Setagaya, Tokyo

Setagaya (世田谷区, Setagaya-ku^?) is one of the 23 special wards of Tokyo in Japan. It is also the name of a neighborhood within the ward. The ward calls itself the City of Setagaya in English. Its official bird is the Azure-winged Magpie, its flower the Fringed Orchid, and its tree the Zelkova serrata.

It has the largest population and second largest area (after Ōta) of Tokyo's 23 special wards.

Geography

Setagaya sits at the southwestern corner of the 23 special wards. The Tama River separates it from Kanagawa Prefecture. Many railroads extend radially from the center of Tokyo, passing through Setagaya.

Most of the land is in the Musashino tableland. The parts along the Tama River to the south are comparatively low-lying.

The population of Setagaya is among the highest in Tokyo, and there are many residential neighborhoods.

The ward is divided into five districts. These are Setagaya, Kitazawa, Tamagawa, Kinuta and Karasuyama. Each area has own office as a part of administrative structure.

History

The special ward of Setagaya was founded on March 15, 1947.

During the Edo period, 42 villages occupied the area. With the abolition of the han system in 1871, the central and eastern portions became part of Tokyo Prefecture while the rest became part of Kanagawa Prefecture; in 1893, some areas were transferred to Tokyo Prefecture. With the establishment of Setagaya Ward (an ordinary ward) in the old Tokyo City in 1932, and further consolidation in 1936, Setagaya took its present boundaries.

During the 1964 Summer Olympics, the village of Karasuyama-machi located in Setagaya was part of the athletics marathon and 50 km walk event.^[1]

Setagaya has sister-city relationships with Winnipeg, Manitoba in Canada; the Döbling district of Vienna, Austria; and Bunbury, Western Australia.

Landmarks

• Carrot Tower (at 124 m, the second tallest building in Setagaya Ward)
• Gōtoku-ji, a temple with the grave of Ii Naosuke, assassinated outside the Sakurada Gate of Edo Castle
• Hanegi Park Google Maps
• Hasegawa Machiko Art Museum
• Kinuta Park
• Kuhombutsu
• Komazawa Olympic Park
• Oya Soichi Bunko
• St. Mary's International School
• Seisen International School
• Sakura-shinmachi
• Seikadō Bunko Art Museum
• Setagaya Art Museum
• Setagaya Castle ruins
• Setagaya Business Square (SBS)
• Tamagawadai Park
• Zenyōmitsu-ji
• NHK Science & Technology Research Laboratories

Places

• Setagaya
  • Sangenjaya
  • Setagaya
• Matsubara
  • Higashi-Matsubara
• Kitazawa
  • Shimokitazawa
  • Meidaimae
• Tamagawa
  • Futako-Tamagawa
  • Yōga
  • Todoroki
• Kinuta
  • Seijō
  • Kinuta
  • Soshigaya
• Karasuyama
  • Karasuyama

Transportation

Rail

• Keio Electric Railway
  • Keiō Line: Daitabashi, Meidai-mae, Shimo Takaido, Sakura Josui, Kami Kitazawa, Hachiman Yama, Roka Koen, Chitose-Karasuyama Stations
  • Keiō Inokashira Line: Ikenoue, Shimo-Kitazawa, Shindaita, Higashi-Matsubara, Meidaimae Stations
• Odakyu Electric Railway
  • Odawara Line: Higashi-Kitazawa, Shimo-Kitazawa, Setagaya-Daita, Umegaoka, Gōtokuji, Kyōdō, Chitose-Funabashi, Soshigaya-Ōkura, Seijōgakuen-Mae, Kitami Stations
• Tokyu Corporation
  • Den-en-toshi Line: Ikejiri Ohashi, Sangen-Jaya, Komazawa Daigaku, Sakura Shinmachi, Yōga, Futako-Tamagawa Stations
  • Meguro Line: Okusawa Station
  • Ōimachi Line: Midorigaoka, (Jiyūgaoka), Kuhon-butsu, Oyamadai, Todoroki, Kaminoge, Futako-Tamagawa Stations
  • Setagaya Line (LRT): Sangen-Jaya, Nishi Taishido, Wakabayashi, Shoin Jinja-mae, Setagaya, Kami Machi, Miyanosaka, Yamashita, Matsubara, Shimo Takaido Stations
  • Tōyoko Line: (Jiyūgaoka Station)

Highways

Freeways

• Chūō Expressway
• Daisan Keihin Road
• Shuto Expressway
  • No. 3 Shibuya Route
  • No. 4 Shinjuku Route
• Tomei Expressway

National highways

• National Route 20
• National Route 246
• National Route 466

Politics

On April 25, 2011, amid national concern over the safety of nuclear power triggered by the March 11 Earthquake and Fukushima I nuclear accidents, former Social Democratic Party Upper House House of Councillors legislator Nobuto Hosaka was elected mayor on an anti-nuclear platform.^[2] Prior to becoming mayor, Hosaka was also well-known his staunch opposition of the death penalty ^[3] and his defense of Japan's Otaku culture ^[4].

Economy

• Cookie Jar Entertainment has its Japan offices in Setagaya.^[5]
• Game Freak has its Japan offices in Setagaya.
• Ivan Ramen restaurant - a popular ramen shop owned by an American chef.
• OLM, Inc. has its studios in Setagaya.^[6]

Education

Setagaya operates public elementary and junior high schools. The Tokyo Metropolitan Government Board of Education operates public high schools.

• Chitosegaoka High School
• Engei High School
• Fukasawa High School
• Matsubara High School
• Roka High School
• Sakuramachi High School
• Setagaya Izumi High School
• Setagaya Sogo High School
• Setagaya Technical High School
• Sogo Technical High School
• Tamagawa High School

The metropolis operates the Kugayama School for the Blind.

Elementary Schools

Operated by Setagaya^[7]

National and Private Schools

See also

References

External links

• Setagaya official website in English
• Wikitravel: Tokyo/Setagaya
• Population figures in English December 1, 2009
• Population figures as of start of last month in Japanese