Capital of Japan

Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - Cite This Source

Tokyo, the seat of the Government of Japan and home of the Emperor, is the capital of Japan. This is generally not in dispute, but it is not legally defined. In fact, there is a dispute as to exactly when Tokyo became the capital. Some state that it occurred when Tokyo prefecture was established in 1868. Others state that it occurred when Edo Castle became Tokyo Castle that same year, and still others say that it occurred when Tokyo Castle became the Imperial Castle (now the Kokyo) in 1869. Historically speaking, while there was an Imperial edict transferring the capital to Heian kyō, such a basis has never been provided for the transfer from Kyoto to Tokyo. So, today, there are some people who say that since the transfer to Heiankyo was valid, Kyoto is still the capital of Japan, while some say that Tokyo and Kyoto are both simultaneously capitals of Japan.

Conceptions of the capital of Japan before the Meiji restoration

During the Edo Era, Japan was often said to have three capitals, or . Edo was the capital of the Tokugawa shogunate, Kyoto was the residence of the Emperor of Japan (therefore making it the capital of culture and tradition), and Osaka was the unofficial capital of the merchants.

Arguments in favor of Tokyo as capital

The location of the Diet

After World War II, the new Constitution of Japan transferred the state's sovereignty from the Emperor to the people, as represented by the Diet of Japan. A broad consensus arose that the site of the Diet denoted the capital of Japan. This is the most concrete basis for legally recognizing Tokyo as the sole capital of Japan, since the Emperor has no governing power and all other state institutions are based in Tokyo. It falls short of an explicit statement that Tokyo is the capital.

The "capital area" in Japanese law

While no laws have designated Tokyo as the Japanese capital, many laws have defined a that incorporates Tokyo. Article 2 of the of 1956 states that "In this Act, the term 'capital area' shall denote a broad region comprising both the territory of Tokyo Metropolis as well as outlying regions designated by cabinet order." This clearly implies that the government has designated Tokyo as the capital of Japan, although (again) it is not explicitly stated, and the definition of the "capital area" is purposely restricted to the terms of that specific law.

Other laws referring to this "capital area" include the and the

This term for capital was never used to refer to Kyoto. Indeed, shuto came into use during the 1860s as a gloss of the English term "capital."

Official government positions

In 1941, the Ministry of Education published a book called "History of the Restoration," which is still used by modern scholars. This book referred to the without talking about . A contemporary history textbook states that the Meiji government "moved the capital (shuto) from Kyoto to Tokyo" without using the sento term.

Recently, there there has been a movement to transfer the capital from Tokyo, with the Gifu-Aichi region, the Mie-Kio region and other regions submitting bids for it. Officially, the relocation is referred to as "capital functions relocation" instead of "capital relocation," or as "relocation of the Diet and other organizations."

Successive capitals of Japan

Inside the parenthesis is the name of the corresponding Imperial Palace.

Asuka, 592 - 645
Naniwa Palace, 645 - 655
Asuka, 655 - 667
ŌmiŌtsu Palace, 667 - 672
Asuka, 672 - 694
Fujiwara-kyō (Fujiwara Palace), 694 - 710
Heijō-kyō (Heijō Palace), 710 - 740
Kuni-kyō (Kuni Palace), 740 - 744
Naniwa-kyō (Naniwa Palace), 744
Shigaraki Palace, 744 - 745
Heijō-kyō (Heijō Palace), 745 - 784
Nagaoka-kyō (Nagaoka Palace), 784 - 794
Heian-kyō (Heian Palace), 794 - 1180
Fukuhara Palace, 1180
Heian-kyō (Heian Palace), 1180 - 1868
Tokyo（Kōkyo), 1868 - Present