Ukyō-ku, Kyoto

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thumb|The karesansui garden at Ryoan-ji is one of Kyoto's most famous sights.

, as opposed to , refers to the western half of the ancient capital of Heiankyō (Kyoto). The area of ancient Ukyō slightly overlaps the area of present Ukyō-ku.

Ukyo-ku is home to many renowned sites, including
*Arashiyama, a hill famed for its maple leaves and the Togetsu-kyō, the Bridge to the Moon
*Ninna-ji, a Buddhist temple with a fine pagoda
*Ryoan-ji, the Zen Buddhist temple with the "karesansui" (dry-landscape, i.e. raked stones) garden
*Sagano, a neighborhood with many temples, as well as Rakushi-sha, the Fallen Persimmon Hut
*Uzumasa, the location of Kōryū-ji, a temple founded before Kyoto became the Imperial capital. The neighborhood is also the home of the Tōei Uzumasa Eigamura studios and the center of Japan's television and film industries.

On April 1, 2005, the ward expanded its territory to the area of former town of Keihoku when the town merged into the city of Kyoto. This increased the ward's territory from 74.27 km² to 291.95 km².

As of April 1, 2008, the ward has an estimated population of 202,992 and a density of 694.39 persons per km².

External links

* [http://www.city.kyoto.jp/ukyo/ Ukyō official website]