, is the capital

city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

Kagoshima Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu and the Ryukyu Islands. Kagoshima Prefecture has a population of 1,527,019 (1 February 2025) and has a geographic area of 9,187 Square kilometre, km2 (3,547 Square m ...

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 ...

. , the city had an estimated

population Population is a set of humans or other organisms in a given region or area. Governments conduct a census to quantify the resident population size within a given jurisdiction. The term is also applied to non-human animals, microorganisms, and pl ...

of 583,966 in 285,992 households, and 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 1100 persons per km². The total area of the city is .

Etymology

While the

kanji are logographic Chinese characters, adapted from Chinese family of scripts, Chinese script, used in the writing of Japanese language, Japanese. They were made a major part of the Japanese writing system during the time of Old Japanese and are ...

used to spell () literally mean "deer child island", or "island of the fawn", the source etymology is not clear, and may refer to "cliff" or "sailor" in the

local dialect Local may refer to: Geography and transportation * Local (train), a train serving local traffic demand * Local, Missouri, a community in the United States Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Local'' (comics), a limited series comic book by Bria ...

. Local names for the city include , , and .

History

Kagoshima is located in ancient

Satsuma Province was an old province of Japan that is now the western half of Kagoshima Prefecture on the island of Kyūshū. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Satsuma" in . Its abbreviation was . History Satsuma's provincial capital was Satsumasendai. Dur ...

and was the center of the territory of the

Shimazu clan The were the ''daimyō'' of the Satsuma han, which spread over Satsuma, Ōsumi and Hyūga provinces in Japan. The Shimazu were identified as one of the '' tozama'' or outsider ''daimyō'' familiesAppert, Georges ''et al.'' (1888). in contr ...

from the late

Kamakura period The is a period of History of Japan, Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura, Kanagawa, Kamakura by the first ''shōgun'' Minamoto no Yoritomo after the conclusion of the G ...

. Kagoshima City developed political and commercial port city in 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 ...

(1603–1868) when it became the seat of the Shimazu's

Satsuma Domain The , briefly known as the , was a Han system, domain (''han'') of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan during the Edo period from 1600 to 1871. The Satsuma Domain was based at Kagoshima Castle in Satsuma Province, the core of the modern city of ...

, which was one of the most powerful and wealthiest domains in the country throughout the period, and though international trade was

banned A ban is a formal or informal prohibition of something. Bans are formed for the prohibition of activities within a certain political territory. Some bans in commerce are referred to as embargoes. ''Ban'' is also used as a verb similar in meaning ...

for much of this period, the city remained quite active and prosperous. Satsuma Domain also had control over the semi-independent vassal kingdom of

Ryūkyū The , also known as the or the , are a chain of Japanese islands that stretch southwest from Kyushu to Taiwan: the Ryukyu Islands are divided into the Satsunan Islands ( Ōsumi, Tokara and Amami) and Okinawa Prefecture ( Daitō, Miyako, Y ...

; Ryūkyūan traders and emissaries frequented the city, and a special Ryukyuan embassy building was established to help administer relations between the two

polities A polity is a group of people with a collective identity, who are organized by some form of political institutionalized social relations, and have a capacity to mobilize resources. A polity can be any group of people organized for governance ...

and to house visitors and emissaries. Kagoshima was also a significant center of

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

activity in Japan prior to the imposition of bans against that religion in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. The domain was also a center of anti-

Tokugawa shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. The Tokugawa shogunate was established by Tokugawa Ieyasu after victory at the Battle of Sekigahara, ending the civil wars ...

sentiment. During the

Bakumatsu period were the final years of the Edo period when the Tokugawa shogunate ended. Between 1853 and 1867, under foreign diplomatic and military pressure, Japan ended its isolationist foreign policy known as and changed from a feudal Tokugawa shogunat ...

, Kagoshima was bombarded by the British

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

in 1863 to punish the ''

daimyō were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji era, Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and no ...

