All Topics  
Chugoku region

 

 
   Email Print
   Bookmark   Link
 

 

Chugoku region
 
 
  Topics Chugoku region Topic Home

The or is the westernmost region of Honshu
Honshu

or Honshu is the largest island of Japan. The nation's main island, it is south of Hokkaido across the Tsugaru Strait, north of Shikoku across the Inland Sea, and northeast of Kyushu across the Kanmon Strait....
, the largest island
Island

An island or isle is any piece of land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls are called islets....
 of Japan
Japan

Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south....
. It consists of the prefectures of Hiroshima
Hiroshima Prefecture

is a Prefectures of Japan of Japan located in the Chugoku region on Honshu island. The capital is the city of Hiroshima....
, Yamaguchi
Yamaguchi Prefecture

is a Prefectures of Japan of Japan located in the Chugoku region on Honshu island. The capital is the city of Yamaguchi, Yamaguchi located in the center of the Prefecture: The largest city, by contrast, is Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi....
, Shimane
Shimane Prefecture

is a Prefectures of Japan of Japan located in the Chugoku region on Honshu island. The capital is Matsue, Shimane. It is the second least populous prefecture in Japan, next to the Tottori Prefecture that is a neighboring prefecture on the east side....
, Tottori
Tottori Prefecture

is a Prefectures of Japan of Japan located in the Chugoku region on Honshu island. The capital is the city of Tottori, Tottori. It is the least populous prefecture in Japan....
, and Okayama
Okayama Prefecture

is a Prefectures of Japan of Japan located in the Chugoku region on Honshu island. The capital is the city of Okayama....
.

name literally means "middle country", a relic of a historical division of Japan into "near countries" (?? kingoku, but in modern parlance Kinki), "middle countries" (chugoku), and "far countries" (?? ongoku), based on distance from the capital Nara
Nara, Nara

is the capital cities of Japan of Nara Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan. The city occupies the northern part of Nara Prefecture, directly bordering Kyoto Prefecture....
 or Kyoto
Kyoto

Sorry, no overview for this topic
.






Discussion
Ask a question about 'Chugoku region'
Start a new discussion about 'Chugoku region'
Answer questions from other users
Full Discussion Forum



Encyclopedia


Japan Chugoku Region Large
The or is the westernmost region of Honshu
Honshu

or Honshu is the largest island of Japan. The nation's main island, it is south of Hokkaido across the Tsugaru Strait, north of Shikoku across the Inland Sea, and northeast of Kyushu across the Kanmon Strait....
, the largest island
Island

An island or isle is any piece of land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls are called islets....
 of Japan
Japan

Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south....
. It consists of the prefectures of Hiroshima
Hiroshima Prefecture

is a Prefectures of Japan of Japan located in the Chugoku region on Honshu island. The capital is the city of Hiroshima....
, Yamaguchi
Yamaguchi Prefecture

is a Prefectures of Japan of Japan located in the Chugoku region on Honshu island. The capital is the city of Yamaguchi, Yamaguchi located in the center of the Prefecture: The largest city, by contrast, is Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi....
, Shimane
Shimane Prefecture

is a Prefectures of Japan of Japan located in the Chugoku region on Honshu island. The capital is Matsue, Shimane. It is the second least populous prefecture in Japan, next to the Tottori Prefecture that is a neighboring prefecture on the east side....
, Tottori
Tottori Prefecture

is a Prefectures of Japan of Japan located in the Chugoku region on Honshu island. The capital is the city of Tottori, Tottori. It is the least populous prefecture in Japan....
, and Okayama
Okayama Prefecture

is a Prefectures of Japan of Japan located in the Chugoku region on Honshu island. The capital is the city of Okayama....
.

History

The name literally means "middle country", a relic of a historical division of Japan into "near countries" (?? kingoku, but in modern parlance Kinki), "middle countries" (chugoku), and "far countries" (?? ongoku), based on distance from the capital Nara
Nara, Nara

is the capital cities of Japan of Nara Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan. The city occupies the northern part of Nara Prefecture, directly bordering Kyoto Prefecture....
 or Kyoto
Kyoto

Sorry, no overview for this topic
. Strictly speaking, today's Chugoku covers only the middle countries to the west of Kyoto, along the San'indo
San'indo

is a Japanese term denoting both an ancient division of the country, corresponding for the most part with the modern conception of the San'in region, and the main road running through it....
 and San'yodo
San'yodo

is a Japanese term denoting both an ancient division of the country, corresponding for the most part with the modern conception of the San'yo region, and the main road running through it....
 roads.

