Nara Prefecture

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Template:Infobox Prefecture Japan Nara Prefecture (奈良県, Nara-ken) is part of the Kinki region on Honshū Island, Japan. The capital is the city of Nara.

History

See also: Asuka Period and Nara period

, especially for history pre-Heian Period

Statue at Todaiji

The present-day Nara Prefecture has been created in 1887, becoming independent from Osaka Prefecture.

Historically, Nara Prefecture was also known as Yamato-no-kuni or Yamato Province.

Upto Nara Period

It is certain that a political force established at the foot of Mt. Miwa in the east of Nara basin succeeded in unifying most parts of Japan from the third century until the fourth century, though the process was not well documented. At the dawn of history Yamato was clearly the political center of Japan.

In 7th century, Nara accepted the many Korean refugees who had escaped from war disturbances of the southern part of a Korean peninsula. The royal court also established relations with Sui and then Tang Dynasty China and sent students to the Middle Kingdom to learn high civilization. Ancient capitals of Japan were build on the land of Nara, namely Asuka-kyō, Fujiwara-kyō (694-710) and Heijō-kyō (most of 710-784), the last believed to have been modelled after the Chinese capital at the time, Chang'an (today's Xi'an). The first high civilization with royal patronage of Buddhism flourished in today's Nara city (710–784 AD).

Beyond Heian Period

Even after the political capital moved to Kyoto, Buddhist temples in Nara remained powerful and continued to enjoy religious fame. In the medieval age, many local samurai clans sprang up and fought with each other. The Tokugawa Shogunate, ultimately unifying warring lords, directly ruled the city of Nara and most parts of Yamato province with a few feudal lords allocated at Koriyama, Takatori and other places. With the commercial economy developing in the eighteenth century, the economy of the province was incorporated into prosperous Osaka, the commercial capital of Japan at that time. The economic dependency to Osaka characterizes even today's Nara Prefecture, for many inhabitants commute to Osaka to work or study there.

Geography

Map of Nara Prefecture.

Nara Prefecture is part of the Kansai, or Kinki, region of Japan, and is located in the middle of the Kii Peninsula on the western half of Honshū. Nara Prefecture is landlocked. It is bordered to the west by Wakayama Prefecture and Osaka Prefecture; on the north by Kyoto Prefecture and on the east by Mie Prefecture.

Nara Prefecture is 78.5 km from East to West and 103.6 km from North to South. Its inhabitable area is 851 km², smallest of the 47 prefectures of Japan. The ratio of inhabitable area over total area is 23%, ranked 43rd nationwide.[1] Most of the inhabitable area is on the Nara Basin, situated in the northwestern corner of the prefecture facing Osaka and Kyoto, thus urban development concentrates there, including not only Nara city but all other cities.

The basin is completely bounded by mountains, with the tallest one in Kansai region located in the south of the prefecture.

Despite being in the middle of Japan, Nara is one of Japan's warmest prefectures; snow is a rarity in Nara, although there is some accumulation in the southern mountains during the winter. Winter temperatures average about 5°C (with −10°C being the extreme minimum in mountain areas). Summer in Nara is known for being hot and humid, with high temperatures ranging between 25°C in the mountains and 35°C in the northern plains. Nara takes pride in being one of the hottest prefectures in all of Japan.

Spring and fall are both temperate and beautiful. The mountainous region of Yoshino has been popular both historically and presently for its beautiful cherry blossoms in the spring. Yoshino and Omine, in these mountains, recently shared the honor of designation as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

In the fall, the southern mountains are equally beautiful with the changing of the oak trees.



Cities

Twelve cities are located in Nara Prefecture:

Towns and villages

Horyu-ji, a Buddhist temple in Ikaruga.

Towns and villages in each district:

District Towns/villages
Ikoma Ando · Heguri · Ikaruga · Sangou
Kitakatsuragi   Kanmaki · Kawai · Koryo · Ōji
Shiki Kawanishi · Miyake · Tawaramoto
Takaichi Asuka · Takatori
Uda Mitsue · Soni
Yamabe Yamazoe
Yoshino Higashiyoshino · Kamikitayama · Kawakami · Kurotaki · Nosegawa · Ōyodo · Shimoichi · Shimokitayama · Tenkawa · Totsukawa · Yoshino

Mergers

(as of 01/07/06)

Politics

  • Modern prefectural government was established in 1871. Prefectural governors were appointed by the central government until elected in 1947.
  • Mr. Yoshiya Kakimoto, who long served for the central government, has continued to be elected as governor since 1991.

Economy

The 2004 total gross prefecture product for Nara was ¥3.8 trillion, an 0.1% growth over previous year. The per capita income was ¥2.6 million, which is a 1.3% decrease from previous year.

  • Tourism is treated by the prefectural government as one of the most important features of Nara, because of its natural beauty and historical significance.
  • Nara is famed for its persimmon. Strawberry and tea are some other popular products of the prefecture, while rice and vegetables, including spinach, tomato, eggplants and others are the dominant in terms of amount of production.
  • Nara is a center for the production of instruments used in conducting traditional Japanese artforms. Brush and ink (sumi) are the best known products from Nara for calligraphy. Wooden or bamboo instruments, especially from Takayama area (in Ikoma city) are famous products for tea ceremony.
  • Goldfish from Yamatokoriyama in Nara is a traditional aquacultural product since 18th century.
  • Due to its rich history, Nara is also the location of many archeological digs, with many famous ones being located in the village of Asuka.

Demographics

According to the 2005 Census of Japan, Nara Prefecture has a population of 1,421,367, which is a decrease of 1.5%, since the year 2000.[1]

Culture

Because of its background, the better part of Nara's culture can only be described through learning the history of Japan, notably in Nara Period.

Nara is currently in its preparation to celebrate the 1300th anniversary of the opening of Heijo Palace.

Tourism

Many Jinja (Shinto shrines) and Buddhist temples, and kofun exist in Nara Prefecture, and many tourists are visiting there. Moreover, many world heritage sites, such as the temple Tōdai-ji and Kasuga Shrine, exist in the capital city of Nara.

World Heritage sites

Miscellaneous topics

Gallery

  • JR Nara Station
    JR Nara Station
  • Isonokami Jingu, a Shinto shrine in Tenri.
    Isonokami Jingu, a Shinto shrine in Tenri.
  • Tōdai-ji
    Tōdai-ji
  • The Daibutsu
    The Daibutsu
  • Kasuga Shrine
    Kasuga Shrine

References

  1. ^ a b "奈良県統計情報 "100の指標" ("100 Indices of Nara" by Nara Statistics Division, Nara Prefecture)" (in Japanese). Retrieved 2007-03-17.

External links

34°34′N 135°46′E / 34.567°N 135.767°E / 34.567; 135.767

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