'' of Satsuma Domain for the murder of

Namamugi Incident The , also known as the Kanagawa incident and Richardson affair, was a political crisis that occurred in the Tokugawa Shogunate of Japan during the ''Bakumatsu'' on 14 September 1862. Charles Lennox Richardson, a British merchant, was killed by ...

on the Tōkaidō highway the previous year and its refusal to pay an

indemnity In contract law, an indemnity is a contractual obligation of one party (the ''indemnitor'') to compensate the loss incurred by another party (the ''indemnitee'') due to the relevant acts of the indemnitor or any other party. The duty to indemni ...

in compensation. Many of the leaders of 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 the

Boshin War The , sometimes known as the Japanese Revolution or Japanese Civil War, was a civil war in Japan fought from 1868 to 1869 between forces of the ruling Tokugawa shogunate and a coalition seeking to seize political power in the name of the Impe ...

were from Satsuma. Japan's

Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution, sometimes divided into the First Industrial Revolution and Second Industrial Revolution, was a transitional period of the global economy toward more widespread, efficient and stable manufacturing processes, succee ...

is said to have started here, stimulated by the young students' train station. Nineteen young men of Satsuma broke the shogunate's ban on foreign travel, traveling to various industrial locations in the United Kingdom before returning to share the benefits of the best of Western science and technology. A statue was erected outside the train station as a tribute to them. Kagoshima was also the birthplace of

Tōgō Heihachirō , served as a '' gensui'' or admiral of the fleet in the Imperial Japanese Navy and became one of Japan's greatest naval heroes. As Commander-in-Chief of the Combined Fleet during the Russo-Japanese War of 1904–1905, he successfully confine ...

. After naval studies in

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

between 1871 and 1878, Togo's role as Chief Admiral of the Grand Fleet of the

Imperial Japanese Navy The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, Potsdam Declaration, when it was dissolved followin ...

in the

Russo-Japanese War The Russo-Japanese War (8 February 1904 – 5 September 1905) was fought between the Russian Empire and the Empire of Japan over rival imperial ambitions in Manchuria and the Korean Empire. The major land battles of the war were fought on the ...

made him a legend in Japanese military history, and earned him the nickname '

Nelson Nelson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey * ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers * ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...

of the Orient' in Britain. He led the Grand Fleet to two startling victories in 1904 and 1905, completely destroying Russia as a naval power in the East, and thereby contributing to the failed

revolution in Russia ''La révolution en Russie'', also known as ''Les événements d'Odessa'' and ''La révolte du cuirassée Potemkine'' is a 1905 French silent short film directed by Lucien Nonguet, and distributed in English-speaking countries under the titles ' ...

in 1905. The Japanese diplomat Sadomitsu Sakoguchi revolutionized Kagoshima's environmental economic plan with his dissertation on water pollution and orange harvesting. In 1912, the first tram line was established in Kagoshima. The 1914 eruption of the volcano across the bay from the city spread ash throughout the municipality, but relatively little disruption ensued. File:Bombing of Kagoshima Map - 1863.PNG, Map of the

Bombardment of Kagoshima The Bombardment of Kagoshima, also known as the , was a military engagement fought between United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, Britain and the Satsuma Domain in Kagoshima from 15 to 17 August 1863. The British were attempting to extract ...

on 15 to 18 August 1863 File:Kagoshima 1914.jpg, The city covered deep in ash after the 1914 eruption of the

Sakurajima Sakurajima (, ) is an active composite volcano, stratovolcano, formerly an island and now a peninsula, in Kagoshima Prefecture in Kyushu, Japan. The lava flows of the 1914 eruption connected it with the Ōsumi Peninsula. It is the most active vo ...

volcano which is seen in the distance across the bay

World War II

On the night of June 17, 1945, the 314th bombardment wing of the Army Air Corps (120 B-29s) dropped 809.6 tons of incendiary and cluster bombs destroying of Kagoshima (44.1 percent of the built-up area). Kagoshima was targeted because of its largely expanded naval port as well as its position as a railway terminus. A single B-29 was lost to unknown circumstances. Area bombing was chosen over precision bombing because of the cloudy weather over Japan during the middle of June. The planes were forced to navigate and bomb entirely by radar. Japanese intelligence predicted that the Allied Forces would

assault In the terminology of law, an assault is the act of causing physical harm or consent, unwanted physical contact to another person, or, in some legal definitions, the threat or attempt to do so. It is both a crime and a tort and, therefore, may ...

