Shinjuku

For other uses, see Shinjuku (disambiguation).

ramshackle walls of the bars are literally plastered with lm posters.

Shinjuku Gyoen: A large park, 58.3 hectares,
3.5 km in circumference, blending Japanese
traditional, English Landscape and French
Formal style gardens.

Shinjuku ( Shinjuku-ku, New Lodge) is

a special ward in Tokyo, Japan. It is a major commercial and administrative centre, housing the busiest
railway station in the world (Shinjuku Station) and the
Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, the administration centre for the government of Tokyo. As of 2015,
the ward has an estimated population of 337,556 and a
population density of 18,517 people per km. The total
area is 18.23 km.* [2]

Shinjuku Ni-chme: Tokyo's best-known gay

district.
Nishi-Shinjuku: The area west of Shinjuku Station,
historically known as Yodobashi, is home to Tokyo's
largest concentration of skyscrapers. Several of the
tallest buildings in Tokyo are located in this area, including the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, KDDI Building and Park Tower.

Geography and neighborhoods

Ochiai: The northwestern corner of Shinjuku, extending to the area around Ochiai-minami-nagasaki
Station and the south side of Mejiro Station, is
largely residential with a small business district
around Nakai Station.
kubo: The area surrounding Okubo Station, ShinOkubo Station and Higashi-Shinjuku Station is best
known as Tokyo's historic ethnic Korean neighborhood.
Totsuka: The northern portion of Shinjuku surrounding Takadanobaba Station and Waseda University. The Takadanobaba area is a major residential and nightlife area for students, as well as a commuter hub.

Man with guitar immediately south of the Shinjuku JR Station, a

popular busking location

Shinjuku is surrounded by Chiyoda to the east; Bunkyo

and Toshima to the north; Nakano to the west, and
Shibuya and Minato to the south.* [3]

Ushigome: A largely residential area in the eastern

portion of the city.
Ichigaya: A commercial area in eastern Shinjuku, site of the Ministry of Defense.

The current city of Shinjuku grew out of several separate

towns and villages, which have retained some distinctions
despite growing together as part of the Tokyo metropolis.

Kagurazaka: A hill descending to the

Iidabashi Station area, once one of Tokyo's
last remaining hanamachi or geisha districts,
and currently known for hosting a sizable
French community.* [4]

East Shinjuku: The area east of Shinjuku Station

and surrounding Shinjuku-sanchome Station, historically known as Naito-Shinjuku, houses the city hall
and the agship Isetan department store, as well as
several smaller areas of interest:

Yotsuya: An upscale residential and commercial

district in the southeast corner of Shinjuku. The
Arakich area is well known for its many small
restaurants, bars, and izakaya.

Kabukich: Tokyo's best-known red-light district, renowned for its variety of bars, restaurants, and sex-related establishments.
Golden Gai: An area of tiny shanty-style Shinjukuis often popularly understood to mean the enbars and clubs. Musicians, artists, journal- tire area surrounding Shinjuku Station, but the Shinjuku
ists, actors and directors gather here, and the Southern Terrace complex and the areas to the west of the
1

4 GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS

station and south of Ksh Kaid are part of the Yoyogi the Great Kant earthquake in 1923, since the seismidistrict of the special ward of Shibuya.
cally stable area largely escaped the devastation. ConseNaturally, most of Shinjuku is occupied by the Yo- quently, West Shinjuku is one of the few areas in Tokyo
dobashi Plateau, the most elevated portion of which ex- with many skyscrapers.
tends through most of the Shinjuku Station area. The
Kanda River runs through the Ochiai and Totsuka areas
near sea level, but the Toshima Plateau also builds elevation in the northern extremities of Totsuka and Ochiai.
The highest point in Shinjuku is Hakone-san in Toyama
Park, 44.6 m above sea level.* [5]

The Tokyo air raids from May to August 1945 destroyed

almost 90% of the buildings in the area in and around
Shinjuku Station.* [6] The pre-war form of Shinjuku, and
the rest of Tokyo, for that matter, was retained after the
war because the roads and rails, damaged as they were, remained, and these formed the heart of the Shinjuku in the
post-war construction. Only in Kabuki-cho was a grand
reconstruction plan put into action.* [7]

The present ward was established on March 15, 1947 with

the merger of the former wards of Yotsuya, Ushigome,
and Yodobashi. It served as part of the athletics 50
km walk and marathon course during the 1964 Summer
Olympics.* [8]

History

In 1991, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government moved

from the Marunouchi district of Chiyoda to the current
building in Shinjuku. (The Tokyo International Forum
stands on the former site vacated by the government.)

