Tokyo

Tokyo (東京) is the capital and largest city of Japan.

The population of Tokyo is around 8 million, with a total of more than 12 million in the metropolitan area.

Before the [Meiji Restoration]?, the city was known as (江戸) "Edo." The Tokugawa? shogunate? was established in 1603 with Edo as its de facto capital. (Since the emperor's residence was in Kyoto?, that city was formally the capital of Japan.) In 1868, when the shogunate came to an end, the city was renamed "Tokyo"; during the restoration, the emperor moved to Tokyo, making the city the formal as well as de facto capital of Japan.

A major earthquake struck Tokyo in 1923, killing approximately 70,000 people; a massive reconstruction plan was drawn up, but was too expensive to carry out except in part. Despite this, the city grew until the beginning of World War II. During the war, Tokyo was bombed heavily, and its population in 1945 was only half that of 1940.

After the war, Tokyo recovered and continued to grow, though the current recession affecting Japan has hurt the city.

Famous parts of the city and other sights include:

• Akihabara
• Asakusa?
• Ginza?
• Roppongi?