Keihanshin

Keihanshin (京阪神, "Kyoto-Osaka-Kobe") is a metropolitan region in the Kansai region of Japan encompassing the metropolitan areas of the cities of Kyoto in Kyoto Prefecture, Osaka in Osaka Prefecture and Kobe in Hyōgo Prefecture. The entire region has a population (as of 2010) of 19,341,976 over an area of 13,033 km2 (5,032 sq mi).[2] It is the second-most-populated urban region in Japan (after the Greater Tokyo area), containing approximately 15% of Japan's population.

Keihanshin
Kyoto–Osaka–Kobe
Location in Japan
Coordinates: 34°50′N 135°30′E
CountryJapan
Major CitiesOsaka
Kobe
Kyoto
Sakai
Area
 • Metro
13,033 km2 (5,032 sq mi)
Population
 (Population Census of Japan 2010)[1]
 • Metro
19,341,976
 • Metro density1,484/km2 (3,844/sq mi)

The GDP in Osaka-Kobe is $681 billion as measured by PPP as of 2015, making it one of the world's most productive regions, a match with Paris and London.[3] MasterCard Worldwide reported that Osaka is the 19th ranking city of the world's leading global cities and has an instrumental role in driving the global economy.[4] If Keihanshin were a country, it would be the 16th-largest economy in the world, with a GDP of nearly $953.9 billion in 2012.[5]

The name Keihanshin is constructed by extracting a representative kanji from Kyoto (京都), Osaka (大阪), and Kobe (神戸), but using the Chinese reading instead of the corresponding native reading for each of the characters taken from Osaka and Kobe, and the Kan-on Chinese reading of the character for Kyoto instead of the usual Go-on Chinese reading.

Definitions
Osaka Bay

Range of distance

The Japan Statistics Bureau defines the set of municipalities that are entirely or mostly within 50 kilometres (31 miles) of the Municipal Office of Osaka as one measure of the metropolitan area. As of 2010, the population for this region was 16,342,641.[6]

Urban employment area
A map showing Osaka, Kobe, and Kyoto Urban Employment Areas as of 2015.

The Urban Employment Area is a metropolitan area definition developed at the Faculty of Economics of the University of Tokyo.[7] This definition is comparable to the Metropolitan Statistical Area in the United States. The basic building blocks are municipalities.

The core area is the set of municipalities that contain a densely inhabited district (DID) with a population of 10,000 or more. The Urban Employment Area is called Metropolitan Employment Area, when its core area has 50,000 DID population or more. Otherwise, the area is called Micropolitan Employment Area. A DID is a group of census enumeration districts inhabited at densities of 4,000 or more persons per km². Outlying areas are those municipalities where 10% or more of the employed population work in the core area or in another outlying area. Overlaps are not allowed and an outlying area is assigned to the core area where it has the highest commuter ratio.

This definition assigns a Metropolitan Employment Area to the following cities of the Keihanshin region: Osaka, Kobe, Kyoto, Himeji, and Wakayama. The lists below indicate which cities belong to which metropolitan area. Towns and villages are not listed.

Osaka metropolitan employment area
Osaka metropolitan area

Osaka MEA
Urban Employment Area
(2015)
Prefectures
Core cities
Area
(2011)[8]
 • Total4,291.37 km2 (1,656.91 sq mi)
 • Inhabitable area2,509.71 km2 (969.00 sq mi)
Population
 (2015)[9]
 • Total12,078,820
 • Rank2nd in Japan
 • Density2,800/km2 (7,300/sq mi)
GDP (nominal)[8]45.4 trillion Japanese yen (2010)

The Osaka Metropolitan Employment Area has a population (as of 2015) of 12,078,820[9] and consists of the following cities:

Kyoto metropolitan employment area
A map of Kyoto metropolitan area as of 2015

The Kyoto Metropolitan Employment Area has a population (as of 2015) of 2,801,044[9] and consists of the following cities:

  • Core cities: Kyoto, Kusatsu
  • Outlying cities
    • Kyoto Prefecture (southern part): Uji, Kameoka, Joyo, Muko, Nagaokakyo, Kyotanabe
    • Shiga Prefecture (southwestern part): Otsu, Moriyama

Kobe metropolitan employment area
A map of Kobe metropolitan employment area as of 2015

The Kobe Metropolitan Employment Area has a population (as of 2015) of 2,565,501[9] and consists of the following cities:

  • Core cities: Kobe
  • Outlying cities
    • Hyōgo Prefecture (southern part): Akashi, Kakogawa, Takasago, Miki, and Ono

Himeji metropolitan employment area
A map of Himeji metropolitan employment area as of 2010

The Himeji Metropolitan Employment Area has a population (as of 2015) of 773,389[9] and consists of the following cities:

  • Core cities: Himeji
  • Outlying cities
    • Hyōgo Prefecture (southwestern part): Aioi, Tatsuno

Wakayama metropolitan employment area
A map of Wakayama metropolitan employment area as of 2010
Wakayama

The Wakayama Metropolitan Employment Area has a population (as of 2015) of 569,758[9] and consists of the following cities:

  • Core cities: Wakayama
  • Outlying cities
    • Wakayama Prefecture (northwestern part): Kainan

Major metropolitan area
Keihanshin MMA as of 2015 with core cities in dark blue: Osaka, Sakai, Kyoto, Kobe

The Japan Statistics Bureau defines a Major Metropolitan Area or MMA (大都市圏) as a set of municipalities where at least 1.5% of the resident population aged 15 and above commute to school or work in a designated city (defined as the core area).[10] If multiple designated cities are close enough to have overlapping outlying areas, they are combined into a single multi-core area. In the 2010 census, the designated cities used to define the Keihanshin MMA were Osaka, Kobe, and Kyoto. Sakai has subsequently become a designated city.

This region consists of the combination of the metropolitan areas of Osaka, Kobe, Kyoto, and Himeji, and additionally includes several periurban areas (particularly in southern Shiga Prefecture) that are not part of the four metropolitan areas.

As of 2010, the entire Keihanshin region had a population of 19,341,976 over an area of 13,033 square kilometres (5,032 square miles).[2]

Historical Demographics of Keihanshin

Per Japanese census data, Keihanshin, also known as Greater Osaka, has had continuous population throughout the 20th century. Beginning at around 2010, Keihanshin has experienced population decline.

Historical population
YearPop.±%
1950 7,005,000—    
1960 10,615,000+51.5%
1970 15,272,000+43.9%
1980 17,028,000+11.5%
1990 18,389,000+8.0%
2000 18,660,180+1.5%
2010 19,341,976+3.7%
2020 19,165,340−0.9%
Keihanshin Agglomeration (UN Definition):[11] [12]

Cities
Sakai

Core cities
Osaka

The core cities formed Keihanshin are government ordinance cities. These cities designated the three largest cities as special cities with Tokyo in 1889. Kobe designated the six largest cities as special cities in 1922, and adopted the ward system in 1931. Following World War II, the six largest cities was replaced by the government designated city system in 1956. Afterwards, Sakai became a government designated city in 2006.

The core cities of Keihanshin are:[13]

  • Osaka (population 2.66 million)
  • Kobe (population 1.55 million)
  • Kyoto (population 1.46 million)
  • Sakai (population 842,760)

Other cities within the area
Nara
Himeji

The other cities in Osaka, Hyogo, Kyoto and Nara Prefectures include:

Additional cities

In the major metropolitan area (MMA) definition used by the Japanese Statistics Bureau, the following cities in Mie, Shiga, Wakayama Prefectures are included:

Mie prefecture

Shiga prefecture

Wakayama prefecture

Transportation
Kansai International Airport
JR Central Tōkaidō Shinkansen arriving at Kyoto Station
The Akashi Kaikyō Bridge extends from Kobe to Awaji Island.

Air

There are two major airports. The fairly centrally located Osaka International Airport, laid over the border between the cities of Itami and Toyonaka, serves primarily domestic routes.