Kagoshima and the

Ariake Bay The is a body of salt water surrounded by Fukuoka, Saga, Nagasaki, and Kumamoto Prefectures, all of which lie on the island of Kyūshū in Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coas ...

areas of southern Kyushu to gain naval and air bases to strike Tokyo. File:Kagoshima after the 1945 air raid.JPG, The bombed out ruins of a Kagoshima residential area with Sakurajima in the background, 1 November 1945

As a municipality

The municipality was officially founded on April 1, 1889. It was merged with Taniyama City to inaugurate new Kagoshima City on April 29, 1967. The city was designed a

core city In urban planning, a historic core city or central city is the municipality with the largest 1940 population in the present metropolitan area (metropolitan statistical area). This term was retired by the US census bureau and replaced by the term ...

with increased local autonomy on April 1, 1996. On November 1, 2004, Yoshida Town, Sakurajima Town, Kiire Town, Matsumoto Town and Kōriyama Town were merged into Kagoshima City.

Geography

Located at the southwestern tip of the island of

Kyūshū is the third-largest island of Japan's four main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands (i.e. excluding Okinawa and the other Ryukyu (''Nansei'') Islands). In the past, it has been known as , and . The historical regio ...

, Kagoshima is the largest city in the prefecture by some margin. It has been nicknamed the "

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

of the

Eastern world The Eastern world, also known as the East or historically the Orient, is an umbrella term for various cultures or social structures, nations and philosophical systems, which vary depending on the context. It most often includes Asia, the ...

" for its bay location (

Aira Caldera Aira Caldera is a gigantic volcanic caldera located on the southern end of Kyushu, Japan. It is believed to have been formed about 30,000 years ago with a succession of pyroclastic surges. It is currently the place of residence to over 900,000 pe ...

), hot climate, and emblematic

stratovolcano A stratovolcano, also known as a composite volcano, is a typically conical volcano built up by many alternating layers (strata) of hardened lava and tephra. Unlike shield volcanoes, stratovolcanoes are characterized by a steep profile with ...

. It is situated about 280 kilometers south of Fukuoka City and about 180 kilometers south of Kumamoto City. The city covers the northeastern part of the

Satsuma Peninsula The Satsuma Peninsula (薩摩半島 ''Satsuma-hantō'') is a peninsula which projects south from the southwest part of Kyūshū Island, Japan. To the west lies the East China Sea, while to the east it faces the Ōsumi Peninsula across Kagoshima ...

and the entire area of Sakurajima. Most of the plains are occupied by commercial, residential, and industrial areas, with almost no cultivated areas. Many of the slopes and mountain areas near the city have been developed into residential areas, with many housing complexes and new towns. However, road development has not kept up with the city's growth, and all major roads are heavily congested in the mornings and evenings. Kagoshima is constantly bombarded by ash from the eruptions of Sakurajima and is at risk of a major volcanic disaster; the residents have developed methods to cope with this including school-children wearing helmets to protect from volcanic debris. File:Sakurajima at Sunset (4506849144).jpg, Sakurajima: a volcano in Kagoshima File:Sakurajima n700.jpg, Urban area around the Kagoshima-Chūō Station with Shinkansen (bullet train) File:Kagoshima Shiden 9500 Kajiyacho Station 2013-03-15.jpg, Kajiyachō Tram Stop with its back to the Kagoshima-Chūō Station Building having Ferris wheel File:Tenmonkan G3 Kagoshima Japan.jpg, Tenmonkan shopping arcade File:Kagoshima City Hall 1.jpg, Kagoshima City Hall Main Building File:Koutsuki River - Cherry trees are in full bloom.jpg, Kotsuki River that runs through Kagoshima City File:Kagoshima Aquarium and Kagoshima Port Sakurajima Ferry Terminal from ship of Sakurajima Ferry.jpg, Kagoshima City Aquarium and Sakurajima Ferry Terminal File:ISS034-E-027139.jpg, An image taken from the International Space Station showing Kagoshima and its surroundings on January 10, 2013

Neighboring municipalities

Kagoshima Prefecture *

Aira ''Aira'' is a genus of Old World plants in the grass family, native to western and southern Europe, central and southwest Asia, plus Africa. The common name, shared with the similar related genera '' Deschampsia'' and ''Koeleria'', is hair-gras ...

