Administrative divisions of Japan

The bureaucratic administration of Japan is divided into three basic levels; national, prefectural and municipal. Below the national government there are 47 prefectures, six of which are further subdivided into sub-prefectures to better service large geographical areas or remote islands. The municipalities (cities, towns and villages) are the lowest level of government; the twenty most-populated cities outside of Tokyo are known as designated cities and are sub-divided into wards.

Prefectural divisions

47 prefectural entities of Japan

The top tier of administrative divisions are the 47 prefectural entities: 43 prefectures (県 ken) proper, 2 urban prefectures (府 fu, Osaka, and Kyoto), 1 "circuit" (道 dō, Hokkaido), and 1 "metropolis" (都 to, Tokyo). Although different in name they are functionally the same.

To

Tokyo is referred to as a "metropolis" (都 to) after the dissolution of Tokyo City in 1943, Tōkyō-fu (Tokyo Prefecture) was upgraded into Tōkyō-to and the former Tokyo City's wards was upgraded into special wards.

Dō

Hokkaido is referred to as a "circuit" (道 dō), this term was originally used to refer to Japanese regions consisting of several provinces. This was also a historical usage of the character in China.

Fu

Osaka Prefecture and Kyoto Prefecture are referred to as a "urban prefecture" (府 fu). The Classical Chinese character from which this is derived implies a core urban zone of national importance.

Ken

"Prefecture" (県 ken) are the most common types of prefectural divisions total of 43 ken. The Classical Chinese character from which this is derived carries a rural or provincial connotation, now this character is used as county in China.

Sub-prefectural divisions

There are only two types of Sub-prefectural divisions: Subprefecture and District.

Subprefecture

Subprefectures (支庁 shichō) are a Japanese form of self-government which focuses on local issues below the prefectural level. It acts as part of the greater administration of the state and as part of a self-government system.^[1]

District

Districts (郡 gun) were administrative units in use between 1878 and 1921 that were roughly equivalent to the counties of China or the United States. In the 1920s municipal functions were transferred from district offices to the offices of the towns and villages within the district. District names remain in the postal address of towns and villages, and districts are sometimes used as boundaries for electoral districts, but otherwise serve no official function. The Classical Chinese character from which this is derived means commandery.

Municipal divisions

1,742 municipal and 175 sub-municipal entities of Japan

The municipal divisions are divided into three main categories city, town, and village. However the city entities are further categorized. The Special wards of Tokyo are also consider as municipal divisions.

Cities

Cities in Japan are categorize into different four types from the highest designated city, core city, special city, and a regular city the lowest.

Designated city

A city designated by government ordinance (政令指定都市 seirei shitei toshi), also known as a designated city (指定都市 shitei toshi) or government ordinance city (政令市 seirei shi), is a Japanese city that has a population greater than 500,000 and has been designated as such by an order of the cabinet of Japan under Article 252, Section 19 of the Local Autonomy Law. Designated cities are also subdivided into wards.

Core city

A core city (中核市 Chūkakushi) is a Japanese city that has a population greater than 300,000 and an area greater than 100 square kilometers, although special exceptions may be made by order of the cabinet for cities with populations under 300,000 but over 200,000.^[2] Core city was created by the first clause of Article 252, Section 22 of the Local Autonomy Law of Japan.

Special city

A special city (特例市 Tokureishi) of Japan is a city with a population of at least 200,000. This category was established by the Local Autonomy Law, article 252 clause 26.

City

A city (市 shi) is a local administrative unit in Japan with a population of at least 50,000 of which at least 60% of households must be established in a central urban area, and at least 60% of households must be employed in commerce, industry or other urban occupations. Cities are ranked on the same level as towns (町 machi) and villages (村 mura); the only difference is that they are not a component of districts (郡 gun). Like other contemporary administrative units, they are defined by the Local Autonomy Law of 1947.

Town

A town (町; chō or machi) is a local administrative unit in Japan. It is a local public body along with prefecture (ken or other equivalents), city (shi), and village (mura). Geographically, a town is contained within a prefecture.

Village

A village (村 mura, sometimes son) is a local administrative unit in Japan. It is a local public body along with prefecture (県 ken, or other equivalents), city (市 shi), and town (町 chō, sometimes machi). Geographically, a village's extent is contained within a prefecture. It is larger than an actual settlement, being in actuality a subdivision of a rural district (郡 gun), which are subdivided into towns and villages with no overlap and no uncovered area.

Special Ward

The special wards (特別区 tokubetsu-ku) are 23 municipalities that together make up the core and the most populous part of Tokyo, Japan. Together, they occupy the land that was originally the City of Tokyo before it was abolished in 1943 to become part of the newly created Tokyo Metropolis. The special wards' structure was established under the Japanese Local Autonomy Law and is unique to Tokyo.

