Kyoto Prefecture

is part of the Kinki region of the island of Honshū, Japan. The capital is the city of Kyoto.

History

For most of its history, the city of Kyoto was the Imperial capital of Japan. The history of the city itself can be traced back as far as the 6th century. In 544, the Aoi Matsuri was held in Kyoto to pray for good harvest and good weather.

Kyoto did not start out as the capital of Japan. A noteworthy earlier capital was Nara. In 741, Emperor Shomu moved the capital briefly to a place called Kuni-kyo, between the cities of Nara and Kyoto, in present-day Kyoto Prefecture. In 784, the capital was moved to Nagaokakyo, also in present-day Kyoto Prefecture. In 794, Emperor Kammu moved the capital to Heian-kyo, and this was the beginning of the current-day city of Kyoto. Even today, almost all of the streets, houses, stores, temples and shrines in the city of Kyoto exist where they were placed in this year.

Although in 1192 real political power shifted to Kamakura, where a samurai clan established the shogunate, Kyoto still remained the imperial capital as the powerless emperors and their court continued to be seated in the city. Imperial rule was briefly restored in 1333, but another samurai clan established a new shogunate in Kyoto three years later.

In 1467, a great civil war, the Onin no Ran, took place inside Kyoto, and most of the town was burned down. Japan plunged into the age of warring feudal lords. A new strong man, Tokugawa Ieyasu, established the shogunate at Edo (today's Tokyo) in 1603.

The Meiji Restoration returned Japan to imperial rule in 1868. Emperor Meiji, who was now the absolute sovereign, went to stay in Tokyo next year. The imperial court never returned to Kyoto.

Although many Japanese major cities were heavily bombed by US bombers during World War II, the old capital was protected from devastating bombing. During the occupation, the U.S. 6th Army was headquartered in Kyoto.

Geography

Kyoto is located almost in the center of Honshu and of Japan. It covers an area of 4612.71 km², which is 1.2% of Japan. Kyoto is 31st by size. To the north, Kyoto faces the Sea of Japan and Fukui Prefecture. To the south, it faces Osaka and Nara Prefectures. To the east, it faces Mie and Shiga Prefectures. To the west, it faces Hyogo Prefecture. Kyoto is separated in the middle by the Tanba Mountains. This makes the climate of Kyoto very different in the north and south.

Cities

Fifteen cities are located in Kyoto Prefecture.

Towns and villages

These are the towns and villages in each district.

Souraku District
- Kamoǂ
- Kasagi
- Kizuǂ
- Minamiyamashiro
- Seika
- Wazuka
- Yamashiroǂ

ǂThe following municipalities scheduled to merge in the future.

Mergers

(as of March 1, 2006)

On April 1, 2004, the towns of Mineyama, Omiya, Amino, Tango, Yasaka and Kumihama merged to form the city of Kyotango. As a result of the merger, Naka, Takeno and Kumano Districts disappeared.

On April 1, 2005, the town of Keihoku from Kitakuwada District merged into the city of Kyoto(Ukyo Ward).

On October 11, 2005, the towns of Tamba, Mizuho and Wachi from Funai District merged to form the new town of Kyotamba. (Merger Information Page)

On January 1, 2006, the towns of Miwa, Yakuno from Amata District and the town of Oe from Kasa District merged into the city of Fukuchiyama. Amata District and Kasa District were both dissolved as a result of this merger. (Merger Information Page)

On January 1, 2006, the towns of Hiyoshi, Sonobe and Yagi from Funai District and the town of Miyama from Kitakuwada District merged to form the new city of Nantan. Kitakuwada District was dissolved as a result of this merger.

On March 1, 2006, the towns of Kaya, Iwataki and Nodagawa from Yosa District merged to form the new town of Yosano.

Future Mergers

The towns of Kamo, Kizu, and Yamashiro (all fromSouraku District) is scheduled to merge to create the new city of Kizugawa on March 12, 2007.

Economy

The city of Kyoto is largely dependent on tourism. Northern Kyoto on the Tango Peninsula has fishing and water transportation, and midland Kyoto has agriculture and forestry.

Demographics

Culture

It is commonly said that to be a Kyoto citizen, one has to live for 10 generations.

Tourism

The city of Kyoto is one of the most popular tourist spots in Japan, and many people from far and wide visit there. Along with Nara, Kyoto is a favorite location for the graduation trip of Elementary and Junior High schools.

Some of the festivals held in Kyoto are Aoi Matsuri from 544, Gion Matsuri from 869, Ine Matsuri from the Edo-era, Daimonji Gozan Okuribi from 1662, and Jidai Matsuri from 1895. Every shrine and temple holds some sort of event, and many of them are open for public viewing.

Prefectural symbols

The prefectural flower of Kyoto is the weeping cherry. The Kitayama Sugi is the official tree, and the streaked shearwater the bird that symbolizes the prefecture.

Sister relationships

Kyoto Prefecture has sister relationships with these places:

Shaanxi Province in the People's Republic of China
Yogyakarta in Indonesia
The state of Oklahoma in the United States
Leningrad Oblast in Russia
Edinburgh in Scotland

Miscellaneous topics

External links

Kyoto Prefecture | Kansai region | Prefectures of Japan

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