Nagano Prefecture


Nagano Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Nagano Prefecture has a population of 2,052,493 and has a geographic area of 13,561 km². Nagano Prefecture borders Niigata Prefecture to the north, Gunma Prefecture to the northeast, Saitama Prefecture to the east, Yamanashi Prefecture to the southeast, Shizuoka Prefecture and Aichi Prefecture to the south, and Gifu Prefecture and Toyama Prefecture to the west.
Nagano is the capital and largest city of Nagano Prefecture, with other major cities including Matsumoto, Ueda, and Iida. Nagano Prefecture has impressive highland areas of the Japanese Alps, including most of the Hida Mountains, Kiso Mountains, and Akaishi Mountains which extend into the neighbouring prefectures. The abundance of mountain ranges, natural scenic beauty, and rich history has gained Nagano Prefecture international recognition as a world-class winter sports tourist destination, including hosting the 1998 Winter Olympics and a new Shinkansen line to Tokyo.

History

Geography

Nagano is an inland prefecture and it borders more prefectures than any other in Japan, bordering Gunma Prefecture, Saitama Prefecture, Yamanashi Prefecture, and Shizuoka Prefecture to the east, Niigata Prefecture to the north, Toyama Prefecture and Gifu Prefecture to the west, and Aichi Prefecture to the south. Nagano contains the point furthest from the sea in the whole of Japan—this point lies within the city of Saku. The province's mountains have made it relatively isolated, and many visitors come to Nagano for its mountain resorts and hot springs. Nine of the twelve highest mountains in Japan can be found in Nagano and one of its lakes, Lake Kizaki, is a beach resort popular for its water attractions and games.
As of 1 April 2014, 21% of the total land area of the prefecture was designated as Natural Parks; namely the Chichibu Tama Kai, Chūbu-Sangaku, Jōshin'etsu Kōgen, and Minami Alps National Parks; Myōgi-Arafune-Saku Kōgen, Tenryū-Okumikawa, and Yatsugatake-Chūshin Kōgen Quasi-National Parks; and Chūō Alps, Enrei Ōjō, Hijiriyama Kōgen, Mibugawa Suikei, Ontake, and Tenryū Koshibu Suikei Prefectural Natural Parks.

Cities

Nineteen cities are located in Nagano Prefecture:
These are the towns and villages in each district:

Demographics

The life expectancy in Nagano prefecture is the longest nationwide with the average life expectancy of 87.18 years for women and 80.88 years for men.

Transportation

Railway

Expressways

Universities

Public

Nagano Prefecture has a large and diversified economy, with a strong focus on electronics, information technology, precision machinery, agriculture and food products, and tourism, with a total GDP of about 8.5 Trillion Yen.
Several large Japanese groups have production facilities in Nagano Prefecture, such as Citizen Watch, MinebeaMitsumi, Seiko Epson or Vaio.

Tourism

There are two local J.League clubs: AC Nagano Parceiro and Matsumoto Yamaga FC.

Prefectural symbols