Niigata Prefecture

Template:Infobox Prefecture Japan Niigata Prefecture (新潟県, Niigata-ken) is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Honshū on the coast of the Sea of Japan.^[1] The capital is the city of Niigata.^[2] The name "Niigata" literally means "new lagoon".

History

Until after the Meiji Restoration, the area that is now Niigata Prefecture was divided into Echigo Province and Sado Province.^[3] During the Sengoku period, the Nagao clan, who were at times vassals to the Uesugi, ruled a fief in the western part of modern Niigata from Kasugayama Castle. The most notable member of the Nagao clan was Nagao Kagetora, was later and better known as Uesugi Kenshin. He unified the leaders of Echigo Province and became its sole ruler. By taking the surname Uesugi, he also became the head of the Uesugi clan and effectively brought their realm under his control.

The city of Niigata is now the largest Japanese city facing the Sea of Japan. It was the first Japanese port on the Sea of Japan to be opened to foreign trade following the opening of Japan by Matthew Perry. It has since played an important role in trade with Russia and Korea. A freighter from North Korea visits Niigata once a month, in one of the few forms of direct contact between Japan and that country.

The Etsuzankai organization, led by the politician Kakuei Tanaka, was highly influential in bringing infrastructure improvements to Niigata Prefecture in the 1960s and 1970s. These included the Jōetsu Shinkansen high-speed rail line and the Kanetsu Expressway to Tokyo.

On October 23, 2004, the Chūetsu earthquake struck Niigata Prefecture and was measured at Shindo 6+ at Ojiya.

On January 9, 2006, a heavy winter storm struck the prefecture and its neighbors. At least 71 people died and more than 1,000 were injured. Also in 2006, a massive tsunami and earthquake damaged homes and caused casualties in the maritime areas of Niigata Prefecture, especially near Sado Island.

On July 16, 2007, another earthquake hit the area.

Niigata Prefecture hosts the Fuji Rock Festival, an annual event held at the Naeba ski resort. The three-day event, organized by Smash Japan, features more than 200 Japanese and international musicians. It is one of the largest outdoor music events in Japan, with more than 100,000 people attending in 2005.

Geography

Niigata Prefecture stretches about 240 km along the Sea of Japan, from the southwest to the northeast, with a coastal plain between the mountains and the sea. It also includes Sado Island.

Niigata Prefecture could be placed in either the Hokuriku or the Kōshin'etsu, both of which are considered parts of the Chūbu region.

The prefecture is generally divided into four geographical areas: Jōetsu in the south, Chūetsu in the center, Kaetsu in the north, and Sado Island. The mouth of the Shinano River, the longest river in Japan, is located in Niigata Prefecture.

Cities

There are 20 cities in Niigata Prefecture:

Nagaoka
Niigata (prefectural capital, divided into eight wards (-ku))

Towns and villages

The towns and villages in each district are:

Higashikanbara District

Aga

Iwafune District

Awashimaura

Sekikawa

Kariwa District

Kariwa

Kitakanbara District

Seirō

Minamikanbara District

Tagami

Minamiuonuma District

Yuzawa

Nakauonuma District

Tsunan

Nishikanbara District

Yahiko

Santō District

Izumozaki

Mergers

Economy

Agriculture, forestry and fishing

The major industry in Niigata Prefecture is agriculture. Rice is the principal product, and among the prefectures of Japan Niigata is second only to Hokkaidō in rice output. The area around Uonuma is known for producing the Koshihikari variety, widely considered to be the highest-quality rice produced in Japan.

Rice-related industries are also very important to the prefectural economy. Niigata Prefecture is known throughout Japan for its high-quality sake, senbei, mochi, and arare. In sake production, the prefecture comes third after Gunma and Kyoto prefectures.

The prefecture was also the place of origin of the ornamental carp known as koi.

Niigata Prefecture produces the highest volume of azaleas and cut lilies in Japan, and is increasing production of cut flowers and flower bulbs. Along with Toyama Prefecture, it produces the highest volume of tulips in the country.

Mining and manufacturing

Crude oil is produced in Niigata Prefecture, although Japan relies heavily on petroleum imported from other countries. Kerosene heaters are also produced for use in the cold Niigata winters.

