "Japanese popular music"), natively known simply as , is the name for a form of popular music that entered the musical mainstream of Japan in the 1990s. Modern J-pop has its roots in trad ...
boygroups Sandaime J Soul Brothers and
Exile Exile or banishment is primarily penal expulsion from one's native country, and secondarily expatriation or prolonged absence from one's homeland under either the compulsion of circumstance or the rigors of some high purpose. Usually persons ...
) * Naomi Tamura (born 1963), Japanese pop singer and
songwriter A songwriter is a person who creates musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music genre and film scoring. ...
* Kazuki Kato (born 1984), Japanese actor,
voice actor Voice acting is the art of Acting, performing a character or providing information to an audience with one's voice. Performers are often called voice actors/actresses in addition to other names. Examples of voice work include animation, animated, ...
and singer * Lullatone, Japanese
musical duo A musical ensemble, also known as a music group, musical group, or a band is a group of people who perform Instrumental music, instrumental and/or vocal music, with the ensemble typically known by a distinct name. Some music ensembles consist ...
*
Aya Hirano is a Japanese actress and singer. Beginning in the entertainment industry as a child actor in television commercials, she appeared in her first Voice acting in Japan, voice acting role in the anime television series ''Angel Tales'' (2001). In ...
(born 1987), Japanese actor, voice actor and singer * Jasmine You (1979–2009), Japanese musician, best known as original
bassist A bassist (also known as a bass player or bass guitarist) is a musician who plays a bass instrument such as a double bass (upright bass, contrabass, wood bass), bass guitar (electric bass, acoustic bass), keyboard bass (synth bass) or a low br ...
of the
symphonic metal Symphonic metal is a cross-genre style designation for the symphonic subsets of heavy metal music subgenres. It is used to denote any metal band that makes use of symphonic or orchestral elements. The style features the heavy drums and guitars ...
band
Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; ) is a former royal residence commissioned by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, Yvelines, Versailles, about west of Paris, in the Yvelines, Yvelines Department of Île-de-France, Île-de-France region in Franc ...
* Outrage, Japanese
thrash metal Thrash metal (or simply thrash) is an Extreme metal, extreme subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its overall aggression and fast tempo.Kahn-Harris, Keith, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'', pp. 2–3, 9. Oxford: Berg, ...
band * Enako (born 1994), cosplayer * Sho Hirano (born 1997), member of
King & Prince King & Prince is a two-member Japanese idol group under Starto Entertainment (formerly of Johnny & Associates) that debuted in 2018. Their debut was announced at a press conference on 17 January 2018 along with the establishment of Johnny & Ass ...
* Kanon Suzuki (born 1998), former idol and singer (former member of Japanese girl idol group
Morning Musume , formerly and commonly known as and colloquially referred to as , is a Japanese girl group, holding the second highest overall single sales (of a female group) on the Oricon, Oricon charts as of February 2012, with the Oricon record of most to ...
) * Shinichi Suzuki (1898–1998), Japanese
musician A musician is someone who Composer, composes, Conducting, conducts, or Performing arts#Performers, performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general Terminology, term used to designate a person who fol ...
,
philosopher Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...
, and educator and the founder of the international
Suzuki method The Suzuki method is a mid-20th-century music curriculum and teaching method created by Japanese violinist and pedagogue Shinichi Suzuki. The method claims to create a reinforcing environment for learning music for young learners. Backgroun ...
of
music education Music education is a field of practice in which educators are trained for careers as primary education, elementary or secondary education, secondary music teachers, school or music conservatory ensemble directors. Music education is also a rese ...
and developed a philosophy for educating people of all ages and abilities * nobodyknows+, Japanese
hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...
band *
SKE48 SKE48 (S.K.E. Forty-eight) is a Japanese idol group produced by Yasushi Akimoto. SKE48 is named after the Sakae, Nagoya, Sakae district in Nagoya of Aichi Prefecture, where the group is based. The group performs at SKE48 Theater on 2F of Sunshi ...
, Japanese idol group * Okada Yukiko (1967–1986),
Japanese idol An is a type of entertainer marketed for image, attractiveness, and personality in Japanese popular culture, Japanese pop culture. Idols are primarily singers with training in other performance skills such as acting, dancing, and modeling. Idol ...
and winner of the talent show Star Tanjō! in
Tokyo, Japan Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...
*
Coldrain Coldrain (stylized in all lowercase) are a Japanese rock band from Nagoya, Japan, who were formed in 2007. The band combines melodic singing with screams typical of the post-hardcore genre. Although the band is Japanese, all of their songs are w ...
,
Japanese rock , sometimes abbreviated to , is rock music from Japan. Influenced by American and British rock of the 1960s, the first rock bands in Japan performed what is called group sounds, with lyrics almost exclusively in English. Folk rock band Happy End ...
band *
May'n , better known by her stage name , is a Japanese singer from Nagoya. Aspiring to become a singer since childhood, she began her music activities in 2003 upon passing an audition held by talent agency Horipro International. She made her major de ...
(Real Name: Mei Nakabayashi,
Nihongo is the principal language of the Japonic language family spoken by the Japanese people. It has around 123 million speakers, primarily in Japan, the only country where it is the national language, and within the Japanese diaspora worldwide. ...
: 中林 芽依, ''Nakabayashi Mei'', born 1989), Japanese singer * Team Shachi, Japanese female idol group * Sarah Midori Perry * Uno Santa * Syoya Kimata (born 2000), member of
JO1 is a Japanese boy band formed through the first season of '' Produce 101 Japan'' by Lapone Entertainment. The group is composed of eleven members: Issei Mamehara, Ren Kawashiri, Takumi Kawanishi, Shosei Ohira, Shion Tsurubo, Ruki Shiroiwa, ...
* Keigo Sato (born 1998), member of
JO1 is a Japanese boy band formed through the first season of '' Produce 101 Japan'' by Lapone Entertainment. The group is composed of eleven members: Issei Mamehara, Ren Kawashiri, Takumi Kawanishi, Shosei Ohira, Shion Tsurubo, Ruki Shiroiwa, ...
* Cocoro Kato, member of Me:I * Miu Sakurai, member of Me:I * Masaya Kimura, member of
INI (Japanese boy group) is a Japanese boy band formed through the reality competition show ''Produce 101 Japan (season 2), Produce 101 Japan 2''. The group is composed of eleven members: Masaya Kimura (singer), Masaya Kimura, Hiromu Takatsuka, Shogo Tajima, Kyosuke Fuj ...
* Masato Hayakawa (born 1986), lead singer of
Coldrain Coldrain (stylized in all lowercase) are a Japanese rock band from Nagoya, Japan, who were formed in 2007. The band combines melodic singing with screams typical of the post-hardcore genre. Although the band is Japanese, all of their songs are w ...
, songwriter and model