In Japanese
Japanese language

IPA: [n?iho?go] is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is related to the Ryukyuan languages....
, the characters ?? and the reading Chugoku are also used to mean "China
China

China is a Culture of China, an ancient civilization, and, depending on perspective, a national or multinational entity extending over a large area in East Asia....
". The same characters
Chinese character

A Chinese character, also known as a Han character , is a logogram used in writing Chinese language ,'' Japanese language ,'' less frequently Korean language ,'' and formerly Vietnamese language .''...
 are used in Chinese
Chinese language

Chinese or the Sinitic language is a language family consisting of language mutually unintelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the two branches of Sino-Tibetan languages of languages....
 to refer to China, but pronounced Zhongguó lit. "Middle Kingdom" or "Middle Country" (Wade Giles: Chungkuo).

To avoid confusing "Chugoku region" with China, the Chugoku region is also called the "San'in-San'yo region". San'in is the northern part facing the Sea of Japan
Sea of Japan

The Sea of Japan is a marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean, bordered by Japan, South Korea, North Korea and Russia. It is referred to in North Korea as the Korea East Sea and in South Korea as the East Sea....
, which indicates the "shady side of the mountain". San'yo is the southern part facing the Inland Sea
Inland Sea

Formally named the , the Inland Sea is the body of water separating Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu, three of the main islands of Japan. It serves as an international waterway, connecting the Pacific Ocean to the Sea of Japan....
, which indicates the "sunny side of the mountain". These names originated from the marked differences in climate
Climate

Climate encompasses the temperatures, humidity, atmospheric pressure, winds, rainfall, atmospheric particle count and numerous other Meteorology elements in a given region over long periods of time, as opposed to the term weather, which refers to current activity of these same elements....
.

Outline

The Chugoku region consists of the following prefectures: Hiroshima
Hiroshima Prefecture

is a Prefectures of Japan of Japan located in the Chugoku region on Honshu island. The capital is the city of Hiroshima....
, Yamaguchi
Yamaguchi Prefecture

is a Prefectures of Japan of Japan located in the Chugoku region on Honshu island. The capital is the city of Yamaguchi, Yamaguchi located in the center of the Prefecture: The largest city, by contrast, is Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi....
, Shimane
Shimane Prefecture

is a Prefectures of Japan of Japan located in the Chugoku region on Honshu island. The capital is Matsue, Shimane. It is the second least populous prefecture in Japan, next to the Tottori Prefecture that is a neighboring prefecture on the east side....
 and Tottori
Tottori Prefecture

is a Prefectures of Japan of Japan located in the Chugoku region on Honshu island. The capital is the city of Tottori, Tottori. It is the least populous prefecture in Japan....
. Okayama
Okayama Prefecture

is a Prefectures of Japan of Japan located in the Chugoku region on Honshu island. The capital is the city of Okayama....
 is commonly included, although only Bitchu Province
Bitchu Province

was a Provinces of Japan of Japan on the Seto Inland Sea side of western Honshu, in what is today western Okayama Prefecture. Bitchu bordered Hoki Province, Mimasaka Province, Bizen Province, and Bingo Province provinces....
 was considered a Middle Country, Mimasaka Province
Mimasaka Province

Mimasaka or Sakushu was a Provinces of Japan of Japan in the part of Honshu that is today northeastern Okayama Prefecture. Mimasaka bordered Bitchu Province, Bizen Province, Harima Province, Hoki Province, and Inaba Provinces....
 and Bizen Province
Bizen Province

Bizen was a Provinces of Japan of Japan on the Seto Inland Sea side of Honshu, in what is today the southeastern part of Okayama Prefecture. Bizen borders Mimasaka Province, Harima Province, and Bitchu Province provinces....
, the other two components of modern-day Okayama, were considered Near Countries.

The Chugoku region is characterized by irregular rolling hills and limited plain areas and is divided into two distinct parts by mountains running east and west through its center.

The city of Hiroshima
Hiroshima

The Japanese city of is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture, and the largest city in the Chugoku region of western Honshu, the largest of Japan's islands....
, the "capital" of the Chugoku region, was rebuilt after being destroyed by an atomic bomb in 1945, and is now an industrial metropolis of more than one million people.

Overfishing
Overfishing

Overfishing occurs when fishing activities reduce fish stocks below an acceptable level. This can occur in any body of water from a pond to the oceans....
 and pollution
Pollution

Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into an environment that causes instability, disorder, harm or discomfort to the ecosystem i.e. physical systems or living organisms ....
 reduced the productivity of the Inland Sea fishing grounds, and the area concentrated on heavy industry
Heavy industry

Heavy industry does not have a single fixed meaning as compared to light industry. It can mean production of products which are either heavy in weight or in the processes leading to their production....
. San'in, however, is less industrialized and relies on agriculture
Agriculture

Agriculture refers to the production of food and goods through farming and forestry. Agriculture was the key development that led to the rise of civilization, with the animal husbandry of domestication animals and plants creating food surpluses that enabled the development of more Population density and Social stratification societies....
.

