Hyōgo Prefecture

Hyōgo Prefecture
Japanese transcription(s)
• Japanese	兵庫県
• Rōmaji	Hyōgo-ken
Symbol of Hyōgo Prefecture
Country	Japan
Region	Kansai
Island	Honshū
Capital	Kobe
Government
• Governor	Toshizo Ido
Area
• Total	8,396.13 km2 (3,241.764 sq mi)
Area rank	12th
Population (November 1, 2011)
• Total	5,582,978
• Rank	7th
• Density	664.9466/km2 (1,722.2038/sq mi)
ISO 3166 code	JP-28
Districts	8
Municipalities	41
Flower	Nojigiku (Chrysanthemum japonense)
Tree	Camphor tree (Cinnamomum camphora)
Bird	Oriental White Stork (Ciconia boyciana)
Website	web.pref.hyogo.lg.jp/fl/english/

Map of Hyōgo Prefecture.

Himeji Castle in Himeji, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Hyōgo Prefecture (兵庫県, Hyōgo-ken) is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region on Honshū island. The capital is Kobe.

The prefecture's name was previously alternately spelled as Hiogo.

History

Present-day Hyōgo Prefecture includes the former provinces of Harima, Tajima, Awaji, and parts of Tamba and Settsu.

In 1180, near the end of the Heian Period, Emperor Antoku, Taira no Kiyomori, and the Imperial court moved briefly to Fukuhara, in what is now the city of Kobe. There the capital remained for five months.

Himeji Castle, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is in the city of Himeji.

Southern Hyōgo Prefecture was severely devastated by the magnitude 7.2 Great Hanshin earthquake of 1995, which destroyed major parts of Kobe and Awaji, as well as Takarazuka and neighboring Osaka prefecture, killing nearly 6,500 people.

Geography

Hyōgo has coastlines on two seas: to the north, the Sea of Japan, to the south, the Inland Sea. The northern portion is sparsely populated, except for the city of Toyooka, and the central highlands are only populated by tiny villages. Most of Hyōgo's population lives on the southern coast, which is part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area. Awaji Island is an island in the Inland Sea, lying between Honshū and Shikoku.

Summertime weather throughout Hyōgo is hot and humid. As for winter conditions in Hyōgo, the north of Hyōgo tends to receive abundant snow, whilst the south receives only the occasional flurry.

Hyōgo borders on Osaka Prefecture, Kyoto Prefecture, Tottori Prefecture and Okayama Prefecture.

As of 31 March 2008, 20% of the total land area of the prefecture was designated as Natural Parks, namely the Sanin Kaigan and Setonaikai National Parks; Hyōnosen-Ushiroyama-Nagisan Quasi-National Park; and Asago Gunzan, Harima Chūbu Kyūryō, Inagawa Keikoku, Izushi-Itoi, Kasagatayama-Sengamine, Kiyomizu-Tōjōko-Tachikui, Onzui-Chikusa, Seiban Kyūryō, Seppiko-Mineyama, Tajima Sangaku, and Taki Renzan Prefectural Natural Parks.

Cities

Twenty-nine cities are located in Hyōgo Prefecture:

Aioi Akashi Akō Amagasaki Asago Ashiya Awaji Himeji Itami Kakogawa Kasai Katō Kawanishi

Kobe (capital) Chūō-ku Higashinada-ku Hyōgo-ku Kita-ku Nada-ku Nagata-ku Nishi-ku Suma-ku Tarumi-ku Miki Minamiawaji Nishinomiya

Nishiwaki Ono Sanda Sasayama Shisō Sumoto Takarazuka Takasago Tamba Tatsuno Toyooka Yabu

Towns and villages

Towns and villages in each district:

Akō District Kamigōri Ibo District Taishi Kako District Harima Inami

Kanzaki District Fukusaki Ichikawa Kamikawa Kawabe District Inagawa

Mikata District Kami Shin'onsen Sayō District Sayō Taka District Taka

Islands

• Awaji Island
• Ieshima Islands

Two major artificial islands are located Hyōgo Prefecture:

• Rokko Island
• Port Island

National parks

• Sanin Kaigan National Park
• Setonaikai National Park
• Hyōnosen-Ushiroyama-Nagisan Quasi-National Park

• 

  Hyōnosen-Ushiroyama-Nagisan Quasi-National Park (Mt. Hyonosen view from Yabu)

• 

  Hyōnosen-Ushiroyama-Nagisan Quasi-National Park (Torokawataira in Kami)

• 

  Sanin Kaigan National Park (Takeno Beach in Toyooka)

• 

  Sanin Kaigan National Park (Tajima-mihonoura of Sanin Coast in Shinonsen)

Mergers

Main article: List of mergers in Hyōgo Prefecture

Future mergers

• The city of Akō and the only town in Akō District (Kamigōri), are scheduled to merge together and the city will retain the name Akō. Akō District will be defunct if the merger is successful. [1]

Economy

Hyōgo Prefecture has many heavy industries, metal and medical, and Kobe Port is one of the largest ports in Japan.

