Kyoto is the most popular sightseeing spot, but the word “Kyoto” is English. In Japanese it is “kyouto,” where had been the center of Japan for more than 1,000 years. People believe Tokyo is the capital of Japan at present, but some people say Kyoto is still the capital of Japan as no official announcement of the relocation of the capital was made.

“Tokyo” means east of Kyoto

“kyou” of “kyouto” means “capital” that it has been believed the place where the emperor resides. The emperor moved to Tokyo after the Meiji Restoration achieved modernization as a trip, considering the residents’ sentiment and confusion. The former Edo was named as “toukyou,” of　which “tou” means “east” or “east of kyouto.”

Remember Japanese style pronunciation and spelling

The greater Tokyo is called “toukyou-to.” “to,” included also in kyouto means “metropolis.“ The term for other district names is used “kenn.” Tokyo (toukyou) is exceptionally used “to” and “fu” for Kyoto (kyouto)and Oska (oosaka). In Japanese you don’t have to start with capital letter for the beginning of sentence and proper nouns.