| Nishi | |
| Official Name: | Nishi Ward |
| Native Name Lang: | ja |
| Settlement Type: | Ward |
| Image Map1: | Yokohama-Nishi-ku.PNG |
| Map Caption1: | Location of Nishi in Kanagawa |
| Pushpin Map: | Japan |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | |
| Coordinates: | 35.4536°N 139.6169°W |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | Japan |
| Subdivision Type1: | Region |
| Subdivision Name1: | Kantō |
| Subdivision Type2: | Prefecture |
| Subdivision Name2: | Kanagawa |
| Subdivision Type3: | City |
| Subdivision Name3: | Yokohama |
| Area Total Km2: | 7.04 |
| Population Total: | 93210 |
| Population As Of: | February 2010 |
| Population Density Km2: | 13210 |
| Timezone1: | Japan Standard Time |
| Utc Offset1: | +9 |
| Blank Name Sec1: | City Symbols |
| Blank1 Name Sec1: | - Tree |
| Blank1 Info Sec1: | Osmanthus |
| Blank2 Name Sec1: | - Flower |
| Blank2 Info Sec1: | Narcissus |
| Blank1 Name Sec2: | Address |
| Blank1 Info Sec2: | 1-5-10 Chuo, Nishi-ku Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa-ken 220-0051 |
| Website: | Nishi Ward Office |
is one of the 18 wards of the city of Yokohama in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. As of 2010, the ward had an estimated population of 93,027 and a density of 13,210 persons per km². The total area was 7.04 km².
Nishi Ward is located in eastern Kanagawa Prefecture, near the geographic center of the city of Yokohama. It is the smallest of the wards of the city in terms of area, but it includes Yokohama's major commercial hub, extending from the Yokohama Station area through the new Minato Mirai 21 complex, which is home to the Yokohama Landmark Tower, the second tallest building in Japan. The ward consists of lowlands through which the Tōkaidō Main Line and Route 1 pass. The northernmost, southernmost, and western areas are uplands. The Minato Mirai complex is built on reclaimed land, as was the Yokohama Station area..
Part of the domains of the Miura clan during and after the Kamakura period, the area of present-day Nishi Ward was part of the tenryō territory in Musashi Province controlled directly by the Tokugawa shogunate, but administered through various or direct retainers of the shōgun. Parts of the territories of Kanagawa-juku and Hodogaya-juku, post stations on the Tōkaidō are within the borders of the present Ward. After the Meiji Restoration, the area was divided between the new Tachibana and Kuraki Districts in Kanagawa Prefecture and further divided into numerous villages. Yokohama's wards were established on October 10, 1927, with this area becoming part of the Kanagawa and Naka Wards. On April 1, 1944, Nishi became an independent ward within the city of Yokohama.
Nishi Ward is a regional commercial center and the main business district of modern Yokohama. The world headquarters of Nissan is located in Nishi Ward.[1] Other major companies headquartered in the ward include:
Japan Airlines at one time operated a domestic flights only ticketing facility in the Sky Building of the Yokohama City Air Terminal (YCAT) in Nishi-ku.[6] On March 31, 2011 the ticket counter closed.[7]
Three universities are located in Nishi Ward. The oldest is Yokohama National University, established in 1876. KU Port Square, part of the private Kanagawa University, established in 1928, lies within the ward. The third is Yashima Gakuen University.
Kanagawa Prefectural Board of Education operates .
The operates public elementary and junior high schools.
Junior high schools:[8]
Elementary schools:[9]
Additionally the zones of Fujimidai Elementary School (富士見台小学校) and Honcho Elementary School (本町小学校), with their campuses outside of Nishi-ku, include portions of Nishi-ku.[10]
Each June, Nishi Ward hosts the Yokohama Kaikō Festival to commemorate the opening of the city's port. In August, the Yokohama Carnival takes place near Yokohama Station.