Hyōgo is a part of the Hanshin Industrial Region. There are two research institute of Riken, natural sciences research institute in Japan, in Kobe and Harima. It has "SPring-8",a synchrotron radiation facility in Harima.

Kobe Port

Culture

National Treasures of Japan

• Himeji Castle in Himeji (UNESCO World Heritage Site)
• Jōdo-ji in Ono
• Ichijō-ji in Kasai
• Kakurin-ji in Kakogawa
• Taisan-ji in Kobe
• Chōkō-ji in Katō

• 

  Jōdo-ji in Ono

• 

  Ichijo-ji in Kasai

• 

  Kakurin-ji in Kakogawa

Important Preservation Districts for Groups of Historic Buildings in Japan

• Kitano-chō Yamamoto-dōri
• Izushi
• Sasayama

• 

  Kitano-chō Yamamoto-dōri

• 

  Izushi

• 

  Sasayama

Museums

• Hyōgo Prefectural Museum of Art in Nada Ward, Kobe.
• Kobe City Museum in Chuo Ward, Kobe.
• Kobe Maritime Museum in Chuo Ward, Kobe.
• Himeji City Museum of Art in Himeji.
• Asago Art Village in Asago.
• Ashiya City Museum of Art & History in Ashiya.

• 

  Hyōgo Prefectural Museum of Art in Kobe.

• 

  Kobe City Museum in Kobe.

• 

  Himeji City Museum of Art in Himeji.

• 

  Asago Art Village in Asago

Education

Universities

• Amagasaki
  • Sonoda Women's University
  • St. Thomas University (Eichi University)
• Takarazuka
  • Takarazuka University
  • Koshien University
• Sanda
  • Kwansei Gakuin University (Sanda Campas)
• Nishinomiya
  • Kwansei Gakuin University
  • Otemae University
  • Mukogawa Women's University
• Ashiya
  • Ashiya University
• Kobe
  • Kobe University
  • Kobe University of Commerce
  • Kobe Gakuin University
  • Kobe City University of Foreign Studies
  • Kobe Women's University
  • Kobe Shukugawa Gakuin University
  • Konan University
  • University of Marketing and Distribution Sciences
• Kato
  • Hyogo University of Teacher Education
• Kakogawa
  • Hyogo University
• Himeji
  • Himeji Institute of Technology
  • Himeji Dokkyo University
  • Himeji Kinki University

Sports

The sports teams listed below are based in Hyōgo.

Football (soccer)

• Vissel Kobe (Kobe)
• INAC Kobe (Women's) (Kobe)

Baseball

• Orix Buffaloes (Kobe)
• Hanshin Tigers (Nishinomiya)

Volleyball

• Hisamitsu Springs (Kobe)
• JT Marvelous (NIshinomiya)

Rugby

• Kobe Steel Kobelco Steelers (Kobe)
• World Fighting Bull (Kobe)

Tourism

Kobe remains a popular tourist destination. The region symbolizes Japan's earliest contact with the outside world. Many homes of early foreign visitors still stand on the bluff overlooking the harbor.

The vista of the Inland Sea remains a "million-dollar view". The Kobe port is one of the ports which are the most famous in Japan.

A popular troupe of Takarazuka Revue plays in Takarazuka.

Himeji Castle receives this praise from UNESCO: "masterpiece of construction in wood, combining function with aesthetic appeal... ." Together with its historical significance and its easy access from Kyoto or Osaka by Shinkansen, Himeji Castle receives tremendous numbers of visitors annually.

As for the Hyogo Prefecture northern part, sands where the coast is beautiful and a dynamic rock are consecutive. In the vicinity, there are a lot of famous sightseeing spots such as Kinosaki Onsen, Izushi and Yumura Onsen.

