London has its Bloomsbury, Paris its Montmartre and New York its Greenwich Village.

In Japan's capital, however, it's Tabata that is synonymous with the artistic lifestyle -- a name that might not possess the same symbolic undertones as its Western counterparts but which, during the Meiji and Taisho eras, was known as "the Montmartre of Japan."

Poplar-zaka was a famous gathering place for artists in the early 1900s.

This year marks the 100th anniversary since painter and Tochigi native Hoan Kosugi set up his easel in Tabata and started a tradition in the Kita Ward district that was to continue for almost four decades.

During those years, Tabata remained a favored neighborhood for some of Japan's most celebrated cultural figures, including poet Saisei Murou and writers Hideo Kobayashi, Matsutaro Kawaguchi, Suiho Tagawa and Kan Kikuchi (whose name is synonymous with the nation's most prestigious journalism prize).

In the early years, it was largely painters who gathered there, explained Akihiro Sakai of the Tabata Memorial Museum of Writers and Artists.

That was until the arrival of arguably Japan's greatest writer altered the balance.

Ryunosuke Akutagawa, the celebrated poet, essayist and short story writer after whom Japan's top literary award is named, moved to Tabata as a teenager. It was at his Tabata home that he committed suicide in 1927 at the age of 35.

It was also the place where he penned some of his classic short stories, including "Rashomon," which is probably better known in the screen version directed by Akira Kurosawa.

Like most of the artists and writers who gravitated there, Akutagawa came to Tabata due to its proximity to his place of study.

For the early artists, Tabata was located close to the Tokyo School of Arts in Ueno, Sakai said, while its proximity to the University of Tokyo, then located in Shinjuku Ward, drew the Nihonbashi-born Akutagawa.

At that time, Tabata was nothing more than a countryside village.

"It was a farming village and therefore quiet and abundant in nature," Sakai said. "It was a productive environment (for artists/writers) and also very reasonable for cash-strapped students."

After Akutagawa's suicide in 1927, dozens of writers gradually left Tabata and only a few remained by the time war broke out.

Today there are none, and few landmarks are left to remind visitors of that era, save for the row of Sasanqua trees that mark where Akutagawa's home once stood.

Another notable historic spot is Poplar-zaka, a slope that today is crested by a kindergarten. This was once the location of the Poplar Club, a social club where Tabata's artists played tennis and exchanged ideas.

Artifacts that belonged to those gifted individuals can still be seen at the memorial museum, serving as a reminder of that golden era. There's also a video showing a young Akutagawa strolling around his garden -- maybe limbering up for a game of tennis.