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20-647: Ikebukuro ( 池袋 , [ikebɯkɯɾo] ) is a commercial and entertainment district in Toshima , Tokyo , Japan . Toshima ward offices, Ikebukuro Station , and several shops, restaurants, and department stores are located within city limits. At the center of Ikebukuro is the train and subway station, a huge urban gathering shared by the JR East lines, the Seibu Ikebukuro Line and the Tōbu Tōjō Line . It

40-591: A bookstore chain, is headquartered in Toshima. Itochu corporation and Seven & I Holdings Co., Ltd. has a presence in Toshima. Taisho Pharmaceutical , a pharmaceutical company, also has its headquarters in the ward. In 1956, Asatsu Inc. established its headquarters in Mejiro, Toshima. In May 1967, the company's headquarters moved to Shinbashi , Minato. There are six Universities in Toshima. Two prestigious universities are located bordering Toshima. They are

60-468: A moderate plateau with a difference of 28 m between the ward's highest and lowest points. Approximately 47% of Toshima's land is residential, and 20% is commercial and public areas. Although Toshima is a ward, it is referred to as a city. The ward offices are located in Ikebukuro , which is also the commercial and entertainment center of Toshima. With a non-Japanese population of 19,868, or 7.42% of

80-574: A suburban agricultural district in the Edo period to the urban commercial center that it is today. The growth was fueled by the construction of various rail lines built in the Meiji and Taishō periods. The former Somei village, now part of Toshima, was a center of plant nurseries, and is the birthplace of the Somei Yoshino , Japan's most popular variety of sakura (cherry blossom tree). The variety

100-629: Is Bic Camera . There is a small pleasure district located in Nishi-Ikebukuro, similar to Shinjuku 's Kabukichō . The Tokyo Metropolitan Theater is also located near Ikebukuro Station. Opened in 1990, the theater hosts concert, dance, and theater performances. In July 2020, Hareza Ikebukuro, a cultural hub that includes the Hareza Tower and eight theaters, including the Tokyo Tatemono Brillia Hall opened around

120-525: Is Ikebukuro Station , the second busiest train station in Japan. The rail lines which run through or terminate in Toshima are: Tokyo Metropolitan Government Board of Education The Tokyo Metropolitan Government Board of Education (東京都教育委員会 Tōkyō-to Kyōiku Iinkai ) is the board of education in Tokyo , Japan . The board directly manages most of the public high schools in all 23 special wards ,

140-503: Is a play on words, as "owl" (梟 fukurō ) is pronounced similarly to "bag" (袋 fukuro ). The owl statue has become a famous meeting place along the lines of the statue of Hachikō located outside Shibuya Station . Ikebukuro is home to many ethnic Chinese who arrived in the 1980s, leading to a variety of Chinese goods and services being provided in the district, which are popular among tourists interested in Chinese culture . However,

160-642: Is headquartered in Ikebukuro. Toshima Toshima ( 豊島区 , Toshima-ku ) is a special ward in the Tokyo Metropolis in Japan . It is one of the eight central wards of the Tokyo Metropolitan area. Located in the northern area of Tokyo, Toshima is bordered by the wards of Nerima , Itabashi , and Kita in the north and Nakano , Shinjuku , and Bunkyo in the south. The ward

180-574: Is in Ikebukuro Honchō  [ ja ] and does not serve Ikebukuro proper. Public high schools are operated by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Board of Education . Rikkyo Ikebukuro Junior and Senior High School , a private secondary school, is in the area. Universities near Ikebukuro station include Rikkyo University and Tokyo International University . The Kyokuto-kai ( yakuza syndicate )

200-461: Is on the west end. East of the station, on the site of Sugamo Prison , stands Sunshine 60 , which was the tallest building in Asia at the time of its construction. Opened in 1978, Sunshine 60 contains Sunshine City, a large and popular shopping mall with various attractions including an aquarium, a Pokémon Center and cat cafés . Adjacent to Sunshine City, on Meiji Dori, is what was previously called

