Kyoto (pronounced /k i . ˈ oʊ . t oʊ / or / ˈ k j oʊ . t oʊ / ; Japanese: 京都, Kyōto [kʲoꜜː.to]) is officially known as Kyoto City (京都市, Kyōto-shi [kʲoː.toꜜ.ɕi]). It is the capital of Kyoto Prefecture in the Kansai region of Honshu, Japan's largest and most populated island. As of 2020, Kyoto had a population of 1.46 million, making it the ninth-largest city in Japan. Over half (56.8%) of Kyoto Prefecture's population lives in the city. Kyoto is the cultural center of the larger Greater Kyoto area, which includes about 3.8 million people. It is also part of the even larger Keihanshin metropolitan area, which includes Osaka and Kobe.

Kyoto is one of Japan's oldest cities. In 794, Emperor Kanmu chose it as the new location for Japan's imperial court. The original city, called Heian-kyō, was designed using traditional Chinese feng shui principles, modeled after the ancient Chinese cities of Chang'an and Luoyang. Japanese emperors ruled from Kyoto for 11 centuries until 1869. Important historical events, such as the Ōnin War, the Honnō-ji Incident, the Kinmon Incident, and the Battle of Toba–Fushimi, took place in Kyoto during the Muromachi period, Sengoku period, and the Boshin War. After the Meiji Restoration, the capital was moved to Tokyo. The modern city of Kyoto was created in 1889. Unlike many other cities, Kyoto avoided major destruction during World War II, so many of its prewar cultural sites remain intact.

Kyoto is known as Japan's cultural capital and is a popular tourist destination. The national government's Agency for Cultural Affairs is based in Kyoto. The city has many Buddhist temples, Shinto shrines, palaces, and gardens, some of which are part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Notable places include the Kyoto Imperial Palace, Kiyomizu-dera, Kinkaku-ji, Ginkaku-ji, and Kyoto Tower. The famous video game company Nintendo is also based in Kyoto. Kyoto is an important center for education in Japan, home to Kyoto University, the second-oldest university in the country.

Etymology

In Japanese, Kyoto was known by several names, including Kyō (京), Miyako (都), Kyō no Miyako (京の都), and Keishi (京師). When Kyoto became the capital of Japan at the start of the Heian period (794–1185), it was often called Heian-kyō (平安京), meaning "Heian capital." Later in the Heian period, the city was widely referred to as "Kyōto" (京都), meaning "capital city." After the emperor's residence was moved to Edo, which was later renamed Tokyo (東京, "eastern capital"), Kyoto was briefly called "Saikyō" (西京, "western capital"). As Japan's capital from 794 to 1868, Kyoto is sometimes called the "thousand-year capital" (千年の都).

Historically, foreign spellings for the city's name included Kioto and Miaco or Meaco.

History

Archaeological findings suggest that people lived in the area of Kyoto as early as the Paleolithic period. However, few records about human activity in the region before the 6th century remain. Around this time, the Shimogamo Shrine is believed to have been built. Before Kyoto became the imperial capital, people from mainland Asia helped shape the area's development.

In the 8th century, Buddhist religious leaders became involved in the imperial government. Emperor Kanmu decided to move the capital to reduce the influence of these leaders in Nara. His final choice for the new capital was the village of Uda in the Kadono district of Yamashiro Province.

The new city, named Heian-kyō ("tranquility and peace capital"), was designed to resemble the Chinese Tang dynasty capital, Chang'an. It became Japan's imperial court in 794, marking the start of the Heian period. Although military rulers later governed from Kyoto (Muromachi shogunate) or other cities like Kamakura (Kamakura shogunate) and Edo (Tokugawa shogunate), Kyoto remained Japan's capital until the imperial court moved to Tokyo in 1869 during the Imperial Restoration.

During the Sengoku period, Kyoto suffered major damage during the Ōnin War (1467–1477). Battles between samurai groups spread into the streets, involving court nobles and religious groups. Nobles' homes were turned into fortresses, trenches were dug for defense and firebreaks, and many buildings burned. Kyoto has not faced such widespread destruction since.

