Shinjuku (新宿区 Shinjuku-ku, "New Lodge") is one of the 23 special wards of Tokyo, Japan. It is a major commercial and administrative centre, housing the busiest train station in the world (Shinjuku Station) and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, the administration centre for the government of Tokyo.
As of 2008, the ward has an estimated population of 312,418 and a population density of 17,140 persons per km². The total area is 18.23 km².[2]
Geography
Surrounding Shinjuku are six other wards: Chiyoda to the east; Bunkyo and Toshima to the north; Nakano to the west, andShibuya and Minato to the south.[3] In addition, Nerima is only a hundred meters away[citation needed]. The highest point in Shinjuku is Hakoneyama (箱根山) in Toyama Park at 1200 m[4].
[edit]Neighborhoods
Although the area immediately surrounding Shinjuku Station is home to hotels, department stores, specialist electronic and camera shops, cinemas, restaurants, and bars, the rest of the city is a mix of residential with commercial areas concentrated around railway stations[citation needed].
Notable areas of Shinjuku include:
- Ichigaya: A commercial area in eastern Shinjuku, site of the Ministry of Defense.
- Golden Gai: An area of tiny shanty-style bars and clubs. Musicians, artists, actors and directors gather here, and the ramshackle walls of the bars are literally plastered with film posters.
- Kabukichō: A red-light district well known for its bars, restaurants, and sex-related establishments.
- Kagurazaka: Once one of Tokyo's last remaining hanamachi or geisha districts. Sometimes nicknamed "Little Paris," Kagurazaka currently hosts a sizable French community.[5]
- Nishi-Shinjuku: Home to Tokyo's largest concentration of skyscrapers. Several of the tallest buildings in Tokyo are located in this area, including the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, KDDI Building and Park Tower. Located west of Shinjuku Station.
- Ōkubo: Tokyo's best-known Korean district[citation needed].
- Shinjuku Gyoen is a large park, 58.3 hectares, 3.5 km in circumference, blending Japanese traditional, English Landscape andFrench Formal style gardens.
- Shinjuku Ni-chōme: Tokyo's best-known gay district[citation needed].
- Takadanobaba and Waseda: The area between Waseda University, one of the most prestigious private universities in Japan, and Takadanobaba Station is a major residential and nightlife area for students[citation needed].
- Yotsuya: An upscale residential and commercial district; the Arakichō area is well known for its many small restaurants, bars, and izakaya.
[edit]History
In 1634, during the Edo period, as the outer moat of the Edo Castle was built, a number of temples and shrines moved to the Yotsuya area on the western edge of Shinjuku. In 1698, Naitō-Shinjuku had developed as a new (shin) station (shuku or juku) on the Kōshū Kaidō, one of the major highways of that era. Naitō was the family name of a daimyo whose mansion stood in the area; his land is now a public park, the Shinjuku Gyoen.
In 1920, the town of Naitō-Shinjuku that comprised large parts of present-day Shinjuku, parts of Nishi-Shinjuku and Kabukichō was integrated into Tokyo City. Shinjuku began to develop into its current form after the Great Kantō earthquake in 1923, since the seismically stable area largely escaped the devastation. Consequently, West Shinjuku is one of the few areas in Tokyo with manyskyscrapers.
The Tokyo air raids from May to August 1945 destroyed almost 90% of the buildings in the area in and around Shinjuku Station.[6] The pre-war form of Shinjuku, and the rest of Tokyo, for that matter, was retained after the war because the roads and rails, damaged as they were, remained, and these formed the heart of the Shinjuku in the post-war construction. Only in Kabuki-cho was a grand reconstruction plan put into action.[7]
The present ward was established on March 15, 1947 with the merger of the former wards of Yotsuya, Ushigome, and Yodobashi. It served as part of the athletics 50 km walk and marathon course during the 1964 Summer Olympics.[8]
In 1991, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government moved from the Marunouchi district of Chiyoda to the current building in Shinjuku. (The Tokyo International Forum stands on the former site vacated by the government.)
Sightseeing
Shinjuku is home to many well-known sights and tourist attractions.
- Shinjuku Gyoen
- Shinjuku Central Park (Shinjuku Chūō Kōen)
- Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building (designed by renowned architect Kenzo Tange)
- Park Hyatt Tokyo and Park Tower (featured in the film Lost in Translation)
- Waseda University's Ōkuma Auditorium
- Waseda El Dorado building
- Meiji Shrine Outer Gardens and the Meiji Memorial Picture Gallery
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