Gifu Prefecture

, is located in the Chūbu region of central Japan. Its capital is Gifu City.

History

Gifu Prefecture consists of the old provinces of Hida and Mino. The area was named by Oda Nobunaga during his campaign to unify all of Japan. Historically, it served as the center of swordmaking in all of Japan. More recently, its strengths have been in fashion and aerospace engineering.

Geography

One of the few landlocked prefectures in Japan, Gifu Prefecture shares borders with seven other prefectures: Aichi, Fukui, Ishikawa, Mie, Nagano, Shiga and Toyama Prefectures.

The northern Hida Region is dominated by tall mountains, including the Japanese Alps. The southern Mino Region has vast plains with of arable soil. Most of the prefecture's population resides in the southern part of the prefecture, near the designated city of Nagoya.

Cities

21 cities are located on Gifu Prefecture.

Towns and villages

These are the towns and villages in each district.

Mergers

(as of March 27, 2006)

On April 1, 2003 the towns and villages of Ijira, Miyama, and Takatomi from Yamagata District (dissolved by this action) merged, forming the city of Yamagata.

On May 1, 2003, the towns of Hozumi and Sunami merged to form the new city of Mizuho.

On February 1, 2004 the towns of Itonuki, Motosu, Neo, and Shinsei from Motosu District merged to form the new city of Motosu.

On February 1, 2004 the towns of Furukawa, Miyagawa, Kawai, and Kamioka from Yoshiki District merged to form the new city of Hida.

On March 1, 2004 all seven towns and villages from the former Gujo District (dissolved by this action) merged, forming the city of Gujo. The towns and villages that merged were Hachiman, Meihou, Minami, Shitori, Takasu, Wara, and Yamato.

On March 1, 2004 all four towns and the village from the former Mashita District (dissolved by this action) merged, forming the city of Gero. The towns and village that merged were Gero (town), Hagiwara, Kanayama, Kosaka, and Maze.

On October 25, 2004 four towns and a village from Ena District merged into the new city of Ena. The municipalities involved in this merger were the old city of Ena, Akechi, Iwamura, Kamiyahagi, Kushihara, and Yamaoka.

On November 1, 2004 the former town of Kawashima from Hashima District merged into the expanded city of Kakamigahara.

On January 31, 2005 five villages and one town from Ibi District merged create the new town of Ibigawa. The municipalities involved in this merger were Fujihashi, (former) Ibigawa, Kasuga, Kuze, Sakauchi, and Tanigumi.

On February 1, 2005 nine towns and villages from Ono District and the former Yoshiki District (dissolved by this action) merged into the expanded city of Takayama. The towns and villages participating in this merger were, from Ono District, Asahi, Kiyomi, Kuguno, Miya, Nyukawa, Shokawa, and Takane, and, from Yoshiki District, Kamitakara and Kokufu.

On February 7, 2005 five towns and villages from the former Mugi District (dissolved by this action) merged into the expanded city of Seki. The towns and villages involved in this merger were Horado, Itadori, Kaminoho, Mugegawa, and Mugi.

On February 13, 2005 six towns and villages from the former Ena District (dissolved by this action) merged into the expanded city of Nakatsugawa. The towns and villages involved in this merger were Fukuoka, Hirukawa, Kashimo, Kawaue, Sakashita, and Tsukechi.

On March 28, 2005 the towns of Hirata, Kaizu and Nannou from Kaizu District merged into the new city of Kaizu. Kaizu District was dissolved as a result of this merger.

On May 1, 2005 the town of Kaneyama from Kani District merged into the city of Kani.

On January 1, 2006 the town of Yanaizu from Hashima District merged into the city of Gifu.

On January 23, 2006 the town of Kasahara from Toki District merged into the city of Tajimi. Toki District was dissolved as a result of this merger.

On March 27, 2006 the town of Kamiishizu from Yoro District and the town of Sunomata from Anpachi District merged into the city of Ogaki.

Economy

Gifu's economy includes many traditional industries such as agriculture and woodworking, but it is dominated by manufacturing industries extending from the Nagoya area, such as aerospace and automotive industry. A major characteristic of Gifu's industry is a wealth of small component manufacturers, such as precision machining, die and mold making, and plastic forming.

Demographics

Culture

Tourism

Prefectural symbols

Miscellaneous topics

Gifu hosted the 2005 World Rowing Championships.

External links

Official Gifu Prefecture homepage

Chubu region | Gifu Prefecture | Prefectures of Japan

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