* Hioki *

Ibusuki is a Cities of Japan, city located in Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 37,594 in 17477 households, and a population density of 250 people per km2. The total area of the city is . Geography Ibusuki is loc ...

Minamikyūshū file:Minamikyusyu City Hall.jpg, 290px, Minamikyūshū City Hall file:Chiran Fumoto 01.JPG, 290px, Chiran Historical Preservation District file:Route226 ja Ei 01.JPG, 290px, Japan National Route 226 in Ei is a Cities of Japan, city in Kagoshim ...

* Minamisatsuma * Satsumasendai * Tarumizu

Climate

Kagoshima 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''), possessing the highest year average temperature and winter average temperature in mainland Japan. It is marked by mild, relatively dry winters; warm, humid springs; hot, humid summers; and mild, relatively dry autumns.

Demographics

Kagoshima prefecture population pyramid 2020

As of 1 January 2020, Kagoshima City has a
estimated population
of 595,049 and a

of 1,087 persons per km². The total area is . According to th
April 2014 issue of the Kagoshima Prefectural Summary
by the Kagoshima Prefecture Department of Planning and Promotion, the population of the prefecture at large was 1,680,319. The city's total area nearly doubled between 2003 and 2005 as a result of five towns: the towns of

Kōriyama is a city in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 321,938 people in 141760 households, and a population density of 425 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Kōriyama is designated as a core city and ...

and Matsumoto (both from Hioki District) the town of Kiire (from Ibusuki District) and the towns of

and Yoshida (both from Kagoshima District). All areas were merged into Kagoshima City on 1 November 2004.

Administrative mergers

* On August 1, 1934 – the Villages of Yoshino, Nakagōriu and Nishitakeda, all from Kagoshima District, were merged into Kagoshima. 角川日本地名大辞典 46 鹿児島県 p.678 * On October 1, 1950 – the Villages of Ishiki and Higashisakurajima (both from Kagoshima District) were merged into Kagoshima. * On April 29, 1967 – the Cities of Kagoshima and Taniyama were merged and became city of new Kagoshima. * On November 1, 2004 – the Towns of Yoshida and

(both from Kagoshima District); the Towns of Matsumoto and Koriyama (both from Hioki District); and the town of Kiire (from Ibusuki District) were merged into Kagoshima.

Sakurajima

is a settlement on Sakurajima island that was previously a municipally distinct

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

located in Kagoshima District,

. As of 2003, the town had an estimated

of 4,504 and a

density Density (volumetric mass density or specific mass) is the ratio of a substance's mass to its volume. The symbol most often used for density is ''ρ'' (the lower case Greek letter rho), although the Latin letter ''D'' (or ''d'') can also be u ...

of 139.88 persons per km². The total area was 32.20 km².

Government

Kagoshima has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a

unicameral Unicameralism (from ''uni''- "one" + Latin ''camera'' "chamber") is a type of legislature consisting of one house or assembly that legislates and votes as one. Unicameralism has become an increasingly common type of legislature, making up nearly ...

city council of 45 members. Kagoshma contributes 17 members to the Kagoshima Prefectural Assembly. In terms of national politics, the city is divided between the Kagoshima 1st district and Kagoshima 2nd district of the

lower house A lower house is the lower chamber of a bicameral legislature, where the other chamber is the upper house. Although styled as "below" the upper house, in many legislatures worldwide, the lower house has come to wield more power or otherwise e ...

of the

Diet of Japan , transcription_name = ''Kokkai'' , legislature = 215th Session of the National Diet , coa_pic = Flag of Japan.svg , house_type = Bicameral , houses = , foundation=29 November 1890(), leader1_type ...

Economy

Kagoshima is a regional commercial center, with an economy centered on light manufacturing, tourism and commercial fishing.

