Administrative divisions of Japan

The bureaucratic administration of Japan is divided into three basic levels; national, prefectural and municipal. Below the national government there are 47 prefectures, six of which are further subdivided into sub-prefectures to better service large geographical areas or remote islands. The municipalities (cities, towns and villages) are the lowest level of government; the twenty most-populated cities outside of Tokyo are known as designated cities and are sub-divided into wards.

Prefectural divisions

The top tier of administrative divisions are the 47 prefectural entities: 43 prefectures (県, ken) proper, 2 urban prefectures (府, fu, Osaka, and Kyoto), 1 "circuit" (道, dō, Hokkaido), and 1 "metropolis" (都, to, Tokyo). Although different in name they are functionally the same.

To

Tokyo is referred to as a "metropolis" (都, to) after the dissolution of Tokyo City in 1943, Tōkyō-fu (Tokyo Prefecture) was upgraded into Tōkyō-to and the former Tokyo City's wards was upgraded into special wards.

Dō

Hokkaido is referred to as a "circuit" (道, dō), this term was originally used to refer to Japanese regions consisting of several provinces. This was also a historical usage of the character in China.

Fu

Osaka Prefecture and Kyoto Prefecture are referred to as a "urban prefecture" (府, fu). The Classical Chinese character from which this is derived implies a core urban zone of national importance.

Ken

"Prefecture" (県, ken) are the most common types of prefectural divisions total of 43 ken. The Classical Chinese character from which this is derived carries a rural or provincial connotation, now this character is used as county in China.

Sub-prefectural divisions

There are only two types of Sub-prefectural divisions: Subprefecture and District.

Subprefecture

Subprefectures (支庁, shichō) are a Japanese form of self-government which focuses on local issues below the prefectural level. It acts as part of the greater administration of the state and as part of a self-government system.^[1]

District

Districts (郡, gun) were administrative units in use between 1878 and 1921 that were roughly equivalent to the counties of China or the United States. In the 1920s municipal functions were transferred from district offices to the offices of the towns and villages within the district. District names remain in the postal address of towns and villages, and districts are sometimes used as boundaries for electoral districts, but otherwise serve no official function. The Classical Chinese character from which this is derived means commandery.

Municipal divisions

The municipal divisions are divided into three main categories city, town, and village. However the city entities are further categorized. The Special wards of Tokyo are also consider as municipal divisions.

Cities

Cities in Japan are categorize into different four types from the highest designated city, core city, special city, and a regular city the lowest.

Designated city

A city designated by government ordinance (政令指定都市, seirei shitei toshi), also known as a designated city (指定都市, shitei toshi) or government ordinance city (政令市, seirei shi), is a Japanese city that has a population greater than 500,000 and has been designated as such by an order of the cabinet of Japan under Article 252, Section 19 of the Local Autonomy Law. Designated cities are also subdivided into wards.

Core city

A core city (中核市, Chūkakushi) is a Japanese city that has a population greater than 300,000 and an area greater than 100 square kilometers, although special exceptions may be made by order of the cabinet for cities with populations under 300,000 but over 200,000.^[2] Core city was created by the first clause of Article 252, Section 22 of the Local Autonomy Law of Japan.

Special city

A special city (特例市, Tokureishi) of Japan is a city with a population of at least 200,000. This category was established by the Local Autonomy Law, article 252 clause 26.

City

A city (市, shi) is a local administrative unit in Japan with a population of at least 50,000 of which at least 60% of households must be established in a central urban area, and at least 60% of households must be employed in commerce, industry or other urban occupations. Cities are ranked on the same level as towns (町, machi) and villages (村, mura); the only difference is that they are not a component of districts (郡, gun). Like other contemporary administrative units, they are defined by the Local Autonomy Law of 1947.

Town

A town (町; chō or machi) is a local administrative unit in Japan. It is a local public body along with prefecture (ken or other equivalents), city (shi), and village (mura). Geographically, a town is contained within a prefecture.

Village

A village (村, mura, sometimes son) is a local administrative unit in Japan. It is a local public body along with prefecture (県, ken, or other equivalents), city (市, shi), and town (町, chō, sometimes machi). Geographically, a village's extent is contained within a prefecture. It is larger than an actual settlement, being in actuality a subdivision of a rural district (郡, gun), which are subdivided into towns and villages with no overlap and no uncovered area.

Special Ward

The special wards (特別区, tokubetsu-ku) are 23 municipalities that together make up the core and the most populous part of Tokyo, Japan. Together, they occupy the land that was originally the City of Tokyo before it was abolished in 1943 to become part of the newly created Tokyo Metropolis. The special wards' structure was established under the Japanese Local Autonomy Law and is unique to Tokyo.

Sub-municipal divisions

Ward

A ward (区, ku) is a subdivision of the cities of Japan that are large enough to have been designated by government ordinance.^[3]

History

Although the details of local administration have changed dramatically over time, the basic outline of the current two-tiered system since the abolition of the han system by the Meiji government in 1871 are similar. Before the abolition of the han system Japan was divided into province (国, kuni) then subdivided into district (郡, gun) and then village (里/郷, sato) at the bottom.