• 

  million-dollar view, Kobe

• 

  Harborland - Meriken Park area in Kobe

• 

  Awaji Yumebutai in Awaji

• 

  Kuchiganaya in Asago

• 

  Kinosaki Onsen in Toyooka

• 

  Yumura Onsen in Shinonsen

• 

  Tonomine highland in Kamikawa

Festival and Events

• Miyuki Street New Year's mid-night traditional sale in January 1, Himeji
• Nishinomiya Shrine's Ebisu Festival in January
• Yanagihara Ebisu Festival in January, Kobe
• Tada Shrine's Genji Festival in April, Kawanishi
• Kobe Festival and Parade in May
• Aioi Peron Festival in May
• Himeji Yukata Festival in June
• Dekansho Bon Dancing Festival in August, Sasayama
• Nada Fighting Festival in October, Himeji
• Kobe Luminarie in December
• Ako Chushingura Parade in December^{[citation needed]}

Transportation

Railway

• JR West
  • Sanyo Shinkansen
  • JR Kobe Line
  • Wadamisaki Line
  • Sanyo Main Line
  • Sanin Line
  • Fukuchiyama Line (JR Takarazuka Line)
  • Kakogawa Line
  • Bantan Line
  • Kishin Line
  • Ako Line

• Hankyu Railway
  • Kobe Line
  • Kobe Kosoku Line
  • Itami Line
  • Imazu Line
  • Koyo Line
  • Takarazuka Line

• Nose Railway
  • Myoken Line
  • Nissei Line

• Shintetsu
  • Arima Line
  • Kobe Kosoku Line
  • Sanda Line
  • Koen Toshi Line
  • Ao Line

• Hokushin Kyuko Railway

• Kobe Municipal Subway
  • Seishin-Yamate Line
  • Kaigan Line

• Hojo Railway (Ao-Hojo)

• Hanshin Railway
  • Main Line
  • Kobe Kosoku Line
  • Mukogawa Line
  • Hanshin Nanba Line

• Sanyo Railway
  • Main Line
  • Aboshi Line

• Chizu Express

• Kitakinki Tango Railway
  • Miyazu Line

People Movers

• Kobe New Transit
  • Port Liner
  • Rokko Liner

Road

Expressway

• Chugoku Expressway
• Sanyo Expressway
• Kobe-Awaji-Naruto Expressway
• Meishin Expressway
• Maizuru-Wakasa Expressway
• Bantan Expressway
• Second Shinmei road
• Hanshin Expressway

National Highway

• Route 2
• Route 9
• Route 28
• Route 29
• Route 43
• Route 171
• Route 173
• Route 174 (Sannomiya-Kobe Port)
• Route 175
• Route 176
• Route 178
• Route 179
• Route 250
• Route 312
• Route 372
• Route 373
• Route 426
• Route 427
• Route 428
• Route 429
• Route 436
• Route 477
• Route 482
• Route 483

Port

• Kobe Port - Mainly international container hub port
• Akashi Port
• Shikama Port - Mainly Shodo Island route ferry

Airport

• Kobe Airport
• Konotori Tajima Airport

Notable people

• Heath, musician, singer-songwriter and bassist of X Japan is from Amagasaki
• Kaoru, guitarist of Dir en grey
• Jun, musician, singer-songwriter and guitarist of Phantasmagoria is from Kobe
• Miyavi, musician, although born in Konohana-ku, Osaka grew up in Kawanishi
• So Taguchi, outfielder for the Chicago Cubs
• Juri Ueno, Japanese Academy Award-winning actress best known for her performances in Swing Girls and the live-action adaptation of Nodame Cantabile, is from Kakogawa
• Koichi Domoto, singer of Kinki Kids
• Shota Yasuda, guitarist of Kanjani Eight is from Amagasaki
• Aya Matsuura, singer is from Himeji
• Ayaka Kimura, actress, former singer of Coconuts Musume is from Kobe
• Chisa Maekawa, singer of Girl Next Door
• Miracle Hikaru, comedian and impersonator is from Toyooka
• Keiko Kitagawa, actress from Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon and Buzzer Beat was born in Kobe
• Nagaru Tanigawa, creator of the Haruhi Suzumiya series was born in Kinki
• Masamune Shirow, manga artist was born in Kobe
• Ume Aoki, manga artist
• Fumito Ueda, videogame creator of Ico, Shadow of the Colossus, and The Last Guardian.
• Katsumi Yamada, known as Mr. Sasuke, one of the All-Star competitors of Sasuke is from Harima

References

• Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric and Käthe Roth. (2005). Japan encyclopedia. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. 10-ISBN 0-674-01753-6; 13-ISBN 978-0-674-01753-5; OCLC 58053128

External links

• Official Hyōgo prefecture homepage
• Hyōgo prefecture tourist guide
• Hyōgo Business & Cultural Center
• Medical Services in Hyōgo prefecture