Education

Universities and colleges

* The International University of Kagoshima * Kagoshima Immaculate Heart College * Kagoshima Prefectural College *

Kagoshima University , abbreviated to , is a Japanese national university located in Kagoshima, Kagoshima, Kagoshima, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. History The university was established in 1949 consolidating the following schools because of educational reform in ...

* Kagoshima Women's College * Shigakukan University

Primary and secondary education

Kagoshima has 79 public elementary schools, 38 public junior high schools, two public high schools and one combined junior/senior high school operated by the city government and 11 public high schools operated by the Kagoshima Prefectural Board of Education. There is one combined national elementary/middle school. There are also 14 private high schools. The prefecture also operates seven special education schools for the handicapped.

Transportation

Airport

Kagoshima Airport is an international airport located in Kirishima, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan, northeast of Kagoshima-Chūō StationAIS Japan

in Kirishima ( NE of Kagoshima)

Railways

Kyushu Shinkansen The is a Japanese Shinkansen high-speed railway network. It is an extension of the San'yō Shinkansen from Honshu connecting the city of Fukuoka (Hakata Station) in the north of Japan's Kyushu Island to the city of Kagoshima (Kagoshima-Chuo Sta ...

: -

Kagoshima Main Line The is a major railway line operated by the Kyushu Railway Company (JR Kyushu) between Mojiko Station, Mojikō in Kitakyushu, and Kagoshima Station in Kagoshima, Kagoshima, Kagoshima City, at the southern end of Kyushu. Until March 13, 2004, it ...

: - - - -

Nippō Main Line The is a railway line in Kyushu, in southern Japan, operated by Kyushu Railway Company (JR Kyushu). Also known as the Fukuhoku Nippo Line, The line connects Kokura Station in Kitakyushu, Fukuoka, and Kagoshima Station in Kagoshima, Kagoshima, K ...

: - -

Ibusuki Makurazaki Line The is a railway line in Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan, operated by the Kyushu Railway Company (JR Kyushu). It connects Kagoshima-Chūō Station in Kagoshima, Kagoshima, Kagoshima, to Makurazaki Station in Makurazaki, Kagoshima, Makurazaki, paral ...

: - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Tramway

* Kagoshima City Transportation Bureau Taniyama Line * Kagoshima City Transportation Bureau Korimoto Line

Highways

Kyushu Expressway * JP Expressway E31

Minamikyushu Expressway * * * * * * *

Ferry/Jetfoil

*A Line (to southern islands) *Marix Line (to southern islands) *RKK Line (to Okinawa, cargo only) *

Sakurajima Ferry The is a Japanese ferry which links between Kagoshima Port and Sakurajima Port, both in Kagoshima prefecture. It is administered by Kagoshima City Ship Department. Overview In 1914, the eruption of Mt. Sakurajima affected the islands inhabitan ...

*Seahawk (to Koshikijima Islands) *Toppy (to

Tanegashima is one of the Ōsumi Islands belonging to Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. The island, in area, is the second largest of the Ōsumi Islands, and has a population of 33,000 people. Access to the island is by ferry, or by air to New Tanegashima Airp ...

and

Yakushima is one of the Ōsumi Islands in Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. The island, in area, has a population of 13,178. It is accessible by hydrofoil ferry, car ferry, or by air to Yakushima Airport. Administratively, the island consists of the town ...

)

Sister cities

Kagoshima is twinned with: *

Changsha Changsha is the capital of Hunan, China. It is the 15th most populous city in China with a population of 10,513,100, the Central China#Cities with urban area over one million in population, third-most populous city in Central China, and the ...

, China, since 1982 *

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

, United States, since 1990 *

, Italy, since 1960 *

Perth Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...

, Australia, since 1974 *

Strasbourg Strasbourg ( , ; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est Regions of France, region of Geography of France, eastern France, in the historic region of Alsace. It is the prefecture of the Bas-Rhin Departmen ...

, France, since 2019 *

Tsuruoka is a Cities of Japan, city in Yamagata Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 125,389 in 49,024 households, and a population density of 95.74 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Tsuruoka is the biggest city in ...

