Tōkaidō
/toːkaidoː/noun
A historic route and region along Japan’s Pacific coast, especially the road connecting Edo (Tokyo) and Kyoto.
Did you know?The Tōkaidō became one of Japan’s famous Five Routes during the Edo period, and travelers once carried official permits to pass through its checkpoints.
Etymological Timeline
Old Chinese
Chinese
東海道
“A route or administrative circuit associated with the eastern sea”
8th Century
Japanese
Tōkaidō (東海道)
“The Eastern Sea Circuit, one of Japan’s historical administrative regions”
12th–14th Centuries
Japanese
Tōkaidō
“The coastal route connecting eastern Japan with the imperial center near Kyoto”
17th Century
Japanese
Tōkaidō
“The principal highway between Edo and Kyoto under the Tokugawa shogunate”
1830s
Japanese
東海道五十三次
“The Fifty-Three Stations of the Tōkaidō, made famous by Hiroshige’s landscape prints”
Modern English
English
Tokaido
“A historical Japanese highway, region, railway corridor, and cultural designation”