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| cities in hyōgo prefecture | |
is the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture and a prominent Port city in Japan with a population of about 1.5 million. The city is located in the Kansai Region of Japan to the west of Osaka . Kobe is classified as one of Japan's seventeen Designated Cities and is a part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan sprawl. It was one of the first cities to open for trade with the , 2007 and is the point of origin and Namesake of Kobe Beef . HISTORY (Colored woodcut) of 19th c. Kobe]] of Kobe]] Origins - Meiji Era Kobe's history dates back to the 8th century when the area was known as . City of Kobe - "Port of Kobe: History", retrieved , 2007 During this time, Hyōgo Port along with northern Osaka composed the province of , 2007 It was not until the Abolition Of The Han System in 1871 and the establishment of the current Prefecture System that the area became politically distinct. Following the , 2007 Modern Kobe Kobe, as it is known today, was founded on , 2007 Entry for . Kōjien , fifth edition, 1998, 4-00-080111-2 During the course of World War II , Kobe was bombed with incendiary bombs by B-29 bombers on March 17 , 1945 , causing the death of 8,841 residents and destroying 21% of Kobe's urban area (''see Bombing Of Kobe In World War II ''). It is this incident that inspired the well-known Studio Ghibli film Grave Of The Fireflies and the Book by Akiyuki Nosaka on which it was based. preserved in a memorial]] Following continuous pressure from citizens, on , 2007 On (or the Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake). To commemorate Kobe's recovery from the 1995 quake, the city holds an annual event called the Luminarie , where every December the city center is decorated with illuminated metal archways. Kobe was Japan's busiest port and one of Asia's top ports until the Great Hanshin Earthquake occurred. Maruhon Business News - Port Conditions in Japan, retrieved January 23 , 2007 Kobe has since dropped to the fourth in Japan and thirty-fifth Busiest Container Port Worldwide (as of 2005). American Association of Port Authorities - "World Port Rankings 2005", retrieved July 3, 2007 GEOGRAPHY at twilight]] Wedged in between the coast and the mountains, the city of Kobe is long and narrow. To the east is the city of Ashiya , while the city of Akashi lies to its west. The landmark of the port area is the red steel Port Tower ( Hyperboloid Structure ). A giant Ferris Wheel sits in nearby Harborland , a notable tourist Promenade . Two artificial islands, Port Island and Rokko Island , have been constructed to give the city room to expand. Away from the seaside at the heart of Kobe lie the Motomachi and Sannomiya districts as well as Kobe's Chinatown , Nankinmachi , all well-known retail areas. A multitude of train lines cross the city from east to west. The main transport hub is Sannomiya Station , with the eponymous Kobe Station located to the west and the Shinkansen Shin-Kobe Station to the north. Mount Rokko overlooks Kobe at an elevation of 931 meters. During the autumn season, it is famous for the rich change in colors of its forests. Wards , Motomachi ]] Koukou at Oji Zoo]] Kobe has 9 Wards (''ku''): ; 1. , 2007 ; 2. and Mount Maya . The area is well known for its rugged landscape and hiking trails. The Onsen resort town of Arima also lays within Kita-ku. ; 3. , extends from Maiko in Tarumi-ku to Awaji Island to the south. A relatively new addition to Kobe, Tarumi-ku was not a part of the city until 1946. ; 4. Suma-ku : Suma-ku is the site of the well-known Suma beach, attracting visitors during the summer months. ; 5. , one of the three "Great Shrines" in Kobe. ; 6. in Hyogo-ku was once the commercial center of Kobe, but was heavily damaged during World War II , and since Hyogo-ku has lost much of its former prominence. ; 7. , along with Motomachi and Harborland , make up the main entertainment area in Kobe. Chuo-ku also includes Kobe City Hall and Hyōgo Prefectural government offices. Port Island as well as Kobe Airport lie in the southern part of this ward. ; 8. , 2007 ; 9. . The man-made island of Rokko makes up the southern part of this ward. DEMOGRAPHICS Kobe has a , 2007 About thirteen percent of the population are between the ages of 0 and 14, sixty-seven percent are between 15 and 64, and twenty percent are over the age of 65. Approximately 44,000 registered foreign nationals live in Kobe. The four most common nationalities are Korea n (22,431), Chinese (12,680), American (1,308), and Vietnam ese (1,274). ECONOMY ]] Asia headquarters on Rokko Island ]] Kobe is both an important port and manufacturing center within the Hanshin Industrial Region . Kobe is the Busiest Container Port in the region, surpassing even Osaka , and the fourth busiest in Japan . As of 2004, the city's total real GDP was ¥6.3 trillion, which amounts to thirty-four percent of the GDP for , about one percent of those employed work in the Primary Sector (agriculture, fishing and mining), twenty-one percent work in the Secondary Sector (manufacturing and industry), and seventy-eight percent work in the Service Sector . The value of Manufactured Goods produced and exported from Kobe for 2004 was ¥2.5 trillion. The