The Yamanote Line (Japanese: 山手線, Hepburn: Yamanote-sen) is a railway line of East Japan Railway Company (JR East) in Tokyo, Japan. It is one of Tokyo's busiest and most important lines, connecting most of Tokyo's big stations and city centres, including Marunouchi, the Yūrakuchō/Ginza area, Shinagawa, Shibuya, Shinjuku, Ikebukuro and Ueno, with all but two of its 29 stations connecting to other railway or underground (subway) lines.
As an official line name, "Yamanote Line" is usually meant as a line with tracks between Shinagawa and Tabata from Shinjuku that are used by local trains on its tracks and also the parallel Yamanote Freight Line which is used by Saikyō Line and Shōnan-Shinjuku Line trains, some limited express services, and freight trains. However, in everyday use, the "Yamanote Line" refers to the entire 34.5 km loop line served by local trains. (This article uses the same thing meant except when it is said that it would not be the same meaning meant.)