Ishikawa Prefecture

Ishikawa Prefecture
Japanese transcription(s)
• Japanese	石川県
• Rōmaji	Ishikawa-ken
Symbol of Ishikawa Prefecture
Country	Japan
Region	Chūbu, Hokuriku
Island	Honshū
Capital	Kanazawa
Government
• Governor	Masanori Tanimoto
Area
• Total	4,185.22 km2 (1,615.92 sq mi)
Area rank	35th
Population (February 1, 2011)
• Total	1,168,929
• Rank	34th
• Density	279.30/km2 (723.4/sq mi)
ISO 3166 code	JP-17
Districts	5
Municipalities	19
Flower	Black lily (Fritillaria camtschatcensis)
Tree	Hiba (Thujopsis dolabrata)
Bird	Golden Eagle (Aquila chrysaetos)
Website	http://www.pref.ishikawa.lg.jp/foreign/en/

Ishikawa Prefecture (石川県, Ishikawa-ken) is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region on Honshū island. The capital is Kanazawa.

History

Ishikawa was formed from the merger of Kaga Province and the smaller Noto Province.

Geography

Ishikawa is on the Sea of Japan coast. The northern part of the prefecture consists of the narrow Noto Peninsula, while the southern part is wider and consists mostly of mountains with the prefecture's chief city, Kanazawa, located in the coastal plain. The prefecture also has some islands, including Notojima, Mitsukejima, Hegurajima.

Cities

Eleven cities are located in Ishikawa Prefecture:

Hakui Hakusan Kaga Kahoku Kanazawa (capital)

Komatsu Nanao Nonoichi Nomi Suzu

Wajima

Towns and villages

Towns and villages in each district:

Hakui District Hōdatsushimizu Shika Hōsu District Anamizu Noto

Kahoku District Tsubata Uchinada Kashima District Nakanoto

Nomi District Kawakita

Mergers

Main article: List of mergers in Ishikawa Prefecture

Economy

Ishikawa's industry is dominated by the textile industry, particularly artificial fabrics, and the machine industry, particularly construction machinery.

Map of Ishikawa Prefecture.

Demographics

Ishikawa Prefecture has an area of 4,185 km² and as of April 1, 2011 it has a population of 1,166,643 persons.

Data	Unit	Statistics
Area	km²	4,185
Population	Persons	1,166,643
Population density	Persons per km²	278.72
Number of households	Households	441,980
Income per person	Thousand yen	2,707
Power consumed	Kwh per household	6,446
Number of doctors	Physicians per 100,000 people	249

Culture

The area is noted for arts and crafts and other cultural traditions:

• Nō was introduced to the area during the rule of the fifth Maeda lord Tsunanori and was refined into the style of Kaga hosho.
• The tea ceremony was introduced in 1666 when Maeda Toshitsune invited Senbiki Soshitsu of urasenke to Kanazawa.
• Kutani porcelain (Kutani yaki) is a bright colored glaze like Chinese porcelain.
• Ohi teaware (Ōhi yaki) is a pottery with a style unique to Kanazawa.
• Kaga silk (Kaga yūzen) is made with complicated silk print technique with an intentional rough look (wabi-sabi).
• Kanazawa lacquerware (Kanazawa shikki) is high quality lacquerware traditionally decorated with gold dust.
• Kanazawa gold leaf (Kanazawa haku) is produced with a technique of beating gold into wafer-thin sheets.
• Kaga mizuhiki is ribbon-like decoration made from glued Japanese paper (washi).
• Kaga inlay crafts (Kaga zōgan) are made with a combination of thin flat and thread metal inlays.

Tourism

The most popular destination in Ishikawa is Kanazawa. Tourists can get to Ishikawa by plane via Komatsu.

• Shibayama Lagoon
• Mount Haku
• Kaga hot-springs district
• Kenroku-en
• Higashi-chaya district in Kanazawa
• Ishikawa Prefectural Museum of Art
• 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa
• Chirihama Driveway
• Wajima Morning Market
• 1000 Rice Fields

Prefectural symbols

• Fritillaria camschatcensis(Symbol flower)
• Thujopsis dolabrata (Symbol tree)
• Golden Eagle(Symbol bird)

Miscellaneous topics

• Hideki Matsui, a current player for the New York Yankees, was born and raised in Neagari Town (now Nomi City), Ishikawa. He gained fame as a baseball player while attending high school in Kanazawa.
• Daisuke Nakata, a trampolinist who has competed in the Olympics in the past, is from Ishikawa.
• Takeshi Kaga, an actor in Japan who is probably best known internationally for his portrayal of Chairman Kaga in the Japanese television show Iron Chef produced by Fuji TV, is from Ishikawa.

Universities

Ishikawa hosts a number of well-known universities.

• Hokuriku University—a small liberal arts university with a School of Pharmacy and a School of Future Learning that gives instruction in Business, Economics, and Foreign Language (Chinese and English).
• Kanazawa University
• Ishikawa Prefectural University
• Kanazawa Institute of Technology
• Kanazawa Medical University
• Kanazawa Gakuin University
• Kinjo Junior College
• Ishikawa Prefectural Nursing University
• Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology
• Kanazawa Seiryo University
• Kanazawa College of Art

Transport

Railroad

• JR West
  • Hokuriku Line
  • Nanao Line
• Noto Railway Nanao Line
• Hokuriku Railway (Hokutetsu)
  • Ishikawa Line
  • Asanokawa Line

Road

Expressway and Toll Road

• Hokuriku Expressway
• Noetsu (Noto-Etsuchu) Expressway
• Noto Toll Road
• Hakusan Super Forest Road

National Highway

• Route 8
• Route 157 (Kanazawa-Hakusan-Katsuyama-Motosu-Gifu)
• Route 159
• Route 160
• Route 249
• Route 304
• Route 305
• Route 359
• Route 360 (Toyama-Hida-Shirakawa-Komatsu)
• Route 364
• Route 365
• Route 415
• Route 416
• Route 470 (Wajima-Himi-Takaoka-Oyabe-Tonami)
• Route 471

Port

• Kanazawa Port – International container hub port
• Nanao Port

Airport

• Komatsu Airport
• Noto Airport

Regional policies

• Premium passport

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 Ishikawa Prefecture homepage
• Cultural assets of Ishikawa