four largest sectors in terms of value of goods produced are Small Appliance s, Food Products , Transportation Equipment , and communication equipment making up over fifty percent of Kobe's manufactured goods. In terms of numbers of employees, food products, small appliances, and transportation equipment make up the three largest sectors. Kobe City Report on Census of Manufacturers, 2004 (Japanese), retrieved March 30, 2007 Major companies and institutes Japanese companies which have their headquarters in Kobe include ASICS , a shoe manufacturer; Daiei , a department store chain; Kawasaki Heavy Industries , an Automobile and Ship manufacturer; and Kobe Steel . Other companies include the Confectionary manufacturers Konigs-Krone and Morozoff Ltd. , Sun Television Japan and UCC Ueshima Coffee Co. There are over 100 international corporations with East-Asia or Japan headquarters in Kobe. Of these, twenty-four are from , 2007 . Some prominent corporations include Eli Lilly And Company , Nestlé , Procter & Gamble , Tempur-Pedic , and Toys "R" Us . Kobe is the site of a number of research institutes, such as the , 2007 International organizations include the WHO Centre For Health Development , an Intergovernmental agency forming part of the World Health Organization . TRANSPORTATION Rail Sannomiya Station is the main commuter hub in Kobe, serving as the transfer point for the three major intercity rail lines. The JR Kobe Line connects Kobe to Osaka and Himeji while both the Hankyu Kobe Line and the Hanshin Main Line run from Kobe to Umeda Station in Osaka. In addition, Kobe Municipal Subway provides access to the Sanyō Shinkansen at Shin-Kobe Station . Sanyō Electric Railway trains from Himeji reach Sannomiya via the Kobe Rapid Railway . Other rail lines in Kobe include Kobe Electric Railway which runs north to Sanda and Arima Onsen . Hokushin Kyuko Railway connects Shin-Kobe Station to Tanigami Station on the Kobe Electric Railway. Kobe New Transit runs two lines, the Port Island Line from Sannomiya to Kobe Airport and the Rokko Island Line from JR Sumiyoshi Station to Rokko Island . Road and Air Kobe is a hub in a number of , 2007 Other expressways include the Sanyō Expressway (Kobe - Yamaguchi ) and the Chūgoku Expressway (Osaka - Yamaguchi). The Kobe-Awaji-Naruto Expressway runs from Kobe to Naruto via Awaji Island and includes the Akashi-Kaikyo Bridge , the longest suspension bridge in the world. Osaka International Airport in nearby Itami and Kobe Airport , built on a Reclaimed island south of Port Island , offer mainly domestic flights, while Kansai International Airport in Osaka is the main international hub in the area. EDUCATION See Also: Education in Kobe The city of Kobe directly administers 169 Elementary and 83 Middle School s, with enrollments of approximately 80,200 and 36,000 students, respectively. City of Kobe - "Number of municipal schools and students" (Japanese), retrieved July 2, 2007 If the city's four private elementary schools and fourteen private middle schools are included, these figures jump to a total 82,000 elementary school students and 42,300 junior high students enrolled for the 2006 school year. Hyogo Prefectural Government - "Private elementary schools" (Japanese), retrieved July 2, 2007 Hyogo Prefectural Government - "Private middle schools" (Japanese), retrieved July 2, 2007 Kobe also directly controls seven of the city's twenty-eight full-time public High School s, while the remainder are administered by the Hyogo Prefectural Board of Education. Hyogo Prefectural Board of Education - "Hyogo prefectural public schools at a glance" (Japanese), retrieved July 2, 2007 In addition, twenty-five high schools are run privately within the city. Hyogo Prefectural Government - "Private high schools" (Japanese), retrieved July 2, 2007 The total enrollment for high schools in 2006 was 43,400. Kobe is home to eighteen public and private Universities , including Kobe University and Konan University , and eight Junior Colleges . Students enrolled for 2006 reached 67,000 and 4,100, respectively. CULTURE in central Kobe]] Kobe is famous for its Kobe Beef and Arima Onsen (hot springs), while notable buildings include the Ikuta Shrine as well as the Kobe Port Tower . It is well known for the night view of the city, from the mountains as well as the coast. Kobe is also known for having a somewhat exotic atmosphere by Japanese standards, which is mainly a result of its history as a port city. The city is also widely associated with cosmopolitanism and fashion, encapsulated in the Japanese phrase, "If you can't go to Paris, go to Kobe."Hassan, Sally. (April 9, 1989). "Where Japan Opened a Door To the West". '', 2007 Kobe is the site of Japan's first , 2007 a prominent Foreign Cemetery , and a number of Western-style residences from the 19th century (''see History ''). Most of the movie '' Sayonara '' takes place in Kobe. Kobe is also the setting of the Studio Ghibli film Grave Of The Fireflies . SPORTS SISTER CITIES AND SISTER PORTS Kobe has six sister cities and a number of other affiliations. City of Kobe - "Sister City, Friendly City, Friendship & Cooperation City", retrieved February 15 , 2007 They are:
Sister ports:
Other city affiliations:
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