Cities

Kyoto

KYOH-toh (two syllables in Japanese; often mispronounced with three syllables in English)

Also Known As Heian-kyo (the city's name as capital of Japan, 794-1185)

Citation Formats

General Reference

Geography Atlas. "Kyoto." Accessed August 30, 2026. https://geography.interactiveatlas.org/cities/kyoto.

APA Style

Geography Atlas. (n.d.). Kyoto. Retrieved August 30, 2026, from https://geography.interactiveatlas.org/cities/kyoto

BibTeX

@misc{geographyatlas-kyoto,
  author = {Geography Atlas},
  title = {Kyoto},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://geography.interactiveatlas.org/cities/kyoto},
  note = {Accessed August 30, 2026}
}

Kyoto sits in a basin in the Kansai region of Honshu, Japan, ringed by mountains that historically limited its growth and gave the city its grid-planned layout, modeled on the Chinese capital Chang'an when it was founded as the imperial capital Heian-kyo in 794. The surrounding hills and rivers, including the Kamo River running through the city center, shaped both its climate of humid summers and cool winters and its long-preserved historic core of temples and gardens.

Facts

Population

1,431,419 1

As of January 1, 2026.

Area (sq km)

827.83 1

Founding Year

794 1

Founded as Heian-kyo, seat of the imperial court.

Population Estimate Year

2026 1

Latitude

35.01161 degrees north 1

Longitude

135.76811 degrees east 1

Cross-Tradition Connections

Associated With

Japan

This source names Japan directly: "basin in the Kansai region of Honshu, Japan, ringed by mountains that historically limited its growth and gave the city its grid-planned layout, modeled on the Chinese capital Chang'an when it was..."

Source Encyclopaedia Britannica

Japan

This source names Kyoto directly: "capital at Heian-kyo, present-day Kyoto, produced a highly refined aristocratic court culture that gave rise to some of the earliest and most fully realized works of Japanese prose literature."

Source Encyclopaedia Britannica