Nakano (, Latn, ja, Nakano-ku) is a special ward in the Tokyo Metropolis in Japan. The English translation of its Japanese self-designation is Nakano City (, Latn, ja, Nakano-ku).About Nakano City
" Retrieved March 10, 2013. , the ward has an estimated population of 337,377, and a population density of 21,640 persons per km². The total area is 15.59 km². Nakano is the most densely populated city in Japan.

History

The ward was founded on October 1, 1932, when the towns of Nogata and Nakano were absorbed into the former

Tokyo City was a Cities of Japan, municipality in Japan and capital of Tokyo Prefecture (1868–1943), Tokyo Prefecture (or ''Tokyo-fu'') which existed from 1 May 1889 until the establishment of Tokyo Metropolis on 1 July 1943. The historical boundari ...

as Nakano Ward. The present administration dates from March 15, 1947, when the Allied occupation reformed the administration of Tokyo-to. * 1447: Ōta Dōkan defeated Toshima Yasutsune in a battle here. * 1606: The Naruki Kaidō, predecessor of today's Ōme Kaidō (a road to Ōme) was established. * 1695: In connection with the ''Shorui Awaremi no Rei'' (a law for the protection of animals), a facility for keeping wild dogs opened. * 1871: The twelve villages that comprise present-day Nakano became part of Tokyo Prefecture. * 1889: The Kofu Railway opens. The forerunner of today's Chūō Main Line included a station at Nakano en route from

Shinjuku , officially called Shinjuku City, is a special ward of Tokyo, Japan. It is a major commercial and administrative center, housing the northern half of the busiest railway station in the world ( Shinjuku Station) as well as the Tokyo Metropol ...

to Hachioji. * 1897: Nakano becomes a village. * 1932:

expands to encompass the district that included Nakano. * 1943: With the abolition of Tokyo City, Nakano becomes part of Tokyo-to. * 1947: Nakano becomes one of the special wards under the new system. * 1961: The Tokyo subway system extends to Nakano. * 1973: Construction of Nakano Sun Plaza near Nakano Station reaches completion. * 2016: Murder of Jiang Ge

Districts and neighborhoods

;Nakano Area * Chūō * Higashinakano * Honchō * Minamidai * Nakano * Yayoimachi ;Nogata Area * Arai * Eharachō * Ekoda * Kamisaginomiya * Kamitakada * Maruyama * Matsugaoka * Nogata * Numabukuro * Saginomiya * Shirasagi * Wakamiya * Yamatochō

Geography

Five special wards surround Nakano:

Suginami is a Special wards of Tokyo, special ward in the Tokyo, Tokyo Metropolis in Japan. The ward refers to itself as Suginami City in English. As of June 1, 2022, Suginami has an estimated population of 588,354 and a population density of 17,274 pe ...

Nerima is a Special wards of Tokyo, special ward in the Tokyo, Tokyo Metropolis in Japan. The ward refers to itself as Nerima City. , the ward has an estimated population of 721,858, with 323,296 households and a population density of 15,013 persons ...

Shibuya is a Special wards of Tokyo, special ward in Tokyo, Japan. A major commercial center, Shibuya houses one of the busiest railway stations in the world, Shibuya Station. As of January 1, 2024, Shibuya Ward has an estimated population of 230,60 ...

, and Toshima. It lies just west of the bustling

area. Rivers include the Kanda, Myosho-ji and Zenpuku-ji Rivers, and the Aratama Waterway.

Places

* Nakano Sun Plaza: concert hall, hotel facilities * Arai Yakushi Shingon Buddhist temple * Nakano Broadway:

otaku is a Japanese word that describes people with consuming interests, such as anime, manga, video games, computers or other highly enthusiastic hobbies. Its contemporary use originated with a 1983 essay by Akio Nakamori in '' Manga Burikko''. ...

building (several floors of arcades,

manga are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. The term is used in Japan to refer to both comics ...

anime is a Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, , in Japan and in Ja ...

