Uchikura & Co., LLC

Up and Down — How Japan’s Railways Still Point to Edo

 

One thing that often surprises visitors to Japan is how railway directions are described. Trains don’t just go “east” or “west.” Instead, they go “Up (上り / Nobori)” or “Down (下り / Kudari)”.

 

“Up” means toward Tokyo, and “Down” means away from Tokyo. This rule applies even when the train is physically heading south or west. Geography doesn’t matter. Tokyo does.

 

This system comes straight from history. Tokyo was once Edo, the seat of the Tokugawa shogunate. Power, authority, and decision-making flowed toward Edo. So traveling to Edo was “going up,” and leaving it was “going down.” When modern railways were built, that mindset was never discarded.

 

If you’ve watched Shōgun or studied Japan’s feudal era, this feels familiar. Lords traveled up to Edo for sankin-kōtai, reporting to the Shogun. Roads, commerce, and culture all pointed to the center of power. Today’s railway signs are a quiet continuation of that same logic.

 

So where is the top of the rail, where there is no “up” or “down”?
The answer is simple—and revealing. There isn’t one. Tokyo is the top. There is no concept of equality in direction. Every line is defined by its relationship to the center.

 

Japan is often seen as ultra-modern, but systems like this show how deeply history is embedded in everyday life. The trains may be electric and high-speed, but mentally, the rails still lead to Edo.

 

Sometimes, the past doesn’t disappear. It just runs on schedule.