, Japan, since 1969

Local attractions

* Ishibashi Park *

Kagoshima Botanical Garden The , variously known as Kagoshima Tropical Botanical Garden, Kagoshima Tropical Vegetation Park, or Kagoshima Prefecture Botanical Gardens, was a botanical garden located at 1-7-15 Yojiro, Kagoshima, Kagoshima, Japan. The garden was founded in 197 ...

Closed? * Kagoshima City Aquarium, situated near the Sakurajima Ferry Terminal, was established in 1997 along the docks and offers a direct view of Sakurajima. * Museum of the Meiji Restoration * Sengan-en Garden, originally a villa belonging to the

and is still maintained by descendants today. Outside the garden grounds is a Satsuma "kiriko"

cut glass Cut glass or cut-glass is a technique and a style of decorating glass. For some time the style has often been produced by other techniques such as the use of Molding (process), moulding, but the original technique of cutting glass on an abrasiv ...

factory where visitors are welcome to view the glass blowing and cutting processes, and the Shoko Shūseikan Museum, which was built in 1865 and registered as a National Historic Site in 1959. The former Shuseikan industrial complex and the former machine factory were submitted to the UNESCO World Heritage as part of a group list titled ''Modern Industrial Heritage Sites in Kyushu and Yamaguchi Prefecture''. File:Napoli Street in Kagoshima.JPG, Naples Street in Kagoshima File:Perth_Street_in_Kagoshima_20201128.jpg, Perth Street in Kagoshima File:Miami Street in Kagoshima.JPG, Miami Street in Kagoshima File:Kyougetsu-Tei Kagoshima Japan.jpg, Kyogetsu-Tei in Kagoshima commemorating the friendship city relationship with Changsha

Sports

Kagoshima was one of the host cities of the official 1998 Women's Volleyball World Championship. Kagoshima is home to

Kagoshima United is a Japanese professional football club based in Kagoshima, Capital of Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. That was formed from the merger of ''Volca Kagoshima'' and ''FC Kagoshima''. Both clubs played in the Kyushu Soccer League before the merger. Th ...

. They play their home games at

Kagoshima Kamoike Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Kagoshima, Japan. It is currently used mostly for association football, football and rugby union matches. It was formerly known as Kagoshima Kamoike Stadium. Since April 2018 it has been called Shiranami Stadium ...

Notable people from Kagoshima

* Akitsune Imamura – Japanese seismologist *

Bernardo the Japanese was an early Japanese Christians, Christian convert of the 16th century, born in Kagoshima, and the first Japanese person to set foot in Europe. Bernardo was one of the first converts of Saint Francis Xavier, and one of his two disciples. Berna ...

– Japanese Christian convert, disciple of Saint

Francis Xavier Francis Xavier, Jesuits, SJ (born Francisco de Jasso y Azpilicueta; ; ; ; ; ; 7 April 15063 December 1552), venerated as Saint Francis Xavier, was a Kingdom of Navarre, Navarrese cleric and missionary. He co-founded the Society of Jesus ...

, and first Japanese to set foot in Europe * Emi Hashino – Japanese comedian *

Hiroko Ōta is a Japanese politician, national university president and a researcher of economics. Her academic specialties are national public finance and economic policy. She is a noted lecturer of public finance and is a senior professor at the Natio ...

– Japanese politician, economic researcher *

Hiroshi Kawauchi is a Japanese politician of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, and a member of the House of Representatives in the Diet (national legislature). He studied at Waseda University Waseda University (Japanese: ), abbreviated as or , is ...

– Japanese politician *

Ikki Sawamura is a Japanese model, film and television actor, and television presenter signed to Ken-On. His second son, Kōta Nomura is also an actor. Early life and career Ikki Sawamura was born in Kagoshima in 1967. After graduating from the local high ...

– Japanese model, actor, TV presenter *

Izumi Inamori is a Japanese actress signed to Burning Production. Biography Izumi Inamori was born and grew up in Kagoshima Prefecture. After finished from the local high school, Inamori went to University of Texas at Arlington to study English abroad. Aft ...