220-457: Is one of the main commuter hubs in the western Yamanote area of Tokyo. Ikebukuro Station is the third-busiest station in Japan, and the world. Around the station are the Seibu and Tōbu department stores . Seibu , written with the characters for "West" and " Musashi (province) " ( 西武 ) , is on the east end of the station and Tōbu , written with the characters for "East" and "Musashi" ( 東武 ) ,

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240-597: The University of Tokyo in Bunkyo and Waseda University bordering Shinjuku. Located Tokyo Metropolitan Government Board of Education operates area public high schools. Toshima is also home to a number of accredited private schools: Toshima City Board of Education (豊島区教育委員会) operates public elementary and junior high schools. Municipal junior high schools: Municipal elementary schools: Municipal kindergartens: The main hub for rail transportation in Toshima ward

260-474: The Western Tokyo , and all islands under Tokyo 's jurisdiction . In 2019, policies requiring students who do not naturally have black hair to dye it as such were struck down. In 2017, as stated by survey results, 57% of the state-operated schools in the metropolis required students who did not have hair naturally colored black to submit documents proving so. The Japanese Communist Party criticized

280-670: The Ikebukuro Chinatown is smaller and less populous than Yokohama's Chinatown just to the south of Tokyo. Public elementary and junior high schools are operated by the Toshima Ward Board of Education. Ikebukuro Elementary School ( 豊島区立池袋小学校 ) is in Ikebukuro. Ikebukuro itself is zoned to Ikebukuro Elementary School and Nishi Ikebukuro Junior High School (西池袋中学校), the latter in Nishi Ikebukuro  [ ja ] . Ikebukuro Junior High School (池袋中学校)

300-486: The Toyota Ikebukuro Building which housed a multi-floor Toyota Autosalon Amlux showroom from 2000 to 2013. The building is now called Sunshine City Annex since 2019. Otome Road , a center for otaku culture and shopping district for anime and manga aimed at women, is located nearby. Marui and Don Quijote also have department stores in the area. The principal electronics retailer in Ikebukuro

320-459: The site of the former Toshima Ward Office. The old village of Ikebukuro stood to the northwest of the station. Most of the area on which modern Ikebukuro is built was historically known as Sugamo . In the Taishō and Shōwa periods, the relatively low land prices attracted artists and foreign workers, who lent a somewhat cosmopolitan atmosphere to Ikebukuro. Until October 1, 1932 when Toshima ward

340-466: The total, Toshima is one of the most international wards in Tokyo. Of the foreign population, 56% is of Chinese descent , 20% is of Korean descent , with the rest being of primarily Filipino and European descent. Toshima was formed in 1932 by the merger of four towns, Sugamochō, Nishi-sugamochō, Takadachō, and Nagasakichō, bordered by the quickly expanding former city of Tokyo . The area evolved from

360-696: Was developed at the end of the Edo period. Toshima is run by a city assembly of 36 elected members. The current mayor is Yukio Takano, an independent backed by all major parties except the Japanese Communist Party . In April 2011, Taiga Ishikawa was elected to the Toshima assembly, becoming the first openly gay man to win an election in Japanese history. Notes: FamilyMart has its headquarters in Ikebukuro , Toshima. Seiyu Group has its registered head office in Toshima. Libro ,

380-521: Was established, the area was an independent municipality of Ikebukuro- mura ( 池袋村 ) . The kanji for Ikebukuro literally means "pond bag" (池袋). Outside the west exit of Ikebukuro Station near an entrance to the Fukutoshin Line is a small plaque explaining how the area used to have multiple lakes, hence the name. There is a small statue of an owl located near the center of the city called Ikefukurō-zō ( 池梟像 ) , meaning pond owl statue . It

400-420: Was founded on March 15, 1947, and reached a peak resident population of 370,000 in 1965. The population has continued to decline and as of May 1, 2015, the ward had an estimated population of 298,250, with a population density of 22,920 persons per km . During the day the population swells with commuters, resulting in a daytime population of around 378,475. The total land area of Toshima is 13.01 km , sitting on

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