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capital city of Aichi prefecture, Japan
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Nagoya (名古屋市, Nagoya-shi; [nä́.ɡò̞.jä̀, -ŋò̞.jä̀, nä̀.ɡó̞.jä́.ɕì, -ŋó̞.jä́-] ⓘ) is the capital and most populous city of Aichi Prefecture in Japan. It is the largest city in the Chūbu region, the fourth-most populous city in Japan (with a 2025 population of 2.3 million), and the principal city of the Chūkyō metropolitan area, which is itself the third-most populous metropolitan area in Japan (with a population of 10.11 million). Nagoya is located on the Pacific coast in central Honshu, and its seaport is the largest in Japan.
In 1610, the shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu moved the capital of Owari Province from Kiyosu to Nagoya. This period saw the renovation of Nagoya Castle. The early 1900s brought a convergence of economic factors that fueled rapid growth in the city during the Meiji Restoration, and it became a major industrial hub for the country as the area's automobile, aviation, and shipbuilding industries flourished; the traditional manufacturing of bicycles, sewing machines, and timepieces was thus followed by the production of ceramic, chemicals, oil, petrochemicals, and steel. These factors made Nagoya a target of American air raids during the Pacific War.
Nagoya's economy diversified following the war, but the city remains a significant centre of industry and transport in Japan. It is linked to Tokyo, Osaka, and Kyoto by the Tokaido Shinkansen and is home to the Nagoya Stock Exchange, as well as the headquarters of Brother Industries, Ibanez, Lexus, and Toyota Tsusho, among others. It hosts educational institutes such as Nagoya University, the Nagoya Institute of Technology, and Nagoya City University. Famous landmarks include Atsuta Shrine, Higashiyama Zoo and Botanical Gardens, Hisaya Ōdori Park, Nagoya Castle, Port of Nagoya Public Aquarium, and Nagoya TV Tower. Nagoya is hosting the 2026 Asian Games, making it the third Japanese city to do so after Tokyo in 1958 and Hiroshima in 1994.
The city's name was historically written as 那古野 or 名護屋 (both read as Nagoya). One possible origin is the adjective nagoyaka (和やか), meaning 'calm'.
The name Chūkyō (中京), consisting of chū (middle) + kyō (capital) is also used to refer to Nagoya. Notable examples of the use of the name Chūkyō include the Chūkyō Industrial Area, Chūkyō Metropolitan Area, Chūkyō Television Broadcasting, Chukyo University and the Chukyo Racecourse.
In the Jomon and Yayoi period, the Ōguruwa Shell Midden was discovered before the settlement of Nagoya. In the Kofun period, Nagoya was settled and the Danpusan Kofun and Shiratori Kofun was built in this area. The Atsuta Shrine is of ancient origin, it is home to the Imperial Regalia of Japan, the legendary sword Kusanagi no Tsurugi. According to traditional sources, Yamato Takeru died in 113 AD. The possessions of the dead prince were gathered together along with the sword Kusanagi and his widow venerated his memory in a shrine at her home.
The Seigan-ji was built by the Fujiwara clan in the late Heian period. A member served as the head priest of the nearby Atsuta Shrine, one of the legendary shrines of Japan. It is believed that Yura-Gozen, also known as Urahime, a daughter of Fujiwara no Suenori, was married to Minamoto no Yoshitomo (1123–60) and their son Minamoto no Yoritomo's birthplace is Nagoya, he is also the founder of the Kamakura shogunate.
Oda Nobunaga and his protégés Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Tokugawa Ieyasu were powerful warlords based in the Nagoya area who gradually succeeded in unifying Japan. In 1610, Tokugawa Ieyasu moved the capital of Owari Province from Kiyosu, about seven kilometres (4+1⁄2 miles) away, to a more strategic location in present-day Nagoya.
In May–June 1560, the Battle of Okehazama took place in Dengakuhazama, Owari Province which was just outside of what would become Nagoya city. In this battle, Oda Nobunaga defeated Imagawa Yoshimoto and established himself as one of the leading warlords in the Sengoku period.
During this period Nagoya Castle was constructed, built partly from materials taken from Kiyosu Castle. During the construction, the entire town around Kiyosu Castle, consisting of around 60,000 people, moved from Kiyosu to the newly planned town around Nagoya Castle. Around the same time, the nearby ancient Atsuta Shrine was designated as a waystation, called Miya (the Shrine), on the important Tōkaidō road, which linked the two capitals of Kyoto and Edo (now Tokyo). A town developed around the temple to support travelers. The castle and shrine towns formed the city.
During the Meiji Restoration Japan's provinces were restructured into prefectures and the government changed from family to bureaucratic rule. Nagoya was proclaimed a city on 1 October 1889, and designated a city on 1 September 1956 by government ordinance. Nagoya became an industrial hub for the region. Its economic sphere included the famous pottery towns of Tokoname, Tajimi and Seto, as well as Okazaki, one of the only places where gunpowder was produced under the shogunate. Other industries included cotton and complex mechanical dolls called karakuri ningyō.