– Japanese actress *

Junichi Miyashita is a Japanese swimmer. He won a bronze medal in the men's 4 × 100 metre medley relay at the 2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and officially branded as Beijing 2008 (), were a ...

– Japanese swimmer *

Kabayama Sukenori Count was a Japanese samurai military leader and statesman. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"Kabayama Sukenori"in ''Japan Encyclopedia'', p. 441. He was a general in the Imperial Japanese Army and an admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy. H ...

– Japanese

samurai The samurai () were members of the warrior class in Japan. They were originally provincial warriors who came from wealthy landowning families who could afford to train their men to be mounted archers. In the 8th century AD, the imperial court d ...

military leader Military ranks is a system of hierarchical relationships within armed forces, police, intelligence agencies, paramilitary groups, and other institutions organized along military lines, such as youth groups, chivalric orders, religious orders, an ...

and statesman *

Kaneta Kimotsuki was a Japanese actor and voice actor. Career During his life he had been attached to TBS broadcast theater company and then Aoni Production, Production Baobab, he became a director of his own agency 21st century FOX; he was attached to 81 Pr ...

– Japanese voice actor (1935–2016) *

Kazuo Inamori was a Japanese philanthropist, entrepreneur, Zen Buddhist priest, and the founder of Kyocera and KDDI. He was the chairman of Japan Airlines. Inamori was elected as a member into the National Academy of Engineering in 2000 for innovation i ...

– Japanese philanthropist, entrepreneur, founder of

Kyocera Corporation is a Japanese multinational ceramics and electronics manufacturer headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. It was founded as in 1959 by Kazuo Inamori and renamed in 1982. It manufactures industrial ceramics, solar power generating systems, telecommun ...

and

KDDI Corporation () is a Japanese telecommunications operator. It was established in 2000 through the merger of , , and . In 2001, it merged with a subsidiary named Au, which was formed through the merger of seven automotive and mobile phone companies from t ...

, and chairman of

Japan Airlines Japan Airlines (JAL) is the flag carrier airline of Japan. JAL is headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo. Its main hubs are Tokyo's Narita International Airport, Narita and Haneda Airport, Haneda airports, as well as secondary hubs in Osaka's Kansai ...

Kawasaki Shōzō was a Japanese industrialist and shipbuilder. He was the founder of Kawasaki Heavy Industries. Biography Born in Kagoshima to a kimono merchant, Kawasaki Shōzō became a tradesman at the age of 17 in Nagasaki, the only place in Japan then ...

– Industrialist, founder of the

Kawasaki Heavy Industries is a Japanese Public company, public multinational corporation manufacturer of motorcycles, engines, Heavy equipment (construction), heavy equipment, aerospace and Military, defense equipment, rolling stock and ships, headquartered in Minato, To ...

and

K Line is a Japanese transportation company. It owns a fleet that includes dry cargo ships (bulk carriers), container ships, liquefied natural gas carriers, Ro-Ro ships, tankers, and container terminals. It used to be the fourteenth largest contai ...

groups *

Kōhei Miyauchi , better known by the stage name , was a Japanese actor and voice actor born in Kagoshima Prefecture. On June 2, 1995, Miyauchi died on his hospital bed at the Nihon University Itabashi Hospital from abdominal varices. At the time of Miyauchi's d ...

– Japanese actor *

Koji Maeda is a former Japanese football player and manager. Playing career Maeda was born in Kagoshima Prefecture on 3 February 1969. He played as center back at many clubs. After graduating from National Institute of Fitness and Sports in Kanoya, he ...

– Japanese football player * Kiyotaka Kuroda – Japanese politician, second Prime Minister of Japan *

Masao Suenaga is a retired Japanese professional drifting driver. He is the younger brother of Naoto who both were taught by Nobushige Kumakubo. He began his motorsport career racing minibikes in the Kyūshū area, later winning a title. Following this, h ...

– Japanese drifting driver *

Miyo Yoshida Miyo Yoshida (吉田実代, ''Yoshida Miyo'', born 12 April 1988) is a Japanese professional boxer. She held the List of IBF female world champions#Bantamweight, IBF female bantamweight title 2023-2024 and twice the World Boxing Organization, WB ...

