Fukuoka Prefecture

Fukuoka Prefecture
福 岡県
Prefecture
Japanese transcription(s)
 • Japanese

福

岡県
 • Rōmaji Fukuoka-ken

Flag
Symbol
Coordinates: 33°36′N 130°35′E / 33.600°N 130.583°E / 33.600; 130.583Coordinates: 33°36′N 130°35′E / 33.600°N 130.583°E / 33.600; 130.583
Country Japan
Region Kyushu
Island Kyushu
Capital Fukuoka City
Government
 • Governor Hiroshi Ogawa (since April 2011)
Area
 • Total 4,971.01 km2 (1,919.32 sq mi)
Area rank 29th
Population (June 1, 2013)
 • Total 5,088,483
 • Rank 9th
 • Density 1,020.26/km2 (2,642.5/sq mi)
ISO 3166 code JP-40
Districts 12
Municipalities 60
Flower Ume blossom (Prunus mume)
Tree Azalea (Rhododendron tsutsusi)
Bird Japanese bush warbler (Cettia diphone)
Website www.pref.fukuoka.lg.jp/somu/
multilingual/english/top.html

Fukuoka Prefecture (Japanese: 福岡県, Hepburn: Fukuoka-ken) is a prefecture of Japan on Kyūshū Island.[1] The capital is the city of Fukuoka.[2]

History

Fukuoka Prefecture includes the former provinces of Chikugo, Chikuzen, and Buzen.[3]

Shrines and temples

Kōra taisha, Sumiyoshi-jinja, and Hakosagi-gū are the chief Shinto shrines (ichinomiya) in the prefecture.[4]

Geography

Map of Fukuoka Prefecture.      Government Ordinance Designated City      City      Town      Village

Fukuoka Prefecture faces the sea on three sides, bordering Saga, Ōita, and Kumamoto prefectures and facing Yamaguchi Prefecture across the Kanmon Straits.

As of 1 April 2012, 18% of the land area of the prefecture was designated as natural parks: Setonaikai National Park, Genkai, Kitakyūshū, and Yaba-Hita-Hikosan quasi-national parks, and Chikugogawa, Chikuhō, Dazaifu, Sefuri Raizan, and Yabegawa Prefectural Natural Parks.[5]

Fukuoka includes the two largest cities on Kyūshū, Fukuoka and Kitakyushu, and much of Kyūshū's industry. It also includes a number of small islands near the north coast of Kyūshū.

Cities

Twenty-eight cities are in Fukuoka Prefecture:

Towns and villages

These are the towns and villages in each district:

Mergers

Economy

Fukuoka prefecture's main cities form one of Japan's main industrial centers, accounting for nearly 40% of the economy of Kyūshū. Major industries include automobiles, semiconductors, and steel. Fukuoka prefecture is where tire manufacturer Bridgestone[6] and consumer electronics chain Best Denki were founded.

Universities

InstitutionLocation
Fukuoka UniversityFukuoka
Kurume UniversityKurume
Kyushu Institute of TechnologyKitakyūshū and Iizuka
Kyushu UniversityFukuoka and Kasuga
Seinan Gakuin UniversityFukuoka
Kyushu Institute of Information SciencesDazaifu
Kyushu Sangyo UniversityFukuoka
Fukuoka Women's UniversityFukuoka
Fukuoka University of EducationMunakata, Fukuoka

[7]

Demographics

According to 1 June 2013 Japanese estimates, the population in Fukuoka Prefecture reached 5,088,483 inhabitants, making the prefecture the 9th most populated of Japan's 47 prefectures.

Culture

  • Fukuoka Art Museum – In Ohori Park; contains a wide selection of contemporary and other art from around the world
  • Fukuoka Asian Art Museum – contains art from Asia
  • Fukuoka City Museum – displays a broad range of items from the region's history, including a spectacular gold seal
  • Genko Historical Museum (元寇史料館; Museum of the Mongol Invasion) in Higashi Koen (East Park) displays Japanese and Mongolian arms and armor from the 13th century as well as paintings on historical subjects; open on weekends
  • Hakata Machiya Folk Museum – Dedicated to displaying the traditional ways of life, speech, and culture of the Fukuoka region
  • Fukuoka Castle – a castle in Chūō-ku, Fukuoka
  • Hakata Gion Yamakasa – Japanese festival celebrated 1–15 July
  • Ōhori Park – a registered Place of Scenic Beauty
  • Kyushu National Museum – The collections cover the history of Kyūshū from prehistory to the Meiji era with particular emphasis on the rich history of cultural exchange between Kyūshū and neighboring China and Korea
  • HKT48 Theater – where the idol group HKT48 performs every day
  • LinQ – the Kyushu idol group meaning "Love in Kyushu", local theater where the LinQ performs weekly on Saturday and Sunday in Tenjin Best Hall
  • Bairin-ji – Rinzai temple and garden in Kurume

