Setagaya, Tokyo

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Location of Setagaya-ku in Tokyo.

A view of southern Setagaya-Ku

Setagaya (世田谷区 Setagaya-ku) is one of the 23 special wards of Tokyo, 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(look like a heron), and its tree the zelkova.

As of 2005, the ward has an estimated population of 810,897 and a density of 13960 persons per km². Its total area is 58.08 km², the second largest among the special wards.

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

Geography

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.

History

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.

Landmarks

• Carrot Tower (at 124 m, the tallest building in Setagaya Ward)
• Gotokuji
• Hasegawa Machiko Art Museum
• Kinuta Park
• Kuhombutsu
• Komazawa Olympic Park
• Oya Soichi Bunko
• Sakura-shinmachi
• Setagaya Art Museum
• Setagaya Castle ruins
• Setagaya Business Square (SBS)
• Tamagawadai Park
• Zenyōmitsu-ji
• NHK Science & Technical Research Laboratories

Places

• Setagaya
• *Sangen-Jaya
• *Setagaya
• Kitazawa
• *Shimo-Kitazawa
• *Meidaimae
• Tamagawa
• *Futako-Tamagawa
• *Yōga
• *Todoroki
• Kinuta
• *Seijo
• *Kinuta
• *Soshigaya
• Karasuyama
• *Karasuyama

Transportation

Rail

• Keio Corporation
• *Keio Line: Daitabashi, Meidai-mae, Shimo Takaido, Sakura Josui, Kami Kitazawa, Roka Koen, Chitose-Karasuyama Stations
• *Keio Inokashira Line: Ikenoue, Shimo-Kitazawa, Shindaita, Higashi-Matsubara, Meidaimae Stations
• Tokyo Kyuko Electric Railway
• *Tokyu Setagaya Line: Sangen-Jaya, Nishi Taishido, Wakabayashi, Shoin Jinja-mae, Setagaya, Kami Machi, Miyanosaka, Yamashita, Matsubara, Shimo Takaido Stations
• *Tōkyū Den-en-toshi Line: Ikejiri Ohashi, Sangen-Jaya, Komazawa Daigaku, Sakura Shinmachi, Yoga, Futako-Tamagawa Stations
• *Tokyu Oimachi Line: Kuhon-butsu Station
• *Tokyu Meguro Line: Okusawa Station
• *Tokyu Toyoko Line
• Odakyu Electric Railway Odakyu Odawara Line: Higashi Kitazawa, Setagaya Daita, Umegaoka, Gotoku-ji, Kyodo, Chitose Funabashi, Soshigaya Okura, Seijogakuen-Mae, Kitami Stations

People

• Ekuni Kaori: author
• Kojima Hideo: videogame designer
• Momoi Kaori: actress
• Shigenobu Fusako: leader of Japanese Red Army

External links

• [Setagaya official website] in English
• [Wikitravel: Tokyo/Setagaya]
• [Population figures in English November 1, 2004]
• [Population figures in Japanese December 1, 2004]

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