– Japanese

professional boxer Professional boxing, or prizefighting, is regulated, sanctioned boxing. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse that is divided between the boxers as determined by contract. Most professional fights are supervised by a regulatory auth ...

Mone Kamishiraishi , is a Japanese actress and singer. She is the older sister of actress Moka Kamishiraishi. Early life and career Born in Kagoshima, Her family lived in Mexico for three years due to her father's work. She can speak English and a little bit of ...

– Japanese singer and actress *

Morihiko Nakahara is a Japanese conductor. Born in Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan, Nakahara is the music director and conductor at the South Carolina Philharmonic, and resident conductor of the Spokane Symphony. Nakahara received a Master of Music degree in instr ...

– Japanese conductor * Norihiro Nakajima – Japanese manga artist of Astro Team, etc. * Ryuji Fujiyama – Japanese football player *

Saigō Takamori Saigō Takamori (; 23 January 1828 – 24 September 1877) was a Japanese samurai and politician who was one of the most influential figures in Japanese history. He played a key role in the Meiji Restoration, which overthrew the Tokugawa shogunate ...

– Japanese politician, samurai *

Sakura Miyawaki Sakura Miyawaki (born March 19, 1998), also known mononymously as Sakura, is a Japanese singer and actress based in South Korea. She is a member of the South Korean girl group Le Sserafim, and a former member of South Korean-Japanese girl group ...

– Japanese idol singer and actress, member of

Le Sserafim Le Sserafim ( ; ; stylized in all caps) is a South Korean girl group formed by Source Music, a sub-label of Hybe Corporation, Hybe. The group consists of five members: Sakura Miyawaki, Sakura, Kim Chaewon, Huh Yunjin, Kazuha, and Hong Eunchae. ...

* Saori Sakoda – Japanese volleyball player * Seiki Kuroda – Japanese artist *

Shinobu Kaitani is a Japanese manga artist. He is known for his works, ''One Outs'' and '' Liar Game''. Early life Kaitani is from Kagoshima City, Kagoshima Prefecture. He graduated from Kagoshima Prefectural Konan High School and from Department of Electron ...

– Japanese manga artist *

Taisei Okazaki Taisei Okazaki (born 23 March 1982 in Kagoshima Prefecture) is a Japanese musician, DJ, and music producer who has produced music with Lord Kimo (the original member of Asian Dub Foundation) since 2009. He has been ranked #46 in The Greatest ...

– Japanese DJ & music producer * Takuya Shiihara – Japanese football player *

- Admiral of the

Toru Kamikawa is a former Japanese football (soccer) referee, debuting in Japan's professional J. League in 1996. Kamikawa was born in Kagoshima, Kagoshima Prefecture. An international referee since 1998, he refereed one match at the 2002 FIFA World Cup and ...

– Japanese football referee * Toshimichi Ōkubo – Japanese statesman, samurai, and one of the

Three Great Nobles The is a term used in Japan for three figures that played an important role in the Meiji Restoration in 1868 and are regarded as the founders of the modern state of Japan.『維新元勲十傑論』、16頁 The Three Great Nobles were: * Ōkubo ...

who led to 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 ...

Yasuhito Endō is a Japanese former footballer who played as a midfielder. Endō's playing career unfolded entirely within Japan, where he was associated with Gamba Osaka for 20 years. He made his senior international debut in 2002, representing Japan in th ...

– Japanese football player * Yoshito Kajiya – Japanese politician *

Yuki Kashiwagi is a Japanese singer. She was a member of the Japanese idol girl group AKB48, NMB48 and NGT48. She auditioned for AKB48 on December 3, 2006, and was a member of AKB48's Team B. She was previously the captain of Team B before she was replaced ...

– Japanese idol singer * Yuya Hikichi – Japanese football player

References

* Amu Plaza Visitors Guide (2006) available in Amu Plaza, Chūō Station, Kagoshima, Japan *

External links

*
Kagoshima City official website

{{Authority control Cities in Kagoshima Prefecture Imperial Japanese Navy Populated coastal places in Japan Port settlements in Japan