Yokohama was one of the cities to open for trade with theWest following the 1859 end of thepolicy of seclusion and has since been known as a cosmopolitan port city, afterKobe opened in 1853. Yokohama is the home of many Japan's firsts in theMeiji era, including the first foreign trading port andChinatown (1859), European-style sport venues (1860s), English-language newspaper (1861), confectionery and beer manufacturing (1865), daily newspaper (1870), gas-powered street lamps (1870s), railway station (1872), and power plant (1882). Yokohama developed rapidly as Japan's prominentport city following the end of Japan's relative isolation in the mid-19th century and is today one of its major ports along withKobe,Osaka,Nagoya,Fukuoka, Tokyo andChiba.
Yokohama (横浜) means "horizontal beach".[2] The current area surrounded by Maita Park, theŌoka River and the Nakamura River have been a gulf divided by a sandbar from the open sea. This sandbar was the original Yokohama fishing village. Since the sandbar protruded perpendicularly from the land, or horizontally when viewed from the sea, it was called a "horizontal beach".[3]
Before the Europeans arrived, Yokohama was a small fishing village up to the end of the feudalEdo period, when Japan helda policy of national seclusion, having little contact with foreigners.[4] A major turning point in Japanese history happened in 1853–54, when CommodoreMatthew Perry arrived just south of Yokohama with a fleet of American warships, demanding that Japan open several ports for commerce, and theTokugawa shogunate agreed by signing theTreaty of Peace and Amity.[5]
It was initially agreed that one of the ports to be opened to foreign ships would be the town ofKanagawa-juku (in what is nowKanagawa Ward) on theTōkaidō, a strategic highway that linkedEdo to Kyoto and Osaka. However, theTokugawa shogunate decided that Kanagawa-juku was too close to the Tōkaidō for comfort, and port facilities were instead built across the inlet in the fishing village of Yokohama. ThePort of Yokohama was officially opened on June 2, 1859.[6]
Yokohama quickly became the base of foreign trade in Japan. Foreigners initially occupied the low-lying district of the city calledKannai, residential districts later expanding as the settlement grew to incorporate much of the elevatedYamate district overlooking the city, commonly referred to by English-speaking residents asThe Bluff. Under pressure from United States and United Kingdom officials, the Tokugawa government built a commercial sex district which opened on November 10, 1859, with 6 brothels and 200 indentured sex workers.[7]: 68 The area of Yokohama with the highest concentration of brothels was known as Bloodtown.[7]: 67
Kannai, the foreign trade and commercial district (literally,inside the barrier), was surrounded by a moat, foreign residents enjoying extraterritorial status both within and outside the compound. Interactions with the local population, particularly young samurai, outside the settlement inevitably caused problems; theNamamugi Incident, one of the events that preceded thedownfall of the shogunate, took place in what is nowTsurumi Ward in 1862, and prompted theBombardment of Kagoshima in 1863.
To protect British commercial and diplomatic interests in Yokohama amilitary garrison was established in 1862. With the growth in trade increasing numbers of Chinese also came to settle in the city.[8] Yokohama was the scene of many notable firsts for Japan including the growing acceptance of western fashion, photography by pioneers such asFelice Beato, Japan's first English language newspaper, theJapan Herald published in 1861 and in 1865 the first ice cream confectionery andbeer to be produced in Japan.[9] Recreational sports introduced to Japan by foreign residents in Yokohama included European stylehorse racing in 1862,cricket in 1863[10] andrugby union in 1866. A great fire destroyed much of the foreign settlement on November 26, 1866, andsmallpox was a recurrent public health hazard, but the city continued to grow rapidly – attracting foreigners and Japanese alike.
After theMeiji Restoration of 1868, the port was developed for tradingsilk, the main trading partner being Great Britain. Western influence and technological transfer contributed to the establishment of Japan's first daily newspaper (1870), first gas-powered street lamps (1872) and Japan's firstrailway constructed in the same year to connect Yokohama toShinagawa andShinbashi in Tokyo. In 1872Jules Verne portrayed Yokohama, which he had never visited, in an episode of his widely read novelAround the World in Eighty Days, capturing the atmosphere of the fast-developing, internationally oriented Japanese city.
