is located on
Shikoku island,
Japan. The capital is
Takamatsu.
History
Kagawa was formerly known as
Sanuki Province.
For the brief period between August 1876 and December 1888, Kagawa was made a part of
Ehime Prefecture.
[1]
'Battle of Yashima'
Located in Kagawa's capital city, Takamatsu, the mountain of Yashima was the battlefield for one of the best-known battles between the Heike and the Genji clans. The name Yashima means literally 'roof island'. Yashima, so called because of its shape like the roof of a traditional Japanese farm house, is a mesa headland jutting out into the Seto Inland Sea. But at the time when the Genpei War was fought, it was, as is implied by the name, an island separated from the mainland by the Aibikigawa River.The military forces of the Heikes, defeated at Ichinotani, retreated to Yashima with Emperor Antoku and set up his temporary court and their headquarters at Dannoura Inlet of Yashima. Yashima retains many names related to the historic battle. According to the stories, the main battlefield was the whole Dannoura area, where now stands Yashima-higashi Primary School. Visitors now find the old court site of Emperor Antoku, Tombs of Sato Tsugunobu and Kikuomaru, Rock on which Nasuno Yoichi prayed for success of his feat, Rock on which the bestriding Yoichi shot his arrow at the fan. The place names of Genjigamine Peak, Funakakushi, Chinoike Pond and others are reminiscent of the past.
Geography
Map of Kagawa Prefecture.
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.
Kagawa is currently the smallest prefecture, by area, in Japan.
Osaka Prefecture held that title until
Kansai International Airport was reclaimed from the ocean in the early 1990s, pushing its land area slightly above Kagawa's. Kagawa is a relatively narrow prefecture located between the mountains of Shikoku and the sea.
Cities
Eight cities are located in Kagawa Prefecture:
Towns
Towns and villages in each
district:
Mergers
Main articles: Merger and dissolution of municipalities of Japan
★ On
April 1,
2002 five towns in the western part of the former
Okawa District —
Shido,
Tsuda,
Nagao,
Sangawa, and
Okawa — merged to form the city of
Sanuki.
★ On
April 1,
2003 three towns —
Hiketa,
Shirotori, and
Ohchi — from the former
Okawa District merged to form the city of
Higashikagawa, at which point the district ceased to exist.
★ On
March 22,
2005 the towns of
Hanzan and
Ayauta from
Ayauta District merged into the expanded city of
Marugame.
★ On
September 26,
2005 the town of
Shionoe from
Kagawa District merged into the expanded city of
Takamatsu.
★ On
October 11,
2005 the towns of
Onohara and
Toyohama from
Mitoyo District merged to form the city of
Kan'onji.
★ On
January 1,
2006 all towns from
Mitoyo District — (
Mino,
Nio,
Saita,
Takase,
Takuma,
Toyonaka and
Yamamoto) — merged to form the city of
Mitoyo.
Mitoyo District was dissolved as a result of this merger.
(Merger Information Page)
★ On
January 10,
2006 the towns of
Mure and
Aji from
Kita District, the towns of
Kagawa and
Konan from
Kagawa District and the town of
Kokubunji from
Ayauta District merged into the city of
Takamatsu.
(Merger Information Page)
★ On
March 20,
2006 the towns of
Kotonami,
Chunan, and
Manno (all from
Nakatado District) merged to form the new town of
Manno.
★ On
March 21,
2006 the towns of
Uchinomi and
Ikeda from
Shozu District merged to form the new town of
Shodoshima.
★ On
March 21,
2006 the towns of
Ayakami and
Ryonan from
Ayauta District merged to form the new town of
Ayagawa.
Economy
Demographics
Culture
Sports
The sports teams listed below are based in Kagawa.
Baseball
★
Kagawa Olive Guyners
Basketball
★
Takamatsu Five Arrows (
Takamatsu)
Football (Soccer)
★
Kamatamare Sanuki (
Takamatsu)
Volleyball
★
Eighty8 queen
Tourism
★
Kotohira Shrine
★
Shodo Island
★
Takamatsu Castle
★
Yashima, the island on which the
Battle of Yashima was fought.
★
Ritsurin Park
★
Tamamo Park
★
Megijima (
Onigashima) &
Ogijima
★
Goshikidai
Based on its ancient name,
Sanuki, Kagawa is famous for its Sanuki
Udon (buckwheat noodles). Recent years has seen a great interest in Sanuki Udon across Japan, and many Japanese now take day trips to taste the many Sanuki Udon resturants in Kagawa.
Prefectural symbols
Miscellaneous topics
The novel ''
Battle Royale'' by
Koushun Takami was set in the fictional town of Shiroiwa ('Castle Rock') in the Kagawa Prefecture. Okishima, the fictional island on which much of the novel takes place is placed in the Seto Inland Sea. The manga also places Shiroiwa in the Kagawa Prefecture, while the film moves Shiroiwa to the
Kanagawa Prefecture.
The 68th and 69th
Prime Minister of Japan,
Ohira Masayoshi, was born in Kagawa Prefecture.
External links
★
Kagawa Prefecture English homepage
★
Official Kagawa Prefecture Japanese homepage
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