Hyogo Prefecture (兵庫県 Hyōgo-ken)

Symbol of Hyogo Prefecture
Capital	Kobe
Region	Kinki
Island	Honshu
Governor	Toshizo Ido
Area	8,392.42 km² (12th)
- % water	0.6%
Population (April 1, 2002)
- Population	5,563,231 (8th)
- Density	663 /km²
Districts	19
Municipalities	88
ISO 3166-2	JP-28
Web site	web.pref.hyogo.jp/ english/ (http://web.pref.hyogo.jp/english/)
Prefectural Symbols
- Flower	Nojigiku (Chrysanthemum japonense)
- Tree	Camphor tree (Cinnamomum camphora)
- Bird	White stork (Ciconia ciconia)

Hyōgo Prefecture (兵庫県 Hyōgo-ken) is located in the Kinki region on Honshu island, Japan. The capital is Kobe.

The prefecture's name was previously alternately spelled as Hiogo.

History

Present-day Hyogo Prefecture includes the former provinces of Harima, Tajima, Awaji, and part of Tamba.

In 1180, near the end of the Heian Period, Emperor Antoku, Taira no Kiyomori, and the Imperial court moved briefly to Fukuhara, in what is now the city of Kobe. There the capital remained for five months.

Himeji Castle, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is in the city of Himeji.

The Ako Han, home of the 47 Ronin, is in Hyogo Prefecture.

Southern Hyogo Prefecture was severely devastated by the magnitude 7.2 Great Hanshin earthquake of 1995, which destroyed major parts of Kobe and Awaji, as well as Takarazuka and neighboring Osaka prefecture, killing nearly 5500 people.

Geography

Hyogo has coastlines on two seas: to the north, the Sea of Japan, to the south, the Inland Sea. The northern portion is sparsely populated, except for the city of Toyooka, and the central highlands are only populated by tiny villages. Most of Hyogo's population lives on the southern coast, which is part of the Osaka-Kyoto-Kobe metropolitan area. Awajishima is an island in the Inland Sea, lying between Honshu and Shikoku.

Summertime weather throughout Hyogo is hot and humid. During the winter, the north side tends to get lots of snow, while the south side only gets occasional flurries.

Hyogo borders on Osaka Prefecture, Kyoto Prefecture, Tottori Prefecture and Okayama Prefecture.

Cities

• Aioi
• Akashi
• Ako
• Amagasaki
• Ashiya
• Himeji
• Itami
• Kakogawa
• Kasai
• Kawanishi
• Kobe (capital)
  • Chuo-ku
  • Higashinada-ku
  • Hyogo-ku
  • Kita-ku
  • Nada-ku
  • Nagata-ku
  • Nishi-ku
  • Suma-ku
  • Tarumi-ku
• Miki
• Nishinomiya
• Nishiwaki
• Ono
• Sanda
• Sasayama
• Sumoto
• Takarazuka
• Takasago
• Tatsuno
• Toyooka

Districts

Economy

Hyogo prefecture has many heavy industries, and Kobe is one of the largest ports in Japan.

Demographics

Culture

Tourism

Kobe remains a popular tourist destination. To Japanese, it symbolizes contact with the West. Many homes of early American, English and European visitors still stand on the bluff overlooking the harbor. The vista of the Inland Sea remains a "million-dollar view."

The Takarazuka Revue plays in the city of Takarazuka. This is popular among Japanese tourists.

Himeji Castle receives this (and more) praise from UNESCO: "masterpiece of construction in wood, combining function with aesthetic appeal... ." Together with its historical significance and its easy access from Kyoto or Osaka by Shinkansen, Himeji Castle receives tremendous numbers of visitors annually.

Prefectural symbols

Miscellaneous topics

External links

• Official Hyogo Prefecture homepage (http://web.pref.hyogo.jp/english/index.html)