Nihonbashi
Nihonbashi (日本橋, literally Japan Bridge), also romanized as Nihombashi, is a business district of Chūō in Tokyo, Japan. The district grew up around the bridge of the same name.[1] The bridge connects two sides of the Nihonbashi River. A series of bridges at the same site have had the same name since the 17th century.[1]
Traditionally, all distances in Japan are measured from the centerpoint of the Nihonbashi Bridge. This custom began in the Edo period.[2]
History
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In the Edo period, the Nihonbashi Bridge was the start of Tōkaidō road which connected Edo and Kyoto.[3] The earliest Nihonbashi Bridge was made of wood. It was completed in 1603. The current bridge is made of stone. It was completed in 1911.[1]
In 2009, Nihonbashi was recognized as one of the 100 Landscapes of Japan which best show contemporary Japan and its culture in the Heisei period.[4]
Timeline
[change | change source]- 1603 (Keichō 8): Wooden bridge built.[1]
- 1605 (Keichō 10): The first official map of Japan was ordered with distances measured from Nihonbashi.[5]
- 1911 (Meiji 44): Bridge was re-built using stone.[1]
Related pages
[change | change source]References
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- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Chuo City Tourist Association, "Nihonbashi" Archived 2008-03-15 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2012-3-25.
- ↑ Richie, Donald. (1994). Introducing Tokyo, p. 15.
- ↑ Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Tōkaidō" in Japan Encyclopedia, p. 973.
- ↑ "100 Landscapes of Heisei announced," Yomiuri Shimbun. May 2009. Retrieved 2012-3-30.
- ↑ Traganeou, Jilly. (2004). The Tokaido Road: Traveling and Representation in Edo and Meiji Japan, p. 230.
Other websites
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Media related to Nihonbashi, Tokyo at Wikimedia Commons