Shizuoka Prefecture

Shizuoka Prefecture (静岡県, Shizuoka-ken) is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu.[1] As of December 2019, 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 Prefecture
静岡県
Prefecture
Japanese transcription(s)
 • Japanese静岡県
 • RōmajiShizuoka-ken
Flag
Symbol
Anthem: Shizuoka kenka and Fuji yo yume yo tomo yo
Coordinates: 34°55′N 138°19′E
CountryJapan
RegionChūbu (Tōkai)
IslandHonshu
CapitalShizuoka
Largest cityHamamatsu
SubdivisionsDistricts: 5, Municipalities: 35
Government
 • GovernorHeita Kawakatsu
Area
 • Total7,777.42 km2 (3,002.88 sq mi)
 • Rank13th
Highest elevation
(Mount Fuji)
3,778 m (12,395 ft)
Population
 (1 December 2019)
 • Total3,637,998
 • Rank10th
 • Density470/km2 (1,200/sq mi)
 • Dialect
Shizuoka dialect
ISO 3166 codeJP-22
Websitewww.pref.shizuoka.jp/a_foreign/english
Symbols
BirdJapanese paradise flycatcher (Terpsiphone atrocaudata)
FlowerAzalea (Rhododendron)
TreeSweet osmanthus (Osmanthus fragrans var. aurantiacus)

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.

View of Mt. Fuji from Numazu

History
See also: Historic Sites of Shizuoka Prefecture

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

The area was the home of the first Tokugawa shōgun. 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.

As of April 2012, 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
Main article: Tōkai 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
See also: List of cities in Shizuoka Prefecture by population
Shizuoka City
Hamamatsu
Numazu and Mount Fuji
Fujinomiya
Atami

Since 2010, Shizuoka consists 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
Municipalities in Shizuoka Prefecture      Government Ordinance Designated City      City      Town

Mergers
Main article: List of mergers in Shizuoka Prefecture

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

Transportation

Rail
Tōkaidō Shinkansen
Minobu Line
Izuhakone Railway
Gakunan Railway

Expressways

Toll roads
  • Shizuoka East-West Road
  • Shizuoka South-North Road
  • West Fuji Road (not a toll road anymore as of 2012)
  • Fujinomiya Road
  • Nishi-Fuji Road

National highways

Airports
Shizuoka Airport

Ports
  • Shimizu Port
  • Atami Port and Shimoda Port - Mainly ferry route to Izu Island
  • Numazu Port

Education

Universities

National universities

Public universities

Private universities

Senior high schools

Sports
IAI Stadium Nihondaira in Shimizu-ku.

The sports teams listed below are based in Shizuoka.

Basketball

Motorsport

Rugby

Football

Volleyball

Tourism
See also: Tourism in Japan

Museums

Theme parks
  • Air Park Japan Air Self-Defense Force Hamamatsu Public Information Building)[5]
  • Shimizu Sushi Museum[6]

Festivals and events
A kite festival in Hamamatsu, May 2013
  • Shimoda Black Ship Festival, held in May
  • Shimizu Port Festival, held on August 5 to 7
  • Shizuoka Festival, held in April
  • Daidogei World Cup in central Shizuoka City, held in November
  • Enshu Daimyo Festival in Iwata, held in April
  • Numazu Festival, held in July
  • Mishima Festival, held in August

Notes
  1. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Shizuoka-ken" in Japan Encyclopedia, p. 876, p. 876, at Google Books; "Chūbu" in p. 126, p. 126, at Google Books
  2. Nussbaum, "Shizuoka" at p. 876, p. 876, at Google Books.
  3. Nussbaum, "Provinces and prefectures" at p. 780, p. 780, at Google Books.
  4. "General overview of area figures for Natural Parks by prefecture" (PDF). Ministry of the Environment. 1 April 2012. Retrieved 10 August 2014.
  5. "About Air Park Japan Air Self-Defense Force Hamamatsu Public Information Building - Shizuoka Travel Guide | Planetyze". Planetyze. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
  6. "About Shimizu Sushi Museum - Shizuoka Travel Guide | Planetyze". Planetyze. Retrieved 2017-11-17.

References
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