In the late 16th century, Toyotomi Hideyoshi rebuilt Kyoto by doubling the number of north-south streets in the city center, creating rectangular blocks instead of older square blocks. He also built earthwork walls called odoi around the city. Teramachi Street in central Kyoto became a Buddhist temple area where Toyotomi gathered temples.

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• Rakuchū rakugai zu, a 16th-century map of central Kyoto showing Gion Matsuri floats and Kiyomizu-dera

In 1603, the Tokugawa Shogunate was established in Edo (modern-day Tokyo), beginning the Edo period. Despite this, Kyoto remained one of Japan's three major cities, along with Osaka and Edo. At the end of the Edo period, the Hamaguri rebellion in 1864 destroyed 28,000 homes in Kyoto, reflecting the rebels' opposition to the Tokugawa Shogunate.

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• Scenes in and around Kyoto (c. 1615)
• Map of Heian-kyō (1696)
• Fushimi Castle

At the start of the Meiji period, the emperor's move from Kyoto to Tokyo in 1869 weakened Kyoto's economic and administrative position. To address this, the city government and local leaders worked together to strengthen industry and modernize.

• Lake Biwa Canal: Construction began in 1885 and was completed in 1890. The 20 km waterway connected Lake Biwa to Kyoto, providing drinking water, irrigation, and hydroelectric power for factories and street lighting starting in 1895. It also enabled Japan's first electric tram in Kyoto.
• Rail, Road, and Feeder Canals: Branch rail lines linked Kyoto to the Tōkaidō Main Line, while expanded roads and canals improved the movement of goods and materials. In 1895, Kyoto introduced the country's first commercial electric railway, powered by hydroelectricity from the Lake Biwa Canal.
• Municipal Annexations: To create space for factories, housing, and public buildings, Kyoto expanded its boundaries in two stages. In 1918 and again in 1931, the city absorbed neighboring towns like Fushimi, Kii, Kadono, and Otagi, extending its jurisdiction beyond the medieval inner wards (rakuchū) into the outer suburbs (rakugai).

Public buildings from the late Meiji era included European and American design elements to symbolize modernity:

• Ryukoku University Main Hall: A brick-and-timber building influenced by British college architecture, completed in 1879.
• Kyoto National Museum: Built in 1895 using a French Second Empire style. At the time, some local people criticized the design as culturally out of place, given Kyoto's role as the imperial capital.

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• Kyoto National Museum
• Ryukoku University

The modern city of Kyoto was officially established on April 1, 1889. By 1932, the city's population had grown to over one million.

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• View of Kyoto from beside the Hondō of Kiyomizudera – 1870s
• Nanzenji aqueduct

At the end of World War II, the United States considered targeting Kyoto with an atomic bomb because of its potential strategic value. However, at the request of Henry L. Stimson, the U.S. Secretary of War, Kyoto was removed from the target list and replaced with Nagasaki. The city was largely spared from conventional bombing, though small air raids caused casualties. During the U.S. occupation, the Sixth Army and I Corps were based in Kyoto.

As a result, Kyoto is one of the few Japanese cities with many prewar buildings, such as traditional townhouses called machiya. However, modernization has gradually replaced older architecture, such as the Kyōto Station complex.

Kyoto became a city designated by government ordinance on September 1, 1956. In 1994, 17 historic sites in Kyoto were added to the UNESCO World Heritage list. In 1997, Kyoto hosted a conference that led to the Kyoto Protocol, an agreement on reducing greenhouse gas emissions under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

Geography

Kyoto is located in a valley called the Yamashiro (or Kyoto) Basin, which is in the eastern part of the Tamba highlands, a mountainous region. The Yamashiro Basin is surrounded on three sides by mountains named Higashiyama (east mountain), Kitayama (north mountain), and Nishiyama (west mountain). These mountains reach a maximum height of about 1,000 meters (3,281 feet) above sea level. This location causes Kyoto to have hot summers and cold winters. Three rivers flow through the basin: the Uji River to the south, the Katsura River to the west, and the Kamo River to the east. Kyoto City covers 17.9% of Kyoto Prefecture’s land area and has a total size of 827.9 square kilometers (319.7 square miles).

