is one of 24
wards of
Osaka
is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of ...
,
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...
. It has an area of 4.37 km², and a population of 51,567.
General information
Largely a residential area itself, Naniwa-ku is adjacent to and has in recent years blurred into the
Namba
is a district of Osaka, Japan. It is located in Chūō and Naniwa wards. Namba is regarded as the center of so-called ''Minami'' ("South") area of Osaka. Its name is one of variations on the former name of Osaka, '' Naniwa''. Namba is be ...
district, which is south Osaka's transport hub and centre of commerce, entertainment, shopping, and culture.
Naniwa retains significant
Burakumin and
Korean communities. The plight and struggle of both communities in Japan is represented in
Liberty Osaka (Osaka Human Rights Museum).
Almost the entire ward was decimated in air attacks during bombing in March, 1945. Few buildings pre-dating World War II remain.
Attractions
Naniwa is the site of a number of well-known commercial areas like
Nipponbashi, where
Capcom
is a Japanese video game developer and publisher. It has created a number of multi-million-selling game franchises, with its most commercially successful being '' Resident Evil'', '' Monster Hunter'', '' Street Fighter'', ''Mega Man'', ''De ...
and
SNK are headquartered. Locally known as
Den Den Town
is a shopping district of Naniwa Ward, Osaka, Japan. The area is centered along Sakaisuji Avenue, extending from the Ebisu-chō Interchange of the Hanshin Expressway in the south, to Nansan-dōri (just east of Nankai Namba Station) in the n ...
(Electric City), Nipponbashi was traditionally a concentration for Osaka's electrical appliance outlets, though the emergence of several large electrical department stores over in recent years has seen its shop space make a gradual shift away from the electrical appliance sector. Directly to its south is
Shin Sekai (New World), an entertainment district famous for the
Tsutenkaku Tower and Janjan Alley.
Amongst Naniwa's sites is the Imamiya Ebisu Shrine, which sponsors the lively Toka Ebisu Festival. Naniwa is the site of the
Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium
is an indoor sporting arena located in Namba, Osaka, Japan. It first opened in 1952 and the current building was constructed in 1987. It is the venue of a professional sumo tournament ( honbasho) held in March every year. The capacity of the ...
(''Osaka-furitsu taiiku-kaikan''), where the Grand Sumo Tournament is held in March (''Ozumo Sangatsu Basho'') and
Liberty Osaka
Liberty Osaka (formerly the Osaka Human Rights Museum) is a museum dedicated to human rights situated in Naniwa-ku, a ward in south Osaka City. As the first general museum dedicated to human rights in Japan, the focus of its permanent exhibits is ...
-
the Osaka Human Rights Museum
Liberty Osaka (formerly the Osaka Human Rights Museum) is a museum dedicated to human rights situated in Naniwa-ku, a ward in south Osaka City. As the first general museum dedicated to human rights in Japan, the focus of its permanent exhibits is ...
. Naniwa also contains the massive modern shopping, dining, and entertainment complex,
Namba Parks
Namba Parks (なんばパークス ''Nanba Pākusu'') is an office and shopping complex located in Namba-naka Nichome, Naniwa-ku, Osaka, Japan, the south of Namba Station on Nankai Railway. It consists of a high-rise office building called P ...
.
Landmarks
*
Den Den Town
is a shopping district of Naniwa Ward, Osaka, Japan. The area is centered along Sakaisuji Avenue, extending from the Ebisu-chō Interchange of the Hanshin Expressway in the south, to Nansan-dōri (just east of Nankai Namba Station) in the n ...
*
Festival Gate
*
Imamiya Ebisu Shrine
Imamiya Ebisu Shrine (今宮戎神社, ''Imamiya Ebisu jinja'') is a Shinto shrine located in Naniwa-ku, Osaka Prefecture, Japan. According to legend, it was established in 600 during the reign of Empress Suiko. Its annual festival is held from J ...
*
Namba City
is a district of Osaka, Japan. It is located in Chūō and Naniwa wards. Namba is regarded as the center of so-called ''Minami'' ("South") area of Osaka. Its name is one of variations on the former name of Osaka, '' Naniwa''. Namba is be ...
*
Namba Parks
Namba Parks (なんばパークス ''Nanba Pākusu'') is an office and shopping complex located in Namba-naka Nichome, Naniwa-ku, Osaka, Japan, the south of Namba Station on Nankai Railway. It consists of a high-rise office building called P ...
*
Osaka City Air Terminal
Osaka City Air Terminal (OCAT) is a multi-purpose commercial complex in Minatomachi, Naniwa-ku, Osaka housing South Osaka's inter-city bus terminal and coach ferry services to Kansai International Airport, JR Namba station and six floors of sho ...
*
Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium
is an indoor sporting arena located in Namba, Osaka, Japan. It first opened in 1952 and the current building was constructed in 1987. It is the venue of a professional sumo tournament ( honbasho) held in March every year. The capacity of the ...
*
Tsutenkaku
*
Liberty Osaka (Osaka Human Rights Museum)
*
Sports Palace, Osaka
Sport pertains to any form of competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to spectators. Sports can, th ...
Mass media
Newspaper
*
Sankei Shimbun - Namba Sankei Building
FM Radio Station
*
FM OSAKA
is an FM radio station in Osaka, Japan. The station is an affiliate of Japan FM Network (JFN).
FM Osaka started broadcasting on April 1, 1970. It was the second commercial FM radio station to launch in Japan after FM Aichi. During its early ...
