Nagoya [key], city (1990 pop. 2,154,793), capital of Aichi prefecture, central Honshu, Japan, on Ise Bay. A major port, transportation hub, and industrial center, it has iron- and steelworks, textile mills, aircraft factories, automotive works, and chemical, plastics, electronics, and fertilizer plants. Porcelain, pottery, and cloisonné are also produced. The city has many universities; Nagoya Imperial Univ. is the most famous. Nagoya has two famous shrines, the Atsuta (founded in the 2d cent.), which houses the sacred imperial sword, and the Higashi Honganji, built in 1692. The Tokugawa Art Museum, Higashiyama Park, and an art museum partnered with the Boston Museum of Fine Arts are other attractions. A fortress town in the 16th cent., Nagoya retains a castle built in 1612 and reconstructed in 1959.
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