3 Economy

Shinjuku at night

Street level in Shinjuku

In 1634, during the Edo period, as the outer moat of the

Edo Castle was built, a number of temples and shrines
moved to the Yotsuya area on the western edge of Shinjuku. In 1698, Nait-Shinjuku had developed as a new
(shin) station (shuku or juku) on the Ksh Kaid, one
of the major highways of that era. Nait was the family
name of a daimyo whose mansion stood in the area; his
land is now a public park, the Shinjuku Gyoen.
In 1920, the town of Nait-Shinjuku, which comprised
large parts of present-day Shinjuku, parts of NishiShinjuku and Kabukich was integrated into Tokyo City.
Shinjuku began to develop into its current form after

The area surrounding Shinjuku Station is a major economic hub of Tokyo. Many companies have their
headquarters or Tokyo oces in this area, including
regional telephone operator NTT East, global camera
and medical device manufacturer Olympus Corporation, electronics giant Seiko Epson,* [9] fast food chains
McDonald's Japan and Yoshinoya,* [10] travel agency
H.I.S.,* [11] Fuji Heavy Industries (Subaru),* [12] railway operator Odakyu Electric Railway, construction giant Taisei Corporation,* [13] medical equipment manufacturer Nihon Kohden,* [14] Enoki Films,* [15] navigation software company Jorudan,* [16] instant noodle giant
Nissin Foods* [17] and regional airline Airtransse.* [18]
The station area also hosts numerous major retailers such
as Mitsukoshi, Isetan, Takashimaya, Marui, Bic Camera,
Yodobashi Camera and Yamada Denki.
Northeastern Shinjuku has an active publishing industry and is home to the publishers Shinchosha* [19] and
Futabasha.* [20]

4 Government and politics

Like the other wards of Tokyo, Shinjuku has a status
equivalent to that of a city. The current mayor is Kenichi
Yoshizumi. The ward council ( kugikai) consists
of 38 elected members; the Liberal Democratic Party
and New Komeit Party together currently hold a majority. The Democratic Party of Japan, Japanese Communist Party and the Social Democratic Party are also represented together with four independents. Shinjuku's city

5.1

Rail

3
Shinjuku is a major urban transit hub. Shinjuku Station
sees an estimated 3.64 million passengers pass through
each day, making it the busiest station in the world. It
houses interchanges to three subway lines and three privately owned commuter lines, as well as several JR lines.

5.1 Rail
A list of railway lines passing through and stations located
within Shinjuku includes:
JR East
Yamanote Line: Takadanobaba, Shin-kubo,
Shinjuku
Ch Line (Rapid), Ch-Sbu Line:
Yotsuya, Shinanomachi, Shinjuku, kubo
Saiky Line, Shnan-Shinjuku Line: Shinjuku
Tokyo Metro

Shinjuku City Oce

oce ( kuyakusho) is located on the southeastern

edge of Kabukich.
Shinjuku is also the location of the metropolitan government of Tokyo. The governor's oce, the metropolitan
assembly chamber, and all administrative head oces are
located in the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building. Technically, Shinjuku is therefore the prefectural
capital of Tokyo; but according to a statement by the
governor's oce, Tokyo (the as administrative unit:
former Tokyo City, the area of today's 23 special
wards collectively) can usually be considered the capital of Tokyo (prefecture/"Metropolis) for geographical
purposes. The Geographical Survey Institute (Kokudo
Chiriin) names Tky (the city) as capital of Tky-to
(the prefecture/"Metropolis).* [21]

