Umeda (Japanese: 梅田) is a major commercial, business, shopping and entertainment district in Kita-ku, Osaka, Japan, and the city's main northern railway terminus (Ōsaka Station, Umeda Station). The district's name means "plum field".
History
Umeda was historically called Umeda Haka (Umeda Grave), because it was one of the seven largest cemeteries of Osaka from the Edo period (1603–1868) until the first twenty years of the Meiji period (1868–1912). In 2020, survey teams for the Umekita redevelopment project discovered ancient burial remains of over 1,500 people. Experts say these remains were of commoners, not the aristocracy. They used several burial styles, both cremated as well as buried with enclosed wooden caskets, barrel-shaped open containers and earthenware coffins called kameganbo (turtle caskets). They found burial items such as pipes, clay dolls, rokusenmon (a set of six coins to pay passage across the Sanzu River which separates the world of the living and the afterlife) and juzudama (rosary-style prayer beads). A stone wall separated a mass grave with skeletons that were only covered by soil. These are suspected to have died in a plague.[1]
Until the 1870s, the area which is now Umeda was agricultural land. The area was reclaimed and filled in by the prefectural government in the 1870s to support the creation of the first Osaka Station.[2] The word "Umeda" was previously written with different kanji characters; 埋田 (English: "buried field") to reflect this history. The name was changed to 梅田 (English: "plum field") without altering the pronunciation, likely due to negative connotations with the previous characters.[citation needed]
The original Osaka Station, a two-story red brick building, was opened in 1874, along with the first railway connecting Osaka and Kobe cities,[3] and in 1876 an additional line to Kyoto.[4] This was essentially the establishment of Umeda as a district. As industry in the area increased at the turn of the century, the station required expansion, so in 1901 the first station was demolished, and a larger station was built in the location where Osaka Station exists in a different form today. Hanshin Umeda station was constructed in 1906,[5] followed by Hankyu Umeda Station in 1910,[6] the Umeda subway station and Midosuji subway line in 1933[7] and Kitashinchi station in 1997. The current incarnation of Osaka Station was built in 1979,[8] and underwent extensive renovation and reconstruction between 2005 and 2011,[9][10] including the addition of the North Gate Building, a glass roof covering the tracks, and vast additional retail space providing shops, restaurants, sports centers and movie theatres to the area. For the 2011 re-opening, the station was re-branded Osaka Station City.[11]
The construction of Umeda Sky Building in 1993 and the re-branding of Osaka Station City in 2011 transformed the Umeda area from a business district to a retail and tourist attraction.
Umeda officially only covers JR WestOsaka Station and the immediate area to its south and west, although "Umeda" is often used to describe much of the surrounding area, and is commonly used as a catch-all to refer to the downtown area of northern Osaka City.
These areas are not officially part of the Umeda district, but may use "Umeda" on their buildings, business names, and in their advertising, and are commonly referred to unofficially as the Umeda area. An example of this is the Umeda Sky Building, one of Osaka's most recognizable landmarks, which resides not in Umeda but in Oyodo-Naka.[17]
Districts
Osaka Station City
Osaka Station City refers to the immediate area around Osaka Station, above and below ground. JR Osaka Station boasts the largest number of passengers in and out of any station in the JR West network,[18] so Osaka Station City is the central hub of Umeda.
Diamond District refers to the area of Umeda 1-chome north of Hanshin Umeda Station and south of Osaka Station. A pentagonal section of Umeda 1-chome surrounded by the Midosuji and Sonezaki Dori roads, which resembles a diamond on the map. The price of land within this area is among the highest in Osaka,[19] so it has come to be known as the "Diamond District". The area contains some of the largest skyscrapers in Osaka, department stores and recognizable buildings. The Osaka Maru Building has become a symbol of Umeda, due to its early construction[20] and unique cylindrical shape.
