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Ibaraki Prefecture

Coordinates: 36°14′N 140°17′E / 36.233°N 140.283°E / 36.233; 140.283
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For the city, see Ibaraki, Osaka.

Template:Infobox Prefecture Japan

Ibaraki Prefecture (茨城県, Ibaraki-ken) is a prefecture of Japan, located in the Kantō region.[1] The capital is Mito.[2]

History

See also: Historic Sites of Ibaraki Prefecture

Ibaraki Prefecture was previously known as Hitachi Province. In 1871, the name of the province became Ibaraki.

Geography

Map of Ibaraki Prefecture
     City      Town
Mito
Tsukuba
Tsuchiura
Kashima

Ibaraki Prefecture is the northeastern part of the Kantō region, stretching between Tochigi Prefecture and the Pacific Ocean and bounded on the north and south by Fukushima Prefecture and Chiba Prefecture. It also has a border on the southwest with Saitama Prefecture. The northernmost part of the prefecture is mountainous, but most of the prefecture is a flat plain with many lakes.

As of 1 April 2012, 15% of the total land area of the prefecture was designated as Natural Parks, namely Suigo-Tsukuba Quasi-National Park and nine Prefectural Natural Parks.[3]

Cities

Thirty-two (32) cities are located in Ibaraki Prefecture:

Towns and villages

These are the towns and villages in each district:

Mergers

Main article: List of mergers in Ibaraki Prefecture

Economy

Ibaraki's industries include energy production, particularly nuclear energy, as well as chemical and precision machining industries. Hitachi is a world wide company as well as a city name where the company was founded.

Pdddy field at Mt. Tsukuba foot
Lotus field and Joban Line
Sweet potato field

Ibaraki is an agricultural prefecture contributing more or less to Japanese dining tables. As of March 2011, the prefecture produced 25% of Japan's bell peppers and Chinese cabbage.[4]

Demographics

Ibaraki's population is decreasing more rapidly than any other prefecture.[5]

Culture

Ibaraki is known for nattō, or fermented soybeans, in Mito, watermelons in Kyōwa (recently merged into Chikusei), and chestnuts in the Nishiibaraki region.

Ibaraki is famous for the martial art of Aikido founded by Ueshiba Morihei, also known as Osensei. Ueshiba spent the latter part of his life in the town of Iwama, now part of Kasama, and the Aiki Shrine and dojo he created still remain.[6]

There are castle ruins in many cities, including Mito, Kasama, and Yūki.

Kasama is famous for Shinto, art culture and pottery.[citation needed]

The capital Mito is home to Kairakuen, one of Japan's three most celebrated gardens, and famous for its over 3,000 Japanese plum trees of over 100 varieties.

Education

University

Sports

The sports teams listed below are based in Ibaraki.

Prefectural Kashima Soccer Stadium

Football (soccer)

Volleyball

Rugby

Baseball

  • Ibaraki Golden Golds (Regional club)

Wrestling

  • Hitachi Pro Wrestling (Regional group)

Basketball

Tourism

  • A panoramic view of Kasumigaura and Tsuchiura, from　Mount Hokyo
    A panoramic view of Kasumigaura and Tsuchiura, from　Mount Hokyo
  • Fukuroda waterfalls in Daigo
    Fukuroda waterfalls in Daigo
  • A view of Mount Tsukuba, from Tsukuba City
    A view of Mount Tsukuba, from Tsukuba City
  • A view of Suigo Itako Iris Garden
    A view of Suigo Itako Iris Garden
  • A view of Rokkakudo and Pacific Ocean in Kitaibaraki
    A view of Rokkakudo and Pacific Ocean in Kitaibaraki
  • Torii of Oarai Coast
    Torii of Oarai Coast
  • Nemophila in spring in Hitachi Seaside Park
    Nemophila in spring in Hitachi Seaside Park

Transportation and access

Railways

Cable cars

Roads

Expressways

National highways

Ports

  • Kashima Port

Airports

Pronunciation

The prefecture is often alternatively pronounced "Ibaragi" by those who speak the regional dialect known as Ibaraki-ben. However, the correct pronunciation is "Ibaraki". According to the author of "Not Ibaragi, Ibaraki",[7] this is most likely due to a mishearing of the softening of the "k" sound in Ibaraki dialect.

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Ibaraki-ken" in Japan Encyclopedia, p. 367, at Google Books; "Kantō" in Japan Encyclopedia, p. 479, at Google Books.
  2. ^ Nussbaum, "Mito" at Japan Encyclopedia, p. 642, at Google Books.
  3. ^ "General overview of area figures for Natural Parks by prefecture" (PDF). Ministry of the Environment. 1 April 2012. Retrieved 9 November 2013.
  4. ^ Schreiber, Mark, "Japan's food crisis goes beyond recent panic buying", The Japan Times, 17 April 2011, p. 9.
  5. ^ "Gov't data show exodus to Tokyo from other parts of Japan continues". Japan Today. 1 February 2019. Archived from the original on 3 February 2019.
  6. ^ Aikikai Foundation Ibaraki Branch Dojo "[1] Founder and Iwama", Retrieved August 25 2017
  7. ^ いばらぎじゃなくていばらき [Ibaragi ja Nakute Ibaraki]

References

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Ibaraki.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ibaraki prefecture.

36°14′N 140°17′E / 36.233°N 140.283°E / 36.233; 140.283

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