Actors

*
Kaede Hondo is a Japanese voice actress affiliated with I'm Enterprise. She took leading roles for each series, including '' Kamisama Minarai: Himitsu no Cocotama'' as Kokoro Yotsuba, '' Interviews with Monster Girls'' as Hikari Takanashi, '' Girlish Numb ...
*
Akari Kitō is a Japanese voice actress and singer affiliated with Raccoon Dog. She starred in her first main role for the series '' Time Bokan 24'', and has since received more major and leading roles. Her nickname is Akarin. She made her debut as a solo ...
* Matt McCooey, British actor of Japanese ancestry * Naoko Mori * Kaito Nakamura * The Nose sisters: Anna, Erena, and Karina * Naomi Kawashima *
Hirotaka Suzuoki was a Japanese actor, voice actor and narrator from Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture, who graduated from Tokyo Keizai University. His best known roles include Bright Noa in ''Mobile Suit Gundam'', Kojirou Hyuga in ''Captain Tsubasa'', Dragon Shiryū ...
* Hiroshi Tachi *
Emi Takei is a Japanese actress and model. Biography Takei was born in Nagoya. Aspiring to become a model, she declared to her parents on her entry to junior high school that she would become a model within three years. In 2006, she entered the 11th Japa ...
*
Hiroshi Tamaki is a Japanese actor and singer from Nagoya, Japan. When he was still in high school, he was discovered by a talent agent while out shopping with friends. He made his debut in the drama ''Am I Weird?'' (私ってへん? ''Watashitte Hen?'') in ...
* Kokoro Terada * Toshihiko Nakajima * Yūki Yamada


Athletes

*
Miki Ando is a retired Japanese figure skater. She is the 2007 World Figure Skating Championships, 2007 and 2011 World Figure Skating Championships, 2011 World champion, 2011 Four Continents Figure Skating Championships, 2011 Four Continents champion, 2 ...
*
Mao Asada is a Japanese former competitive figure skater. She is the Figure skating at the 2010 Winter Olympics - Ladies' singles, 2010 Olympic silver medalist, a three-time World Figure Skating Championships, World champion (2008, 2010, 2014), a three-t ...
*
Mai Asada is a Japanese former competitive figure skater. She won two gold medals on the ISU Junior Grand Prix series and placed fourth at the 2003 World Junior Figure Skating Championships, 2003 and 2004 World Junior Figure Skating Championships, 2004 Wo ...
* Hugh Barter * Kazuki Himeno * Keisei Tominaga * Kimiyasu Kudō * Midori Ito * Jong Tae-se * Takamoto Katsuta * Takuma Koga (footballer) *
Takuma Koga (racing driver) is a Japanese professional stock car racing driver who competes part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 53 Toyota Supra for Joey Gase Motorsports with Scott Osteen and full-time in the ARCA Menards Series East, driving the No. 1 ...
* Takahiko Kozuka * Yuto Nomura * Yōhei Ōshima * Yoshiaki Oiwa * Takashi Sugiura *
Último Dragón , better known by his ring name , is a Japanese Professional wrestling, professional wrestler signed to Dragon Gate (wrestling), Dragon Gate, where he acts as an in-ring talent, trainer and senior advisor. In addition to having trained in Japan, ...
* Shoma Uno * Tomiko Yoshikawa


Manga artists

* Akane Ogura *
Akira Toriyama was a Japanese manga artist and character designer. He came to be regarded as one of the most influential and important authors in the history of manga, authoring highly influential and popular series, particularly Dragon Ball (manga), ''Dra ...
* Mohiro Kitoh


References


Bibliography

* *


External links


Nagoya City official website



WikiSatellite view of Nagoya at WikiMapia

Nagoya International Center

Official Tourism Guide – Nagoya Travel Guide
{{Authority control Cities in Aichi Prefecture Populated coastal places in Japan 1889 establishments in Japan Populated places established in 1889 Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan Cities built on a grid