Setagaya

Setagaya 世田谷区
Special ward
City of Setagaya
Komazawa Olympic Park
Flag
Location of Setagaya in Tokyo
Setagaya Location in Japan
Coordinates: 35°38′47.66″N 139°39′11.69″E / 35.6465722°N 139.6532472°E / 35.6465722; 139.6532472Coordinates: 35°38′47.66″N 139°39′11.69″E / 35.6465722°N 139.6532472°E / 35.6465722; 139.6532472
Country	Japan
Region	Kantō
Prefecture	Tokyo
Government
• Mayor	Nobuto Hosaka (since May 2011)
Area
• Total	58.08 km2 (22.42 sq mi)
Population (June 1, 2016)
• Total	890,927
• Density	15,339.65/km2 (39,729.5/sq mi)
Symbols
• Tree	Zelkova serrata
• Flower	Habenaria radiata
• Bird	Azure-winged magpie
Time zone	Japan Standard Time (UTC+9)
Postal code(s)	154 to 158 (First three digits)
Area code(s)	03
Website	www.city.setagaya.lg.jp/index.html

Setagaya (世田谷区, Setagaya-ku) is a special ward in Tokyo, Japan. It is also the name of a neighborhood and administrative district within the ward. The ward calls itself Setagaya City in English.^[1] Its official bird is the azure-winged magpie, its flower the fringed orchid, and its tree the Zelkova serrata.

Setagaya has the largest population and second largest area (after Ōta) of Tokyo's 23 special wards. As of June 1, 2016, the ward has an estimated population of 890,927 and a population density of 15,339.65 persons per km² with the total area of 58.08 km².

Geography

Setagaya is located at the southwestern corner of the 23 special wards and Tama River separates the boundary between Tokyo Metropolis and Kanagawa Prefecture.

Residential population is among the highest in Tokyo as there are many residential neighbourhoods within Setagaya. Setagaya is served by various rail services providing frequent 2 to 3 minutes headway rush hour services to the busiest train terminals of Shinjuku and Shibuya as well as through service trains which continue travelling on to the Tokyo Metro lines providing direct access to the central commercial and business districts. Most rail lines run parallel from east to west and there are no north to south rail services within Setagaya, except for Setagaya Line light rail.

The ward is divided into five districts. These are Setagaya, Kitazawa, Tamagawa, Kinuta and Karasuyama. The main ward office and municipal assembly (city hall) is located in Setagaya District, but other districts also have its own branch ward offices as a part of the administrative structure. Each branch offices provide almost identical services as the main office, but does not provide the services related to municipal assembly.

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

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 district of Karasuyama-machi in Setagaya was part of the athletics marathon and 50 km walk event.^[2]

Landmarks

Gōtoku-ji

Todoroki Valley

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

Districts

• Setagaya
  • Sangenjaya
  • Setagaya
• Matsubara
  • Higashi-Matsubara
• Kitazawa
  • Shimokitazawa
  • Meidaimae
• Tamagawa
  • Futako-Tamagawa: Major commercial and residential district located by the Tama River.
  • Yōga
  • Todoroki
• Kinuta
  • Seijō
  • Kinuta
  • Soshigaya
• Karasuyama
  • Karasuyama

Transportation

Rail

• Keio Corporation
  • Keiō Line: Daitabashi, Meidai-mae, Shimo Takaido, Sakura Josui, Kami Kitazawa, Hachiman Yama, Roka Koen, Chitose-Karasuyama Stations
  • Keio 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
  • Oimachi 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
  • Toyoko Line: (Jiyūgaoka Station)

Road

Expressways

• Chūō Expressway
• Daisan Keihin Road (part of National Route 466)
• 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.^[3] Prior to becoming mayor, Hosaka was also well-known his staunch opposition of the death penalty^[4] and his defense of Japan's Otaku culture.^[5]

Economy

• Cookie Jar Entertainment has its Japan offices in Setagaya.^[6]
• Game Freak has its Japan offices in Setagaya.
• Ivan Ramen restaurant: a ramen shop owned by an American chef.
• OLM, Inc. has its studios in Setagaya.^[7]
• Toho has studio facilities in Setagaya.

Education

Universities and colleges

Universities and colleges with campuses in Setagaya include:

• Showa Women's University
• Komazawa University
• Nihon University
• Kokushikan University
• Sanno Institute of Management
• Tokyo University of Agriculture
• Central Theological College, Tokyo

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

High schools

The following schools are nationally or privately operated.

Elementary schools

The following schools are operated by Setagaya.^[8]

The following schools are nationally or privately operated.

International Schools

The following schools are privately operated.

Former international schools:

• Tokyo No. 8 Korean Elementary School (東京朝鮮第八初級学校) - North Korean school^[10]

International relations

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

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Setagaya, Tokyo.

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Setagaya.

• Official website (Japanese)

Tokyo Metropolis
Tokyo—Shinjuku (capital) Architecture Education Festivals History Neighborhoods Politics Sports Tourism Transportation
Special Wards of Tokyo	Adachi Arakawa Bunkyō Chiyoda Chūō Edogawa Itabashi Katsushika Kita Kōtō Meguro Minato Nakano Nerima Ōta Setagaya Shibuya Shinagawa Shinjuku Suginami Sumida Taitō Toshima
Western (Tama area)	Core city Hachiōji Cities Akiruno Akishima Chōfu Fuchū Fussa Hamura Higashikurume Higashimurayama Higashiyamato Hino Inagi Kiyose Kodaira Koganei Kokubunji Komae Kunitachi Machida Mitaka Musashimurayama Musashino Nishitōkyō Ōme Tachikawa Tama Nishitama District Hinode Mizuho Okutama Hinohara
Izu Islands	Ōshima Subprefecture Ōshima To-shima Niijima Kōzushima Miyake Subprefecture Miyake Mikurajima Hachijō Subprefecture Hachijō Aogashima
Ogasawara Islands	Ogasawara Subprefecture Ogasawara
List of mergers in Tokyo Metropolis Portal Category

Olympic venues in athletics
1896: Marathon (city), Panathenaic Stadium 1900: Croix-Catelan Stadium 1904: Francis Field 1908: White City Stadium 1912: Stockholm Olympic Stadium 1920: Olympisch Stadion 1924: Stade de Colombes 1928: Olympic Stadium 1932: Olympic Stadium, Riverside Drive at Griffith Park 1936: Avus Motor Road, Olympic Stadium 1948: Empire Stadium 1952: Olympic Stadium 1956: Melbourne Cricket Ground 1960: Arch of Constantine, Raccordo Anulare, Stadio Olimpico, Via Appia Antica, Via Cristoforo Colombo 1964: Fuchu City, Karasuyama-machi, National Stadium, Sasazuka-machi, Shinjuku 1968: Estadio Olímpico Universitario, Zócalo 1972: Olympiastadion 1976: Montreal Botanical Garden, Olympic Stadium, Streets of Montreal 1980: Grand Arena, Streets of Moscow 1984: Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Santa Monica College, Streets of Los Angeles, Streets of Santa Monica 1988: Olympic Stadium, Streets of Seoul 1992: Estadi Olímpic de Monjuïc, Marathon course, Mataró, Walking course 1996: Marathon course, Olympic Stadium, Walking course 2000: Marathon course, North Sydney, Olympic Stadium 2004: Marathon (city), Olympic Stadium, Panathenaic Stadium, Stadium at Olympia 2008: Beijing National Stadium, Olympic Green Promenade Walking course, Streets of Beijing Marathon course 2012: Marathon Course, Olympic Stadium 2016: Estádio Olímpico João Havelange, Pontal, Sambódromo