Kyoto is built on a large natural water table that provides the city with many freshwater wells. However, because of increased urban development, less rain is reaching the water table, and wells in the area are drying up more quickly.

Kyoto has a humid subtropical climate, labeled as Cfa in the Köppen climate classification system. This climate has clear seasonal changes in temperature and rainfall. Summers are hot and humid, while winters are colder with occasional snow. The rainy season in Kyoto starts around mid-June and ends by the end of July, followed by hot and sunny weather in late summer. Like much of Japan’s Pacific coast and central regions, Kyoto is often affected by typhoons during summer and autumn.

Kyoto is home to about 2,000 temples and shrines. The main business district is located south of the Kyoto Imperial Palace. In the city center, there are several covered shopping streets open only to pedestrians, such as Teramachi Street and Shinkyōgoku Street.

The original city was designed using traditional Chinese feng shui principles, modeled after the ancient Chinese capitals of Chang’an and Luoyang. The Imperial Palace faced south, placing Ukyō (the right side of the capital) to the west and Sakyō (the left side) to the east. Today, the streets in the modern wards of Kamigyō-ku, Nakagyō-ku, and Shimogyō-ku still follow a grid pattern. Areas outside the city center do not follow this grid, but streets throughout Kyoto are named, a practice uncommon in most parts of Japan.

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• View of Kyoto's central business district from Shōren-in (2020)
• Kyoto night skyline from Higashiyama (2021)
• Kyoto Station (2018)
• Gion (2015)
• Ponto-chō (2010)
• Okazaki Park (2009)

Administration

The city of Kyoto is led by the mayor of Kyoto and the Kyoto City Assembly, which is a local government group. The assembly has 67 members who are elected by voters. Each member serves a four-year term. As of 2024, the assembly is led by a group of members from the Liberal Democratic Party, Komeito, and the Democratic Civic Forum.

Before 1898, the governor of Kyoto Prefecture also acted as the mayor of Kyoto. From 1898 until World War II, mayors were chosen by the Kyoto City Assembly and then approved by the Minister of Home Affairs. Starting in 1947, mayors have been elected directly by voters for four-year terms. As of 2024, ten mayors have been elected this way. No mayor has been removed from office through an election since 1947. In the 2024 mayoral election, Koji Matsui, an independent candidate, was elected for the first time. He received support from the Liberal Democratic Party, Komeito, the Constitutional Democratic Party, and the Democratic Party for the People.

In the 1870s, Kyoto was split into two parts: the northern ward (Kamigyō-ku) and the southern ward (Shimogyō-ku). These were separate areas under Kyoto Prefecture. In 1889, these two wards were combined to form the modern city of Kyoto.

Between the 1920s and 1970s, new areas were created, and some cities merged. These changes led to the current division of Kyoto into eleven wards (ku). The central wards, located west of the Kamo River, are small and have many people living in them. The city hall is in Nakagyō-ku, and the Kyoto Prefecture offices are in Kamigyō-ku.

Demographics

Kyoto was the largest city in Japan until the late 16th century, when Osaka and Edo became more populous. Before World War II, Kyoto competed with Kobe and Nagoya to be the fourth- or fifth-largest city in Japan. Because it was not badly damaged during the war, Kyoto became the third-largest city in 1947. By 1960, it was fifth again, and by 1990, it was seventh. As of January 2022, Kyoto was the ninth-largest city in Japan by population and had the largest decrease in population for two years in a row. However, the city’s population increases during work hours, and Kyoto ranks seventh in Japan based on daytime population.

