Kamakura (鎌倉市, Kamakura-shi) is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, about 50 kilometres (31 miles) south-south-west of Tokyo. Although Kamakura proper is today rather small, it is often described in history books as a former de facto capital of Japan as the seat of the Shogunate and of the Regency during the Kamakura Period. Kamakura was designated as a city on November 3, 1939.As of September 1, 2016, the modern city has an estimated population of 172,302 and a population density of 4,358.77 persons per km². The total area is 39.53 km2 (15.26 sq mi).