Kasumigaseki (霞が関, 霞ヶ関 or 霞ケ関) is a district in Chiyoda, Tokyo. Most government ministries are located in the neighbourhood, making its name a metonym for the Japanese bureaucracy, while Nagatachō refers to the elected government or legislative branch. It faces the Imperial Palace to the south, Hibiya Park to the east, and Nagatachō to the west.

Notable sites

Government offices

Other buildings

Subway stations

Economy

Japan Post Holdings has its headquarters in Kasumigaseki. Tokuyama Corporation has its headquarters in Kasumigaseki Common Gate West Tower and PricewaterhouseCoopers has offices on the 15th floor of the Kasumigaseki Building. Also in the Kasumigaseki Building has its headquarters the Lixil Group Corporation. At different points of time All Nippon Airways and Mitsui Chemicals had their headquarters in the Kasumigaseki Building. In July 1978, when Nippon Cargo Airlines first began, it operated within a single room inside All Nippon Airways's space in the Kasumigaseki Building. At one time Cantor Fitzgerald had an office in the Toranomon Mitsui Building in Kasumigaseki.

Education

Chiyoda Board of Education operates public elementary and junior high schools. Kōjimachi Elementary School (千代田区立麹町小学校) is the zoned elementary of Kasumigaseki 1-3 chōme. There is a freedom of choice system for junior high schools in Chiyoda Ward, and so there are no specific junior high school zones.

Spelling

The current official spelling of the district's name is 霞が関, with が in hiragana; before 1967, it was spelled 霞ヶ関, with a small ヶ. The name of the Tokyo Metro station is spelled "霞ケ関", with a large ケ. All three spellings can still be found by various institutions in the area.