About 55% of the people living in Kyoto Prefecture are in the city of Kyoto, which is the highest percentage among all prefectures in Japan.

Economy

Information technology and electronics are important industries in Kyoto. The city is home to the headquarters of many companies, including Nintendo, Intelligent Systems, SCREEN Holdings, Tose, Hatena, Omron, Kyocera, Shimadzu, Rohm Semiconductor, Horiba, Nidec Corporation, Nichicon, Nissin Electric, and GS Yuasa.

Tourism, both from people in Japan and from other countries, plays a big role in Kyoto's economy. In 2014, the city government reported that more tourists visited Kyoto than ever before. However, during the COVID-19 pandemic, tourism dropped sharply. In 2021, the mayor said there was a chance some businesses might face financial problems in the next ten years. The city also announced plans to reduce some jobs and cut funding for social programs, including support for home care.

Traditional Japanese crafts are another major industry in Kyoto. The city is especially known for its kimono weavers and remains the leading center for making kimonos. Sake brewing is also an important traditional industry in Kyoto. The headquarters of major sake companies, such as Gekkeikan and Takara Holdings, are located in Kyoto.

Other well-known businesses with headquarters in Kyoto include Aiful, Ishida, Nissen Holdings, Gyoza no Ohsho, Sagawa Express, Volks, and Wacoal.

Transportation

Kyoto is connected by rail systems managed by multiple companies and organizations. The city's main train station, Kyōto Station, links the Tōkaidō Shinkansen bullet train line with five JR West lines, a Kintetsu line, and a local subway line.

The Keihan Electric Railway, the Hankyu Railway, and other rail networks provide frequent services within Kyoto and to other cities and suburbs in the Kinki region. Kyoto does not have a commercial airport, but the special train called Haruka, operated by JR West, carries passengers from Kansai International Airport to Kyōto Station in 73 minutes.

The Kyoto Railway Museum in Shimogyō-ku, managed by JR West, displays many steam, diesel, and electric trains used in Japan from the 1880s to today.

The Tokaidō Shinkansen, operated by JR Central, offers high-speed rail service connecting Kyoto with Nagoya, Yokohama, and Tokyo to the east and with Osaka to the west. Beyond Osaka, many trains from Kyoto continue on the San'yō Shinkansen route, managed by JR West, reaching cities like Kobe, Okayama, Hiroshima, Kitakyushu, and Fukuoka. A trip from Tokyo to Kyoto takes about 2.5 hours, and a trip from Hakata Station in Fukuoka to Kyoto takes just over three hours by the fastest train, Nozomi. All Shinkansen trains stop at Kyōto Station, including Hikari and Kodama trains.

The Kyoto Municipal Transportation Bureau operates the Kyoto Municipal Subway, which has two lines: the Karasuma Line and the Tōzai Line. These lines connect at Karasuma Oike Station near Kyoto's central business district.

The Karasuma Line runs mainly from north to south between Kokusaikaikan Station and Takeda Station. It is named after Karasuma Street, where trains travel between Kitaōji Station in Kita-ku and Jūjō Station in Minami-ku. The Karasuma Line connects to the Hankyu Kyoto Main Line at Shijō Karasuma in the central business district and to JR lines and the Kyoto Kintetsu Line at Kyōto Station. The Transportation Bureau and Kintetsu also operate joint services to Kintetsu Nara Station in Nara, the capital of Nara Prefecture.

The Tōzai Line runs from the southeastern part of the city toward the center, then east to west through Kyoto's downtown area, where trains travel beneath Sanjō Street, Oike Street, and Oshikōji Street. The Keihan Keishin Line is part of this line, allowing Keihan trains to travel to Hamaōtsu in Ōtsu, the capital of Shiga Prefecture. Within Kyoto, the Tōzai Line connects to Keihan lines at Yamashina Station, Misasagi Station, and Sanjō Keihan Station and to the Keifuku Electric Railroad at Uzumasa Tenjingawa Station.

