Where the name Shirokanedai comes from, what stood here before the station, and what you can still spot on a walk today. Then the events near the station that we have checked on the official pages.
The name Shirokanedai contains an intriguing legend about silver. Shirokane is an old Japanese word associated with the metal, and local tradition tells of a wealthy landowner named Yagishita Kazusa-no-suke. He is said to have settled here during the Ōei era, between 1394 and 1428, and built a fortified residence. Because he supposedly possessed large quantities of silver, he became known as the Shirokane Chōja, or Silver Rich Man. The story is preserved in local history, but its details are not established historical fact.
The second part of the name, dai, means elevated ground. Walk along Meguro-dori from Shirokanedai Station and the road follows relatively level high ground. Enter the nearby Institute for Nature Study, however, and the terrain drops into natural hollows and valleys. Remains of an old fortified residence, including earthworks and a defensive enclosure, can still be found inside the forest.
In 1651, the settlement along what is now Meguro-dori separated from Shirokane Village and became Shirokanedai-machi. The modern neighborhood was formed through the consolidation of surrounding districts in 1967. Its name preserves three distinct layers: a silver-rich landowner's legend, the shape of the plateau, and the growth of an Edo-period settlement.
→ Walk west along Meguro-dori from Shirokanedai Station and enter the Institute for Nature Study. Inside the forest, look for the medieval earthworks and the natural changes in elevation. The contrast with the level main road makes the meaning of dai, or plateau, easy to understand.
Sources (in Japanese): 港区「地名の歴史 高輪地区」, 港区デジタル版『新修港区史』白金台一～五丁目
A short walk west from Shirokanedai Station leads to one of central Tokyo's most remarkable surviving forests. The Institute for Nature Study occupies land where a fortified residence is believed to have stood during the medieval period. Traces of defensive earthworks remain. During the Edo period, the property came under the control of Zōjōji Temple before becoming the suburban estate of Matsudaira Yorishige, lord of Takamatsu and elder brother of Tokugawa Mitsukuni, in 1664.
The grounds preserve old trees thought to date from the estate's garden, including the celebrated Monogatari Pine and Orochi Pine. After the Meiji Restoration, the property underwent a dramatic transformation. It became a gunpowder storage area administered by the Japanese navy and army. In 1917, the Imperial Household Ministry took control, and the land became known as the Shirokane Imperial Estate.
In 1949, the grounds passed to the Ministry of Education, received protection as a Natural Monument and Historic Site, and opened to the public as the National Institute for Nature Study. Military and imperial ownership had helped shield the terrain from much of the surrounding urban development. Nearby Happō-en also preserves the history of former samurai residences and later private gardens. Together, these green spaces reveal how much of old Shirokanedai survives behind its modern streets.
→ Explore the Institute for Nature Study to see surviving earthworks, centuries-old pines, and wooded valleys with wetlands. Then return east toward Happō-en, another garden linked to former samurai estates. These two green spaces offer a striking contrast with the modern streets of Shirokanedai.
Sources (in Japanese): 国立科学博物館附属自然教育園「附属自然教育園について」, 港区「高輪地区情報紙 Vol.54 地域のあしあと」
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We list events we could confirm on the official page or official Instagram of the venue or organiser. Details can change, tickets sell out and venues close, so check the official page before you go. Distances are straight-line and travel times are rough estimates. Photos show the venue or its surroundings, not the event itself. Titles and descriptions are our own translations from Japanese. This site contains affiliate links (ads).