Shizuoka Prefecture

Shizuoka Prefecture (静岡県, Shizuoka-ken) is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu.[1] As of September 2023, Shizuoka Prefecture has a population of 3,555,818 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 of Shizuoka Prefecture
Flag
Official logo of Shizuoka Prefecture
Symbol
Anthem: "Shizuoka kenka" and "Fuji yo yume yo tomo yo"
Location of Shizuoka Prefecture
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 September 2023)
 • Total3,555,818
 • Rank10th
 • Density460/km2 (1,200/sq mi)
 • Dialect
Shizuoka dialect
ISO 3166 codeJP-22
Websitewww.pref.shizuoka.jp/a_foreign/english
Symbols of Japan
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]

Climate

In Shizuoka prefecture, the temperature, over the course of the year, typically varies from 34°F to 87°F and is rarely below 28°F or above 93°F. The summers in Shizuoka are warm, oppressive, and mostly cloudy; the winters are very cold, windy, and mostly clear. [5]

Disaster

On 15 March 2011, Shizuoka Prefecture was hit with a magnitude 6.2 earthquake approximately 42 km (26 mi) NNE of Shizuoka City. It is said, that throughout history, Shizuoka area has experienced a large earthquake every 100 to 150 years.

See also: Tōkai earthquakes

Demographics
Shizuoka prefecture population pyramid in 2020

3,635,220 people live in Shizuoka Prefecture, according to the 2020 census. [6]

Municipalities
See also: List of cities in Shizuoka Prefecture by population

Since 2010, Shizuoka has consisted of 35 municipalities: 23 cities and 12 towns.

Shizuoka Prefecture is located in Shizuoka Prefecture
Shizuoka (capital)静岡市
Shizuoka (capital)静岡市
Hamamatsu浜松市
Hamamatsu浜松市
Atami熱海市
Atami熱海市
Fuji富士市
Fuji富士市
Fujieda藤枝市
Fujieda藤枝市
Fujinomiya富士宮市
Fujinomiya富士宮市
Fukuroi袋井市
Fukuroi袋井市
Gotemba御殿場市
Gotemba御殿場市
Itō伊東市
Itō伊東市
Iwata磐田市
Iwata磐田市
Izu伊豆市
Izu伊豆市
Izunokuni伊豆の国市
Izunokuni伊豆の国市
Kakegawa掛川市
Kakegawa掛川市
Kikugawa菊川市
Kikugawa菊川市
Kosai湖西市
Kosai湖西市
Makinohara牧之原市
Makinohara牧之原市
Mishima三島市
Mishima三島市
Numazu沼津市
Numazu沼津市
Omaezaki御前崎市
Omaezaki御前崎市
Shimada島田市
Shimada島田市
Shimoda下田市
Shimoda下田市
Susono裾野市
Susono裾野市
Yaizu焼津市
Yaizu焼津市
Higashiizu東伊豆町
Higashiizu東伊豆町
Kawazu河津町
Kawazu河津町
Minamiizu南伊豆町
Minamiizu南伊豆町
Matsuzaki松崎町
Matsuzaki松崎町
Nishiizu西伊豆町
Nishiizu西伊豆町
Kannami函南町
Kannami函南町
Kawanehon川根本町
Kawanehon川根本町
Yoshida吉田町
Yoshida吉田町
Mori森町
Mori森町
Nagaizumi長泉町
Nagaizumi長泉町
Oyama小山町
Oyama小山町
Shimizu清水町
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

Industry

Motorcycles

Shizuoka-based companies are world leaders in several major industrial sectors. Honda, Yamaha, and Suzuki all have their roots in Shizuoka prefecture and are still manufacturing here. Thanks to this, Shizuoka pref. accounts for 28 % of Japanese motorcycle exports.[7]

Musical instruments

Yamaha and Kawai are both global piano brands. Yamaha has the largest share in the global piano market. Kawai has the second largest share. They both got their start in Shizuoka pref. in the early twentieth century.[7][8]

Yamaha and Roland are major brand for electronic musical instruments. In the electronic piano world market, Yamaha has the world's largest share. Roland and Kawai have the second and third place share. Roland and Yamaha also manufacture high-quality synthesizers and drum machines for professional musicians.

In addition, various instruments such as wind instruments and guitars are manufactured in this prefecture. There are about 200 companies that manufacture musical instruments, in this prefecture.

Most of these musical instruments are especially produced in Hamamatsu City. [8]

Transportation

Rail
Tōkaidō Shinkansen
Minobu Line
Izuhakone Railway
Gakunan Railway
Ōigawa 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)[9]
  • Shimizu Sushi Museum[10]

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. weatherspark, Shizuoka prefecture.
  6. [https://toukei.pref.shizuoka.jp/jinkoushugyouhan/data/02-010/documents/r2sokuhou.pdf Shizuoka prefecture official statistics（令和２年国勢調査 静岡県の人口（速報値））]
  7. Shizuoka Prefecture official website, Industry in Shizuoka.
  8. (In Japanese) Kyoto University of Arts, Musical instruments industry in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka prefecture.
  9. "About Air Park Japan Air Self-Defense Force Hamamatsu Public Information Building - Shizuoka Travel Guide | Planetyze". Planetyze. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
  10. "About Shimizu Sushi Museum - Shizuoka Travel Guide | Planetyze". Planetyze. Retrieved 2017-11-17.

References
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