science

Nihonbashi

Nihonbashi is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Nihonbashi rather than just read about it. In short: Nihonbashi (日本橋, Nihonbashi; Japanese pronunciation: [ɲi.hom.ba.ɕi], also romanized as Nihombashi) is a business district of Chūō, Tokyo, Japan, which sprung up around the bridge of the same name that has linked two sides of the Nihonbashi River at this site since the 17th century. The first wooden bridge was completed in 1603.

Key takeaways

Nihonbashi belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Nihonbashi to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Nihonbashi from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Nihonbashi (日本橋, Nihonbashi; Japanese pronunciation: [ɲi.hom.ba.ɕi], also romanized as Nihombashi) is a business district of Chūō, Tokyo, Japan, which sprung up around the bridge of the same name that has linked two sides of the Nihonbashi River at this site since the 17th century. The first wooden bridge was completed in 1603. The current bridge, designed by Tsumaki Yorinaka and constructed of stone on a steel frame, dates from 1911. The district covers a large area to the north and east of the bridge, reaching Kanda to the north and the Sumida River to the east. Ōtemachi and Yaesu are to the west and Kyobashi to the south. Nihonbashi, together with Kyobashi and Kanda, is the core of Shitamachi, the original downtown center of Edo-Tokyo, before the rise of newer secondary centers such as Shinjuku and Shibuya.

History

The Nihonbashi district was a major mercantile center during the Edo period: its early development is largely credited to the Mitsui family, who based their wholesaling business in Nihonbashi and developed Japan's first department store, Mitsukoshi, there. The Edo-era fish market formerly in Nihonbashi was the predecessor of the Tsukiji and Toyosu Markets. Yamamotoyama began as a tea house here in 1690. In later years, Nihonbashi emerged as Tokyo's (and Japan's) predominant financial district.

The Nihonbashi bridge first became famous during the 17th century, when it was the eastern terminus of the Nakasendō and the Tōkaidō, roads which ran between Edo and Kyoto. During this time, it was known as Edobashi, or "Edo Bridge." In the Meiji era, the wooden bridge was replaced by a larger stone bridge, which still stands today (a replica of the old bridge has been exhibited at the Edo-Tokyo Museum). It is the point from which all distances are measured to the capital; highway signs indicating the distance to Tokyo actually state the number of kilometres to Nihonbashi.

The area surrounding the bridge was burned to the ground during the massive March 9–10, 1945 bombing of Tokyo, considered the single largest air raid in history. Despite careful maintenance and restoration, one area of the bridge still has scars burned into the stone from an incendiary bomb. It is one of the few traces left from the fire bombing that leveled most of Tokyo. Nihonbashi was a ward of Tokyo City. In 1947, when the 35 wards of Tokyo were reorganized into 23, it was merged with Kyōbashi to form the modern Chuo ward. Shortly before the 1964 Summer Olympics, an expressway was built over the Nihonbashi bridge, obscuring the classic view of Mount Fuji from the bridge. In recent years, local citizens have petitioned the government to move this expressway underground. This plan was endorsed by Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi in 2005, and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government and Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism announced in 2017 that they would begin a detailed study of the project, with a goal of beginning construction following the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. The operator of the Shuto Expressway received approval for construction in May 2020, which will relocate 1.8 kilometers of the expressway underground between Kandabashi and Edobashi Junctions. Construction has commenced and is expected to be completed in fiscal year 2041. Skyscrapers will also be built in the area, transforming its overall image.

Places in Nihonbashi Bank of Japan Mitsukoshi and Takashimaya department stores COREDO NIHONBASHI (ja) Nihonbashi Mitsui Tower Mandarin Oriental, Tokyo (ja) Tokyo Stock Exchange Kilometre Zero for entire Japan

Companies based in Nihonbashi Nihonbashi (日本橋)

Akebono Brake Industry Bank of America Merrill Lynch Japan HSBC Japan Ippon Doll Works KOSÉ Kureha Corporation Maruzen MODEC Nissan Chemical Corporation Nisshinbo Holdings Nomura Holdings Takashimaya Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Hakozakicho (箱崎町)

IBM Japan - IBM Hakozaki Facility Honcho (本町)

Daiichi-Sankyo Muromachi (室町)

Mitsui Fudosan Mitsukoshi Sembikiya Woven Planet Shinsei Bank In the late 1990s GeoCities Japan was headquartered in the Nihonbashi Hakozaki Building in Hakozakicho. At one time Creatures Inc. had its headquarters in the Kawasakiteitoku Building (川崎定徳ビル, Kawasakiteitoku Biru) in Nihonbashi.

Organizations based in Nihonbashi Japan-India Association

Railway and subway stations

Subway stations Bakuro-yokoyama Station (馬喰横山駅) - Toei Shinjuku Line (S-09) Hamachō Station (浜町駅) - Toei Shinjuku Line (S-10) Higashi-nihombashi Station (東日本橋駅) - Toei Asakusa Line (A-15) Kayabachō Station (茅場町駅) - Tokyo Metro Hibiya Line (H-13), Tokyo Metro Tōzai Line (T-11) Kodemmachō Station (小伝馬町駅) - Tokyo Metro Hibiya Line (H-15) Mitsukoshimae Station (三越前駅) - Tokyo Metro Ginza Line (G-12), Tokyo Metro Hanzōmon Line (Z-09) Nihombashi Station (日本橋駅) - Toei Asakusa Line (A-13), Tokyo Metro Ginza Line (G-11), Tokyo Metro Tōzai Line (T-10) Ningyōchō Station (人形町駅) - Toei Asakusa Line (A-14), Tokyo Metro Hibiya Line (H-14) Suitengūmae Station (水天宮前駅) - Tokyo Metro Hanzōmon Line (Z-10)

Railway stations Bakurochō Station (馬喰町駅) - JR Sōbu Line (Rapid) Shin-Nihombashi Station (新日本橋駅) - JR Sōbu Line (Rapid)

Education

Public elementary and junior high schools are operated by Chuo City Board of Education (中央区教育委員会). Jōtō Elementary School (中央区立城東小学校) and Nihonbashi Junior High School (中央区立日本橋中学校) are the zoned public schools of the Nihonbashi District.

Neighboring post towns As the starting point for the five routes of the Edo period, Nihonbashi provided easy access to many parts throughout ancient Japan.

Tōkaidō (connecting Edo to Kyoto, staying near the coast) Nihonbashi (starting location) - Shinagawa-juku Nakasendō (connecting Edo to Kyoto, going through the mountains) Nihonbashi (starting location) - Itabashi-juku Kōshū Kaidō (connecting Edo to Kai Province (modern-day Yamanashi Prefecture)) Nihonbashi (starting location) - Naitō Shinjuku Ōshū Kaidō (connecting Edo to Mutsu Province (modern-day Fukushima Prefecture)) Nihonbashi (starting location) - Hakutaku-juku Nikkō Kaidō (connecting Edo with Nikkō) Nihonbashi (starting location) - Senju-juku

Photo gallery

Notes

References

External links

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Nihonbashi

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Nihonbashi claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Nihonbashi before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Nihonbashi ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Nihonbashi

In research: Nihonbashi appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Nihonbashi in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Nihonbashi is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1911 establishments in Japan, Bridges completed in 1911, Bridges in Tokyo, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Nihonbashi outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Nihonbashi in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Nihonbashi means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Nihonbashi out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Nihonbashi in simple terms?

Why does Nihonbashi matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Nihonbashi?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Nihonbashi.