Motomachi, Yokohama

Motomachi (元町^?) is a district of Naka Ward in Yokohama, Japan, located immediately west of Yamate and east of Chinatown. It consists mainly of the Motomachi Shopping Street, a five-block long stretch of boutiques and shops, well known in Japan for its cosmopolitan atmosphere, original fashion, and Western influence.

Motomachi was originally a quiet farming and fishing village until 1859, when the Port of Yokohama was opened. Since then, the close-by Kannai district became the foreigners' business district, and the adjacent Yamate and Yamashitacho districts became the foreigners' residential districts. Situated in-between, with Yamate to the east, and Kannai and Yamashitacho to the west, Motomachi became frequented by many foreigners. Shops and businesses were opened, catering to the needs of foreigners.

Soon after the start of the Meiji era, the number of foreign residents increased. And western influence became more evident in Motomachi, with the opening of many cafés, bakeries, and boutiques. Such shops were uncommon in Japan at the time, and Motomachi helped introduce Western culture into Japan, as part of what is called bunmei kaika (文明開化^?). This was the beginning of the Motomachi Shopping Street as it is known as of 2008.

In the 1970s, the "Motomachi Shopping Street" produced a new style of fashion called the hama tora (ハマトラ^?) (short for "Yokohama traditional"). The most famous producers of the hama tora style were Kitamura [1], Mihama [2], and Fukuzō [3], three of the most fashionable boutiques in Motomachi.

...
Wikipedia