In 1887, a British merchant,Samuel Cocking, built the city's first power plant. At first for his own use, this coal power plant became the basis for the Yokohama Cooperative Electric Light Company. The city was officially incorporated on April 1, 1889.[11] By the time theextraterritoriality of foreigner areas was abolished in 1899, Yokohama was the most international city in Japan, with foreigner areas stretching from Kannai to theBluff area and the largeYokohama Chinatown.
The early 20th century was marked by rapid growth of industry. Entrepreneurs built factories along reclaimed land to the north of the city towardKawasaki, which eventually grew to be theKeihin Industrial Area. The growth of Japanese industry brought affluence, and many wealthy trading families constructed sprawling residences there, while the rapid influx of population from Japan and Korea also led to the formation of Kojiki-Yato, then the largest slum in Japan.
Yokohama in the aftermath of air raids during the Second World War
Much of Yokohama was destroyed on September 1, 1923, by theGreat Kantō earthquake. The Yokohama police reported casualties at 30,771 dead and 47,908 injured, out of a pre-earthquake population of 434,170.[12] Fuelled by rumors of rebellion and sabotage, vigilante mobs thereupon murdered many Koreans in the Kojiki-yato slum.[13] Many people believed that Koreans usedblack magic to cause the earthquake.Martial law was in place until November 19, 1923. Rubble from the quake was used to reclaim land for parks, the most famous being theYamashita Park on the waterfront which opened in 1930.
Yokohama was rebuilt, only to be destroyed again by U.S. air raids during World War II. The first bombing was in the April 18, 1942Doolittle Raid. An estimated 7,000–8,000 people were killed in a single morning on May 29, 1945, in what is now known as the Great Yokohama Air Raid, whenB-29s firebombed the city and in just one hour and nine minutes, reducing 42% of it to rubble.[11]
Shipyards, wharves, railyards, and warehouses in the dockland area were redeveloped intoMinato Mirai 21.
During theAmerican occupation, Yokohama was a major transshipment base for American supplies and personnel, especially during theKorean War. After the occupation, most local U.S. naval activity moved from Yokohama to an American base in nearbyYokosuka.
Yokohama has a total area of 437.38 km2 (168.87 sq mi) at an elevation of 5 metres (16 ft) above sea level. It is the capital ofKanagawa Prefecture, bordered to the east byTokyo Bay and located in the middle of theKantō plain. The city is surrounded by hills and the characteristic mountain system of the island ofHonshū, so its growth has been limited and it has had to gain ground from the sea. This also affects the population density, one of the highest in Japan with 8,500 inhabitants per km2.
The highest points within the urban boundary are Omaruyama (156 m [512 ft]) and Mount Enkaizan (153 m [502 ft]). The main river is theTsurumi River, which begins in the Tama Hills and empties into thePacific Ocean.[14]
The city is very prone to natural phenomena such asearthquakes andtropical cyclones because the island ofHonshū has a high level of seismic activity, being in the middle of the PacificRing of Fire.
Most seismic movements are of low intensity and are generally not perceived by people. However, Yokohama has experienced two major tremors that reflect the evolution ofEarthquake engineering: the1923 Great Kantō earthquake devastated the city and caused more than 100,000 fatalities throughout the region,[15] while the2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, with its epicenter on the east coast, was felt in the locality but only material damage was lamented because most buildings were already prepared to withstand them.[16]
Yokohama features ahumid subtropical climate (Köppen:Cfa) with hot, humid summers and chilly winters.[17] Weatherwise, Yokohama has a pattern of rain, clouds and sun, although in winter, it is surprisingly sunny due to influence of the Siberian High and being on the relative rain shadow of the Japanese Alps. Frosts at winter are not frequent. Summers can be very oppressive due to heat and humidity combination.[18] The coldest temperature was on 24 January 1927 when −8.2 °C (17.2 °F) was reached, whilst the hottest day was 6 August 2025[19] at 38.1 °C (100.6 °F). The highest monthly rainfall was in October 2004 with 761.5 millimetres (30.0 in), closely followed by July 1941 with 753.4 millimetres (29.66 in), whilst December and January have recorded no measurable precipitation three times each.
