Nishi-ku, Yokohama

Nishi 西区
Ward
Nishi Ward
Minato Mirai 21, with Landmark Tower second from the left
Flag

Location of Nishi in Kanagawa
Nishi
Coordinates: 35°27′13″N 139°37′1″E / 35.45361°N 139.61694°E / 35.45361; 139.61694
Country	Japan
Region	Kantō
Prefecture	Kanagawa
City	Yokohama
Area
• Total	7.04 km² (2.72 sq mi)
Population (February 2010)
• Total	93,210
• Density	13,210/km² (34,200/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+9 (Japan Standard Time)
- Tree	Osmanthus
- Flower	Narcissus
Address	1-5-10 Chuo, Nishi-ku Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa-ken 220-0051
Website	Nishi Ward Office

Nishi-ku (西区) is one of the 18 wards of the city of Yokohama in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. As of 2010, the ward had an estimated population of 93,027 and a density of 13,210 persons per km². The total area was 7.04 km².

Geography

Nishi Ward is located in eastern Kanagawa Prefecture, near the geographic center of the city of Yokohama. It is the smallest of the wards of the city in terms of area, but it includes Yokohama's major commercial hub, extending from the Yokohama Station area through the new Minato Mirai 21 complex, which is home to the Yokohama Landmark Tower, the second tallest building in Japan. The ward consists of lowlands through which the Tōkaidō Main Line and Route 1 pass. The northernmost, southernmost, and western areas are uplands. The Minato Mirai complex is built on reclaimed land, as was the Yokohama Station area..

Surrounding municipalities

History

Part of the domains of the Miura clan during and after the Kamakura period, the area of present-day Nishi Ward was part of the tenryō territory in Musashi Province controlled directly by the Tokugawa shogunate, but administered through various hatamoto or direct retainers of the shōgun. Parts of the territories of Kanagawa-juku and Hodogaya-juku, post stations on the Tōkaidō are within the borders of the present Ward. After the Meiji Restoration, the area was divided between the new Tachibana and Kuraki Districts in Kanagawa Prefecture and further divided into numerous villages. Yokohama's wards were established on October 10, 1927, with this area becoming part of the Kanagawa and Naka Wards. On April 1, 1944, Nishi became an independent ward within the city of Yokohama.

Economy

Nishi Ward is a regional commercial center and the main business district of modern Yokohama. The world headquarters of Nissan is located in Nishi Ward.^[1] Other major companies headquartered in the ward include:

JGC Corporation^[2]
Sagami Railway^[3]
Okamura Corporation
Kiyoken Co. Ltd.
Ebara Foods Industry^[4]
Computer System Engineering Co., Ltd.
Chiyoda Corporation^[5]

Japan Airlines at one time operated a domestic flights only ticketing facility in the Sky Building of the Yokohama City Air Terminal (YCAT) in Nishi-ku.^[6] On March 31, 2011 the ticket counter closed.^[7]

Transportation

Railroads

Highways

Shuto Expressway Kanagawa No. 1
Shuto Expressway Kanagawa No. 2
Routes 1
Route 16

Prefecture roads

Kanagawa Prefecture Road 13

Ferry

The Port Service

Education

Three universities are located in Nishi Ward. The oldest is Yokohama National University, established in 1876. KU Port Square, part of the private Kanagawa University, established in 1928, lies within the ward. The third is Yashima Gakuen University.

Kanagawa Prefectural Board of Education operates Yokohama-Hiranuma Senior High School [ja].

The Yokohama Municipal Board of Education [ja] operates public elementary and junior high schools.

Junior high schools:^[8]

Karuizawa (軽井沢)
Nishi (西)
Oimatsu (老松)
Okano (岡野)

Elementary schools:^[9]

Azuma (東)
Hiranuma (平沼)
Inaridai (稲荷台)
Ipponmatsu (一本松)
Minato Mirai Honcho (みなとみらい本町)
Miyagaya (宮谷)
Nishimae (西前)
Sengendai (浅間台)
Tobe (戸部)

Additionally the zones of Fujimidai Elementary School (富士見台小学校) and Honcho Elementary School (本町小学校), with their campuses outside of Nishi-ku, include portions of Nishi-ku.^[10]

Local attractions

Events

Each June, Nishi Ward hosts the Yokohama Kaikō Festival to commemorate the opening of the city's port. In August, the Yokohama Carnival takes place near Yokohama Station.

Noted people from Nishi Ward

Minoru Suzuki, professional wrestler
Reni Takagi, idol singer

References

Kato, Yuzo. Yokohama Past and Present. Yokohama City University (1990).

^ "Outline of Company." Nissan. Retrieved on September 17, 2017.
^ "Company Profile." JGC Corporation. Retrieved on September 17, 2017.
^ "Company Profile." Sotetsu Holdings. Retrieved on September 17, 2017.
^ "Company Profile." Ebara Foods Industry. Retrieved on September 17, 2017.
^ "Corporate Profile Archived 2017-09-18 at the Wayback Machine." Chiyoda Corporation. Retrieved on September 17, 2017.
^ "JAL Group Offices Information." Japan Airlines. March 28, 2009. Retrieved on July 21, 2011. "Sky Bldg.(Inside of YCAT), 2-19-12 Takashima Nishi-ku Yokohama City, 220-0011"
^ "JAL Group Offices Information Archived March 28, 2009, at the Wayback Machine." Japan Airlines. Retrieved on July 21, 2011. "Ticketing counters have closed on March 31, 2011. KANTO YOKOHAMA CITY AIR TERMINAL"
^ "R04-02-20_nishi.xlsx". City of Yokohama. Retrieved 2022-11-06. - From this link
^ "R04-01-20_nishi.xlsx". City of Yokohama. Retrieved 2022-11-06. - From this link
^ "小・中学校等の通学区域一覧（通学規則　別表）". City of Yokohama. Retrieved 2022-10-21.
^ Hara Model Railway Museum Retrieved 10 July 2012. (in Japanese)