Hiroshima Prefecture

Hiroshima Prefecture
Hiroshima Prefecture; 広島県
	Prefecture
Japanese transcription(s)
• Japanese	広島県
• Rōmaji	Hiroshima-ken
	; Flag
	; Flag
Country	Japan
Region	Chūgoku (San'yō)
Island	Honshu
Capital	Hiroshima (city)
Government
• Governor	Hidehiko Yuzaki (since November 2009)
Area
• Total	8,476.95 km2 (3,272.97 sq mi)
Area rank	11th
Population (March 1, 2011)
• Total	2,857,990
• Rank	12th
• Density	337.15/km2 (873.2/sq mi)
ISO 3166 code	JP-34
Districts	5
Municipalities	23
Tree	Japanese maple (Acer palmatum)
Bird	Red-throated diver (Gavia stellata)
Website	pref.hiroshima.lg.jp

Hiroshima Prefecture (広島県, Hiroshima-ken^?) is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region on Honshu island.^[1] The capital is the city of Hiroshima.^[2] It has a population of around 2.8 million.

History

The area around Hiroshima was formerly divided into Bingo Province and Aki Province.^[3] This location has been a center of trade and culture since the beginning of Japan's recorded history. Hiroshima is a traditional center of the Chūgoku region and was the seat of the Mōri clan until the Battle of Sekigahara.

Hiroshima is home to two UNESCO World Heritage sites:

The Atomic Dome in Hiroshima, one of the few remnants of prewar Hiroshima following the atomic bombing in 1945;
The Itsukushima Shrine in Miyajima, famed for filling with water and appearing to "float" during high tide.

Geography

Hiroshima prefecture lies in the middle of Chūgoku. Most of the prefecture consists of mountains leading towards Shimane Prefecture; and rivers produce rich plains near the coast.

The province faces Shikoku across the Seto Inland Sea. Hiroshima Bay opens on the Inland Sea.^[4] The prefecture also includes many small islands.

The sheltered nature of the Inland Sea makes Hiroshima's climate very mild.

As of 1 April 2014, 4% of the total land area of the prefecture was designated as Natural Parks (the lowest percentage of any prefecture), namely Setonaikai National Park; Hiba-Dōgo-Taishaku and Nishi-Chūgoku Sanchi Quasi-National Parks; and six Prefectural Natural Parks.^[5]

Cities

Map of Hiroshima Prefecture

Fukuyama

Onomichi

Higashihiroshima

Mihara

Fourteen cities are located in Hiroshima Prefecture:

Towns and villages

These are the towns in each district:

Aki District
- Fuchū
- Kaita
- Kumano
- Saka

Mergers

Economy

Hiroshima's main industries include automobiles (Mazda is headquartered there) and shipbuilding (Kure was one of the main naval bases of the Imperial Japanese Navy and remains a major commercial yard).

Education

University

Transportation

Railway

People movers

Streetcars

Hiroshima Electric Railway

Roads

Expressways

Chugoku Expressway
Sanyo Expressway
Shimanami Expressway
Hamada Expressway
Onomichi Expressway
Hiroshima Expressway (West Nippon Expressway Company)
Hiroshima Expressway (urban expressway)

National highways

Route 2
Route 31
Route 54
Route 182
Route 183
Route 185
Route 186
Route 191
Route 261
Route 313
Route 314
Route 317
Route 375
Route 432
Route 433
Route 434
Route 486
Route 487
Route 488

Ports

Kure Port - Ferry route to Edajima, Matsuyama
Hiroshima Port - Ferry route to Miyajima, Edajima, Matsuyama and Beppu, and also International Container hub port
Mihara Port
Onomichi Port
Fukuyama Port - International Container hub port

Airports

Hiroshima Airport

Sports

The sports teams listed below are based in Hiroshima.

Football

Sanfrecce Hiroshima (Hiroshima city)

Baseball

Hiroshima Toyo Carp (Hiroshima city)

Volleyball

JT Thunders (Hiroshima city)

Tourism

Itsukushima Shrine and Torii Gate (Hatsukaichi)
Hiroshima Peace Memorial (Hiroshima City)
Taishaku Valley (Shobara)

Road of longing (Shokei no michi) in Takehara on October
Hiroshima Castle
Tomonoura (Fukuyama)

Famous festivals and events

Onomichi Port Festival - held in April
Hiroshima Flower Festival - held from May 3 to 5
Fukuyama Rose Festival - held in May
Enryuji Tokasan Festival - held in June
Gion Festival of Onomichi - held in July
Innoshima Water-naval Festival - held in August
Miyajima Under-water Firework Festival - held on August 14^{[citation needed]}
Yassa Festival of Mihara - held in August
Saijo Sake Festival - held in October
Onomichi Becher Festival - held on November 3
Hiroshima Ebisu Festival - held from November 18 to 20

Notes

↑ Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Hiroshima-ken" in Japan Encyclopedia, p. 320, p. 320, at Google Books; "Chūgoku" at pp. 127, p. 127, at Google Books.
↑ Nussbaum, "Hiroshima" at pp. 319-320, p. 319, at Google Books.
↑ Nussbaum, "Province and prefecture" at p. 780, p. 780, at Google Books.
↑ Nussbaum, "Hiroshima Wan" at p. 320, p. 320, at Google Books.
↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

References

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

External links

Official Hiroshima Prefecture homepage
Life in Hiroshima and other Japan-related Articles
Hiroshima Weather Forecast
National Archives of Japan ... Hiroshima map (1891)
National Archives of Japan: Itsukushima kakei, illustrated scroll describing Itsukushima, text by Kaibara Ekiken (circa 1720)

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[1] Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Hiroshima-ken" in Japan Encyclopedia, p. 320, p. 320, at Google Books; "Chūgoku" at pp. 127, p. 127, at Google Books.

[2] Nussbaum, "Hiroshima" at pp. 319-320, p. 319, at Google Books.

[3] Nussbaum, "Province and prefecture" at p. 780, p. 780, at Google Books.

[4] Nussbaum, "Hiroshima Wan" at p. 320, p. 320, at Google Books.

[5] Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

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v t e Hiroshima Prefecture
Wards of Hiroshima (capital city)	Aki Asakita Asaminami Higashi Minami Naka Nishi Saeki
Other cities	Akitakata Etajima Fuchū Fukuyama Hatsukaichi Higashihiroshima Kure Mihara Miyoshi Onomichi Ōtake Shōbara Takehara
Aki District	Fuchū Kaita Kumano Saka
Jinseki District	Jinsekikōgen
Sera District	Sera
Toyota District	Ōsakikamijima
Yamagata District	Akiōta Kitahiroshima