Kinzan, on Sado Island, was an active gold mine until it was closed in 1989.

Sanjō and Tsubame produce 9 percent of all the silverware made in Japan. The two cities are second after Osaka in the production of scissors, kitchen knives, and wrenches.

Niigata Prefecture may have been the first area in Japan to produce knitted textiles, although the earliest products may have been imported from China.

The nuclear power plant with the highest energy output in the world is located in the tiny village of Kariwa.^{[citation needed]}

Demographics

In the Census of 2003, Niigata ranked as the 14th most populous.

Culture

Food

Niigata is known for the following regional specialities:

Uonuma Koshihikari rice
Shoyu (soy sauce) and Yofu (western-style) katsudon
Shoyu sekihan
Noppe stew
Wappa-meshi (seafood and rice steamed in a bamboo basket)
Sasa-dango (mochi balls filled with red bean paste, seasoned with mugwort and wrapped in bamboo leaves)
Poppo-yaki (steamed bread flavored with brown sugar)
Hegi-soba (soba from the Uonuma and Ojiya areas, which uses a special kind of seaweed)
"Tsubame-Sanjō ramen" (ramen made using thick udon-style noodles)
Tochio aburage (aburaage is called "aburage" in Tochio)
Kirazu (dishes using okara)
Kakinomoto (edible chrysanthemums)
Kanzuri (a special seasoning from Myōkō made by leaving chili peppers exposed on snow, then adding flour, salt and yuzu)
Yasuda yogurt

Niigata in popular culture

Snow Country (1947): a novel by Nobel laureate Yasunari Kawabata set in Yuzawa
"Niigata Snow": a track on the LP Aida, released by Derek Bailey in 1980
Kura: a film and TV series (1995) based on the 1993 book by Tomiko Miyao, an award winning period piece about a Niigata family and its sake brewery
Blue (1996): a manga about high school girls, set in Niigata City, adapted as a film in 2001
Whiteout: an action film based on a novel published in 1995
My Mother is a Tractor: A Life in Rural Japan (2006), a memoir by Nicholas Klar, written when he was based in Itoigawa in Niigata Prefecture
United States of Tara (2011): a comedy-drama series on Showtime; Kate is about to embark on a trip to teach English in Niigata when a flight attendant tells her that the only thing she will hopefully find in Niigata is "a life lesson and a bullet train back to Tokyo."

Tourism and sports

Much of the tourism in Niigata centers around skiing and going to onsen, especially in the alpine areas of Myōkō and Yuzawa.

Sado Island off the west coast of Niigata is accessible via ferry (taking one to two and a half hours) from Naoetsu or Niigata City.

Professional sports clubs include Albirex Niigata, a J-League Division 1 Soccer Club, and Niigata Albirex BB, a BJ (Basketball Japan) League team.

Festivals

Murakami Taisai – July 6–7
Iwafune Taisai – October 18–19, in Murakami
Niigata Festival – August
Niigata General Dancing Event -September 21–25
Shirone Kite Festival – June
Sanjo Kite Festival – June
Nagaoka Festival (with fireworks) – August
Niigata Tanrei Sake-no-Jin - March

Education

Universities

Transport

Rail

Road

Expressways

National highways

Route 7 (Niigata-Shibata-Murakami-Sakata-Akita-Noshiro-Hirosaki-Aomori)
Route 8 (Niigata-Nagaoka-Kashiwazaki-Joetsu-Toyama-Kanazawa-Fukui-Tsuruga-Hikone-Kusatsu, Shiga)
Route 17 (Nagaoka-Ojiya-Shibukawa-Takasaki-Kumagaya-Saitama-Nihonbashi of Tokyo)
Route 18 (Joetsu-Myoko-Nagano-Komoro-Karuizawa-Takasaki)
Route 49 (Niigata-Aizuwakamatsu-Koriyama-Iwaki)
Route 113
Route 116
Route 117
Route 148
Route 252
Route 253
Route 289
Route 290
Route 291
Route 292
Route 345
Route 350 (Sado Island)
Route 351
Route 352
Route 353
Route 402
Route 403
Route 404
Route 405
Route 459
Route 460

