Fukuoka Prefecture


Fukuoka Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Fukuoka Prefecture has a population of 5,109,323 and has a geographic area of 4,986 km². Fukuoka Prefecture borders Saga Prefecture to the southwest, Kumamoto Prefecture to the south, and Ōita Prefecture to the southeast.
Fukuoka is the capital and largest city of Fukuoka Prefecture, and the largest city on Kyūshū, with other major cities including Kitakyushu, Kurume, and Ōmuta. Fukuoka Prefecture is located at the northernmost point of Kyūshū on the Kanmon Straits, connecting the Tsushima Strait and Seto Inland Sea across from Yamaguchi Prefecture on the island of Honshu, and extends south towards the Ariake Sea.

History

Fukuoka Prefecture includes the former provinces of Chikugo, Chikuzen, and Buzen.

Shrines and temples

, Sumiyoshi-jinja, and Hakozaki-gū are the chief Shinto shrines in the prefecture.

Geography

Fukuoka Prefecture faces the sea on three sides, bordering Saga, Ōita, and Kumamoto prefectures and facing Yamaguchi Prefecture across the Kanmon Straits.
As of 1 April 2012, 18% of the land area of the prefecture was designated as natural parks: Setonaikai National Park, Genkai, Kitakyūshū, and Yaba-Hita-Hikosan quasi-national parks, and Chikugogawa, Chikuhō, Dazaifu, Sefuri Raizan, and Yabegawa Prefectural Natural Parks.
Fukuoka includes the two largest cities on Kyūshū, Fukuoka and Kitakyushu, and much of Kyūshū's industry. It also includes a number of small islands near the north coast of Kyūshū.

Cities

Twenty-nine cities are in Fukuoka Prefecture:
These are the towns and villages in each district:

Economy

Fukuoka prefecture's main cities form one of Japan's main industrial centers, accounting for nearly 40% of the economy of Kyūshū. Major industries include automobiles, semiconductors, and steel. Fukuoka prefecture is where tire manufacturer Bridgestone and consumer electronics chain Best Denki were founded.

Universities

One of Japan's top 5 universities, Kyushu University, is located in Fukuoka.

Demographics

According to October 2018 estimates, the population in Fukuoka Prefecture reached 5,111,494 inhabitants, making the prefecture the 9th most populated of Japan's 47 prefectures. It is one of the few prefectures with a steadily increasing population.

Culture

The sports teams listed below are based in Fukuoka.
;Football
;Baseball
;Basketball
;Rugby
The prefecture has two significant annual athletics events: the Fukuoka International Cross Country and the Fukuoka International Open Marathon Championship. The marathon has been held in Fukuoka since 1959 and has seen world records broken.

Crime and safety

Fukuoka Prefecture has the most designated yakuza groups among all of the prefectures, at five: the Kudo-kai, the Taishu-kai, the Fukuhaku-kai, the Dojin-kai and the Kyushu Seido-kai. Between 2004 and 2009, and in early 2011, Fukuoka Prefecture led the nation in gun-related incidents. These incidents were mostly related to the local yakuza syndicates, specifically the Kudo-kai, the Dojin-kai, and the Kyushu Seido-kai.
Fukuoka Prefecture had the highest frequency of youth crime among the prefectures of Japan from 2003 to 2007.
According to statistics from the national police, the crime rate in Fukuoka was the eighth-highest in 2017, lower than in Osaka, Tokyo, Hyogo, Aichi, Saitama, Chiba and Ibaraki.

Tourism

The most popular place for tourism is Fukuoka City, especially during the Dontaku festival, which attracts millions of visitors from across Japan during Golden Week. Fukuoka is the main shopping, dining, transportation and entertainment hub in Kyushu.
Dazaifu is popular for its many temples and historical sites, as well as the Kyushu National Museum.
Yanagawa is sometimes called "the Venice of Japan" for its boat tours on the abundant, calm rivers that wind through the city.
Kitakyushu features one of the famous night views of Japan from atop Mt. Sarakura, accessible via cablecar. The Mojiko area features waterfront dining, a market, and several preserved historical buildings. The Kanmon Kaikyo Tunnel which connects Kyushu and Honshu is free to walk through. The city center in Kokurakita ward contains the Riverwalk and Itsutsuya shopping complexes, Kokura castle, and the Uomachi Gintengai shopping arcade, the oldest shopping arcade in Japan.

Transportation

Rail