, idol, music, toy and

subculture A subculture is a group of people within a culture, cultural society that differentiates itself from the values of the conservative, standard or dominant culture to which it belongs, often maintaining some of its founding principles. Subcultures ...

specialty shops, as well as a well-regarded

Namco was a Japanese multinational video game and entertainment company founded in 1955. It operated video arcades and amusement parks globally, and produced video games, films, toys, and arcade cabinets. Namco was one of the most influential c ...

arcade) * GRIPS International House, apartment for foreign students studying at the

National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies The , or GRIPS, is a public research graduate school located in Minato, Tokyo. Funded by the Japanese government, it is the second smallest by enrollment of all the List of national universities in Japan, national universities in Japan. It is cons ...

Education

Public schools

Metropolitan senior high and combined junior-senior high schools are operated by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Board of Education. * * * * * * Yotsuya Commercial High School Municipal kindergartens, elementary schools, and junior high schools are operated by the Nakano City Board of Education. Municipal junior high schools: * No. 2 Junior High School (第二中学校) * No. 5 Junior High School (第五中学校) * No. 7 Junior High School ( 第七中学校) * Kita Nakano Junior High School ( 北中野中学校) * Meiwa Junior High School (明和中学校) ** Merger of No. 4 Junior High School (第四中学校) and No. 8 Junior High School ( 第八中学校). * Midorino Junior High School (緑野中学校) * Minami Nakano Junior High School ( 南中野中学校) * Nakano Junior High School ( 中野中学校) * Nakano Higashi Junior High School ( 中野東中学校) ** Merger of No. 3 Junior High School ( 第三中学校) and No. 10 Junior High School (第十中学校). Municipal elementary schools: * Egota Elementary School ( 江古田小学校) * Ehara Elementary School ( 江原小学校) * Hakuo Elementary School ( 白桜小学校) * Heiwa no Mori Elementary School ( 平和の森小学校) * Kami Saginomiya Elementary School ( 上鷺宮小学校) * Keimei Elementary School (啓明小学校) * Kitahara Elementary School (北原小学校) * Midorino Elementary School ( 緑野小学校) * Mihato Elementary School (美鳩小学校) ** Formed by the merger of Wakamiya Elementary ( 若宮小学校) and Yamato Elementary (大和小学校) * Minamidai Elementary School (南台小学校) ** Formed by the merger of Niiyama Elementary (新山小学校) and Tada Elementary (多田小学校) * Minamino Elementary School ( みなみの小学校) ** Formed by the merger of Nakano Shinmei Elementary (中野神明小学校) and Niiyama Elementary (新山小学校) * Momozono No. 2 Elementary School ( 桃園第二小学校) * Musashidai Elementary School ( 武蔵台小学校) * Nakano No. 1 Elementary School ( 中野第一小学校) ** Merger of Monozono Elementary School ( 桃園小学校) and Mukodai Elementary School ( 向台小学校) * Nakano Hongo Elementary School (中野本郷小学校) * Nishi Nakano Elementary School ( 西中野小学校) * Reiwa Elementary School ( 令和小学校) ** Merger of Arai Elementary School (新井小学校) and Kamitakada Elementary School (上高田小学校) * Saginomiya Elementary School (鷺宮小学校) * Toka Elementary School ( 桃花小学校) * Tonoyama Elementary School (塔山小学校) * Yato Elementary School ( 谷戸小学校) Kindergartens: * Higashi Nakano Kindergarten (ひがしなかの幼稚園) * Kamisagi Kindergarten (かみさぎ幼稚園)

Private schools

* Horikoshi Gakuen High School * - Has coeducational and girls' only sections * * * * * * - Girls' school *

Colleges and universities

Teikyo Heisei University is a private university Private universities and private colleges are higher education institutions not operated, owned, or institutionally funded by governments. However, they often receive tax breaks, public student loans, and government gran ...

