Merger and dissolution of municipalities of Japan
Encyclopedia
Municipal mergers and dissolutions carried out in Japan (known as in Japanese) can take place within one municipality or between multiple municipalities and are required to be based upon consensus.
Japan had around 1,822 municipalities at the beginning of 2007, considerably less than the 2,190 on April 1, 2005 and a decline of 40 percent from the number in 1999. The 1,822 municipalities include 198 villages, 777 cities and 847 towns.
The municipality merger promotion law was revised to ease the burden on debt-ridden local government
s and to create larger municipalities so more administrative power could be transferred to the local level. The law's deadline passed on March 31, 2006.
contained fewer than 200 residents. Japanese municipalities require skilled workers. 40% of Japan's GDP consisted of debts from local governments. Japan merges local governments to expand residential area per municipal government, create different school attendance boundaries for elementary school
and junior high school students, and to allow more widespread use of public facilities.
Although the government purports to respect self-determination of the municipalities, some consider the policy to be compulsory. As a result of mergers, some cities such as Daisen, Akita
temporarily have very large city assemblies.
Some people see it as a form of federalism
; they consider that the ultimate goal is to change Japan into a union consisting of more autonomous states. So far the mergers are limited to the local municipalities. Mergers of prefectures
are also planned in some regions of Japan.
The first peak of mergers, known as , happened in 1889, when the modern municipal system was established. Before the mergers, existing municipalities were the direct successors of spontaneous hamlets called hanseison (藩政村), or villages under the han system
. The rump han system is still reflected in the postal system for rural areas as postal units called ōaza (大字). The Meiji mergers slashed total municipalities from 71,314 to 15,859.
The second peak, called , took place in the mid-1950s. It reduced the number of municipalities by over half, from 9,868 to 3,472.
Municipal mergers in the island prefectures of Hokkaidō
and Okinawa
, have followed different tracks.
's name. Another easy solution is a simple compounding of the names, but this method, relatively common in Europe, is unusual in Japan. Instead, they are often abbreviated. For example, the Ōta
(大田) ward of Tokyo is a portmanteau of Ōmori (大森) and Kamata (蒲田). Toyoshina, Nagano
is an acronym of the four antecedent villages: Toba, Yoshino, Shinden, and Nariai.
Another common method is borrowing a well known nearby place name and adding a direction, like Nishitōkyō ("West Tokyo"), Kitakyūshū ("North Kyūshū
"), Higashiosaka ("East Osaka
"), Shikokuchūō
("Central Shikoku
") and recently Higashiōmi
("East Ōmi").
Other towns sometimes use nouns with pleasant connotations, such as , , or .
A characteristic of the Heisei mergers is a rapid increase of hiragana
names. The names of Japan's cities used to be written in Kanji
exclusively. The first instance of "hiragana municipalities
" was , renamed in 1960. Their number reached 45 by April 2006. They include , , , , and , which was upgraded to a designated city
in 2003.
Merger policy
The government's stated goal is to reduce the total number of Japanese municipalities to 1,000. The government did not provide a distinct timetable.Japan had around 1,822 municipalities at the beginning of 2007, considerably less than the 2,190 on April 1, 2005 and a decline of 40 percent from the number in 1999. The 1,822 municipalities include 198 villages, 777 cities and 847 towns.
The municipality merger promotion law was revised to ease the burden on debt-ridden local government
Local government
Local government refers collectively to administrative authorities over areas that are smaller than a state.The term is used to contrast with offices at nation-state level, which are referred to as the central government, national government, or federal government...
s and to create larger municipalities so more administrative power could be transferred to the local level. The law's deadline passed on March 31, 2006.
Record of changes
- List of mergers and dissolutions of municipalities in Japan shows mergers and dissolutions of municipalities that took place in recent years.
Reasons for merging
As of January 2006 many municipalities in JapanJapan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, 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...
contained fewer than 200 residents. Japanese municipalities require skilled workers. 40% of Japan's GDP consisted of debts from local governments. Japan merges local governments to expand residential area per municipal government, create different school attendance boundaries for elementary school
Elementary school
An elementary school or primary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as elementary or primary education. Elementary school is the preferred term in some countries, particularly those in North America, where the terms grade school and grammar...
and junior high school students, and to allow more widespread use of public facilities.
Socio-political context
Most of Japan's rural municipalities largely depend on subsidies from the central government. They are often criticized for spending money for wasteful public enterprises to keep jobs. The central government, which is itself running budget deficits, has a policy of encouraging mergers to make the municipal system more efficient.Although the government purports to respect self-determination of the municipalities, some consider the policy to be compulsory. As a result of mergers, some cities such as Daisen, Akita
Daisen, Akita
is a city located in Akita Prefecture, Japan. As of 2011, it has an estimated population of 87,497 and an area of 866.68 km², giving a population density of 101 per square kilometer....
temporarily have very large city assemblies.
Some people see it as a form of federalism
Federalism
Federalism is a political concept in which a group of members are bound together by covenant with a governing representative head. The term "federalism" is also used to describe a system of the government in which sovereignty is constitutionally divided between a central governing authority and...
; they consider that the ultimate goal is to change Japan into a union consisting of more autonomous states. So far the mergers are limited to the local municipalities. Mergers of prefectures
Prefectures of Japan
The prefectures of Japan are the country's 47 subnational jurisdictions: one "metropolis" , Tokyo; one "circuit" , Hokkaidō; two urban prefectures , Osaka and Kyoto; and 43 other prefectures . In Japanese, they are commonly referred to as...
are also planned in some regions of Japan.
