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Kagawa Prefecture
香川県
| |
|---|---|
| Japanese transcription(s) | |
| • Japanese | 香川県 |
| • Rōmaji | Kagawa-ken |
Takamatsu, the capital of Kagawa Prefecture
| |
Flag 
Symbol | |
| Anthem: Kagawa kenminka | |
 | |
| Country |  Japan |
| Region | Shikoku |
| Island | Shikoku |
| Capital | Takamatsu |
| Subdivisions | Districts: 5, Municipalities: 17 |
| Government | |
| • Governor | Toyohito Ikeda |
| Area | |
| • Total | 1,876.8 km2 (724.6 sq mi) |
| • Rank | 47th |
| Population
(September 1, 2020)[2]
| |
| • Total | 949,358 |
| • Rank | 40th |
| • Density | 510/km2 (1,300/sq mi) |
| GDP | |
| • Total | JP¥ 4,009 billion US$ 36.8 billion (2019) |
| ISO 3166 code | JP-37 |
| Website | www.pref.kagawa.lg.jp |
| Symbols of Japan | |
| |
| Bird | Lesser cuckoo (Cuculus poliocephalus) |
| Flower | Olive (Olea europaea) |
| Tree | Olive (Olea europaea) |
Kagawa Prefecture (香川県, Kagawa-ken) is a prefectureofJapan located on the island of Shikoku.[4] Kagawa Prefecture has a population of 949,358 (as of 2020)[2] and is the smallest prefecture by geographic area at 1,877 square kilometres (725 sq mi).[1] Kagawa Prefecture borders Ehime Prefecture to the southwest and Tokushima Prefecture to the south.
Takamatsu is the capital and largest city of Kagawa Prefecture,[5] with other major cities including Marugame, Mitoyo, and Kan'onji. Kagawa Prefecture is located on the Seto Inland Sea across from Okayama Prefecture on the island of Honshu, which is connected by the Great Seto Bridge. Kagawa Prefecture includes Shōdoshima, the second-largest island in the Seto Inland Sea, and the prefecture's southern land border with Tokushima Prefecture is formed by the Sanuki Mountains.
Kagawa was formerly known as Sanuki Province.[6]
For a brief period between August 1876 and December 1888, Kagawa was made a part of Ehime Prefecture.[7]
Located in Kagawa's capital city, Takamatsu, the mountain of Yashima was the battlefield for one of the best-known struggles between the Heike and Genji clans.
Kagawa comprises the northeast corner of Shikoku, bordering Ehime Prefecture on the west and Tokushima Prefecture on the south, with a coastline on the Seto Inland Sea facing Okayama Prefecture and the Kansai. The Sanuki Mountains run along the southern border.
Kagawa is currently the smallest prefecture, by area, in Japan. Kagawa is a relatively narrow prefecture located between the mountains of Shikoku and the sea.
As of April 1, 2012, 11% of the total land area of the prefecture was designated as Natural Parks, namely Setonaikai National Park and Ōtaki-Ōkawa Prefectural Natural Park.[8]
Eight cities are located in Kagawa Prefecture:
| Place name | Area (km2)[1] | Population (2020)[2] | Map | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rōmaji | Kanji | |||
 Higashikagawa
|
東かがわ市 | 152.86 | 28,305 | 
|
 Kan'onji
|
観音寺市 | 117.83 | 56,639 | 
|
 Marugame
|
丸亀市 | 111.83 | 109,165 | 
|
 Mitoyo
|
三豊市 | 222.70 | 61,839 | 
|
 Sakaide
|
坂出市 | 92.49 | 50,577 | 
|
 Sanuki
|
さぬき市 | 158.63 | 46,723 | 
|
 Takamatsu (capital)
|
高松市 | 375.42 | 417,814 | 
|
 Zentsūji
|
善通寺市 | 39.93 | 31,620 | 
|
Kagawa has eight towns organized into five districts. Many were created after 1999 through mergers, as part of a national effort to reduce the number of small towns and villages.[9]
| Place name | Area (km2)[1] | Population (2020)[2] | District[10] | Map | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rōmaji | Kanji | ||||
 Ayagawa
|
綾川町 | 109.75 | 22,730 | Ayauta | 
|
 Kotohira
|
琴平町 | 8.47 | 8,466 | Nakatado | 
|
 Mannō
|
まんのう町 | 194.45 | 17,324 | Nakatado | 
|
 Miki
|
三木町 | 75.78 | 26,859 | Kita | 
|
 Naoshima
|
直島町 | 14.22[a] | 3,026 | Kagawa | 
|
 Shōdoshima
|
小豆島町 | 95.59 | 13,646 | Shōzu | 
|
 Tadotsu
|
多度津町 | 24.39 | 22,813 | Nakatado | 
|
 Tonoshō
|
土庄町 | 74.38 | 12,915 | Shōzu | 
|
 Utazu
|
宇多津町 | 8.10 | 18,897 | Ayauta | 
|
Kagawa has a nominal GDP of approximately 3,802 billion yen.[11] Kagawa's major export industries, in order of export value, include transportation equipment, electrical equipment, chemical products, general machinery, mineral fuels, manufactured goods, raw materials, and foodstuff.[12]
Sanuki udon (a type of udon noodle) is the most famous local food of Kagawa Prefecture. In 2008, there were over 700 udon restaurants in this prefecture alone.[13]
Aside from udon, Kagawa is also famous for "hone-tsuki-dori", seasoned chicken thigh cooked on the bone. Originating from Marugame City, the dish has now become a popular dish in izakaya restaurants across the country.
Olives and olive-related products have also come to be recognized as Kagawa foods. As the first place in Japan to successfully cultivate olives, Kagawa has been producing olive-related products since 1908. As well as winning both domestic and international awards for the quality of its olive oil, Kagawa has also created two offshoot food brands from its olive industry - "olive beef" and "olive yellowtail". Waste organic matter from olive pressing is used as feed for cattle and the Yellowtail Amberjack. Due to the high amount of polyphenols in the olive waste, the flesh of the respective meats does not oxidize or lose color easily.
Other local specialties include wasanbon sugar sweets, sōmen noodles and shōyu soy sauce. Rare sugar researches are thriving and have discovered mass production culture enzymes. D-tagatose 3-epimerase is an enzyme that catalyzes the reversible epimerization reaction of the 3rd carbon of ketose.
As of October 2020, Kagawa Prefecture had an estimated population of 950,244. This was .54% lower than the population in the 2000 census, being 1,022,890. The area of the prefecture is 1,877 km, and the population density is 506.3/km.[14]
The sports teams listed below are based in Kagawa.
Baseball
Basketball
Football (Soccer)
Volleyball
Ice Hockey
Based on its ancient name, Sanuki, Kagawa is famous for its Sanuki udon (wheat noodles). Recent years have seen an interest in Sanuki udon across Japan[citation needed], and many Japanese now take day-trips to taste the many Sanuki udon restaurants in Kagawa.
National Route 11 (Tokushima-Takamatsu-Marugame-Niihama-Maysuyama)
National Route 30
National Route 32 (Takamatsu-Kotohira-Kochi)
National Route 193
National Route 318
National Route 319
National Route 377
National Route 436
National Route 438
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34°16′N 133°57′E / 34.267°N 133.950°E / 34.267; 133.950
