Yanaka Cemetery

  • Established: 1874/9/1
  • Japanese: 谷中霊園 (Yanaka reien), 谷中墓地 (Yanaka bochi)

Yanaka Cemetery, located in the Ueno/Nippori area, is one of the most prominent cemeteries in Tokyo. Associated primarily with the neighboring Yanaka Tennô-ji, it contains the graves of over 75 prominent historical figures of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, including those of Shogun Tokugawa Yoshinobu, and numerous daimyô, artists, writers, actors, scholars, and statesmen.

Established as "Yanaka Graveyard" (Yanaka bochi) in 1874, the cemetery came to be administered by the City of Tokyo in 1899, and was then renamed "Yanaka Cemetery" (Yanaka reien) in 1935. Though most closely associated with Yanaka Tennô-ji, and containing the former site of that temple's pagoda within its grounds, the cemetery also contains many graves formally associated with several other temples, chief among them Kan'ei-ji, including large sections of Tokugawa clan graves. The cemetery is also famous for its cherry trees, which line the main path through the grounds.

Famous Burials

References

  • Pamphlets available on-site.

External Links