Past mergers
There have been three waves of merger activity between Japanese municipalities, the largest being in 2005. This recent peak is sometimes referred to as as a way of distinguishing it from the earlier two.The first peak of mergers, known as , happened in 1889, when the modern municipal system was established. Before the mergers, existing municipalities were the direct successors of spontaneous hamlets called hanseison (藩政村), or villages under the han system
Han (Japan)
The or domain was the name of the estate belonging to a warrior in Japan after the 17th century. The fiefs of the daimyos of the samurai class of Japan during the Edo period were called han.-Edo period:...
. The rump han system is still reflected in the postal system for rural areas as postal units called ōaza (大字). The Meiji mergers slashed total municipalities from 71,314 to 15,859.
The second peak, called , took place in the mid-1950s. It reduced the number of municipalities by over half, from 9,868 to 3,472.
Municipal mergers in the island prefectures of Hokkaidō
Hokkaido
, formerly known as Ezo, Yezo, Yeso, or Yesso, is Japan's second largest island; it is also the largest and northernmost of Japan's 47 prefectural-level subdivisions. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaido from Honshu, although the two islands are connected by the underwater railway Seikan Tunnel...
and Okinawa
Okinawa Prefecture
is one of Japan's southern prefectures. It consists of hundreds of the Ryukyu Islands in a chain over long, which extends southwest from Kyūshū to Taiwan. Okinawa's capital, Naha, is located in the southern part of Okinawa Island...
, have followed different tracks.
Naming of new municipalities
Naming a new post-merger municipality is not a negligible matter. Disagreement on a name sometimes causes merger talks to break down. If a city is far larger than other towns which join it, no arguments take place; the city's name simply survives. However, if their sizes do not differ significantly, lengthy disputes ensue. Sometimes the problem can be solved by adopting the districtDistricts of Japan
The was most recently used as an administrative unit in Japan between 1878 and 1921 and is roughly equivalent to the county of the United States, ranking at the level below prefecture and above city, town or village. As of 2008, cities belong directly to prefectures and are independent from...
's name. Another easy solution is a simple compounding of the names, but this method, relatively common in Europe, is unusual in Japan. Instead, they are often abbreviated. For example, the Ōta
Ota, Tokyo
is one of the 23 Special wards of Tokyo, Japan.As of May 1, 2011, the ward has an estimated population of 676,458, with 348,492 households, and a population density of 11,376.69 persons per km²...
(大田) ward of Tokyo is a portmanteau of Ōmori (大森) and Kamata (蒲田). Toyoshina, Nagano
Toyoshina, Nagano
was a town located in Minamiazumi District of Nagano Prefecture, Japan.On October 1, 2005 Toyoshina was merged with the town of Akashina, from Higashichikuma District, the town of Hotaka, and the villages of Horigane and Misato, all from Minamiazumi District, to form the new city of Azumino.As of...
is an acronym of the four antecedent villages: Toba, Yoshino, Shinden, and Nariai.
Another common method is borrowing a well known nearby place name and adding a direction, like Nishitōkyō ("West Tokyo"), Kitakyūshū ("North Kyūshū
Kyushu
is the third largest island of Japan and most southwesterly of its four main islands. Its alternate ancient names include , , and . The historical regional name is referred to Kyushu and its surrounding islands....
"), Higashiosaka ("East Osaka
Osaka
is a city in the Kansai region of Japan's main island of Honshu, a designated city under the Local Autonomy Law, the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and also the biggest part of Keihanshin area, which is represented by three major cities of Japan, Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe...
"), Shikokuchūō
Shikokuchuo, Ehime
is a city located in Ehime, Japan.Shikokuchūō is the leading producer of paper and paper products in Japan. It is also a port city and one of Ehime’s major centers of industry....
("Central Shikoku
Shikoku
is the smallest and least populous of the four main islands of Japan, located south of Honshū and east of the island of Kyūshū. Its ancient names include Iyo-no-futana-shima , Iyo-shima , and Futana-shima...
") and recently Higashiōmi
Higashiomi, Shiga
is a city located in Shiga Prefecture, Japan.As of 2008, the city has an estimated population of 117,557 and the density of 303 persons per km². The total area is 388.58 km²....
("East Ōmi").
Other towns sometimes use nouns with pleasant connotations, such as , , or .
A characteristic of the Heisei mergers is a rapid increase of hiragana
Hiragana
is a Japanese syllabary, one basic component of the Japanese writing system, along with katakana, kanji, and the Latin alphabet . Hiragana and katakana are both kana systems, in which each character represents one mora...
names. The names of Japan's cities used to be written in Kanji
Kanji
Kanji are the adopted logographic Chinese characters hanzi that are used in the modern Japanese writing system along with hiragana , katakana , Indo Arabic numerals, and the occasional use of the Latin alphabet...
exclusively. The first instance of "hiragana municipalities
Hiragana and katakana place names
The hiragana cities of Japan are cities whose names are written in hiragana rather than kanji. Traditionally, all Japanese place names were written using kanji...
" was , renamed in 1960. Their number reached 45 by April 2006. They include , , , , and , which was upgraded to a designated city
City designated by government ordinance (Japan)
A , also known as a or , 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.-Overview:...
in 2003.
External links
- Merger consultation, Ministry of Internal Affairs and CommunicationsMinistry of Internal Affairs and CommunicationsThe ' or Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications is a cabinet-level ministry in the Government of Japan. The English name Ministry of Public Management, Home Affairs, Posts and Telecommunications was used prior to 2004...
(Japanese)