Ports

Niigata Port – Ferry route to Sado Island, Tsuruga, Akita, Otaru and Tomakomai, with International Container hub port
Ryotsu Port – Ferry route to Niigata
Ogi Port
Naoetsu Port

Airports

Notable individuals

Politics and military

Hachirō Arita (1884–1965), foreign minister, from Sado Island
Kita Ikki (1883–1937), nationalist author and intellectual, from Sado Island
Honma Masaharu World War II lieutenant-general executed by the United States by war crimes committed in the Philippines
Isoroku Yamamoto (1884–1943), commander of the Japanese Imperial Navy, from Nagaoka
Kakuei Tanaka (1918–1993), prime minister, from Urasa
Hisashi Owada (born 1932), diplomat and father of Crown Princess Masako, from Shibata
Makiko Tanaka (born 1944), first female foreign minister, from Kashiwazaki

Arts and culture

Ryōkan (1758–1831), Zen Buddhist monk and poet, from Izumozaki
Inoue Enryō (1858–1919), Buddhist philosopher, from Nagaoka
Yaichi Aizu (1881–1956), poet, calligrapher and historian, from Niigata City
Fubō Hayashi (1900–1935), novelist from Sado Island
Ango Sakaguchi (1906–1955), novelist and essayist, from Niigata City
Haruo Minami (1923–2001), enka singer, from Nagaoka
Kimio Yanagisawa (born 1948), manga artist, from Gosen
Tetsuo Harada (born 1949 Niitsu-shi), sculptor working in Paris France
Yoshifumi Kondō (1950–1998), animator, from Gosen
Keiko Yokozawa (born 1952), voice actress, from Niigata City
Bin Shimada (born 1954), seiyu, from Niigata City
Kazuyuki Sekiguchi (born 1955), bass player for the rock group Southern All Stars, from Agano
Yukari Nozawa (born 1957), actor and voice actor
Rumiko Takahashi (born 1957), manga artist, from Niigata City
Hajime Watanabe (born 1957), animator
Shuichi Shigeno (born 1958), manga artist, from Tōkamachi
Makoto Kobayashi (born 1958), manga artist, from Niigata City
Motoei Shinzawa (born 1958), manga artist, from Kashiwazaki
Ken Watanabe (born 1959), stage, TV and film actor, from Niigata
Yōko Sōmi (born 1965), voice actress
Kazuya Tsurumaki (born 1966), animator, from Gosen
Akiko Yajima (born 1967), seiyu, from Kashiwazaki
Hiroki Yagami (born 1967), manga artist, from Kashiwazaki
Kazuto Nakazawa (born 1968), animator
Takeshi Obata (born 1969), manga artist, from Niigata City
Etsushi Ogawa (born 1969), manga artist
Rumi Kasahara (born 1970), seiyu, from Itoigawa
Nobuhiro Watsuki (born 1970), manga artist, from Nagaoka
Kiriko Nananan (born 1972), manga artist, from Tsubame
Közi (born 1972), rock musician
Daisuke Hirakawa (born 1973), voice actor
Yoko Ishida (born 1973), singer, from Niigata City
Daisuke Sakaguchi (born 1973), voice actor, from Kashiwazaki
Hitomi Nabatame (born 1976), voice actress, from Sado Island
Tatsuyuki Nagai (born 1976), anime director
Ryō Hirohashi (born 1977), voice actress, from Nagaoka
Ayana Sasagawa (born 1983), voice actress
Makoto Ogawa (born 1987) and Koharu Kusumi (born 1992), members of pop girl-group Morning Musume, from, respectively, Kashiwazaki and Nagaoka

Sports

Haguroyama Masaji (1914–1969), sumo wrestler from Nakanokuchi who was yokozuna for 12 years and three months; an all-time record
Shohei Baba (1938–1999), professional wrestler, from Sanjō
Sawao Kato (born 1946), winner of 12 Olympic medals in gymnastics
Killer Khan (born 1947), professional wrestler, from Tsubame

Notes

^ Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Niigata-ken" in Japan Encyclopedia, p. 711, p. 711, at Google Books
^ Nussbaum, "Niigata" at p. 711, p. 711, at Google Books
^ Nussbaum, "Provinces and prefectures" at p. 780, p. 780, at Google Books

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