Kyoto

Overview

Kyoto is a first-level administrative division of Japan in the Kansai region. Its area is about 4,612 km2 and its population about 0.0 million (2024), with its capital at Kyoto.

History

Capital of Japan from the founding of Heian-kyo in 794 until the move to Tokyo in 1868, about a thousand years. A Kyoto shogunal deputy governed in the Edo period; the present prefecture dates from 1871.

Geography and industry

World Heritage sites concentrate here: Kiyomizu-dera, Kinkaku-ji, Ginkaku-ji, Fushimi Inari Taisha and Arashiyama, earning it the name 'city of a thousand years'. Nishijin weaving, yuzen dyeing, sake and Gion culture are distinctive.

Transport

Tokaido Shinkansen reaches Kyoto in about 2 hours 10 minutes from Tokyo; it is a key stop of the Tokaido Main Line between Osaka and Nagoya.