Shizuoka Prefecture

Shizuoka Prefecture

静岡県
Shizuoka Prefecture 静岡県
Prefecture
Japanese transcription(s)
• Japanese	静岡県
• Rōmaji	Shizuoka-ken
	Flag Symbol
	Anthem: Shizuoka kenka and Fuji yo yume yo tomo yo
	Coordinates: 34°55′N 138°19′E / 34.917°N 138.317°E
Country	Japan
Region	Chūbu (Tōkai)
Island	Honshu
Capital	Shizuoka
Largest city	Hamamatsu
Subdivisions	Districts: 5, Municipalities: 35
Government
• Governor	Heita Kawakatsu
Area
• Total	7,777.42 km2 (3,002.88 sq mi)
• Rank	13th
Highest elevation (Mount Fuji)	3,778 m (12,395 ft)
Population (1 December 2019)
• Total	3,637,998
• Rank	10th
• Density	470/km2 (1,200/sq mi)
• Dialect	Shizuoka dialect
ISO 3166 code	JP-22
Website	www.pref.shizuoka.jp/a_foreign/english
Symbols of Japan
Bird	Japanese paradise flycatcher (Terpsiphone atrocaudata)
Flower	Azalea (Rhododendron)
Tree	Sweet osmanthus (Osmanthus fragrans var. aurantiacus)

Shizuoka Prefecture (静岡県, Shizuoka-ken) is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu.^[1] As of December 2019,^[update] Shizuoka Prefecture has a population of 3,637,998 and has a geographic area of 7,777.42 km² (3,002.88 sq mi). Shizuoka Prefecture borders Kanagawa Prefecture to the east, Yamanashi Prefecture to the northeast, Nagano Prefecture to the north, and Aichi Prefecture to the west.

Shizuoka is the capital and Hamamatsu is the largest city in Shizuoka Prefecture, with other major cities including Fuji, Numazu, and Iwata.^[2] Shizuoka Prefecture is located on Japan's Pacific Ocean coast and features Suruga Bay formed by the Izu Peninsula, and Lake Hamana which is considered to be one of Japan's largest lakes. Mount Fuji, the tallest volcano in Japan and cultural icon of the country, is partially located in Shizuoka Prefecture on the border with Yamanashi Prefecture. Shizuoka Prefecture has a significant motoring heritage as the founding location of Honda, Suzuki, and Yamaha, and is home to the Fuji International Speedway.

History

Shizuoka Prefecture was established from the former Tōtōmi, Suruga and Izu provinces.^[3]

The area was the home of the first Tokugawa shōgun.^{[citation needed]} Tokugawa Ieyasu held the region until he conquered the lands of the Hōjō clan in the Kantō region and placed land under the stewardship of Toyotomi Hideyoshi. After becoming shōgun, Tokugawa took the land back for his family and put the area around modern-day Shizuoka city under the direct supervision of the shogunate. With the creation of Shizuoka han in 1868, it once again became the residence of the Tokugawa family.

Geography

Shizuoka Prefecture is an elongated region following the coast of the Pacific Ocean at the Suruga Bay. In the west, the prefecture extends deep into the Japan Alps. In the east, it becomes a narrower coast bounded in the north by Mount Fuji, until it comes to the Izu Peninsula, a popular resort area pointing south into the Pacific.^{[citation needed]}

As of April 2012,^[update] 11% of the total land area of the prefecture was designated as Natural Parks, namely the Fuji-Hakone-Izu and Minami Alps National Parks; Tenryū-Okumikawa Quasi-National Park; and four Prefectural Natural Parks.^[4]

Tokai earthquakes

Throughout history, a disastrous earthquake called the Tokai earthquake has hit Shizuoka every 100 to 150 years. On 15 March 2011, Shizuoka Prefecture was hit with a magnitude 6.2 earthquake approximately 42 km (26 mi) NNE of Shizuoka City.

Municipalities

Since 2010, Shizuoka has consisted of 35 municipalities: 23 cities and 12 towns.

^{Shizuoka (capital)}_静岡市

^Hamamatsu_浜松市

^Atami_熱海市

^Fuji_富士市

^Fujieda_藤枝市

^Fujinomiya_富士宮市

^Fukuroi_袋井市

^Gotemba_御殿場市

^Itō_伊東市

^Iwata_磐田市

^Izu_伊豆市

^Izunokuni_{伊豆の国市}

^Kakegawa_掛川市

^Kikugawa_菊川市

^Kosai_湖西市

^Makinohara_牧之原市

^Mishima_三島市

^Numazu_沼津市

^Omaezaki_御前崎市

^Shimada_島田市

^Shimoda_下田市

^Susono_裾野市

^Yaizu_焼津市

^Higashiizu_東伊豆町

^Kawazu_河津町

^Minamiizu_南伊豆町

^Matsuzaki_松崎町

^Nishiizu_西伊豆町

^Kannami_函南町

^Kawanehon_川根本町

^Yoshida_吉田町

^Mori_森町

^Nagaizumi_長泉町

^Oyama_小山町

^Shimizu_清水町

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Municipalities in Shizuoka Prefecture Government Ordinance Designated City City Town

Mergers

After the introduction of modern municipalities in 1889, Shizuoka consisted of 337 municipalities: 1 (by definition: district-independent) city and 23 districts with 31 towns and 305 villages. The Great Shōwa mergers of the 1950s reduced the total from 281 to 97 between 1953 and 1960, including 18 cities by then. The Great Heisei mergers of the 2000s combined the 74 remaining municipalities in the year 2000 into the current 35 by 2010.

List of governors of Shizuoka (since 1947)

#	Name (Birth–Death)	Term of office		Political Party
1	Takeji Kobayashi (小林武治) (1899-1988)	23 April 1947	22 April 1951	Independent
2	Toshio Saito (斎藤寿夫) (1908-1999)	1 May 1951	8 January 1967	Liberal Party (1951-1959) Liberal Democratic Party (1959-1967)
3	Yutaro Takeyama (竹山祐太郎) (1901-1982)	31 January 1967	24 June 1974	LDP
4	Keizaburo Yamamoto (山本敬三郎) (1913-2006)	10 June 1974	6 July 1986	LDP
5	Shigeyoshi Saito (斉藤滋与史) (1918-2018)	7 July 1986	23 June 1993	LDP
6	Yoshinobu Ishikawa (石川嘉延) (born in 1940)	3 August 1993	17 June 2009	Independent
7	Heita Kawakatsu (川勝平太) (born in 1948)	7 July 2009	Incumbent	Independent