Nishi-Umeda refers to the area of Osaka Garden City in Umeda 2-chome and 3-chome. The Nishi-Umeda district is the main business center of the Umeda area. Nishi-Umeda hosts the facilities of the Ritz Carlton Osaka, Mainichi Shimbun main office and many corporate headquarters for western Japan, it is easily accessible underground via Hanshin Umeda Station and serviced by the Osaka Metro subway system. The comparatively high concentration of tall buildings in Nishi-Umeda (and neighboring Dojima and Nakanoshima) form a prominent skyscraper district.[21]
Nishi-Umeda Square (event space, former location of Osaka Central Post Office)
The Hankyu Umeda/Kita-Umeda district is the area of Umeda immediately surrounding Hankyu Umeda Station, the largest terminal of the Hankyu Corporation.[22] The area extending to the east and north of the station hosts many buildings owned or funded by the Hankyu Corporation, so it is colloquially referred to as Hankyu-mura (lit:Hankyu village).[23] Buildings such as the HEP Five building and Ferris wheel, Hankyu Mens department store, TOHO Cinemas, the Hankyu Grand Building, Hankyu Sanbangai shopping street, a string of antique book and art sellers, and the main branch of Hankyu Department Store, a 187 meter, 41-story building.[24]
The west side of Hankyu station hosts hotels, restaurants, fitness clubs, and the Hankyu Corporation's headquarters. The area to the northeast of the station has been rapidly developing since the 1990s. The Chayamachi area, in particular, is growing quickly since the construction of NU Chayamachi shopping mall.[25][26]
Osaka Station North Gate Building and Yodobashi Camera
Ofukacho, Shibata 2-chome
The area to the north of JR Osaka Station. This area hosts the Seiseikai Nakatsu Hospital, JR West Japan Headquarters, and JR Umeda Freight Station. Since large-scale redevelopment is being undertaken in the area,[27] land prices have been rising, and now Obukacho 4-chome has become the site with the highest land prices in West Japan.[28] The area's rise has been attributed to the opening of the large Yodobashi Camera electronics department store in 2001, and since then other large developments such as Grand Front Osaka and a satellite campus of Osaka University have been completed. It is commonly called "Umekita".[29]
Located to the east of JR Osaka Station, it is a less-developed area of Umeda, with fewer skyscrapers, and generally far smaller buildings. Higashi-Umeda is known for its low-cost retailers in the covered Hankyu Higashidori and Sonezaki Ohatsutenjin shopping streets. The area boasts a bustling nightlife, with Japanese izakaya bars, restaurants, arcades, sex shops, love hotels and pachinko parlors. The area hosts the Tsuyu-no-Tenjinsha shinto shrine. Doyama-cho is one of Japan's few LGBT districts, and known to be the home to one of the largest homosexual communities in west Japan.[30]
Tōru Hashimoto, former mayor of Osaka and Governor of Osaka Prefecture, while working as a lawyer in the Tobitashinchi red light district in the south of Osaka,[32] was revealed to have had an affair with hostesses in Kitashinchi before entering politics, a scandal that led to heavy criticism during political campaigns, along with allegations of ties to yakuza.[33]
Underground City
The Osaka Underground City was completed in 1942 as a station underpass but has been dramatically expanded since. The total underground area extends from Chayamachi in the north to Dojima in the south, and Doyamacho in the east to Osaka Garden City in the west. The area connects the shopping malls of Whity Umeda and Diamor Osaka with the basements of Hankyu Sanbangai, Hankyu Department Store, Hanshin Department Store, JR Osaka Station, Osaka Ekimae Building, Osaka Toukoku Life Building, New Hankyu Building, and Herbis Osaka. More expansions to the underground city are planned to be completed by the end of 2022.[34]
Whity Umeda
Diamor Osaka
Dojima Underground Center
University Campuses
Many university satellite campuses and research centers opened in Umeda in the 2010s due to the convenience of public transport and proximity to the business district.
^"大阪府・梅田はかつて"埋田"で東京都・池袋には池が!? 地形と地名トリビア" [Osaka Prefecture, Umeda was once a "buried field", and there are ponds in Tokyo and Ikebukuro? Terrain and place name trivia.] (in Japanese). Retrieved 15 April 2019.
^"大阪駅進化論" [Osaka Station Evolution] (in Japanese). Retrieved 15 April 2019.
^"鉄道の歴史" [Railroad History] (in Japanese). Retrieved 15 April 2019.
^"ラッシュ時混雑の阪神梅田駅、広々ホームに改良 １・５倍に拡幅工事スタート" [Hanshin Umeda Station crowded during rush hour, upgraded to 1.5 times size, widening construction commenced] (in Japanese). Retrieved 15 April 2019.
^"明治43年3月10日の風景が現代に！NHK小林一三ドラマ撮影レポ" [The scenes of March 10, 1910 today! NHK Kobayashi Izumi drama shooting.] (in Japanese). Retrieved 15 April 2019.
^"御堂筋の歴史" [History of Midosuji] (in Japanese). Retrieved 15 April 2019.
^"江戸時代の遊郭にはじまるキタを代表する歓楽街" [The Red Light District of the North, from the Edo Period]. NEWSポストセブン (in Japanese). Retrieved 2019-04-15.
^"橋下徹氏 大阪の旧遊郭街・飛田新地組合の顧問弁護士だった" [Tosu Hashimoto was a lawyer for the Tobitashinchi hospitality union in Osaka]. NEWSポストセブン (in Japanese). Retrieved 2019-04-11.
^"橋下徹大阪市長「高級クラブホステスと不倫してました。聖人君子ではない」" [Toru Hashimoto, Mayor of Osaka - "I had an affair with a high-class club hostess."]. J-CASTテレビウォッチ (in Japanese). 2012-07-19. Retrieved 2019-04-11.
^"特定都市再生緊急整備地域の整備計画" [Specific City Emergency Maintenance Plan] (PDF) (in Japanese). Retrieved 11 April 2019.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Umeda, Osaka.
