Nara, Nara

Template:Infobox City Japan

Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara*
UNESCO World Heritage Site
State Party	Template:JPN
Type	Cultural
Criteria	ii, iii, iv, vi
Reference	870
Region**	Asia-Pacific
Inscription history
Inscription	1998  (22nd Session)
* Name as inscribed on World Heritage List. ** Region as classified by UNESCO.

Nara (奈良市, Nara-shi) is the capital city of Nara Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan. The city occupies the northern part of Nara Prefecture, directly bordering Kyoto Prefecture. Eight temples, shrines and ruins in Nara, specifically Tōdai-ji, Saidai-ji, Kōfuku-ji, Kasuga Shrine, Gangō-ji, Yakushi-ji, Tōshōdai-ji and Heijō Palace Remains, together with Kasugayama Primeval Forest, collectively form "Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara", a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

History

See also: Nara Prefecture#History, Nara period, and Heijo Palace

for pre-modern history of Nara

Nara was the capital of Japan from 710 to 784, lending its name to the Nara period. The original city, Heijō-kyō, was modelled after the capital of Tang Dynasty China, Chang'an (present-day Xi'an). According to the ancient Japanese book Nihon Shoki, the name "Nara" derived from the Japanese word narashita meaning "made flat".

The temples of Nara remained powerful even beyond the move of the political capital to Heian-kyō in 794, thus giving Nara a synonym of Nanto (lit. meaning "South Capital") as opposed to Heian-kyō, situated in the North.

Modern Nara

In the modern age, as the seat of the prefectural government, Nara has developed into a local center of commerce and government. The city was officially incorporated on February 1, 1898.

Geography

The city of Nara lies in the north end of Nara Prefecture, directly bordering itself to Kyoto Prefecture in its north side. The city is 22.22 km from North to South, and 33.51 km from East to West. As a result of the latest merger, effective April 1, 2005, that combined the villages of Tsuge and Tsukigase into the city of Nara, the city now borders directly to Mie Prefecture in its east as well. The total area is 276.84 km².

The downtown of Nara is on the east side of the ancient Heijō Palace site, occupying the northern part of what was called the Gekyō (外京), literally the outer capital area. Many of the public offices (e.g. the Municipal office, the Nara Prefectural government, the Nara Police headquarters, etc.) are located on Nijō-ōji (二条大路), while Nara branch offices of major nationwide banks are on Sanjō-ōji (三条大路), both avenues running east-west.

The highest point in the city is at the peak of Kaigahira-yama, alt.822.0m (Tsugehayama-cho district), and the lowest is in Ikeda-cho district, with an altitude of 56.4m.

Climate

The climate of Nara Prefecture is overall warm, while there are important differences between the north-western basin area and the rest of the prefecture, that is, in the mountains.

In the basin area the climate has an inland characteristics, as represented in the bigger temperature variance within the same day, and the difference of summer and winter temperatures. Winter temperatures average about 3 to 5°C, and 25 - 28°C in the summer with highest reaching close to 35°C. There is not a single year over the last decade (since 1990, up to 2007) with more than 10 days of snowfall recorded by Nara Local Meteorological Observatory.

The climate in the rest of the prefecture are mountainous, and especially in the south, with below −5°C being the extreme minimum in winter. Heavy rainfall is observed in summer. The annual accumulated rainfall ranges as much as 3000 to 5000 mm, which is among the heaviest in Japan.

Spring and fall are both temperate and beautiful. The mountainous region of Yoshino has been popular both historically and presently for its beautiful cherry blossoms in the spring. In the fall, the southern mountains are equally beautiful with the changing of the oak trees.

Nara, 2008	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Average °C	3.8	4.3	7.3	13.5	18.0	21.9	26.1	27.1	23.0	16.6	11.0	6.6	15.0
Rainfall (mm)	54.0	67.5	102.5	134.5	213.0	144.5	91.0	162.5	163.5	71.5	54.5	41.5	1300.5

Demographics

As of 2005, the city has an estimated population of 373,189 and a population density of 1,348 persons per km². There were 147,966 households residing in Nara. The highest concentraton of both households and population, respectively about 46,000 and 125,000, is found along the newer bedtown districts, along the Kintetsu line connecting to Osaka. There were about 3,000 registered foreigners in the city, of which Koreans and Chinese are the two largest groups with about 1,200 and 800 people respectively. There were slightly less than 1,200 deer in Nara in 2005.

One of the Nara park entrances

Deer roaming in central Nara among Sapium sebiferum trees

Landmarks

• Buddhist temples
  • Tōdai-ji, including Nigatsu-dō
  • Saidai-ji
  • Kōfuku-ji
  • Gangō-ji
  • Yakushi-ji
  • Tōshōdai-ji
• Shinto shrines
  • Kasuga Shrine
• Imperial palace
  • Heijō Palace
• Other
  • Kasugayama Primeval Forest
  • Naramachi
  • Nara National Museum
  • Nara Park
  • Isuien Garden
  • Sarusawa Pond
  • Wakakusa-yama
  • Yagyū

Wildlife in Nara

Tame deer roam through the town, especially in Nara Park. These deer might not be considered "tame" should the visitor not have any "shika sembei - Deer Biscuits" when they see them.

According to the legendary history of Kasuga Shrine, a mythological god Takemikazuchi arrived in Nara on a white deer to guard the newly built capital of Heijō-kyō. Since then the deer have been regarded as heavenly animals, protecting the city and the country. Snack vendors sell small biscuits to visitors so they can enjoy feeding the deer. Some of the deer have learned to bow in response to tourists' bows. They nudge, jostle, and even bite for food.

Education

As of 2005, there are 16 high schools and 6 universities located in the city of Nara.

Universities

Nara Women's University is one of only two national women's universities in Japan.

Primary and secondary education

Public schools

Public elementary and junior high schools are operated by the city of Nara.

Public high schools are operated by the Nara Prefecture.

Private schools

Private high schools in Nara include the Todaiji Gakuen, a private school founded by the temple in 1926.

International relations

Main article: List of twin towns and sister cities in Japan

Twin towns — Sister cities

Nara, according to its own official record, has three sister cities in Japan and five sister cities overseas.

In Japan

• Kōriyama, Fukushima
• Obama, Fukui
• Dazaifu, Fukuoka

Outside Japan

• Gyeongju, Korea
• Xi'an, China
• Toledo, Castile-La Mancha, Spain
• Versailles, France
• Canberra, Australia

Gallery

Todai-ji Temple Daibutsuden Hall, the world's largest wooden building

The stairs leading to Nigatsu-dō Hall

Kōfuku-ji is an ancient Buddhist temple in the center of Nara

Nara National Museum

Tobinino

Kasuga Shrine

Deer near construction site in Nara with pagoda in background.

A deer in Nara, March 2004.

A deer resting near an engraved stone.

Isuien Garden stepping stones

Nara deer beg for handouts outside a shop on Sanjo Street

External links

• Nara travel guide from Wikitravel
• City of Nara - Official website (Japanese, English Page link exist)
• Nara International Foundation
• Nara photos at Trekearth.com

Template:Nara Prefecture

Template:Metropolitan cities of Japan Template:World Heritage Sites in Japan

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