Big, bustling, Ōsaka. Situated in the Kansai Region of Japan, in Ōsaka Prefecture, it sits at the mouth of the Yodo River on Osaka Bay. Ōsaka was long Japan’s second-largest city, and now the third largest in the country after Tokyo and Yokohama, with a population of over 2.6 million people.

The name Ōsaka (大阪) means “large hill,” or “large slope.” The name dates back in use to at least 1496, and became the enduring name used for the area earlier referred to as Naniwa.

In Japan, Ōsaka is historically a merchant city. In the Edo era when the Shoguns ruled, Ōsaka was the center of the rice trade. As Japan modernized in the Meiji era, Ōsaka was established by government ordinance in 1889 as a modern municipality and grew to be a large industrial city, representing the modernization of Japan and its emerging capitalist economy.

Bordered on the west by Ōsaka Bay with port facilities and tourist attractions; to the east by residential neighborhoods and Ōsaka Castle Park.

Central Ōsaka is divided geographically into two major areas. There is a downtown known as Kita (north)

And an uptown area called Minami (South). Many of the city’s skyscrapers and Ōsaka
train station are found in Kita. Minami is the historic central area of the city with many commercial and entertainment districts.

The city is divided into 24 wards (ku) and is bisected by the Yodo River and many canals and waterways, with some 760 bridges being managed by the city.

Today, Ōsaka remains a major economic hub of Japan, and is also known as the “nation’s kitchen” for the legendary food culture of the city.

References

Osaka, Wikipedia entry, at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osaka

City of Osaka, official webpage (English), at: http://www.city.osaka.lg.jp/contents/wdu020/english/

List of Japanese Cities by Population, Wikipedia entry, at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Japanese_cities_by_population

Osaka Prefecture, Wikipedia entry, at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osaka_Prefecture

Dōtonbori, Wikipedia entry, at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D%C5%8Dtonbori

Abeno Harukas Building, Wikipedia entry, at: http://www.japanvisitor.com/osaka/abeno-harukas

Okonomiyaki, Wikipedia entry, at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Okonomiyaki