4.1

Elections

Shinjuku local election, 2004

Shinjuku mayoral election, 2006
Shinjuku local election, 2007

Transportation

Marunouchi Line:
Yotsuya, Yotsuyasanchme, Shinjuku-gyoenmae, Shinjukusanchme, Shinjuku, Nishi-Shinjuku
Yrakuch Line: Ichigaya, Iidabashi
Tzai Line: Kagurazaka, Waseda, Takadanobaba, Ochiai
Fukutoshin Line: Nishi-Waseda, HigashiShinjuku, Shinjuku-sanchme
Namboku Line: Iidabashi, Ichigaya, Yotsuya
Tokyo Metropolitan Bureau of Transportation
Toei Shinjuku Line: Akebonobashi, Shinjukusanchme, Shinjuku
Toei edo Line: Ochiai-Minaminagasaki,
Nakai, Nishi-Shinjuku-gochme, Toch-mae,
Kokuritsu-Kygij, Ushigome-Kagurazaka,
Ushigome-Yanagich, Wakamatsu-Kawada,
Higashi-Shinjuku, Shinjuku-Nishiguchi
Toden Arakawa
Waseda

Line:

Omokagebashi,

Odakyu Electric Railway Odawara Line: Shinjuku

Keio Corporation Keio Line, Keio New Line: Shinjuku
Seibu Railway Seibu Shinjuku Line: SeibuShinjuku, Takadanobaba, Shimo-Ochiai, Nakai

5.2 Roads
Shuto Expressway:

Further information: Transportation in Greater Tokyo

No.4 Shinjuku Route (Miyakezaka JCT - Takaido)

7 PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS
Mejiro University
Seibo College
Tokyo Fuji University
Tokyo Medical University
Tokyo University of Science
Tokyo Women's Medical University
Waseda University

6.2 Schools
Public elementary and junior high schools in Shinjuku are
operated by the Shinjuku City Board of Education. Public high schools are operated by the Tokyo Metropolitan
Government Board of Education.
Koishikawa Technical High School
Ichigaya Commercial High School
Shinjuku High School
Trac on me-kaid heading towards Kabukich at night

No.5 Ikebukuro Route (Takebashi JCT - Bijogi

JCT)
National highways:

Shinjuku Yamabuki High School

Toyama High School

7 Public institutions

National Route 20 (Shinjuku-dri, Ksh-kaid)

Other major routes:
Tokyo Metropolitan Route 8 (Mejiro-dri, ShinMejiro-dri)
Tokyo Metropolitan Route 302 (Yasukuni-dri,
me-kaid)
Tokyo Metropolitan Route 305 (Meiji-dri)

Education

6.1

Colleges and universities

Chuo University graduate school

Gakushuin Women's College
Japan Electronics College
Keio University Medical College
Kogakuin University
Lakeland College Japan

Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building

7.1

Libraries

8 Sister cities

Shinjuku operates several public libraries, including the Shinjuku has sister city agreements with several localiCentral Library (with the Children's Library), the Yot- ties:* [23]
suya Library, the Tsurumaki Library, Tsunohazu Library,
the Nishi-Ochiai Library, the Toyama Library, the Kita
Lefkada, Greece
Shinjuku Library, the Okubo Library, and the Nakamachi Library. In addition there is a branch library,

Mitte, Berlin, Germany

Branch Library of Central Library in the City Oce, located in the city oce.* [22]

Dongcheng District, Beijing, China

7.2

Hospitals

There are several major hospitals located within the city

limits.
Keio University Hospital
International Medical Center of Japan

9 See also
Tourism in Japan

10 References
[1] Shinjuku City

Social Insurance Ch General Hospital

[2] Shinjuku City

Tokyo Medical University Hospital

[3] Tokyo Special Wards Map

Tokyo Women's Medical University Hospital

[4] japanvisitor.com

Tokyo Metropolitan Health and Medical Treatment

Corporation Ohkubo Hospital

[5] http://www.city.shinjuku.lg.jp/content/000021207.pdf
[6] History of Shinjuku
[7] Ichikawa, 2003

