Okayama

The city traces its urban origins to the late sixteenth century when Ukita Naoie established a stronghold at Ishiyama on the Asahi River during the Sengoku period. His successor Ukita Hideie completed Okayama Castle, traditionally dated to 1597, and laid out a castle town on a north–south axis with river channels redirected to serve as moats. After the Battle of Sekigahara, Kobayakawa Hideaki and subsequently the Ikeda clan ruled the Okayama Domain and expanded the castle town through the Edo period.

Okayama became the prefectural capital following the Meiji Restoration reforms of 1871. The city was formally founded on 1 June 1889 under the modern municipalities system. San'yo Main Line railway service greatly accelerated its development as a regional hub during the Meiji period.

During World War II, Okayama served as a garrison city for the Imperial Japanese Army. American air raids on 29 June 1945 destroyed much of the urban core and claimed more than 1,700 lives; Okayama Castle's keep was lost in the bombing. It was reconstructed in 1966. Postwar rebuilding reestablished the city on the historic castle-town grid.

Rapid growth during Japan's economic boom in the 1960s elevated Okayama as one of the most important cities in western Japan. The San'yō Shinkansen began service to Okayama Station in 1972, connecting the city to Shin-Osaka; service extended to Hakata two years later. The Seto-Ōhashi Bridge opened in 1988, linking Okayama directly to Shikoku by both rail and road. The city was designated a core city in 1996 and attained the status of a designated city on 1 April 2009.

Okayama lies in the southern part of Okayama Prefecture. The northern part of the city encompasses a corner of the Kibi Plateau, with Okayama Airport and suburban residential areas. The central urban area occupies the Okayama Plain, formed by the Asahi and Yoshii Rivers flowing into the Seto Inland Sea. The climate is humid subtropical, classified as Cfa under the Köppen system, and Okayama records more rain-free days than any other city in Japan, earning the informal designation "Land of Sunshine."

Okayama Station is a major interchange on the San'yō Shinkansen and serves multiple JR West conventional lines, including the San'yō Main Line, Ako Line, Uno Line, Seto-Ōhashi Line, Tsuyama Line, and Kibi Line. An operational tram system, managed by Okayama Electric Tramway on two lines, has run continuously since the Meiji period. Multiple bus companies serve the wider city area.

Okayama is the prefecture in which the Okayama International Circuit (also known as TI Circuit Aida) is located, making the city and its surrounding area a reference point for motorsport geography in Japan. The circuit hosted the Pacific Grand Prix in the Formula One calendar in 1994 and 1995 and has been a regular venue for Super GT and other domestic Japanese series.