Nakano Campus *

Tokyo Polytechnic University is a private university in Honchō, Tokyo, Honchō, Nakano, Tokyo. Its nickname is ''Shadai'' (写大). It was formerly known as Tokyo College of Photography (, ''Tōkyō Shashin Daigaku''). The university was founded as Konishi Professional Sc ...

Meiji University is a Private university, private research university in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. Originally founded as Meiji Law School () by three lawyers in 1881, it became a university in April 1920. As of May 2023, Meiji has 32,261 undergradu ...

Nakano Campus *

University of Tokyo The University of Tokyo (, abbreviated as in Japanese and UTokyo in English) is a public research university in Bunkyō, Tokyo, Japan. Founded in 1877 as the nation's first modern university by the merger of several pre-westernisation era ins ...

Nakano campus * Kokusai Junior College

Transportation

Rail

Nakano Ward is served by the

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

Chūō and Sobu lines, the Seibu Shinjuku Line, the Tokyo Metro Tozai Line and

Tokyo Metro Marunouchi Line The is a Rapid transit, subway line in Tokyo, Japan, operated by Tokyo Metro. The line runs in a U-shape between Ogikubo Station in Suginami, Tokyo, Suginami and Ikebukuro Station in Toshima, Tokyo, Toshima, with a branch line between Nakano-Sa ...

, and the Toei Oedo Line. * JR East ** Chūō Line (Rapid), Chūō-Sōbu Line: Higashi-Nakano and Nakano Stations * Seibu Railway **Seibu Shinjuku Line: Arai Yakushi-mae, Numabukuro, Nogata, Toritsu-Kasei, Saginomiya Stations *

Tokyo Metro The Tokyo Metro () is a major rapid transit system in Tokyo, Japan, operated by the #Organization, Tokyo Metro Co. With an average daily ridership of 6.52 million passengers (as of 2023), the Tokyo Metro is the larger of the Tokyo subway, two s ...

** Marunouchi Line: Shin-Nakano, Nakano-Sakaue Stations *** Honancho Branch Line: Nakano-Fujimicho, Nakano-Shimbashi, Nakano-Sakaue Stations ** Tozai Line: Nakano, Ochiai (although the station is in Shinjuku, some entrances are in Nakano) Stations *

Tokyo Metropolitan Bureau of Transportation The , also known as Toei Transportation, Toei Transport, or simply , is a bureau of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government which operates public transport services in Tokyo. Among its services, the Toei Subway is one of two rapid transit systems wh ...

: **Toei Oedo Line: Nakano-Sakaue, Higashi-Nakano, Shin-egota Stations

Bus

A complicated bus network is constructed throughout Nakano Ward because most train lines only run east and west. * Kanto bus * Toei bus * Kokusai Kogyo bus * Keio bus

Roads

Shuto Expressway The is a network of Toll road, tolled expressways in the Greater Tokyo Area of Japan. It is operated and maintained by the . Most routes are Grade separation, grade separated and have many sharp curves and multi-lane merges that require cauti ...

: *C2 Central Circular Route (Nakano-chōjabashi exit) Prefectural road: * Tokyo Metropolitan Route 8 (Mejiro-dōri Ave., Shin-Mejiro-dōri Ave.) * Tokyo Metropolitan Route 439 (Senkawa-dōri Ave.) * Tokyo Metropolitan Route 440 (Shin-Ōme-kaidō Ave.) * Tokyo Metropolitan Route 25 (Waseda-dōri Ave.) * Tokyo Metropolitan Route 433 (Ōkubo-dōri Ave.) * Tokyo Metropolitan Route 4 (Ōme-kaidō Ave.) * Tokyo Metropolitan Route 14 (Hōnan-dōri Ave.) * Tokyo Metropolitan Route 317 (Yamate-dōri St.; 6th Beltway) * Tokyo Metropolitan Route 420 (Nakano-dōri St.) * Tokyo Metropolitan Route 318 (Kannana-dōri St.; 7th Beltway) * Tokyo Metropolitan Route 427 (Nakasugi-dōri St.)