- Minatomachi River Place
Train stations
;
JR West
, also referred to as , is one of the Japan Railways Group (JR Group) companies and operates in western Honshu. It has its headquarters in Kita-ku, Osaka. It is listed in the Tokyo Stock Exchange, is a constituent of the TOPIX Large70 index, and i ...
:
Kansai Line (
Yamatoji Line
The is the common name of the western portion of the Kansai Main Line. The line is owned and operated by West Japan Railway Company (JR West), and starts at Kamo Station in Kyoto Prefecture and ends at JR Namba Station in Naniwa-ku, Osaka.
O ...
):
Shin-Imamiya Station -
Imamiya Station -
JR Namba Station
is a railway station in Namba, Naniwa Ward, Osaka, Japan, adjacent to Namba Station ( Nankai Railway, Osaka Subway) and Ōsaka Namba Station ( Kintetsu, Hanshin Railway) operated by the West Japan Railway Company (JR West).
JR Namba is the we ...
:
Osaka Loop Line
The is a railway loop line in Japan operated by the West Japan Railway Company (JR West). It encircles central Osaka.
Part of a second, proposed outer loop line, the Osaka Higashi Line, from Hanaten to Kyuhoji was opened on March 15, 2008, an ...
:
Ashiharabashi Station - Imamiya Station - Shin-Imamiya Station
;
Nankai Railway
is a private railway in Japan, founded in 1884. The name ''Nankai'' (which means "South Sea") comes from the company's routes along the Nankaidō, the old highway that ran south from the old capital, Kyoto, along the sea coast. Nankai predates a ...
(In registration, Namba Station on Nankai Railway is located in Chūō-ku, and Shin-Imamiya Station in Nishinari-ku)
:
Nankai Main Line
The is one of the two main railway lines of Japanese private railway company Nankai Electric Railway, together with Kōya Line. The route is from Namba Station in south downtown of Osaka to Wakayamashi Station in Wakayama via Sakai, Izumi ...
:
Imamiyaebisu Station (only local trains of the Koya Line stop)
:
Kōya Line (Shiomibashi Branch):
Shiomibashi Station -
Ashiharachō Station
;
Hanshin Railway
is a Japanese private railway company of Hankyu Hanshin Toho Group that links Osaka and Kobe. It also owns the Hanshin Tigers baseball team.
The first character for Kobe (神戸) and the second character for Osaka (大阪) combine to form th ...
:
Hanshin Namba Line
The is a railway line operated by the private railway operator Hanshin Electric Railway connecting Amagasaki Station in Amagasaki, Hyogo Prefecture, and Ōsaka Namba Station in Chuo-ku, Osaka, Osaka Prefecture, Japan.
History
The , the pre ...
Sakuragawa Station
;
Osaka Metro
The is a major rapid transit system in the Osaka Metropolitan Area of Japan, operated by the Osaka Metro Company, Ltd. It serves the city of Osaka and the adjacent municipalities of Higashiosaka, Kadoma, Moriguchi, Sakai, Suita, and Yao. ...
(In registration, Namba Station is located in Chūō-ku)
:
Midōsuji Line
The is a rapid transit line in Osaka, Japan, operated by Osaka Metro. Constructed under Midōsuji, a major north-south street, it is the oldest line in the Osaka subway system and the second oldest in Japan, following the Tokyo Metro Ginza L ...
:
Daikokuchō Station
:
Yotsubashi Line
The is an underground rapid transit line in Osaka, Japan, operated by Osaka Metro. The line connects Umeda, Hommachi, Yotsubashi, Namba, Daikokuchō and Suminoe, and runs parallel to the Midōsuji Line from Daikokuchō to Nishi-Umeda. Its offic ...
:
Namba Station (a platform) -
Daikokuchō Station
:
Sennichimae Line
is an underground rapid transit line in Osaka, Japan. It is one of the lines of Osaka Metro. It links the northwestern district of Fukushima-ku and the southeastern district of Ikuno-ku with the central commercial and entertainment distric ...
:
Sakuragawa Station
:
Sakaisuji Line
The is an underground rapid transit line in Osaka, Japan, operated by Osaka Metro. Its official name is , and in MLIT publications, it is written as .
The Sakaisuji Line is unique in the Osaka Metro system in that despite being regulated as ...
:
Ebisuchō Station
;
Hankai Tramway
is a company which owns two tramway lines in the cities of Osaka and Sakai, Osaka, Japan. The parent company is Nankai Electric Railway Co., Ltd.
Lines
Current
*Hankai Line (Ebisucho - Hamadera eki-mae) 14.1 km
* Uemachi Line (Tennoji eki ...
(In registration, Minami-Kasumichō Station is located in Nishinari-ku)
:
Hankai Line:
Ebisuchō Station
Education
The
Osaka Chinese School
The Osaka Chinese School is a Chinese international school in Naniwa-ku, Osaka, Japan. It serves grades 1-9Ú.
In 1986 Chang Hwei-chin, then the school principal, stated that every year students of the Chinese school's junior high school entere ...
is in Naniwa-ku.
Home page
Osaka Chinese School
The Osaka Chinese School is a Chinese international school in Naniwa-ku, Osaka, Japan. It serves grades 1-9Ú.
In 1986 Chang Hwei-chin, then the school principal, stated that every year students of the Chinese school's junior high school entere ...
. Retrieved on April 11, 2015. "所在地:大阪市浪速区敷津東1-8-13"
References
External links
Official website of Naniwa
{{Authority control
Wards of Osaka