Mitsubishi Aircraft Company was established in 1920 in Nagoya and became one of the largest aircraft manufacturers in Japan. The availability of space and the central location of the region and the well-established connectivity were some of the major factors that lead to the establishment of the aviation industry there.
Nagoya was the target of air raids during the Pacific War. The population of Nagoya at this time was estimated to be 1.5 million, fourth among Japanese cities and one of the three largest centers of the Japanese aircraft industry. It was estimated that 25% of its workers were engaged in aircraft production. Important Japanese aircraft targets (numbers 193, 194, 198, 2010, and 1729) were within Nagoya. Others, notably 240 and 1833, were to the north of Kagamigahara. It was estimated that they produced between 40% and 50% of Japanese combat aircraft and engines, such as the vital Mitsubishi A6M Zero fighter. The Nagoya area also produced machine tools, bearings, railway equipment, metal alloys, tanks, motor vehicles and processed foods during the war.
Air raids began on 18 April 1942, with an attack on a Mitsubishi Heavy Industries aircraft works, the Matsuhigecho oil warehouse, the Nagoya Castle military barracks and the Nagoya war industries plant. The bombing continued to the spring of 1945, and included large-scale firebombing. Nagoya was the target of two of Bomber Command's attacks. These incendiary attacks, one by day and one by night, devastated 15.3 square kilometres (5.9 mi2). The XXI Bomber Command established a new U.S. Army Air Force record with the greatest tonnage ever released on a single target in one mission—3,162 tons of incendiaries. It destroyed or damaged twenty-eight of the numbered targets and raised the area burned to almost one-fourth of the entire city.
Nagoya Castle, which was being used as a military command post, was hit and mostly destroyed on 14 May 1945, followed by the Yokkaichi bombing in June 1945. Reconstruction of the main building was completed in 1959. On 26 July 1945, the Enola Gay dropped a conventional pumpkin bomb in the Yagoto area of Nagoya while training for their nuclear mission to Hiroshima. In 1959, the city was flooded and severely damaged by the Ise-wan Typhoon.
After the war Nagoya was able to rebuild and take up its role again as one of Japan's leading industrial and manufacturing centers. It became known as the "Houston and Montreal of the Orient". It also plays an increasing role in the meetings, incentives, conferencing, exhibitions (MICE) industry, hosting the Expo 2005 and the Nagoya Protocol conference in 2010.
Nagoya lies north of Ise Bay on the Nōbi Plain. Nagoya was built on low-level plateaus to ward off floodwaters. The plain is one of the nation's most fertile areas. The Kiso River flows to the west along the city border, and the Shōnai River comes from the northeast and turns south towards the bay at Nishi Ward.
The human-made Hori River was constructed as a canal in 1610. It flows from north to south, as part of the Shōnai River system. The rivers allowed for trade with the hinterland. The Tempaku River feeds from a number of smaller river in the east, flows briefly south at Nonami and then west at Ōdaka into the bay.
Nagoya's location and its position in the centre of Japan allowed it to develop economically and politically.
Nagoya has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification: Cfa) with hot, humid summers and cool winters. The summer is noticeably wetter than the winter, with rain falling throughout the year.
Nagoya has 16 wards.
One of the earliest censuses, carried out in 1889, counted 157,496 residents. The population reached the 1 million mark in 1934 and as of September 2025 had an estimated population of 2,337,864 with a population density of 7,161.5 inhabitants per square kilometre (18,548/sq mi). Also as of July 2025 an estimated 1,193,148 households resided there—a significant increase from 153,370 at the end of the Pacific War in 1945.
The area is 3,704 square kilometres (1,430.12 sq mi). Its metropolitan area extends into the Mie and Gifu prefectures, with a total population of about 10 million people, surpassed only by Osaka and Tokyo.
The Nagoya International Center promotes international exchange in the local community. It houses the U.S. Consulate and the United Nations Centre for Regional Development (UNCRD).
Nagoya is twinned with:
The sister city relationship with Nanjing, China was suspended in February 2012, following public comments by Nagoya mayor Takashi Kawamura denying the Nanjing Massacre.
Nagoya Airfield's sister airport is:
Nagoya is the center of Greater Nagoya, which earned nearly 70 percent of Japan's 2003 trade surplus.
Nagoya's main industry is automotive. Toyota's luxury brand Lexus, Denso, Aisin Seiki Co., Toyota Industries, JTEKT and Toyota Boshoku have their headquarters in or near Nagoya. Mitsubishi Motors has an R&D division in the suburb of Okazaki. Major component suppliers such as Magna International and PPG also have a strong presence here. Spark plug maker NGK and Nippon Sharyo, known for manufacturing rolling stock including the Shinkansen are headquartered there.
The aviation history has historically been of importance since the industrialization. During the Pacific War the Mitsubishi A6M Zero fighter was constructed in Nagoya. The aviation tradition continues with Mitsubishi Aircraft Corporation headquartered in the Nagoya Airfield's terminal building in Komaki. The Mitsubishi Regional Jet (MRJ) aircraft is produced at a factory adjacent to the airport.
Text from the Wikipedia article “Nagoya”, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.