Edo is old name for what is now Tokyo.

After Tokugawa Ieyasu became shogun in 1603
and established the shogunate, in Edo, it flourished
and was actually the center of Japan, although the
Emperor continued to reside in Kyoto.

It was a planned city with Edo Castle in the center and the
estates of the various domainal lords located around it.
Merchants and artisans concentrated in an area
that became the center of shopping and entertainment,
and by the latter half of the 18th century, its population was
over one million, making it the world's largest city.

Highways leading to Edo were build, the five main roads
converging at Nihonbashi.  The 53 way stations on the Tokaido,
the highway connecting Edo and the Kamigata (Osaka-Kyoto)
region, bustled with activity.

The Edo period was characterized by the expanded influence
of the townsmen, whose core was the merchant class.
This environment saw the flourishing of townsmen's culture,
as typified by Kabuki and Ukiyoe, and the appearance of a
new aesthetics of chic(IKI).

In 1868, the year after the Restoration of Imperial Rule brought
on end to the shogunate, Edo was renamed 'Tokyo' (Eastern Capital),
the emperor moved to Tokyo, and the city became Japan's official
as well as de facto capital.  The Imperial Palace in Chiyada Ward
occupies the site of Edo Castle.


EDOKKO - Edoite, Tokyoite

The term Edokko, which is still in use, reflects the strong sense of
fraternity of the townsman residents of the shopping, entertainment
and residential district.  To be considered a true Edokko,
one's parents on both sides of one's family must have been in the
city for three generations.  The Edokko is characteristically
open-hearted by nature, with a forthright attitude and a readiness
to fight.  And his lack of attachment to money is expressed
in the saying, "The Edokko doesn't go to bed while ther's money
in his pocket."
















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