7.3
7.3.1

Cultural centers
Museums

National Printing Bureau Banknote and Postage

Stamp Museum
National Museum of Nature and Science, Shinjuku
Branch
Shinjuku Historical Museum
Tokyo Fire Department Museum

[8] 1964 Summer Olympics ocial report. Volume 2. Part

1. p. 74.
[9] "Head Oce & Japanese Facilities.Seiko Epson. Retrieved on January 13, 2009.
[10] ".Yoshinoya. Retrieved on February 25, 2010.
[11] "Company Info.H.I.S. Retrieved on March 11, 2010.
[12] ".Fuji Heavy Industries and Subaru.
[13] "Corporate Data.Taisei Corporation. Retrieved on
February 20, 2012. Head Oce 1-25-1, NishiShinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 163-0606
[14] "Key Facts.Nihon Kohden. Retrieved on August 9,
2015.

7.3.2

Halls

Tokyo Opera City

Shinjuku Bunka Center

[15] "Home.Enoki Films. Retrieved on March 23, 2014.

Enoki Bldg., No. 2, 1-30-10 Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku,
Tokyo 160-0022 Japan

WelCity Tokyo

[16] "Headquarter.Jorduan. Retrieved on January 7, 2011.

ZIP 160-0022 2-1-9 Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo,
Japan(map)

Meiji Yasuda Life Hall

[17] "Company Prole.Nissin Foods. Retrieved on August

15, 2009.

Shinjuku Koma Theater

[18] ".Airtransse. Retrieved on May 20, 2009.

11

[19] ".Shinchosha. Retrieved on June 17, 2011. "

162-8711 71
[20] ".Futabasha. Retrieved on January 7, 2011.
" 162-8540 3-28
(GIF map of location) (PDF of location)
[21] Tokyo Metropolitan Government, governor's oce:
About Tokyo's prefectural capital (Japanese)
[22] http://www.city.shinjuku.tokyo.jp/foreign/english/
guide/shisetsu/shisetsu_2.html
[23] Friendship cities

Shinjuku Ward Oce, History of Shinjuku

Hiroo Ichikawa Reconstructing Tokyo: The Attempt to Transform a Metropolisin C. Hein, J.M.
Diefendorf, and I. Yorifusa (Eds.) (2003). Building
Urban Japan after 1945. New York: Palgrave.

11

External links

Shinjuku City ocial website (Japanese)

Shinjuku City ocial website (English)
Shinjuku travel guide from Wikivoyage (English)
Shinjuku Architecture and Map

EXTERNAL LINKS

12
12.1

Text and image sources, contributors, and licenses

Text

Shinjuku Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shinjuku?oldid=709147621 Contributors: Kowloonese, DopeshJustin, TakuyaMurata,

