Tokyo東京都
Tōkyō-to, とうきょうと. The name ends in 都 (to), metropolis.
Tokyo is a prefecture, not a city: Tokyo City was merged into the prefecture in 1943. It has 23 special wards at its centre, 26 cities, 5 towns, 8 villages, and the Izu and Ogasawara island chains, which extend 1,000 km south.
Only Tokyo uses 都. It marks that the centre of Tokyo is 23 special wards, each a local government, instead of one city.
Facts
- Japanese name
- 東京都
- Reading
- Tōkyō-to / とうきょうと
- Region
- Kantō 関東
- Capital
- Shinjuku (seat of government) 新宿区
- Largest municipality
- Setagaya City 世田谷区, 943,664 people, more than the capital
- Population
- 14,047,594 (2020 census)
- Area
- 2,194 km²
- Density
- 6,403 people per km²
- Municipalities
- 62: 26 cities, 5 towns, 8 villages, and 23 special wards
- Designated cities
- None
- Districts (郡)
- 1
- Codes
- JIS 13, ISO 3166-2 JP-13
- Website
- www.metro.tokyo.lg.jp
- Tree
- ginkgo イチョウ
- Flower
- Yoshino cherry ソメイヨシノ
- Bird
- black-headed gull ユリカモメ
The tree, flower, and bird are the prefectural symbols, chosen by ordinance. Every prefecture has all three.
The most populous municipalities
| Municipality | Population | km² | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Setagaya City世田谷区 | 943,664 | 58.05 | 6.7% |
| Nerima City練馬区 | 752,608 | 48.08 | 5.4% |
| Ōta City大田区 | 748,081 | 61.86 | 5.3% |
| Edogawa City江戸川区 | 697,932 | 49.9 | 5.0% |
| Adachi City足立区 | 695,043 | 53.25 | 4.9% |
| Suginami City杉並区 | 591,108 | 34.06 | 4.2% |
| Itabashi City板橋区 | 584,483 | 32.22 | 4.2% |
| Hachiōji City八王子市 | 579,355 | 186.38 | 4.1% |
| Kōtō City江東区 | 524,310 | 42.99 | 3.7% |
| Katsushika City葛飾区 | 453,093 | 34.8 | 3.2% |
2020 census. Share is the municipality's part of the prefecture's population. The other 52 are listed below.
How an address here begins
東京都新宿区…
Tōkyō-to, Shinjuku-ku, …
The prefecture name is written first, then the municipality name. The guide explains the rest of the address, and the map finds any address you paste into it.
Neighbouring prefectures
Every municipality in Tokyo市区町村
62 local governments, each with its own mayor and assembly. Each has a page with its population, area, neighbours, and boundary on the map.
The 23 special wards特別区
Each is a local government, the equivalent of a city.
- Chiyoda City千代田区
- Chūō City中央区
- Minato City港区
- Shinjuku City新宿区
- Bunkyō City文京区
- Taitō City台東区
- Sumida City墨田区
- Kōtō City江東区
- Shinagawa City品川区
- Meguro City目黒区
- Ōta City大田区
- Setagaya City世田谷区
- Shibuya City渋谷区
- Nakano City中野区
- Suginami City杉並区
- Toshima City豊島区
- Kita City北区
- Arakawa City荒川区
- Itabashi City板橋区
- Nerima City練馬区
- Adachi City足立区
- Katsushika City葛飾区
- Edogawa City江戸川区
Cities市
- Hachiōji City八王子市
- Tachikawa City立川市
- Musashino City武蔵野市
- Mitaka City三鷹市
- Ome City青梅市
- Fuchu City府中市
- Akishima City昭島市
- Chofu City調布市
- Machida City町田市
- Koganei City小金井市
- Kodaira City小平市
- Hino City日野市
- Higashimurayama City東村山市
- Kokubunji City国分寺市
- Kunitachi City国立市
- Fussa City福生市
- Komae City狛江市
- Higashiyamato City東大和市
- Kiyose City清瀬市
- Higashikurume City東久留米市
- Musashimurayama City武蔵村山市
- Tama City多摩市
- Inagi City稲城市
- Hamura City羽村市
- Akiruno Cityあきる野市
- Nishitokyo City西東京市
Districts, with their towns and villages郡 町 村
A district is a name that groups towns and villages in an address. It has no office and no election. Each town and village in it is a government.
Subprefectures, with their towns and villages支庁
A subprefecture is a branch office of the prefecture, staffed by prefectural employees, for an area too far from the capital to administer from there. It has no assembly and no election. The towns and villages in it are governments.
Questions about Tokyo
- Is Tokyo a city or a prefecture?
- Tokyo (東京都) is a prefecture, not a city. Tokyo City was merged into the prefecture in 1943, and its old area is now the 23 special wards, each a local government of its own. When people say Tokyo they usually mean the wards, but there is no city government of that name.
- What is the capital of Tokyo?
- Tokyo has no capital city. The prefectural government, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, is in Shinjuku (新宿区), one of the 23 special wards, so Shinjuku is given as the seat of government.
- What does 都 mean in 東京都?
- 都 (to) means metropolis. Only Tokyo uses it. Tokyo is a prefecture with 23 special wards at its centre instead of one city, and 都 marks that arrangement. Under the law it is a prefecture like the other 46, with the extra duty of doing some of a city's work for the wards.
- How many municipalities are in Tokyo?
- 62: 26 cities, 5 towns, 8 villages, and 23 special wards. Each is a local government with its own mayor and assembly. The towns and villages are grouped into one district (郡), a name used in addresses, not a government. The 23 special wards each work like a city, with their own mayor and assembly. The Tokyo Metropolitan Government keeps fire, water, and sewerage for them.
- What is the population of Tokyo?
- 14,047,594 at the 2020 census, on 2,194 km², which is 6,403 people per km². Tokyo is the most populous of the 47 prefectures and the 45th largest by area.
- Which prefectures border Tokyo?
- Four prefectures: Saitama (埼玉県), Chiba (千葉県), Kanagawa (神奈川県), and Yamanashi (山梨県). Borders across water are not counted.
- What region is Tokyo in?
- Kantō (関東). A region is a customary grouping of prefectures, not a government, so Tokyo elects a governor and an assembly but the region elects nothing.
- How is Tokyo written in Japanese?
- 東京都, read Tōkyō-to and written とうきょうと in hiragana. The last character, 都, is the word for prefecture, and the name is often used without it in English.
- How does an address in Tokyo begin?
- With the prefecture name, then the municipality name: 東京都新宿区… (Tōkyō-to, Shinjuku-ku, …). In the centre of Tokyo the special ward name is written right after 東京都, with no city name in between. After that are written the named area, the chōme, the block, and the building number.
- What is the largest city in Tokyo?
- Setagaya City (世田谷区), with 943,664 people at the 2020 census. The capital, Shinjuku (seat of government), is not the largest. The three most populous municipalities are Setagaya City (世田谷区, 943,664), Nerima City (練馬区, 752,608), and Ōta City (大田区, 748,081).
- What are the symbols of Tokyo?
- The prefectural tree is the ginkgo (イチョウ), the flower the Yoshino cherry (ソメイヨシノ), and the bird the black-headed gull (ユリカモメ). Tokyo chose them by ordinance, as every prefecture has.
Boundaries: MLIT 国土数値情報. Population: 2020 Population Census (令和2年国勢調査). Area: Geospatial Information Authority of Japan (全国都道府県市区町村別面積調, 2020). Municipality counts are from the boundary data on the map. Website and symbols: the prefecture's Japanese Wikipedia article, read in September 2026.