Business and entertainment

*Nakano-minamiguchi ekimae shōtengai – an outdoor arcade * Soft On Demand – a Japanese

adult An adult is an animal that has reached full growth. The biological definition of the word means an animal reaching sexual maturity and thus capable of reproduction. In the human context, the term ''adult'' has meanings associated with social an ...

video Video is an Electronics, electronic medium for the recording, copying, playback, broadcasting, and display of moving picture, moving image, visual Media (communication), media. Video was first developed for mechanical television systems, whi ...

group of companies has its headquarters in Nakano *

MAPPA is a Japanese animation studio headquartered in Nakano, Tokyo (formerly in Suginami, Tokyo). Founded in 2011 by Madhouse co-founder and producer Masao Maruyama, it has produced anime works including '' Terror in Resonance'', '' Yuri!!! on I ...

- a Japanese animation studio has its head office in Nakano

''Benza'' series

'' The Benza'' is a 2019

Amazon Prime Video Amazon Prime Video, known simply as Prime Video, is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming television service owned by Amazon. The service primarily distributes films and television series produced or co-produced by ...

series about two foreigners ( Christopher McCombs and Kyle Card) who are trying to fix their broken and are suddenly tasked with saving the world. The series takes place entirely in Higashi Nakano. '' Benza English'' is a 2020 spin-off series that also takes place in Higashi Nakano. '' The Benza RPG'' is a 2020 video game adaption available on

iOS Ios, Io or Nio (, ; ; locally Nios, Νιός) is a Greek island in the Cyclades group in the Aegean Sea. Ios is a hilly island with cliffs down to the sea on most sides. It is situated halfway between Naxos and Santorini. It is about long an ...

, Android, and

Steam Steam is water vapor, often mixed with air or an aerosol of liquid water droplets. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporization. Saturated or superheated steam is inv ...

Notable people

Ryuichi Sakamoto was a Music of Japan, Japanese musician, composer, keyboardist, record producer, singer and actor. He pursued a diverse range of styles as a solo artist and as a member of the Synthesizer, synth-based band Yellow Magic Orchestra (YMO). With his ...

, composer and musician * Kanako Yanagihara, comedian * Mayumi Kojima, singer and songwriter *

Marika Matsumoto is a Japanese actress. From 2001 and 2003, she was known as "Mini Stop-chan", acting as the mascot for the Ministop convenience store chain commercials in Japan. She is the owner of a unique voice and has held a recital with upcoming star Satos ...

, voice actress, actress * Shoko Sawada, singer and songwriter * Yuji Tanaka, comedian *

El Lindaman , better known by his ring name , is a Japanese professional wrestler. He is currently working for Gleat, where he was the inaugural G-Rex Champion. He also makes appearances for American Promotions All Elite Wrestling, DEFY Wrestling and Japanes ...

, Japanese professional wrestler *

Yuhi Sekiguchi is a Japanese Auto racing, racing driver. He currently competes in the GT500 class of the Super GT, Super GT Series for Toyota Gazoo Racing, TGR SARD, Team SARD. Sekiguchi won the 2011 Japanese Formula 3 Championship and the 2021 Super GT Serie ...

, Japanese

racing driver Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. In North America, the term is commonly used to describe all forms of automobile sport including non ...

* Daigo, Japanese singer-songwriter, actor, talent, and

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, ...

* Akiyoshi Nakao, Japanese actor * Eiji Iijima, Japanese

professional shogi player A professional shogi player (将棋棋士 ''shōgi kishi'' or プロ棋士 ''puro kishi'' "professional player") is a shogi player who is usually a member of a professional guild of shogi players. There are two categories of professional playe ...

, ranked 7- dan * Wataru Kamimura, Japanese

, ranked 5- dan * Tsunemi Kubodera, Japanese

zoologist Zoology ( , ) is the scientific study of animals. Its studies include the structure, embryology, classification, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinct, and how they interact with their ecosystems. Zoology is one ...