Structural hierarchy

Prefectural	Sub-prefectural		Municipal	Sub-municipal
Prefectures (excluding Tokyo)	Subprefecture		"designated city"	Ward
	→		"designated city"	Ward
	District		Town Village	none
	Subprefecture	District	Town Village
	Subprefecture	→	"core city" "special city" City
	→		"core city" "special city" City
Metropolis	→		City Special wards
Metropolis	District Subprefecture		Town Village

Level		Type	Kanji	Romaji	No.
Prefectural		Tokyo Metropolis	都	to	1
		"circuit"	道	dō	1
		"urban prefecture"	府	fu	2
		Prefecture	県	ken	43
	Sub-prefectural	Subprefecture	支厅	shichō	158
	Sub-prefectural	District	郡	gun	374

Municipal		"designated city"	政令指定都市	seirei shitei toshi	20
		"core city"	中核市	chūkaku-shi	42
		"special city"	特例市	tokurei-shi	40
		City	市	shi	688
		Town	町	chō or machi	746
		Village	村	mura or son	183
		Special ward	特別区	tokubetsu-ku	23
	Sub-municipal	Ward	区	ku	175

Prefecture	Kanji	Region	City [all-types] (Special ward)	Ward	District	Town	Village
Aichi	[愛知県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Chūbu	38	16	7	14	2
Akita	[秋田県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Tōhoku	13		6	9	3
Aomori	[青森県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Tōhoku	10		8	22	8
Chiba	[千葉県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Kantō	37	6	6	16	1
Ehime	[愛媛県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Shikoku	11		7	9
Fukui	[福井県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Chūbu	9		7	17
Fukuoka	[福岡県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Kyushu	28	14	12	30	2
Fukushima	[福島県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Tōhoku	13		13	31	15
Gifu	[岐阜県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Chūbu	21		9	19	2
Gunma	[群馬県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Kantō	12		7	15	8
Hiroshima	[広島県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Chūgoku	14	8	5	9
Hokkaidō	[北海道] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Hokkaido	35	10	66	129	15^[4]
Hyōgo	[兵庫県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Kansai	29	9	8	12
Ibaraki	[茨城県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Kantō	32		7	10	2
Ishikawa	[石川県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Chūbu	11		5	8
Iwate	[岩手県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Tōhoku	14		10	15	4
Kagawa	[香川県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Shikoku	8		5	9
Kagoshima	[鹿児島県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Kyushu	19		8	20	4
Kanagawa	[神奈川県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Kantō	19	28	6	13	1
Kōchi	[愛知県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Shikoku	11		6	17	6
Kumamoto	[熊本県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Kyushu	14	5	9	23	8
Kyōto	[京都府] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Kansai	15	11	6	10	1
Mie	[三重県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Kansai	14		7	15
Miyagi	[宮城県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Tōhoku	13	5	10	21	1
Miyazaki	[宮崎県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Kyushu	9		6	14	3
Nagano	[長野県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Chūbu	19		14	23	35
Nagasaki	[長崎県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Kyushu	13		4	8
Nara	[奈良県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Kansai	12		7	15	12
Niigata	[新潟県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Chūbu	20	8	9	6	4
Ōita	[大分県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Kyushu	14		3	3	1
Okayama	[岡山県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Chūgoku	15	4	10	10	2
Okinawa	[沖縄県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Kyushu	11		5	11	19
Ōsaka	[大阪府] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Kansai	33	31	5	9	1
Saga	[佐賀県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Kyushu	10		6	10
Saitama	[埼玉県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Kantō	40	10	8	22	1
Shiga	[滋賀県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Kansai	13		3	6
Shimane	[島根県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Chūgoku	8		5	10	1
Shizuoka	[静岡県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Chūbu	23	10	5	12
Tochigi	[栃木県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Kantō	14		5	12
Tokushima	[徳島県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Shikoku	8		8	15	1
Tōkyō	[東京都] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Kantō	26 (23)		1	5	8
Tottori	[鳥取県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Chūgoku	4		5	14	1
Toyama	[富山県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Chūbu	10		2	4	1
Wakayama	[和歌山県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Kansai	9		6	20	1
Yamagata	[山形県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Tōhoku	13		8	19	3
Yamaguchi	[山口県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Chūgoku	13		4	6
Yamanashi	[山梨県] Error: {{Lang}}: unrecognized language code: jp (help)	Chūbu	13		5	8	6

References

^ Imperial Japanese Commission to the Louisiana Purchase Exposition. (1903). Japan in the beginning of the 20th century, p. 80.
^ http://nippon.zaidan.info/seikabutsu/1999/00168/contents/145.htm
^ "Statistical Handbook of Japan 2008" by Statistics Bureau, Japan Chapter 17: Government System (Retrieved on July 4, 2009)
^ Not inducing the 6 villages in the Kuril Islands dispute area.

External links

[louisiana80-1] Imperial Japanese Commission to the Louisiana Purchase Exposition. (1903). Japan in the beginning of the 20th century, p. 80.

[2] ttp://nippon.zaidan.info/seikabutsu/1999/00168/contents/145.htm

[3] "Statistical Handbook of Japan 2008" by Statistics Bureau, Japan Chapter 17: Government System (Retrieved on July 4, 2009)

[4] Not inducing the 6 villages in the Kuril Islands dispute area.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

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