« Osaka
Las Vegas »

Osaka - More Information

- More Information

Some of the earliest signs of habitation in the area of Osaka were found at the Morinomiya ruins (森の宮遺跡, Morinomiya iseki?), with its shell mounds, including sea oysters and buried human skeletons from the 5 - 6th centuries BC. It is believed that what is today the Uehonmachi area consisted of a peninsular land, with an inland sea in the east. During the Yayoi Period, permanent habitation on the plains grew as became popular.[3]

By the Kofun Period, Osaka developed into a connecting the region to the western part of Japan. The large numbers, and the growing of the size of tomb mounds found in the plains of Osaka, are seen as evidence of political power concentrating, leading to the formation of a state.[3][7]

[edit] Asuka and Nara Period

In 645, Emperor Kōtoku built his palace (難波長柄豊碕宮 Naniwa-no-nagara-no-toyosaki-no-Miya) in Osaka[8], making this area the capital (Naniwa-kyō). The area which now consists of Osaka city was called by this time Naniwa, a name which still exists as the names of districts in central Osaka as Naniwa (浪速) and Namba (難波).[9] While the capital was moved to Asuka (in today) in 655, Naniwa has always been a vital connection, by land and sea, between Yamato (modern day ), Korea, and China.[3][10]

In 744, Naniwa was once again named capital by Emperor Shōmu. Naniwa ceased to be the capital in 745, when the moved back to Heijō-kyō (now Nara). The sea port function was gradually lost over to neighboring lands by the end of Nara Period, but it remained a lively transit of river, channel and land transportation between Heian-kyō (Kyoto today) and other destinations.

[edit] Heian - Edo Period

In 1496, the Jōdo Shinshū Buddhist sect set up their headquarters in the heavily fortified Ishiyama Hongan-ji on top of the ruins of the old Naniwa imperial palace. In 1570, Oda Nobunaga started a siege of the temple that lasted for 10 years. The monks finally surrendered in 1580, the temple was razed, and Toyotomi Hideyoshi constructed on its site.

Osaka was for a long time Japan’s most important[citation needed] economic center with a large percentage of the population belonging to the merchant class (see Four divisions of society). Over the course of the Edo period (1603–1867), Osaka grew into one of Japan’s major cities and returned to its ancient role as a lively and important port. Its popular culture[citation needed] was closely related to ukiyo-e depictions of life in Edo. Developing in parallel with the urban culture of Kyoto and Edo, Osaka likewise featured bunraku and grand kabuki productions, pleasure quarters, and a lively artistic community.

In 1837 Ōshio Heihachirō, a low ranking samurai, led a peasant insurrection in response to the city’s unwillingness to support the many poor and suffering families in the area. Approximately one quarter of the city was razed before shogunal officials put down the rebellion, after which Ōshio killed himself.[11]

[edit] Modern Osaka

The modern city was initially designated[citation needed] in 1889 by government ordinance, starting up with an area of merely 15 km², overlapping today’s Chūō and Nishi wards. Later the city went through three major expansions to reach current size of 222 km².

[edit] “Osaka” (大阪), Etymology

Osaka dervives from Ōsaka, literally means “Large Hill” or “Large Slope”.

It is unclear when the name Ōsaka gained prominence over Naniwa, but the oldest[citation needed] usage of the name dates back to 1496 in a text[citation needed] written about the foundation of the Ishiyama Hongan-ji. At this time, the second kanji was “坂,” instead of the “阪” used today. In the beginning of Meiji Era, the government changed the second kanji 坂 to 阪 because the previous one could, if the radicals were read separately, be interpreted as “(will) return to soil” (土に返る), which seemed a bit gloomy[citation needed]. This remains the official spelling today, though the old one is still in very limited use to emphasize history.

[edit] Geography
Osaka at night.
Osaka at night.
Skyline in Umeda.
Skyline in Umeda.
Universal Studios Japan
Universal Studios Japan
Umeda Sky Building
Umeda Sky Building
Glico man in Dōtonbori
Glico man in Dōtonbori
A crowd in Namba
A crowd in Namba

The city of Osaka has its west side open to Osaka Bay. It is otherwise completely surrounded by over ten smaller cities, all of them in Osaka Prefecture, with one exception: the city of Amagasaki, belonging to Hyōgo Prefecture, in the northwest. The city occupies a larger area (about 12%) than any other city or district within Osaka Prefecture.

The two most crowded[citation needed] centers of the city of Osaka are often[citation needed] called by their synonyms: Kita (キタ, lit. north) and Minami (ミナミ, lit. south), at either end of the major thoroughfare Midōsuji. Kita is roughly the area including or surrounding the business and retail district of Umeda. On the other hand, Minami is home to the Namba, Shinsaibashi and Dōtonbori shopping districts. The entertainment area around Dōtonbori Bridge with its famous giant mechanical crab, Cui-daoré Mechanical Doll/Restaurant, Triangle Park and Amerikamura (”America Village”) is in Minami. The traditional business district, including the courts and regional headquarters of major banks, is primarily located in Yodoyabashi and Honmachi, between Kita and Minami. The newer business district is the OBP, Osaka Business Park, located in the neighborhood of . Business districts have also formed around the city’s secondary rail termini, such as Tennoji Station and Kyobashi Station.