Kansai International Airport opened in 1994 and is now the main international airport for the region. It sits on an artificial island well off-shore in Osaka Bay towards the Wakayama outlet. Kansai is the geographical term for the area of western Honshū surrounding Osaka. The airport island link to the mainland via the Sky Gate Bridge R, containing a six lane expressway and the Kansai Airport Line, a rail link connecting to the Hanwa Line, which connects Wakayama to Osaka. Limit express trains offer non-stop service to Osaka and onward to Kyoto. Local connections are made to other areas. Highway buses also offer service to many areas.

Kobe Airport, built on a reclaimed island south of Port Island opened in 2006, offering domestic flights.

Rail

Greater Osaka has a very extensive network of railway lines, comparable to that of Greater Tokyo. Main rail terminals in the city include, Umeda, Namba, Tennoji, Kyobashi, and Yodoyabashi.

High speed rail
Main articles: Shin-Ōsaka Station, Tōkaidō Shinkansen, and Sanyō Shinkansen
See also: Central Japan Railway Company and West Japan Railway Company

JR Central and JR West operate high-speed trains on the Tōkaidō-Sanyō Shinkansen line. Shin-Ōsaka Station acts as the Shinkansen terminal station, though the two lines are physically joined, and many trains offer through service. This station is connected to Ōsaka Station at Umeda by the JR Kyoto Line and the subway Midōsuji Line. Shin-Osaka Station and Kyoto Station are the busiest high-speed stations. The smaller stations of Shin-Kobe Station, Nishi-Akashi Station, Himeji Station, and Aioi Station also are within the Keihanshin area.

All trains on the two Shinkansen lines stop at Shin-Ōsaka Station and provide connections to other major cities in Japan. The Tokaido Shinkansen offers service to the east, stopping in such cities as Kyoto, Nagoya, Yokohama and Tokyo. From Tokyo connections can be made to other Shinkansen servicing areas north of Tokyo. The Sanyo Shinkansen offers service to the west, stopping in such cities as Kobe, Okayama, Hiroshima, and Fukuoka. Through service is also offered to the Kyushu Shinkansen extending service to such cities as Kumamoto and Kagoshima.

There are also numerous Limited Express services which operate on conventional lines, but are designed for comfortable long distance travel. Many of these trains operate at speeds that most other countries would consider "high-speed". From Osaka, Limited Express services connect most major cities within the Keihanshin area and beyond, and are more popular than the Shinkansen for connections within the area due to service to more areas and more centrally located and well connected stations in areas also serviced by Shinkansen. Lower ticket prices also encourages usage, though they are more expensive than the regular/commuter trains which operate on the same lines.

Commuter rail
See also: Keihan Electric Railway, Hankyu Railway, Hanshin Electric Railway, Kintetsu Railway, and Nankai Electric Railway

Both JR West and private lines connect Osaka and its suburbs. The commuter rail network of JR West is called the Urban Network. Major stations on the JR Osaka Loop Line include Osaka (Umeda), Tennōji, Tsuruhashi, and Kyōbashi. JR West competes with such private rail operators as Keihan Electric Railway, Hankyu Railway, Hanshin Railway, Kintetsu Railway, and Nankai Electric Railway. The Keihan and Hankyu lines connect to Kyoto; the Hanshin and Hankyu lines connect to Kobe; the Kintetsu lines connect to Nara, Yoshino, Ise and Nagoya; and the Nankai lines connect to Osaka's southern suburbs and Kansai International Airport as well as Wakayama and Mt. Koya. Many lines in Greater Osaka accept either ICOCA or PiTaPa contactless smart cards for payment.[14]

Municipal subway

The Osaka Metro system is a part of Osaka's extensive rapid transit system. The Metro system alone ranks 13th in the world by annual passenger ridership, serving over 912 million people annually (a quarter of Greater Osaka Rail System's 4 billion annual riders), despite being only 8 of more than 70 lines in the metro area.