Climate data for Yokohama (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1896–present)
The city's population is 3,772,726 as of 1 June 2024, making it the second-most populated city in the country afterTokyo's 23 special wards. Among Yokohama's 18 wards, the most inhabited wasKohoku with a population of 364,760, followed byAoba (308,379),Tsurumi (297,230), andTotsuka (282,601). In terms of population density,Nishi andMinami are the most densely populated, with a per square kilometre population exceeding 15,000.[22] Of Yokohama's population, 1,548,077 work outside the city, while 1,226,618 workers commute from outside the city. As these numbers suggest, some of Yokohama's residential areas are commuter suburbs (or "bed towns" as known in Japanese) for those who work in other major cities, primarily Tokyo.[23]
As of June 2024, Yokohama's population includes 121,042 foreign nationals, making up 3.2% of the total population, with the number having grown significantly in recent years. While all three countries with the number of nationals living in Yokohama as citizens exceeding 10,000 are all in Asia (China,South Korea,Vietnam), other major countries of origin for Yokohama's non-Japanese residents includeBrazil (2,823), theUnited States (2,793),Peru (1,312), theUnited Kingdom (840), andGermany (770).[24] There is no official survey of the citizens' countries of birth, hence these numbers do not include naturalized citizens, but they include foreign nationals born outside their country of citizenship.
Yokohama is one of the 20designated cities in the country, which means the city has many powers that usually belong to prefectural governments, while having wards as subdivisions with administrative functions. Yokohama city consists of 18 wards, with its government seat inNaka Ward. TheYokohama City Council consists of 86 members elected from a total of 18 Wards. TheLDP has minority control with 36 seats. The incumbent mayor isTakeharu Yamanaka, who defeated his predecessorFumiko Hayashi in the2021 Yokohama mayoral election.
In 2020, Yokohama's total gross regional product was 14.06 trillion yen or US$133 billion, a 1.9 per cent decrease compared to the previous year due to theCOVID-19 pandemic. This converts to US$35,107 per citizen, below the national average. A large number of Yokohama's citizens work outside the city (693,064 in 2020), primarily inTokyo, and the economic value they generate outside the city does not contribute to Yokohama's economic output. The largest contributors to this figure were wholesale and retail (17.8%), healthcare (11.7%), and academic, professional, or technological services (11.0%).[23]
There are 42 museums in the city area, including.[26]
CupNoodles Museum (Momofuku Andō Instant Ramen Museum): Several-floors of interactive exhibits related to the invention of theJapanese instant noodle soup, including soup kitchens where you can try the culture-specific noodle soups.
Yokohama is the world's 31st largest seaport in terms of total cargo volume, at 121,326 freight tons as of 2011[update], and is ranked 37th in terms of TEUs (Twenty-foot equivalent units).[27]
In 2013,APM Terminals Yokohama facility was recognized as the most productive container terminal in the world averaging 163 crane moves per hour, per ship between the vessel's arrival and departure at the berth.[28]
Public elementary and middle schools are operated by the city of Yokohama. There are nine public high schools which are operated by the Yokohama City Board of Education,[29] and a number of public high schools which are operated by theKanagawa Prefectural Board of Education.Yokohama National University is a leading university.
46,388 children attend the 260 kindergartens.
Almost 386,000 students are taught in 351 primary schools.
Vermilion City in the Kanto region from the Pokémon franchise is based on Yokohama. During the closing ceremony of the 2022Pokémon World Championships inLondon, Yokohama was announced as the 2023 host city by using footage of Vermilion City fromPokémon Red, Blue, and Yellow. The 2023 World Championships were held at thePacifico Yokohama between August 11–13, 2023. In the video game division, the host country won the finals of all three age divisions.
One of thePretty Cure crossover movies takes place in Yokohama. In the fourth movie of the series,Pretty Cure All Stars New Stage: Friends of the Future, the Pretty Cure appear standing on top of theCosmo Clock 21 inMinato Mirai.
The main setting of the Japanesevisual novel seriesMuv-Luv, first a school and then, in an alternate history, a military base is built in Yokohama with the objective of carrying out the Alternative IV Plan meant to save humanity.
InCommand & Conquer: Red Alert 3, Yokohama is under siege by the Soviet Union and Allied Nations to stop the Empire of The Rising Sun. The player must defend Yokohama and then lead a counterattack as the Empire.
Yokohama is the main setting of Japanese manga and anime seriesKomi Can't Communicate. Multiple of the cities' landmarks are featured on the manga, most notably in the more recently released chapters.
Yokohama is the setting of the animeAfter the Rain as well as manga series with the same title byJun Mayuzuki.
In April 2022, The Yokohama Convention & Visitors Bureau announced the launch of a new interactive website to aid in the tourism and MICE elements of the city.[30]
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