“The 808 bridges of Naniwa” was a famous expression for awe and wonder in old Japan, an almost proverbial adage which was known all across the land. “808” is a large number that in Japan symbolizes the concept “uncountable”– Osaka is crossed by a number of rivers and canals, necessitating many bridges, all of them with specific names (and often lending their name to the surrounding area as well). While some of the waterways, such as the Nagahori canal, are now filled in, the bridges remain as part of this legacy.[12]

[edit] Shopping districts

* American Village (Amerika-mura or “Ame-mura”) - fashion for young people
* Den Den Town - electronic goods and other aspects of otaku culture
* Dōtonbori - part of Namba district and considered heart of the city
* Namba - main shopping, sightseeing, and restaurant area
* Shinsaibashi - luxury goods and department stores
* Umeda - theaters, boutiques, and department stores near the train station

[edit] Wards

Osaka has 24 wards (ku), one more than Tokyo:

* Abeno-ku
* Asahi-ku
* Chūō-ku
* Fukushima-ku
* Higashinari-ku
* Higashisumiyoshi-ku
* Higashiyodogawa-ku
* Hirano-ku
* Ikuno-ku
* Joto-ku
* Kita-ku
* Konohana-ku

* Minato-ku
* Miyakojima-ku
* Naniwa-ku
* Nishi-ku
* Nishinari-ku
* Nishiyodogawa-ku
* Suminoe-ku
* Sumiyoshi-ku
* Taisho-ku
* Tennoji-ku
* Tsurumi-ku
* Yodogawa-ku

[edit] Climate
Osaka avg taken at Chuo-ku, 2004[13] Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Avg high °C 9.4 12.6 14.8 21.6 25.7 29.3 34.0 33.3 30.7 23.2 19.4 14.5 22.4
Average °C 5.8 7.9 10.2 16.4 21.1 24.8 29.5 28.4 26.2 19.0 15.2 10.2 17.9
Avg low °C 2.6 3.8 6.0 11.3 17.2 21.3 26.2 25.1 22.9 15.7 11.4 6.5 14.2
Avg Humidity % 59 56 57 54 65 66 63 66 67 69 66 64 63
Rainfall [mm] 19.0 47.5 75.5 125.0 281.5 133.5 42.0 106.5 202.5 356.0 117.5 88.0 132.9

[edit] Demographics

According to the 2005 Population Census of Japan[citation needed], the city of Osaka has a population of 2,628,811, which is an increase of 30,037, or 1.2%, since the previous Census of year 2000, however, but much lower than its postwar peak of 3,156,222 (1965 census) and overall peak 3,252,340 (1940 Census). Between 1920 and 1930, due to the Great Kanto Earthquake, there was a mass migration to Osaka, with its population doubling. In the 1930 Census, Osaka was Japan’s largest city with 2,453,573 people, beating out Tokyo with 2,070,913. Many other cities in the Kinki area have populations far below their peaks. Despite these trends, Greater Osaka’s population has been increasing since the end of the war, until the last few years.

The population density was 11,836 persons per km²[citation needed]. The number of households was 1,242,489, with an average of approximately 2.1 members per household, lately 2.31 members. There were 99,775 Registered Foreigners, with the two largest group being Korean (71,015 people) and Chinese (11,848 people). The largest portion of registered Zainichi Korean is the 27,466 people residing in Ikuno, where the so-called[citation needed] Korean town, Tsuruhashi, is located.

Commonly spoken dialect of this area is Osaka-ben. An example, among many other particularities that characterizes Osaka-ben, is the use of the suffix hen instead of nai in the negative of verbs[citation needed].

[edit] Economy
Tsūtenkaku, known as the symbol of Osaka’s post-WWII rebuilding.
Tsūtenkaku, known as the symbol of Osaka’s post-WWII rebuilding.
Osaka City Hall
Osaka City Hall
Osaka WTC Building
Osaka WTC Building

The gross city product of Osaka for fiscal year 2004 was ¥21.3 trillion, an increase of 1.2% over the previous year. This amount is about 55% of the Osaka Prefecture and 26.5% of the Kinki region. As of 2004, commerce, services and manufacturing have been the three major industries with a respective share of 30%, 26% and 11% of total industry. The per capita income was about ¥3.3 million, 10% higher than that of the Osaka Prefecture.[14] MasterCard Worldwide reported Osaka is 19th ranking city of the world’s leading global cities and the instrumental role in driving the global economy.[3]

The GDP in the greater Osaka area (Osaka and Kobe) is $341 billion. Osaka has one of the most productive hinterlands in the world, making it a match even for Paris and London. [4] This GDP has kept fairly constant for the past 15 years, when the GDP compared to other cities worldwide was that much larger.

Historically, Osaka was the center of Japanese commerce, especially in the middle and pre-modern ages[citation needed]. Nomura Securities, the first brokerage firm in Japan was founded in the city in 1925 and Osaka still houses the leading futures exchange in the country. Today, many major companies have since moved their main offices to Tokyo, principally in the 1970s, but several major companies are still headquartered in Osaka such as Panasonic, Sharp and Sanyo. Recently, the city began a program, headed by Mayor Junichi Seki, to try to attract domestic and foreign investment in the city” (天下の台所, tenka no daidokoro?) or the gourmet food capital of Jap

Related Blogs

This entry was posted on Friday, October 10th, 2008 at 4:55 pm and is filed under Japan. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Leave a Reply


elgoog
310 433-8813
reverse phone lookup
phone number lookup