:''"Ehime" redirects here. For the school ship, see
Ehime Maru and USS Greeneville collision.''
is a
prefecture in northwestern
Shikoku,
Japan. The capital is
Matsuyama.
History
Until the
Meiji Restoration, Ehime prefecture was known as
Iyo province. Since before the
Heian period, the area was dominated by fishermen and sailors who played an important role in defending Japan against pirates and
Mongol invasions.
After the
Battle of Sekigahara, the
Tokugawa shogun gave the area to his allies, including
Kato Yoshiakira who built
Matsuyama Castle, forming the basis for the modern city of
Matsuyama.
The name Ehime comes from the
Kojiki and means "beautiful maiden."
Geography
Located in the northwestern part of Shikoku, Ehime faces the
Seto inland sea to the north and is bordered by
Kagawa and
Tokushima in the east and
Kochi in the south.
The prefecture includes both high mountains in the inland region and a long coastline, with many islands in the Seto inland Sea. The westernmost arm of Ehime, the Sadamisaki Peninsula, is the longest peninsula in Japan.
Cities
Eleven cities are located in Ehime Prefecture:
★
Imabari
★
Iyo
★
Matsuyama (capital)
★
Niihama
★
ÅŒzu
★
SaijÅ
★
Seiyo
★
ShikokuchÅ«Å
★
TÅon
★
Uwajima
★
Yawatahama
Map of Ehime Prefecture.
Towns and villages
These are the towns and villages in each
district.
Ehime agency.
†Scheduled to be merged
[1].
Mergers
Main articles: Merger and dissolution of municipalities of Japan
★ On
April 1,
2003 the village of
Besshiyama from
Uma District merged into the (expanded) city of
Niihama.
★ On
April 1,
2004 all towns and villages in the former
Higashiuwa District (dissolved by this merger) and
Mikame from
Nishiuwa District merged, forming the new city of
Seiyo.
★ On
April 1,
2004 the cities of
Kawanoe and
Iyomishima, the town of
Doi and the village of
Shingū (both from
Uma District, dissolved by this merger) merged to form the new city of
ShikokuchÅ«Å.
★ On
August 1,
2004 the town of
Kuma and the villages of
Mikawa,
Omogo, and
Yanadani from
Kamiukena District merged to form the new town of
KumakÅgen.
★ On
September 21,
2004 the towns of
Kawauchi and
Shigenobu from
Onsen District merged to form the new city of
TÅon.
★ On
October 1,
2004 Ikina,
Iwagi,
Uoshima, and
Yuge (all from
Ochi District) merged, forming the new town of
Kamijima.
★ On
October 1,
2004 all the former towns of
Minamiuwa District (
JÅhen,
MishÅ,
Nishiumi,
Uchiumi, and
Ipponmatsu) merged together into
Ainan to form a new and larger town of
Ainan.
★ On
November 1,
2004 the former city of
SaijÅ merged with the former city of
TÅyo and the towns of
Komatsu and
Tanbara from the former
ShūsŠDistrict (dissolved by this merger) merged to create the new city of
SaijÅ.
★ On
January 1,
2005 the village of
Hirota from
Iyo District merged into the town of
Tobe.
★ On
January 1,
2005 the town of
Hiromi and the village of
Hiyoshi (both from
Kitauwa District) merged to form the new town of
Kihoku.
★ On
January 1,
2005 the towns of
Ikazaki (from
Kita District) and
Oda (from
Kamiukena District) merged into the town of
Uchiko.
★ On
January 1,
2005 the city of
HÅjÅ and the town of
Nakajima from
Onsen District (dissolved by this merger) merged into the (expanded) city of
Matsuyama.
★ On
January 11,
2005 the towns of
Hijikawa and
Nagahama as well as the village of
Kawabe (all from
Kita District) merged into the city of
ÅŒzu.
★ On
January 16,
2005 the new city of
Imabari was formed by the mergers of 11 towns and villages (all from
Ochi District) and the old city of
Imabari. Towns and villages involved in this merger were
Asakura,
Hakata,
Kamiura,
Kikuma,
Miyakubo,
Namikata,
ÅŒmishima,
ÅŒnishi,
Sekizen,
Tamagawa, and
Yoshiumi. With this merger, there are no more villages left in Ehime Prefecture.
★ On
March 28,
2005 the town of
Honai from
Nishiuwa District and the old city of
Yawatahama merged to form the new city of
Yawatahama.
★ On
April 1,
2005 the city of
Iyo merged with the towns of
Nakayama and
Futami from
Iyo District to form the new city of
Iyo.
★ On
April 1,
2005 the towns of
Misaki and
Seto from
Nishiuwa District merged into the town of
Ikata.
★ On
August 1,
2005 the new city of
Uwajima was formed by the mergers of 3 towns from
Kitauwa District and the old city of
Uwajima.
Mima,
Tsushima and
Yoshida were involved in this merger with the old city of
Uwajima.
Former districts:
★
Uwa District (historical)
★
Uma District
★
ShūsŠDistrict
★
Onsen District
Economy
The area around Matsuyama has a number of industries, including shipbuilding, chemicals, oil refining, and paper and textile products. The rural areas of the prefecture mostly engage in agricultural and fishing industries, and are particularly known for citrus fruit such as
mikan (tangerine) and
iyokan and cultured pearls.
Ikata's nuclear power plant produces a large portion of Shikoku's electricity.
Sports
The sports teams listed below are based in Ehime.
Football (soccer)
★
Ehime F.C.
Baseball
★
Ehime Mandarin Pirates
External links
★
Official Ehime prefecture homepage
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