Kōbe (Japanese: 神戸市; -shi) is a city in Japan, located on the island of Honshu. Kobe is the capital of Hyogo Prefecture and is one of Japan's major ports. It is in the Kansai region of Japan, in Hyogo Prefecture to the south-west of Osaka, and was one of the first cities to open for trade with the West, as of 1868. The cosmopolitan port city has a population of 45,500 foreign residents from more than 100 countries.

As of 2003, the city has an estimated population of 1,513,967 and the density of 2,755.77 persons per km². The total area is 549.38 km². The city is a part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan sprawl.

Orientation

Wedged in between the coast and the mountains (Rokko Mountain), the city of Kobe is long and narrow. The landmark of the port area is the red steel Port Tower. A giant ferris wheel sits in nearby Harbor Land, a notable tourist promenade, and offers spectacular views of the surroundings including the bay area, especially at night. Two artificial islands, Port Island and Rokko Island, have been constructed to give the city room to grow.

Away from the seaside at the heart of Kobe lie the Motomachi and Kokashita arcades as well as Kobe's Chinatown Nankinmachi, all well-known retail areas. A multitude of train lines cross the city from east to west. The main transport hub is Sannomiya Station, with the eponymous Kobe Station located towards the west and the Shinkansen Shin-Kobe Station to the north. Nankinmachi is Kobe's Chinatown, and is particularly lively at night.

Mt Rokko overlooks Kobe with an elevation of 931 metres: during the autumn season, Mt Rokko is famous for the rich change in colours of its forests. Mt Rokko is also the site of Japan's first golf course, established by the Englishman Arthur Groom in 1903.

Kobe serves as one of the most important seaports in Japan. It is famous for its Kobe beef, the Arima Onsen (hot springs), nightview of the city both from the coast and the mountain, and the exotic atomosphere which mainly came from its history as a port city. Kobe is also home to Kobe University, which traces its roots back to 1902. To the east is the expensive and elite city of Ashiya.

Most of the movie Sayonara takes place in Kobe.

The Japanese headquarters of the Swiss-based foods multinational Nestlé is located in Kobe.

History

The city was founded on April 1, 1889 and was designated on September 1, 1956 by government ordinance.

During the course of World War II, Kobe was fire-bombed by 331 B-29 bombers on March 17th, 1945, killing over 8,000 residents.

On January 17, 1995 an earthquake measured at 7.2 on the Richter Scale occurred at 05:46am JST near the city killing more than 5,000, making 300,000 homeless and destroying large parts of the port facilities and other parts of the city. It was one of the most costly natural disasters in modern history. The earthquake notably destroyed the Hanshin Expressway, an elevated freeway which dramatically toppled over: within Japan, the earthquake is known as the Great Hanshin Earthquake (or the Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake).

To commemorate Kobe's recovery from the 1995 quake, the city holds an annual event called the Luminarie, where every December the city hall is decorated with illuminated metal archways.

See also

• Kobe Airport
• Kobe City Subway
• Kobe Kobelco Steelers - rugby team
• Hankyu Kobe Line
• Mount Rokko

External links

• Official Kobe homepage (http://www.city.kobe.jp/index-e.html)
• Information on the Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake (http://www.earthquake.org/kobe.html)