Kyushu
Kyushu

or Kyushu is the third-largest island of Japan and most southwesterly of its Japanese Archipelago. Its alternate ancient names include Kyukoku , Chinzei , and Tsukushi-no-shima ....
 and Kansai neighbor the Chugoku region.

Sightseeing


  • Hiroshima Prefecture: Hiroshima
    Hiroshima

    The Japanese city of is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture, and the largest city in the Chugoku region of western Honshu, the largest of Japan's islands....
    , Miyajima
    Miyajima

    may refer to* Miyajima, another name for the Japanese island Itsukushima* Miyajima, Hiroshima, a former town on this island, merged into Hatsukaichi, Hiroshima in 2005...
    , Fukuyama
    Fukuyama

    Fukuyama can refer to:*Fukuyama, Hiroshima, a city in Japan*Francis Fukuyama, an American philosopher and political economist*Masaharu Fukuyama, a Japanese singer-songwriter...
    , Onomichi
  • Okayama Prefecture: Okayama, Kurashiki, Takahashi
    Takahashi

    Takahashi can refer to:...
    , Tsuyama, Niimi, Bizen
  • Shimane Prefecture: Tsuwano
    Tsuwano, Shimane

    is a towns of Japan in Kanoashi District, Shimane, Shimane Prefecture Prefectures of Japan, Japan. As of 2003, the town has an estimated population of 8,878 and a population density of 28.9 persons per square kilometer....
    , Izumo
    Izumo, Shimane

    is a cities of Japan located in Shimane Prefecture, Japan. Izumo is known for Izumo soba noodles and the Izumo Taisha Shinto shrine....
    , Matsue
    Matsue, Shimane

    is the capital cities of Japan of Shimane Prefecture in the Chugoku region of Japan.As of 2005, the city has an estimated population of 196,093 and the population density of 369.84 persons per km?....
  • Tottori Prefecture: Tottori
    Tottori

    Tottori can refer to:* Tottori Prefecture - a Japanese prefecture with 613,229 people.* Tottori, Tottori - a Japanese city with 202,015 people....
    , Misasa, Daisen
    Daisen

    Daisen can refer to:*Mount Daisen in Tottori Prefecture, Japan*Daisen, Tottori , a town in Tottori Prefecture, Japan*Daisen, Akita , a city in Akita Prefecture, Japan...
  • Yamaguchi Prefecture: Yamaguchi
    Yamaguchi

    Yamaguchi is the 15th most common Japanese surname. It can refer to:...
    , Iwakuni
    Iwakuni, Yamaguchi

    is a cities of Japan located in Yamaguchi prefecture, Japan.On March 20, 2006, the old city of Iwakuni merged with the towns of Kuga, Yamaguchi, Mikawa, Yamaguchi, Miwa, Yamaguchi, Nishiki, Yamaguchi, Shuto, Yamaguchi and Yu, Yamaguchi, and the village of Hongo, Yamaguchi to form the new, expanded city of Iwakuni....
    , Hofu
    Hofu, Yamaguchi

    is a cities of Japan located in Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan.As of 2008, the city has an estimated population of 117,535 and the population density of 623 persons per km?....
    , Shimonoseki
    Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi

    is a cities of Japan located in Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan. It is at the southwestern tip of Honshu, facing the Tsushima Strait and also Kitakyushu across the Kanmon Straits....
    , Hagi
    Hagi, Yamaguchi

    is a cities of Japan located in Yamaguchi prefecture, Japan and was incorporated as a city on July 1, 1932. Formerly part of Abu District, Yamaguchi....
    , Akiyoshidai


In fiction

Lian Hearn used a feudal
Feudalism

Feudalism, a term first used in the early modern period , in its most classic sense refers to a Middle Ages European political system composed of a set of reciprocal law and military obligations among the warrior nobility, revolving around the three key concepts of lords, vassals, and fiefs....
 Chugoku (translated as the Middle Country) as the setting for her Tales of the Otori
Tales of the Otori

Tales of the Otori is a book series of historical fantasy novels by Gillian Rubinstein, set in a fictional world based on History of Japan#Feudal Japan ....
 trilogy.

See also

  • Geography of Japan
    Geography of Japan

    Japan is an island nation in East Asia comprising a large Stratovolcano archipelago extending along the Pacific Ocean coast of Asia. Measured from the geographic coordinate system, Japan is 36? north of the equator and 138? east of the Prime Meridian....
  • List of regions in Japan
  • Names of China
    Names of China

    In China, common names for China include "Zhonghua" and "Zhongguo" , while "Han Dynasty" and "Tang Dynasty" are common names given for the Chinese ethnicity....


External links

  • Chugoku on Wikitravel