(

National Museum of Nature and Science The is in the northeast corner of Ueno Park in Tokyo. The museum has exhibitions on pre-Meiji period, Meiji science in Japan. It is the venue of the taxidermied bodies of the legendary dogs Hachikō and Taro and Jiro. A life-size blue whale mod ...

) * Rieko Miura, Japanese actress, voice actress, singer and former member of the

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 ...

girlgroup

Coco Coco or variants may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film * ''Coco'' (2009 film), a French comedy film * ''Coco'' (2017 film), an American animated fantasy film * '' Pokémon the Movie: Secrets of the Jungle'' (), a 2020 Japanese anime film ...

* Masaru Nashimoto, Japanese show-business and gossips reporter * Makoto Sasaki, Japanese

, ranked 7- dan * Takahiro Sonoda, Japanese classical pianist * Michiko Yamamoto, Japanese writer and poet (Real Name: Michiko Furuya,

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. ...

: 古屋道子, ''Furuya Michiko'') * Michiyo Yasuda, Japanese animator and colour designer * Yoko Yamamoto, Japanese actress * Hideo Kachi, Japanese musician (Real Name: Kachi Hidenori,

: カチヒデノリ, ''Hidenori Kachi'') * Kazushi Hagiwara, Japanese

mangaka A manga artist, also known as a mangaka (), is a comic artist who writes and/or illustrates manga. Most manga artists study at an art college or manga school or take on an apprenticeship with another artist before entering the industry as a pr ...

and the creator of '' Bastard!!'' * Kenji Ohtsuki,

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 ...

musician and

Seiun Award The is a Japanese speculative fiction award given each year for the best science fiction works and achievements during the previous calendar year. Organized and overseen by , the awards are given at the annual Nihon SF Taikai, Japan Science Fic ...

-winning writer * Mayumi Kojima, Japanese

Shibuya-kei is a microgenre of pop music or a general aesthetic that flourished in Japan in the mid-to-late 1990s. The music genre is distinguished by a "cut-and-paste" approach that was inspired by the kitsch, fusion, and artifice from certain music styl ...

musician * Shoko Nakagawa, Japanese ''

tarento Television personalities in Japan, known as in Japanese, are celebrities who regularly appear in mass media in Japan, especially as panelists on variety shows. During the Golden Age of Hollywood, bankable stars in the United States were descri ...

'' (media personality), actress, voice actress, illustrator, MC and singer * Kanako Yanagihara, Japanese actress, comedian, and ''

'' * Masao Kobayashi, Japanese politician, member of the

Democratic Party of Japan The was a Centrism, centristThe Democratic Party of Japan was widely described as centrist: * * * * * * * to Centre-left politics, centre-left, Liberalism, liberal or Social liberalism, social-liberal List of political parties in Japan, ...

and member of the

House of Councillors The is the upper house of the National Diet of Japan. The House of Representatives (Japan), House of Representatives is the lower house. The House of Councillors is the successor to the pre-war House of Peers (Japan), House of Peers. If the t ...

in the Diet (national legislature) * Kentaro Shigematsu, Japanese

football player A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...

( Kamatamare Sanuki,

J3 League or simply J3 is the third division of . It was established in 2013 as the third-tier professional association football league in Japan under the organization of J.League. The league is known as the for sponsorship reasons. The third-tier nation ...

) * Mitsuya Kurokawa, Japanese guitarist * Mayumi Itsuwa, Japanese vocalist, composer, lyricist, and keyboardist * Masatō Ibu, Japanese actor and voice actor * Kiyoshiro Imawano,

musician, lyricist, composer, musical producer, and actor (Real Name: Kiyoshi Kurihara,

: 栗原清志, ''Kurihara Kiyoshi'') * Ray Fujita, Japanese actor and musician * Shoko Sawada, Japanese singer-songwriter, reporter, and radio personality * Tochisakae Atsushi, former sumo wrestler * Takahiro Yamaguchi, Japanese former soccer player * Christopher McCombs, American actor and

References

External links

Nakano City Official Website
{{Authority control Wards of Tokyo