Kyoto has a large network of public buses. Private companies also operate buses in the city. Many tourists ride public buses with commuters or take tour buses. Buses in Kyoto have English announcements and signs with stops written in the Latin alphabet. Buses traveling within the city, region, and country stop at Kyōto Station. Bus transfers are also available at Shijō Kawaramachi, Sanjō Keihan Station, and the intersection of Karasuma Kitaōji near Kitaōji Station.

Many older streets in Kyoto are narrow, and there are many one-way roads without sidewalks. Bicycles are a common way to travel in the city, but there are few places to park bikes. Bicycles left in restricted areas are taken away.

Kyoto has fewer toll highways than other Japanese cities of similar size. There are nine national highways in Kyoto: Route 1, Route 8, Route 9, Route 24, Route 162, Route 171, Route 367, Route 477, and Route 478.

Kyoto is connected to other parts of Japan by the Meishin Expressway, which has two interchanges in the city: Kyoto-higashi (Kyoto East) in Yamashina-ku and Kyoto-minami (Kyoto South) in Fushimi-ku. The Kyoto Jūkan Expressway links the city to northern Kyoto Prefecture. The Second Keihan Highway is another route to Osaka.

Traditionally, trade and transportation in Kyoto happened by water. Today, many rivers and canals remain navigable, but they are not used for moving people or goods, except for limited sightseeing activities like boat tours on the Hozu River and cormorant fishing boats on the Ōi River.

Education

Kyoto is home to 40 institutions of higher education, making it an important academic center in Japan. Kyoto University is very highly ranked among all universities in the country. It has produced eight Nobel Prize winners and two former Prime Ministers of Japan as alumni. The Research Institute for Mathematical Sciences and the Yukawa Institute for Theoretical Physics, both part of Kyoto University, are connected to famous mathematicians and physicists. Private universities such as Doshisha University and Ritsumeikan University are also located in Kyoto.

The Consortium of Universities in Kyoto is a group of higher education institutions in Kyoto. It includes three national universities, three public universities (run by the prefecture and city), 45 private universities, five other organizations, and members from the city government. The Consortium does not give out degrees, but it allows students from member universities to take classes at other member universities.

In addition to Japanese schools, educational institutions from other countries also operate programs in Kyoto. The Kyoto Consortium for Japanese Studies (KCJS) is a group of 14 American universities that runs study programs abroad for university students, focusing on Japanese language and culture. Similarly, the Associated Kyoto Program offers a study-abroad program that teaches about culture, language, and history in the Kansai region.

As of May 1, 2023, Kyoto had 154 public elementary schools run by the city, with 55,736 students in total. At the middle school level, there were 66 public junior high schools with 27,046 students, and 11 public senior high schools with 5,117 students. In addition to public schools, Kyoto has private schools that offer different international education programs:

• Kyoto International School: An IB world school that teaches in English, Japanese, and Korean.
• Ritsumeikan Uji Junior and Senior High School: Offers the IB program along with Japanese national courses.
• Doshisha International School: An IB world school that teaches in English.
• Lycée Français International de Kyoto: Provides French-language education from preschool through high school, following French education standards.

Culture

Kyoto has been the capital of Japan for 11 centuries. Even though it was damaged by wars, fires, and earthquakes, it suffered little harm during World War II. Kyoto is still Japan's cultural center. About 20% of Japan's National Treasures and 14% of Important Cultural Properties are located in Kyoto. In 2023, the Japanese government moved the Agency for Cultural Affairs to Kyoto.

Kyoto has 2,000 religious places, including 1,600 Buddhist temples and 400 Shinto shrines, as well as palaces, gardens, and buildings. These places are well-preserved, making Kyoto one of Japan's best-preserved cities. Some famous temples include Kiyomizu-dera, a large wooden temple built on pillars above a mountain slope; Kinkaku-ji, the Temple of the Golden Pavilion; Ginkaku-ji, the Temple of the Silver Pavilion; and Ryōan-ji, known for its rock garden. The Heian Jingū is a Shinto shrine built in 1895. It honors the imperial family and remembers the first and last emperors who lived in Kyoto.

