| Chūkyō metropolitan area | |
| Native Name: | 中京圏 |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: |  Japan |
| Subdivision Type1: | Prefecture |
| Subdivision Name1: | Aichi |
| Population Metro: | 10,110,000 (2023 Estimates) |
| Area Metro Km2: | 7,072 |
| Area Metro Sq Mi: | 2,731 |
| Population As Of: | Demographia World Urban Areas 2019［http://demographia.com/db-worldua.pdf] |
| Population Density Metro Km2: | 1,430 |
| Population Density Metro Sq Mi: | 3,701 |
, or the, is a major metropolitan area in Japan that is centered on the city of Nagoya (the "Chūkyō", i.e., the "capital in the middle") in Aichi Prefecture. The area makes up the most urbanized part of the Tōkai region. The population of 10,110,000 over an area of 7,072 square kilometers.[1] Nevertheless, like most of Japan's major metro areas, the core of it lies on a fertile alluvial plain, in this case, the Nōbi Plain.
| Nagoya metropolitan area | |
| Other Name: | Nagoya MEA |
| Settlement Type: | Urban Employment Area |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | Japan |
| Subdivision Type1: | Prefectures |
| Subdivision Name1: | |
| Subdivision Type2: | Core cities |
| Subdivision Name2: | |
| Unit Pref: | Metric |
| Area Footnotes: | (2011)[2] |
| Area Total Km2: | 2791.72 |
| Area Blank1 Title: | Inhabitable area |
| Area Blank1 Km2: | 1902.02 |
| Population As Of: | 2015 |
| Population Footnotes: | [3] |
| Population Total: | 6871632 |
| Population Rank: | 3rd in Japan |
| Population Density Km2: | auto |
| Population Density Metro Km2: | auto |
| Blank Name Sec1: | GDP (nominal) |
| Blank Info Sec1: | 22.5 trillion Japanese yen (2010) |
It is among the 50 most populous metropolitan areas in the world, and is the third most populous metropolitan area in Japan (after Greater Tokyo and Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto), containing roughly 7% of Japan's population. Historically, this region has taken a back seat to the other two power centers, both politically and economically; however, the agglomeration of Nagoya is the world's 22nd-largest metro area economy, in terms of gross metropolitan product at purchasing power parity in 2014, according to a study by the Brookings Institution.[4] The GDP of Greater Nagoya, Nagoya Metropolitan Employment Area, was US$256.3 billion in 2010.[2] [5]
The metropolitan area stretches beyond the central city of Nagoya to other municipalities in Aichi Prefecture, as well as neighboring Gifu and Mie prefectures.
See main article: article and Transport in Greater Nagoya.
There are at least 38 passenger train lines in the Greater Nagoya area. JR runs six, Nagoya Subway seven, Meitetsu 18, Kintetsu four, and five other operators one each.
2014 Chūkyō metropolitan area's GDP per capita (PPP) was US$40,144.[6]
Per Japanese census data,[7] [8] [9] and[10], Chūkyō metropolitan area, also known as greater Nagoya, has had continuous population growth.
The area defined by the Chukyo Area Person-Trip Survey, a study of commuter movement, is slightly different from the census definition. It includes southern Aichi and areas immediately north of Gifu City. It adds two cities in Aichi Prefecture (Tahara and Toyohashi) and two cities in Gifu Prefecture (Mino and Seki). Additionally, it excludes two cities in Gifu Prefecture (Ena and Nakatsugawa).