Naha

Naha (那覇市, Naha-shi, Okinawan: Naafa) is the capital city of Okinawa, the most southern prefecture of Japan.

As of December 2012, the city has an estimated population of 321,467 and a population density of 8,244.46 persons per km². The total area is 38.99 km².

Naha is a city on the East China Sea coast of the southern part of Okinawa Island, the largest of Okinawa Prefecture. The modern city was officially founded on May 20, 1921. Before that Naha had been for centuries one of the most important and populous sites in Okinawa.

Naha is the political, economic and education center of Okinawa Prefecture. In the medieval and early modern periods, it was the commercial center of the Ryūkyū Kingdom.

City center

Central Naha consists of the Palette Kumoji shopping mall, the Okinawa Prefecture Office, Naha City Hall, and many banks and corporations, located at the west end of Kokusai-dōri, the city's main street. Kokusai-dōri (国際通り, "International Avenue") boasts a 1.6 kilometre long stretch of stores, restaurants and bars. Kokusai-dōri ends at the main bus terminal in Okinawa and is served by several stations along the Okinawa Monorail, the only train system in the prefecture.