Sub-municipal divisions

Ward

A ward (区 ku) is a subdivision of the cities of Japan that are large enough to have been designated by government ordinance.^[3]

History

Although the details of local administration have changed dramatically over time, the basic outline of the current two-tiered system since the abolition of the han system by the Meiji government in 1871 are similar. Before the abolition of the han system Japan was divided into province (国 kuni) then subdivided into district (郡 gun) and then village (里/郷 sato) at the bottom.

Structural hierarchy

Prefectural	Sub-prefectural		Municipal	Sub-municipal
Prefectures (excluding Tokyo)	Subprefecture		"designated city"	Ward
	→
	District		Town Village	none
	Subprefecture	District
		→	"core city" "special city" City
	→
Metropolis			City Special wards
	District Subprefecture		Town Village

Level		Type	Kanji	Romaji	No.
Prefectural		Tokyo Metropolis	都	to	1
		"circuit"	道	dō	1
		"urban prefecture"	府	fu	2
		Prefecture	県	ken	43
	Sub-prefectural	Subprefecture	支厅	shichō	158
		District	郡	gun	374
Municipal		"designated city"	政令指定都市	seirei shitei toshi	20
		"core city"	中核市	chūkaku-shi	42
		"special city"	特例市	tokurei-shi	40
		City	市	shi	688
		Town	町	chō or machi	746
		Village	村	mura or son	183
		Special ward	特別区	tokubetsu-ku	23
	Sub-municipal	Ward	区	ku	175

Prefecture	Kanji	Region	City [all-types] (Special ward)	Ward	District	Town	Village
Aichi	愛知県	Chūbu	38	16	7	14	2
Akita	秋田県	Tōhoku	13		6	9	3
Aomori	青森県	Tōhoku	10		8	22	8
Chiba	千葉県	Kantō	37	6	6	16	1
Ehime	愛媛県	Shikoku	11		7	9
Fukui	福井県	Chūbu	9		7	17
Fukuoka	福岡県	Kyushu	28	14	12	30	2
Fukushima	福島県	Tōhoku	13		13	31	15
Gifu	岐阜県	Chūbu	21		9	19	2
Gunma	群馬県	Kantō	12		7	15	8
Hiroshima	広島県	Chūgoku	14	8	5	9
Hokkaidō	北海道	Hokkaido	35	10	66	129	15[4]
Hyōgo	兵庫県	Kansai	29	9	8	12
Ibaraki	茨城県	Kantō	32		7	10	2
Ishikawa	石川県	Chūbu	11		5	8
Iwate	岩手県	Tōhoku	14		10	15	4
Kagawa	香川県	Shikoku	8		5	9
Kagoshima	鹿児島県	Kyushu	19		8	20	4
Kanagawa	神奈川県	Kantō	19	28	6	13	1
Kōchi	愛知県	Shikoku	11		6	17	6
Kumamoto	熊本県	Kyushu	14	5	9	23	8
Kyōto	京都府	Kansai	15	11	6	10	1
Mie	三重県	Kansai	14		7	15
Miyagi	宮城県	Tōhoku	13	5	10	21	1
Miyazaki	宮崎県	Kyushu	9		6	14	3
Nagano	長野県	Chūbu	19		14	23	35
Nagasaki	長崎県	Kyushu	13		4	8
Nara	奈良県	Kansai	12		7	15	12
Niigata	新潟県	Chūbu	20	8	9	6	4
Ōita	大分県	Kyushu	14		3	3	1
Okayama	岡山県	Chūgoku	15	4	10	10	2
Okinawa	沖縄県	Kyushu	11		5	11	19
Ōsaka	大阪府	Kansai	33	31	5	9	1
Saga	佐賀県	Kyushu	10		6	10
Saitama	埼玉県	Kantō	40	10	8	22	1
Shiga	滋賀県	Kansai	13		3	6
Shimane	島根県	Chūgoku	8		5	10	1
Shizuoka	静岡県	Chūbu	23	10	5	12
Tochigi	栃木県	Kantō	14		5	12
Tokushima	徳島県	Shikoku	8		8	15	1
Tōkyō	東京都	Kantō	26 (23)		1	5	8
Tottori	鳥取県	Chūgoku	4		5	14	1
Toyama	富山県	Chūbu	10		2	4	1
Wakayama	和歌山県	Kansai	9		6	20	1
Yamagata	山形県	Tōhoku	13		8	19	3
Yamaguchi	山口県	Chūgoku	13		4	6
Yamanashi	山梨県	Chūbu	13		5	8	6

References

1. Imperial Japanese Commission to the Louisiana Purchase Exposition. (1903). Japan in the beginning of the 20th century, p. 80.
2. http://nippon.zaidan.info/seikabutsu/1999/00168/contents/145.htm
3. "Statistical Handbook of Japan 2008" by Statistics Bureau, Japan Chapter 17: Government System (Retrieved on July 4, 2009)
4. Not inducing the 6 villages in the Kuril Islands dispute area.

External links