Ōkubo Shinjuku, New Ōkubo Korean Town, parks and transit

Ōkubo (大久保) is a town name in Tokyo’s Shinjuku ward; the current administrative divisions are Ōkubo 1‑chome through Ōkubo 3‑chome and the resident‑address system has been implemented. The station area and the stretch that links Ōkubo to neighboring Hyakunincho are commonly called New Ōkubo and are described in sources as Japan’s largest Korean Town. The neighborhood mixes long‑standing residential streets with a dense cluster of restaurants, shops and public facilities around Shin‑Ōkubo Station on the JR Yamanote Line.

Community and daily users

The area is used by multiple overlapping communities. Long‑term residents and local shopkeepers share space with proprietors and customers from Korea, the People’s Republic of China, Thailand, Myanmar, India and, in recent years, an increasing number of merchants and visitors from Muslim countries. A new commercial and educational profile has developed: preparatory schools targeting Chinese students who aim for Japan’s leading universities have opened in the district.

Educational institutions are an active presence. Waseda University’s West Waseda campus traces its origin to the Ōkubo campus opened in September 1963. Private senior and junior schools listed in the area include Kaijo Junior & Senior High School and Hosen High School; the ward operates Nishi‑Waseda Middle School; the Helen Keller Institute and multiple vocational schools are also concentrated nearby. Public sports and leisure facilities used by residents include the Shinjuku Sports Center, the Shinjuku Cosmic Center and the Ōkubo Sports Plaza.

Transport and access

Shin‑Ōkubo Station on the JR Yamanote Line is the nearest rail access point for most of the neighborhood. Parts of Ōkubo are within walking distance of Seibu‑Shinjuku Station and of Shinjuku Station, depending on where you are in the district. The Seibu Railway line between Takadanobaba and Seibu‑Shinjuku opened on March 25, 1952 and runs through the Ōkubo area, but no Seibu station was established there at the time (a “Seibu Ōkubo” station had been planned).

Bus access around Ōkubo is served from the Toei Bus Kotakibashi depot. Principal road arteries running through or by the neighborhood are Tokyo Metropolitan Route 433 (Ōkubo‑dori), Route 305 (Meiji‑dori) and Route 302 (Shokuan‑dori).

Streets, markets and merchant groups

Street character changes quickly from residential blocks to dense shopfronts near the station. Formal merchant organizations in Ōkubo include the Shinjuku Mammoth Street Commercial Association (Ōkubo 1‑chome), the “Town Where Angels Live” New Ōkubo Shopping Street Promotion Association (Ōkubo 1‑chome), the Shinjuku Ōkubo Shinkōkai (Ōkubo 2‑chome), the Meiwa‑kai (Ōkubo 2‑chome) and the Orange Court Shopping Center Association (Ōkubo 3‑chome).

In 2001 a union of Korean residents in Japan was formed and, after that, Korean‑ and Japanese‑run shop associations began holding meetings. Proposals have been raised to develop the area along the model of established Chinatowns such as those in Yokohama, Kobe and Nagasaki as a tourism‑focused district and to pursue local activation.

Parks, culture and public facilities

Part of Toyama Park lies within Ōkubo, and the park includes a facility described as the Tokyo Metropolitan Green Reading Room. Koizumi Yakumo Memorial Park opened in 1993 and contains a memorial bust and plaque. The Shinjuku Ward Central Library was relocated temporarily to the former Toyama Junior High School site as part of emergency measures after the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake; the ward also operates an Ōkubo Library.

Office and meeting facilities in the district include Shinjuku Garden, the Sumitomo Realty Shinjuku Garden Tower and Bellesalle Takadanobaba. A former major medical facility, the Social Insurance Central General Hospital, was once located at 2‑chome 12 but moved to Hyakunincho; as a consequence Ōkubo does not currently have a general hospital of that scale within its boundaries.

A brief history

The place name ‘‘Ōkubo’’ originates with the district’s former topography: a river once flowed through the area and it was a relatively large lowland or hollow, hence the name meaning roughly “big hollow.” Until the end of the Edo period the area was agricultural; in the Meiji era it became known for azalea displays that drew visitors.

Municipal history in outline: on May 1, 1889 several local villages merged to form Ōkubo Village; on April 1, 1896 the encompassing district became Toyotama District; on December 1, 1912 Ōkubo gained town status; on October 1, 1932 the area was incorporated into Tokyo City as part of Yodobashi Ward; and on March 15, 1947 Yodobashi Ward merged with neighboring wards to create the present Shinjuku Ward.

From the Taisho period until the end of the war the Ōkubo–Toyama area was noted for large residences belonging to the nobility and business leaders, with estates ranging roughly 400–500 tsubo up to about 1,000 tsubo. Many writers and artists lived and gathered in the neighborhood; the district was once called the “Ōkubo literary village.” The Tokyo air raids damaged almost the entire neighborhood and many residents left. During the Korean War in 1950 the area served as a location where GIs fraternized with local women, and from the 1960s many former private residences were converted into guesthouses and similar lodgings.

On July 1, 1978 a resident‑address reorganization reworked local chome: West Ōkubo 2–4 were reconstituted as Ōkubo 1–3, West Ōkubo 1 was transferred to Kabukicho, and East Ōkubo was incorporated into Shinjuku.

Regulation, land value and practical facts

On October 1, 2019 the Tokyo Metropolitan Government designated Ōkubo 1‑chome and 2‑chome as a Special Strengthened Area for the exclusion of organized crime; payments such as protection fees or the provision of preferential treatment between organized crime groups and restaurants are prohibited, and violators—whether the payer or the recipient—face penalties of up to one year imprisonment or a fine of up to ¥500,000.

Public land value reported for the district: the 2025 public land price (as of January 1, 2025) at the point Ōkubo 1‑14‑7 was ¥786,000 per square meter. The postal code for the area is 169‑0072 (handled by the Shinjuku‑kita post office).

FAQ

What is the nearest train station?

Shin‑Ōkubo Station on the JR Yamanote Line is the nearest station for Ōkubo.

What larger district does Ōkubo form with its neighbor?

Together with Hyakunincho it forms New Ōkubo, described as Japan’s largest Korean Town.

Are there parks and higher education in Ōkubo?

Part of Toyama Park lies in Ōkubo; Koizumi Yakumo Memorial Park opened in 1993; and Waseda University opened its Ōkubo campus (now West Waseda campus) in September 1963.

Has Ōkubo been subject to special regulation?

Yes; on October 1, 2019 Ōkubo 1‑chome and 2‑chome were designated a Special Strengthened Area for gang exclusion with penalties up to one year imprisonment or a ¥500,000 fine.