Ōta, Tokyo

Ōta
大田区

Ōta's location in Tokyo, Japan.
Location
Country	Japan
Region	Kantō
Prefecture	Tokyo
Physical characteristics
Area	km² ( sq mi)
Population (as of 2005)
Total
Density	/km² (/sq mi)
Symbols
Ōta Government Office
Mayor	Noburu Usami
Official website: Ōta

Ōta (大田区, Ōta-ku^?) is one of the 23 special wards of Tokyo, Japan. As of 2005, the ward has an estimated population of 675,614 and a density of 11,360 persons per km². The total area is 59.46 km², the largest of the 23 special wards.

Ōta's hub is situated around the two Kamata Stations (JR Kamata & Keikyu Kamata) where the Ōta Ward Office and central Post Office can be found.

Ōta has a sister city relationship with Salem, Massachusetts. The discovery of a shell mound in Ōmori, one of the forerunners of Ōta, by Edward S. Morse, director of the museum in Salem, occasioned the tie. Ōta has a friendship link with Chaoyang District, Beijing, People's Republic of China.

History

The ward was founded on March 15, 1947 merging the old wards of Ōmori and Kamata.

Tokyo International Airport (Haneda Airport, HND), now the main domestic airport for the Greater Tokyo Area, began with the establishment of Haneda Airfield in 1931 in the town of Haneda, Ebara District of Tokyo Prefecture. In 1945, it became Haneda Army Air Base under the control of the United States Army. In the same year, the Occupation ordered the expansion of the airport, evicting people from the surroundings on 48 hours' notice. With the end of the occupation, the Americans returned part of the facility to Japanese control in 1952, completing the return in 1958. Haneda Airport in Ōta was the major international airport for Tokyo, and handled traffic for the Tokyo Olympics.

Politics and government

The city is run by a city assembly of 50 elected members. The current mayor is Noburu Usami, an independent affiliated with the Liberal Democratic Party.

• Ōta local election, 2007

Geography

The southernmost of the 23 special wards, Ōta borders the special wards of Shinagawa, Meguro and Setagaya stand to the north, and Kōtō lies to the east. Across the Tama River in Kanagawa Prefecture is the city of Kawasaki, forming the boundaries to the south and west.

Landmarks

• Honmonji, a Buddhist temple founded by Nichiren in the 13th century
• Ōmori Shell Mound site
• Senzoku Pond, where Nichiren is said to have washed his feet. The grave of Katsu Kaishu is nearby.

Transportation

Air

Tokyo International Airport

Rail

• JR East Keihin-Tōhoku Line: Ōmori, Kamata Stations
• Keikyū
  • Main Line: Heiwajima, Ōmorimachi, Ume Yashiki, Keikyū-Kamata, Zoshiki, Rokugo-dote Stations
  • Airport Line: Keikyū-Kamata, Kojiya, Otorii, Anamori Inari, Tenkubashi, Haneda Kuko Stations
• Tokyu Corporation
  • Tōkyū Tōyoko Line: Den-en-chōfu, Tamagawa Stations
  • Tōkyū Ikegami Line: ten stations
  • Tōkyū Tamagawa Line: Tamagawa, Numabe, Unoki, Shimo-Maruko, Musashi-Nitta, Yaguchi no Watashi, Kamata Stations (entire line)
  • Tōkyū Ōimachi Line: Kita-Senzoku Station
• Tokyo Monorail: Ryutsu Center, Showajima, Seibijo, Tenkubashi, Shin Seibijo, Haneda Kuko Dai 1 Biru, Haneda Kuko Dai 2 Biru Stations
• Toei Asakusa Line: Magome, Nishi-Magome Stations

Highway

• Shuto Expressway
  • No. 1 Haneda Route (Edobashi JCT - Iriya)
  • B Bayshore Route (Namiki - Kawasaki-ukishima JCT)
• National highways
  • Route 1
  • Route 15
  • etc.

Companies

Many companies have their headquarters in Ōta, including these:

• Alps Electric Corporation
• Canon Inc.
• Gakken Co., Ltd.: school textbook publisher
• Ikegami: manufacturer of broadcast equipment
• Namco: game maker
• Ricoh: electronics and copier maker
• Sega: game maker
• Toyoko Inn: hotel chain

Education

Colleges and universities

• Aeronautical Safety College
• Toho University Omori Campus
• Tokyo Institute of Technology: the Ōokayama Campus straddles the boundary with Meguro

People

• Akira Kurosawa: award-winning director, film producer, and screenwriter.
• Atsuko Asano: actress
• Asuka Fukuda: singer, formerly of Morning Musume
• Daisaku Ikeda: president of Soka Gakkai International
• Keiko Matsuzaka: actress
• Kazushige Nagashima: baseball player
• Mamoru Oshii: writer/director
• Nobuyoshi Kuwano: television personality
• Yoko Nagayama: enka singer and actress
• Ryūko Seihō: actor-celebrity and former sumo wrestler
• Honami Suzuki: actress
• Masayuki Suzuki: musician
• Hideyuki Tanaka: seiyu
• Kei Tani: actor and comedian
• Koji Tsuruta: actor

Ōta in fiction

Various places in Ōta appeared in novel that formed the base for the film Lady Joker, and the setting for the anime Pani Poni Dash!. Haneda Airport was home base for the television series Good Luck!!. The protagonist of the manga series Kinnikuman (and his son in the sequel Kinnikuman Nisei) lived in a small house in a fictional park in Ōta.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Ōta, Tokyo

• Ōta official website in Japanese
• The Toho University web site in English

	Tokyo Metropolis
Wards: Adachi | Arakawa | Bunkyō | Chiyoda | Chūō | Edogawa | Itabashi | Katsushika | Kita | Kōtō | Meguro | Minato | Nakano | Nerima | Ōta | Setagaya | Shibuya | Shinagawa | Shinjuku | Suginami | Sumida | Toshima | Taitō
Cities: Akiruno | Akishima | Chōfu | Fuchū | Fussa | Hachiōji | Hamura | Higashikurume | Higashimurayama | Higashiyamato | Hino | Inagi | Kiyose | Kodaira | Koganei | Kokubunji | Komae | Kunitachi | Machida | Mitaka | Musashimurayama | Musashino | Nishi-Tōkyō | Ōme | Tachikawa | Tama
Districts and Subprefectures: Nishitama District | Hachijō Subprefecture | Miyake Subprefecture | Ogasawara Subprefecture | Ōshima Subprefecture

Coordinates: 35°34′08″N, 139°43′12″E

Donate to Wikimedia