Delirium, Synthetik, Stevenj, Jpatokal, , TraxPlayer, Andres, Emperorbma, WhisperToMe, Fibonacci, David.Monniaux,
Robbot, RedWolf, Ianb, Sekicho, MykReeve, Exploding Boy, DocWatson42, Fudoreaper, NeoJustin, Rick Block, Ferdinand Pienaar,
Tagishsimon, Auximines, Andycjp, Adamrice, Fg2, Kate, A-giau, Bender235, SElefant, Hayabusa future, Bendono, Travisyoung, Arthena,
BernardH, Evil Monkey, LordAmeth, SmthManly, Mindmatrix, Xavier2000, Armagebedar, Jok2000, Jleon, Tokek, BD2412, Antinous,
Rjwilmsi, Gryndor, FlaBot, Shikinluv, SkiDragon, WouterBot, Chobot, Surge79uwf, YurikBot, RobotE, Crypticmyth, Manop, Diotti,
DAJF, Bobak, Nilashtakey, BOT-Superzerocool, Bota47, Richardcavell, Sandstein, Alasdair, Angaurits, Daisee, Neier, SmackBot, Nihonjoe, Kintetsubualo, Akanemoto, MJCdetroit, JonHarder, Blubaustin, BiggKwell, Asakura Akira, -js-, Astuishin, DDD DDD~enwiki,
Nekohakase, Joseph Solis in Australia, Zenjin, Old Guard, AndrewHowse, Ph0kin, Cydebot, Ganryuu, 663highland, Bobo12345, Picturetokyo, Thijs!bot, Miller17CU94, Landolitan, Escarbot, Whats up skip, Dr. Blofeld, AlexOvShaolin, Tillman, Kzaral, Magioladitis, Dekimasu, Janadore, Jonte--, The Anomebot2, Siatorunotuyosi, MetsBot, Superautobacs, Viralxtreme14, ASDFGH, Johnluisocasio,
Wakamelover, Scott Kern, Laboewe, DorganBot, Idioma-bot, VolkovBot, Guthrum, Zotium, Shibsama, AlnoktaBOT, TXiKiBoT, SeanJin, Boewehorrill, Sushiya, Petri87, Laval, EmxBot, Enkyo2, SieBot, Eternal dragon, Gerakibot, Oda Mari, Stevec240, Orientalgetaway,
Martarius, WikiSkeptic, Postmortemjapan, Takuti, Mattokunhayashi, Sasanoha, Shihi, Niceguyedc, Genroku 300, Jusdafax, Stepheng3, 7,
Addbot, Mohamed Osama AlNagdy, LaaknorBot, Numbo3-bot, Lightbot, Xenobot, HerculeBot, Ben Ben, Luckas-bot, Yobot, Amirobot,
Ciphers, Paralympic, Jim1138, Materialscientist, A123a, ArthurBot, Xqbot, Emperor1982, Sophus Bie, Shadowjams, LucienBOT, Miel
Patterson, D'ohBot, MondalorBot, Full-date unlinking bot, Bobfagget, Tokorozawa22, EmausBot, WikitanvirBot, Irina Gelbukh, Dcirovic,
Bineapple, Hephatsheput, Hazard-Bot, ChuispastonBot, ClueBot NG, Mahir256, Fabimaru, Antiqueight, Redaktoro, Eincl, Ajaboy, Sakusei, DUZZLEGOUCHE, JYBot, Kronks, Cyberpunk0002, Silver gasman, Mdshoaib76, Grueslayer, Techexpress83, JPNEX, Institute of
Nature, KasparBot, Sweepy and Anonymous: 116

12.2

Images

File:Athletics_pictogram.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8f/Athletics_pictogram.svg License: Public

domain Contributors: Own work Original artist: Original: Parutakupiu
Vectorization: Thadius856
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Original artist: ?
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Contributors: own code Original artist: (of code) cs:User:-xfi- (talk)
File:Flag_of_Shinjuku,_Tokyo.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/76/Flag_of_Shinjuku%2C_Tokyo.
svg License: Public domain Contributors: The ag is based on the symbol announced on the municipal notication No. 21 on March
15, 1967. Original artist: Kzaral (original raster), Ch1902
File:Flag_of_Tokyo_Prefecture.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8e/Flag_of_Tokyo_Prefecture.svg
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design.html Original artist: Drawn by User:SKopp, redrawn by User:Denelson83 and User:Zscout370
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Maximilian Drrbecker (Chumwa)
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TEXT AND IMAGE SOURCES, CONTRIBUTORS, AND LICENSES

File:Skyscrapers_of_Shinjuku_2009_January.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b2/Skyscrapers_of_

Shinjuku_2009_January.jpg License: CC-BY-SA-3.0 Contributors: Own work Original artist: Morio
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Public domain Contributors: Own work, based on the Tokyo metropolitan notication No. 978. http://www.reiki.metro.tokyo.
jp/Li05_Hon_Main_Frame.exe?UTDIR=D:\__xunadd_text_character:nN{\textbackslash}{\}{}EFServ2\__xunadd_text_character:
nN{\textbackslash}{\}{}ss00007303\__xunadd_text_character:nN{\textbackslash}{\}{}Administrator&TID=1&SYSID=7
Original
artist: Kzaral
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