The Greater Tokyo Area is a large metropolitan area in Japan, consisting of the Kantō region as well as the prefecture of Yamanashi. In Japanese, it is referred to by various terms, the most common of which being National Capital Region (首都圏, Shuto-ken?).
A 2007 UN estimate puts the population at 35,676,000, making it by far the world's most populous metropolitan area. It covers an area of approximately 13,500 km² (5,200 mi²), giving it a population density of 2,642 person/km² - which is more than twice the population density of Bangladesh. It is the second largest single metropolitan area in the world in terms of built-up or urban function landmass at 7,800 km² (3,000 mi²). Only the New York metropolitan area, at 17,405 km², is larger.
The area has the largest metropolitan economy in the world, with a total GDP (nominal) of approximately US$1.9 trillion (¥165 trillion) in 2008. According to research published by PricewaterhouseCoopers, the agglomeration of Tokyo had a total GDP of US$1.479 trillion in 2008 (at purchasing power parity), ranking again as the largest urban agglomeration GDP in the world.
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—Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865)
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—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)