Three special places are connected to the imperial family: the Kyoto Gyoen area, which includes the Kyoto and Sentō Imperial Palaces, where emperors lived for many years; Katsura Imperial Villa, a top example of Japanese architecture; and Shugakuin Imperial Villa, one of the best Japanese gardens. The temple of Sennyu-ji holds the tombs of emperors from Shijō to Kōmei.

Other places in Kyoto include Arashiyama, the Gion and Ponto-chō geisha areas, the Philosopher's Walk, and canals in older parts of the city.

The "Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto" are listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. These include the Kamo Shrines (Kami and Shimo), Tō-ji, Kiyomizu-dera, Daigo-ji, Ninna-ji, Saihō-ji (Kokedera), Tenryū-ji, Rokuon-ji (Kinkaku-ji), Jishō-ji (Ginkaku-ji), Ryōan-ji, Hongan-ji, Kōzan-ji, and Nijō Castle, built mainly by the Tokugawa shōguns. Some sites outside Kyoto are also on the list.

Kyoto is known for its variety of delicious Japanese food. Because Kyoto is inland and has many Buddhist temples, it developed unique vegetables called kyō-yasai. The oldest restaurant in Kyoto, Honke Owariya, was founded in 1465.

Kyoto is the center of Japan's television and film industry. Many samurai films were made at Toei Uzumasa Eigamura, a film set and theme park with replicas of traditional Japanese buildings used for filming. Visitors can watch movies being made there.

The dialect spoken in Kyoto is called Kyō-kotoba or Kyōto-ben, part of the Kansai dialect. Until the late Edo period, the Kyoto dialect was the standard form of Japanese, but it has since been replaced by modern standard Japanese. Traditional expressions include the polite ending "dosu

Sport

Kyoto hosts many annual sports events, such as the 400-year-old Tōshiya archery exhibition at the Sanjūsangen-dō Temple, the Kyoto Marathon, and the Shimadzu All Japan Indoor Tennis Championships.

Several sports teams are based in Kyoto, including professional football and basketball teams. In football, Kyoto Sanga FC represents the city. This team won the Emperor's Cup in 2002 and joined the J. League's top division in 2005. Kyoto Sanga started as an amateur club in the 1920s, making it the J. League team with the longest history. It became a professional team in the 1990s and played its home games at Takebishi Stadium Kyoto in Ukyō-ku until 2019. After that, home matches moved to Kameoka, Kyoto. Other amateur football clubs in Kyoto include AS Laranja Kyoto, Ococias Kyoto AC, and Kyoto Shiko Soccer Club, which compete in the Kansai Soccer League.

Another professional team in Kyoto is the Kyoto Hannaryz, a men's basketball team in the First Division of the B.League. They play their home games at the Kyoto City Gymnasium in Ukyō-ku. Kyoto has also been the home of other professional teams that later moved or ended. For example, the Central League baseball team Shochiku Robins played in Kyoto from 1949 to 1952 before becoming the Yokohama DeNA BayStars. Kyoto also hosted two teams in the Japan Women's Baseball League before the league ended in 2021.

Company teams in Kyoto include two rugby teams, the Mitsubishi Motors Kyoto Red Evolutions and the Shimadzu Breakers, which compete in the Kansai regional rugby league Top West. In baseball, company teams have played in the JABA Kyoto Tournament every year since 1947.

Kyoto Racecourse in Fushimi-ku is one of ten racecourses operated by the Japan Racing Association. It hosts notable horse races, including the Kikuka-shō, Spring Tenno Sho, and Queen Elizabeth II Cup.

International relations

The city of Kyoto has sister-city relationships with several other cities. These relationships include cooperation in many different areas. In addition, Kyoto has partner-city relationships with other cities. These partner cities work together on specific topics. Currently, Kyoto has partner-city arrangements with the following cities: