Saga Prefecture

is located on Kyushu island, Japan. The capital is the city of Saga.

History

Geography

Kyushu's smallest prefecture, Saga is located on the northwest corner of the island, bordered by the Genkai Sea and the Tsushima Strait to the north and the Ariake Sea to the south. Saga's proximity to mainland Asia has made it an important gateway for the transmission of culture and trade through Japanese history.

Largely rural outside of the two large cities of Saga City and Karatsu, agricultural and forested lands comprise over 68% of the total prefectural land area.

Cities

10 cities are located on Saga Prefecture.

Towns

These are the towns in each district.

Nishimatsuura District
- Arita
Saga Districtǂ
- Higashiyokaǂ
- Kawasoeǂ
- Kubotaǂ

ǂScheduled to dissolve after the mergers.

Mergers

A number of towns and villages in Saga have merged with larger neighboring cities, as part of the ongoing nation-wide process of mergers and dissolution of municipalities.

Historical mergers

The Village of Kirigo was divided into three parts at the turn of the year, from 31 December 1957-1 January 1958. Two of these parts were absorbed into the Town of Genkai, and the City of Karatsu; the third was merged with the Village of Irino to form the Town of Hizen. Both Karatsu and Hizen later became part of the new city of Karatsu.

Contemporary mergers

On January 1, 2005 the towns of Fukudomi, Ariake, and Shiroishi (all from Kishima District) merged to form the new town of Shiroishi.
On January 1, 2005 the city of Karatsu, the towns of Hamatama, Kyuragi, Ochi, Hizen, Chinzei and Yobuko and the village of Kitahata (all from Higashimatsuura District) merged to form the new city of Karatsu. (Merger Information Page)
On March 1, 2005, the towns of Ogi, Ashikari, Mikatsuki and Ushizu (all from Ogi District) merged to form the city of Ogi. Ogi District was dissolved as a result of this merger.
On March 1, 2005, the towns of Nakabaru, Kitashigeyasu and Mine from Miyaki District merged to form the town of Miyaki.
On October 1, 2005, the towns of Morodomi, Yamato and Fuji (all from Saga District) and the village of Mitsuse from Kanzaki District merged with the city of Saga to form the new city of Saga.
On January 1, 2006, the towns of Ureshino and Shiota from Fujitsu District merged to form the city of Ureshino.
On January 1, 2006, the village of Nanayama from Higashimatsuura District merged into the city of Karatsu.
On March 1, 2006, the city of Takeo, and the towns of Yamauchi and Kitagata from Kishima District merged to form the new city of Takeo.
On March 1, 2006, the towns of Nishiarita and Arita (both from Nishimatsuura District) merged to form the new town of Arita.
On March 1, 2006, the towns of Mitagawa and the village of Higashisefuri from Kanzaki District merged to form the new town of Yoshinogari.
On March 20, 2006, the Towns of Kanzaki and Chiyoda together with the Village of Sefuri (all from Kanzaki District) merged to form the City of Kanzaki. There are no more villages within the Saga Prefecture as the result of this merger.

Future Mergers

The city of Saga is scheduled to merge with the remaining parts of the Saga District between April 1, 2007 to March 31, 2008. Saga District will be extinct if the merger is successful.

Economy

Agricultural, forestry, and coastal fisheries products form a large portion of the prefectural economy. Regional agricultural specialties include Saga beef, onions, and strawberries. The prefecture is the largest producer of mochigome (sticky rice) and greenhouse mandarin oranges in Japan.

According to 2002 figures, regional trade exports are focused primarily towards North America (29.3%), Western Europe (26.1%), and the Newly Industrializing Economies of South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore (19.9%). Imports come principally from North America (40.6%), the ASEAN nations (23.3%), and the People's Republic of China (12.2%).

Demographics

As of 2002, the census recorded a population 873,885 in Saga. Of these, 15.9% were aged 0-14, 62.7% were age 15-64, and 21.4% were over 65 years old. There were 3,596 foreigners (.4%) and 307 exchange students (.03%) living in the prefecture.

Culture

Arita, Imari and Karatsu are famous for the beautiful porcelain that is created there. The top porcelain houses in the country are located in these areas, including Imaemon, Genemon and Fukagawa.

Tourism

Karatsu, with its fine castle, is a popular tourist destination in Saga.

The remains of a Yayoi village in Yoshinogari also attract large numbers of sightseers.

Prefectural symbols

Miscellaneous topics

Comedian and J-Pop singer Hanawa became famous for comically singing about Saga Prefecture and its oddities.

Comedian and provisional winner of Time magazine's Person of the Year Masashi Tashiro is born in Saga Prefecture.

Musician Mukai Shutoku was born in Saga-ken before moving to Fukuoka Prefecture to pursue his career.

External links

Kyushu region | Saga Prefecture | Prefectures of Japan

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