Major events and festivals

  • Hakata Dontaku Harbour Festival, Tenjin, Fukuoka on May 3 and 4
  • Hakata Gion Yamagasa, Kushida Shrine, Fukuoka in July
  • Kokura Gion Yamagasa, Kitakyushu in July
  • Tobata Gion Yamagasa, Kitakyushu in July
  • Kurosaki Gion Yamagasa, Kitakyushu in July
  • Kitahara Hakushu Festival, Yanagawa on November 1 to 3

Sports

The sports teams listed below are based in Fukuoka.

Football (soccer)
Baseball
Basketball
Rugby

The prefecture has two significant annual athletics events: the Fukuoka International Cross Country and the Fukuoka International Open Marathon Championship. The marathon has been held in Fukuoka since 1959 and has seen world records broken.[8]

Crime and safety

Fukuoka Prefecture has the most designated yakuza groups among all of the prefectures, at five: the Kudo-kai, the Taishu-kai, the Fukuhaku-kai, the Dojin-kai and the Kyushu Seido-kai.[9] Between 2004 and 2009, and in early 2011,[10] Fukuoka Prefecture lead the nation in gun-related incidents.[11] These incidents were mostly related to the local yakuza syndicates, specifically the Kudo-kai, the Dojin-kai, and the Kyushu Seido-kai.[10]

Fukuoka Prefecture has had the highest frequency of youth crime among the prefectures of Japan since 2003.[12]

Tourism

A sightseeing boat in Yanagawa Canal
Dazaifu Tenman-gū

The most popular place for tourism is Fukuoka City, especially at the time of the Dontaku festival, and Dazaifu, although Kitakyūshū has tried to attract tourists.

Transportation

Rail

Air

Sister regions

Notes

  1. ↑ Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Fukuoka-ken" in Japan Encyclopedia, p. 218, p. 218, at Google Books.
  2. ↑ Nussbaum, "Fukuoka" in p. 218, p. 218, at Google Books.
  3. ↑ Nussbaum, "Provinces and prefectures" in p. 780, p. 780, at Google Books.
  4. ↑ "Nationwide List of Ichinomiya," p. 3 Archived May 17, 2013, at the Wayback Machine.; retrieved 2012-10-26.
  5. ↑ "General overview of area figures for Natural Parks by prefecture" (PDF). Ministry of the Environment. 1 April 2012. Retrieved 8 December 2013.
  6. ↑
  7. ↑ http://www.fukuoka-edu.ac.jp/
  8. ↑ Nakamura, Ken. Marathon - A history of the Fukuoka International Marathon Championships by K. Ken Nakamura - Part 1 1947-1966. IAAF. Retrieved on 2010-02-28.
  9. ↑ "Retrospection and Outlook of Crime Measure", p.15 Archived 2011-09-27 at the Wayback Machine., Masahiro Tamura, 2009, National Police Agency (in Japanese)
  10. 1 2 "Gunfire, The worst in the nation, None has been solved" Archived 2012-09-05 at Archive.is, 23 June 2011, Nishinippon Shimbun (in Japanese)
  11. ↑ "Fukuoka yakuza groups tackle police pressure in all-out war", 4 May 2010, The Tokyo Reporter, from Friday May 14, p.22-23 (in Japanese)
  12. ↑ 非行防げ、捜査員奮闘…少年犯罪全国ワースト１の福岡 Archived 2009-02-12 at the Wayback Machine., Yomiuri Shimbun (in Japanese)

References

  • Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric and Käthe Roth. 2005. Japan encyclopedia. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. ISBN 978-0-674-01753-5; OCLC 58053128
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