Nago (Nago Shi)
Nago Castle was built in the 14th century and served as the home of the Aji of Nago Magiri. Nago had always been one of the major settlements in Northern Okinawa, and a major port along with Unten. Nago Magiri became Nago town in 1907. Nago was upgraded to city status on August 1, 1970 with the merger of nine smaller towns and villages.
Nago hosted Expo '75 in a park which utilized a monorail train to move tourists to each exhibit. Its most popular exhibit was the Japanese Floating City; similar to an oil rig, the city floated on large pontoons which allowed it to be moved. If the city was threatened with a typhoon, it would move close to shore, fill the pontoons with sea water and sit on the ocean floor for more stability. The city was self sufficient, and used the ocean floor for cultivating seaweed and other edible plants. Nago also hosted the 26th G8 summit in 2000.
Nago established itself as a tax haven for financial companies in 2002, following the example of Dublin, Ireland. The Nago Multimedia Building was established as the core of this zone, with various subsidies for foreign financial firms to establish offices there.
Nago is the site of Camp Schwab, a United States Marine Corps base established in 1956. It has gained national attention in Japan due to the controversy surrounding the relocation of Marine Corps Air Station Futenma in Ginowan, as there have been proposals at various times to relocate the base to a new site adjacent to or within Camp Schwab, most recently in April 2013. The January 19, 2014 mayoral election in Nago became a de facto referendum on the April 2013 relocation plan, with incumbent mayor Susumu Inamine opposing the plan and his challenger, former Vice Mayor Bunshin Suematsu, supporting the plan.
Map - Nago (Nago Shi)
Map
Country - Japan
Flag of Japan |
Japan is the eleventh most populous country in the world, as well as one of the most densely populated and urbanized. About three-fourths of the country's terrain is mountainous, concentrating its population of 124.8 million on narrow coastal plains. Japan is divided into 47 administrative prefectures and eight traditional regions. The Greater Tokyo Area is the most populous metropolitan area in the world, with more than 37.2 million residents.
Currency / Language
ISO | Currency | Symbol | Significant figures |
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JPY | Japanese yen | ¥ | 0 |
ISO | Language |
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JA | Japanese language |