Economy

GDP (purchasing power parity) 2015
Umeda Sky Building

Compared with other urban regions of the world, the agglomeration of Osaka-Kobe is the ninth largest economy, in terms of gross metropolitan product at purchasing power parity (PPP), in 2015 according to a study by the Brookings Institution.[15]

Rank Metro area Country GDP(PPP)
(in billion US$)
1 Tokyo  Japan
1,624
2 New York  United States
1,492
3 Los Angeles  United States
927.6
4 Seoul-Incheon  South Korea
903.5
5 London  United Kingdom
831.1
6 Paris  France
818.5
7 Shanghai  China
809.5
8 Moscow  Russia
749.7
9 Osaka-Kobe  Japan
681.0
10 Beijing  China
663.6

Metropolitan employment areas
GDP based on PPP (in billion US$)[16][17]
Area19801985199019952010
Osaka MEA 119.5162.5235.7272.2406.3
Kyoto MEA 23.734.045.753.990.6
Kobe MEA 22.031.044.048.775.5
Himeji MEA 7.310.113.717.326.4
Wakayama MEA 5.77.68.69.719.3

Prefectures
Osaka Bay at night
  • 2014 average exchange rate (1 US dollar = 110 yen)[18]
Prefecture Gross Prefecture Product
(in billion yen)[19]		 Gross Prefecture Product
(in billion US$)
 Osaka
37,934
358
 Hyōgo
19,788
187
Kyoto
10,054
95
 Shiga
5,846
55
 Wakayama
3,579
34
 Nara
3,541
33
Kansai Region
80,741
762

Gdp (nominal) 2014

Kansai region and Top 20 Countries.[20]

Rank Country GDP (in US$)
1  United States
17.43 trillion
2  China
10.53 trillion
3  Japan
4.85 trillion
･･･
15  Mexico
1.30 trillion
16  Turkey
934.1 billion
17  Indonesia
891.1 billion
18  Netherlands
881.0 billion
(Kansai Region)
762.1 billion
19  Saudi Arabia
756.4 billion
20   Switzerland
709.3 billion
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See also

References
  1. Statistics Bureau of Japan
  2. Japan Statistics Bureau - "2010 Census", retrieved August 23, 2015
  3. Brookings Institution report 2015, retrieved August 23, 2015
  4. Mastercard Worldwide - "Worldwide Centers of Commerce Index 2008" page 8 and 22, retrieved June 11, 2008
  5. NationMaster.com
  6. Japan Statistics Bureau - Basic Figures for Range of Distance
  7. "What are UEA?". Center for Spatial Information Science, the University of Tokyo. Retrieved January 25, 2019.
  8. Kanemoto, Yoshitsugu. "Metropolitan Employment Area (MEA) Data". Center for Spatial Information Science, University of Tokyo. Retrieved January 25, 2019.
  9. Kanemoto, Yoshitsugu. "Urban Employment Area (UEA) Code Table". Center for Spatial Information Science, University of Tokyo. Retrieved January 25, 2019.
  10. Japan Statistics Bureau - Definition of Major Metropolitan Area
  11. {{Cite web |url=http://worldpopulationreview.com/world-cities/osaka-population/ |title= Greater Osaka population |access-date=2019-08-13 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190813172603/http://worldpopulationreview.com/world-cities/osaka-population/ |archive-date=2019-08-13 |url-status=live
  12. "Keihanshin population". Archived from the original on 2020-07-27. Retrieved 2020-07-27.
  13. http://www.stat.go.jp/data/jyutaku/2013/pdf/daitoshi-i.pdf
  14. JR West. "JRおでかけネット - きっぷ・サービス案内 - ご利用可能エリア　近畿圏エリア" (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 2009-02-23. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  15. Redefining Global Cities
  16. Yoshitsugu Kanemoto. "Metropolitan Employment Area (MEA) Data". Center for Spatial Information Science, The University of Tokyo.
  17. Conversion rates - Exchange rates - OECD Data
  18. Yearly average currency exchange rates
  19. Gross Prefecture Product 2014
  20. World Economic Outlook Database October 2017
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