Kumamoto Prefecture

From Wikipedia Mirror

Template:Unreferenced Template:Infobox Prefecture Japan Template:Nihongo is a prefecture of Japan located on Kyūshū Island. The capital is the city of Kumamoto.

History

Historically the area was called Higo Province and was renamed to Kumamoto Prefecture during the Meiji Restoration as part of the abolition of the feudal system. The current Japanese orthography for Kumamoto literally means "bear root/origin", or "origin of the bear".

Geography

File:KumamotoMapCurrent.png

Map of Kumamoto Prefecture showing municipal boundaries.

Kumamoto Prefecture is located in the center of Kyūshū, the southernmost of the four major Japanese islands. It is bordered by the Ariake inland sea and the Amakusa archipelago to the west, Fukuoka Prefecture and Ōita Prefecture to the north, Miyazaki Prefecture to the east, and Kagoshima Prefecture to the south.

Mt. Aso (1592 m), an extensive active volcano, is in the east of Kumamoto Prefecture. This volcano is located at the center of the Aso caldera, the most famous caldera in Japan.

Cities

Fourteen cities are located in Kumamoto Prefecture:

Towns and villages

Towns and villages in each district:

Amakusa District

Reihoku

Ashikita District

Ashikita

Tsunagi

Aso District

Kamimashiki District

Kamoto District

Ueki

Kikuchi District

Kikuyō

Ōzu

Kuma District

Shimomashiki District

Jōnan

Misato

Tamana District

Yatsushiro District

Hikawa

Mergers

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Economy

Kumamoto hosts a large Honda automobile plant. In 2007, a Honda factory on the site began to produce non-silicon solar cells for homes and businesses, with a projected capacity roughly equivalent to 8,000 households/year.[1]

Demographics

Tourism

Kumamoto's main tourist attractions consist of Mt. Aso, one of the worlds largest active volcanoes, Kumamoto castle and Suizenji park. There is also a Mitsui Greenland amusement park in Arao.