Chiba (city)

Chiba 千葉市
Designated city
Chiba City
Top: Coastal industrial area, Chiba City Folk Museum Middle: Makuhari Messe, Chiba Port Tower, Chiba Marine Stadium Bottom: Skyscrapers of Makuhari on the coast
Flag Seal
Location of Chiba in Chiba Prefecture
Chiba
Coordinates: 35°36′26.2″N 140°06′22.9″E / 35.607278°N 140.106361°E / 35.607278; 140.106361
Country	Japan
Region	Kantō
Prefecture	Chiba Prefecture
Government
• Mayor	Shunichi Kamiya (from April 2021)
Area
• Total	271.77 km2 (104.93 sq mi)
Population  (December 18th 2024)
• Total	985,059
• Density	3,600/km2 (9,400/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+9 (Japan Standard Time)
- Tree	Zelkova serrata
– Flower	Nelumbo nucifera
– Bird	Little tern
Phone number	043-245-5111
Address	1-1 Chiba-minato, Chūō-ku, Chiba-shi 260-8722
Website	https://www.city.chiba.jp/

Chiba
"Chiba" in kanji
Japanese name
Kanji	千葉
Hiragana	ちば
Katakana	チバ
Transcriptions Romanization Chiba

Chiba (千葉市, Chiba-shi, pronounced [tɕiꜜba]) is the capital city of Chiba Prefecture, Japan. It sits about 40 kilometres (25 mi) east of the centre of Tokyo on Tokyo Bay.^[1] The city became a government-designated city in 1992. In December 2024, its population was 985,059, with a population density of 3,605 people per km². The city has an area of 271.77 square kilometres (104.93 sq mi).

Chiba City is one of the Kantō region's primary seaports, and is home to Chiba Port, which handles one of the highest volumes of cargo in Japan. Much of the city is residential, although there are many factories and warehouses along the coast. There are several major urban centres in the city, including Makuhari, a prime waterfront business district in which Makuhari Messe is located, and Central Chiba, in which the prefectural government office and the city hall are located.

Chiba is famous for the Chiba Urban Monorail, the longest suspended monorail in the world. Some popular destinations in the city include: Kasori Shell Midden, the largest shell mound in the world at 134,000 m² (160,000 sq yd), Inage Beach, the first artificial beach in Japan which forms part of the longest artificial beach in Japan, and the Chiba Zoological Park, popular on account of the standing red panda Futa.