The Japanese addressing system is used to identify a specific location in Japan .
94-615: Toyosu ( 豊洲 ) is neighborhood in Kōtō, Tokyo . Toyosu has six numbered chome ("blocks"). It is the location of the wholesale Toyosu Market , which took the role of the Tsukiji fish market after it became solely a tourist attraction. Located in Tsukiji in central Tokyo between the Sumida River and the upmarket Ginza shopping district, the wholesale market is open to the trade only and does not allow access to visitors . In 1937,
188-587: A compromise between 海北道 and 北加伊道 because of the similarity with names such as Tōkaidō ( 東海道 ) . According to Matsuura, the name was thought up because the Ainu called the region Kai . The kai element also strongly resembles the On'yomi , or Sino-Japanese , reading of the characters 蝦夷 ( on'yomi as [ ka.i , カイ], kun'yomi as [ e.mi.ɕi , えみし]) which have been used for over a thousand years in China and Japan as
282-895: A conducive environment for emigration and settlement. However, the Japanese did not have expertise in modern agricultural techniques, and only possessed primitive mining and lumbering methods. Kuroda Kiyotaka was put in charge of the project, and turned to the United States for help. His first step was to journey to the United States and recruit Horace Capron , President Ulysses S. Grant's commissioner of agriculture. From 1871 to 1873 Capron bent his efforts to expounding Western agriculture and mining, with mixed results. Frustrated with obstacles to his efforts, Capron returned home in 1875. In 1876, William S. Clark arrived to found an agricultural college in Sapporo . Although he only remained
376-516: A large number of ships in ports along Hokkaidō's southern coastline as well as in northern Honshu. In addition, on 15 July a force of three battleships and two light cruisers bombarded the city of Muroran . Before the Japanese surrender was formalized, the Soviet Union made preparations for an invasion of Hokkaidō , but U.S. President Harry Truman made it clear that the surrender of all of
470-412: A name. Unlike in other nations, named roads are not used in addresses but merely for logistic purposes; excepting in the above-mentioned Kyoto system. Hokkaid%C5%8D Hokkaido ( Japanese : 北海道 , Hepburn : Hokkaidō , pronounced [hokkaꜜidoː] , lit. ' Northern Sea Circuit ' ) (Ainu: Ainu Moshiri) is the second-largest island of Japan and comprises
564-580: A result, the majority of Japanese of Ainu descent have no knowledge of their heritage and culture. When establishing the Development Commission , the Meiji government decided to change the name of Ezochi. Matsuura Takeshirō submitted six proposals, including names such as Kaihokudō ( 海北道 ) and Hokkaidō ( 北加伊道 ) , to the government. The government eventually decided to use the name Hokkaidō, but decided to write it as 北海道 , as
658-680: A smaller movement known as the Menashi–Kunashir rebellion was crushed. After that rebellion, the terms "Japanese" and "Ainu" referred to clearly distinguished groups, and the Matsumae were unequivocally Japanese. According to John A. Harrison of the University of Florida , prior to 1868 Japan used proximity as its claim to Hokkaido, Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands ; however, Japan had never thoroughly explored, governed, or exploited
752-529: A whole. During the Jomon period the local culture and the associated hunter-gatherer lifestyle flourished in Hokkaidō, beginning over 15,000 years ago. In contrast to the island of Honshu, Hokkaidō saw an absence of conflict during this time period. Jomon beliefs in natural spirits are theorized to be the origins of Ainu spirituality. About 2,000 years ago, the island was colonized by Yayoi people, and much of
846-399: A year, Clark left a lasting impression on Hokkaidō, inspiring the Japanese with his teachings on agriculture as well as Christianity. His parting words, "Boys, be ambitious!" , can be found on public buildings in Hokkaidō to this day. The population of Hokkaidō increased from 58,000 to 240,000 during that decade. Kuroda hired Capron for $ 10,000 per year and paid for all expenses related to
940-434: Is seismically active. Aside from numerous earthquakes , the following volcanoes are considered still active (at least one eruption since 1850): In 1993, an earthquake of magnitude 7.7 generated a tsunami which devastated Okushiri , killing 202 inhabitants. An earthquake of magnitude 8.3 struck near the island on September 26, 2003. On September 6, 2018, an earthquake of magnitude 6.6 struck with its epicenter near
1034-423: Is "7-2" in both Japanese and roman, though the Japanese (literally Marunouchi 2-Chōme 7-2 ) is partly reversed to "7-2, Marunouchi 2-Chōme" in roman if chōme is separate. Similarly, if the chōme is included, these also form a unit, so in this example the string is 2-7-2 in both Japanese and Western alphabet. As mentioned above, there are certain areas of Japan that use somewhat unusual address systems. Sometimes
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#17327808409851128-674: Is 83,423.84 km (32,210.12 sq mi) which make it the second-largest island of Japan. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu ( Aomori Prefecture ); La Pérouse Strait separates Hokkaidō from the island of Sakhalin in Russia; Nemuro Strait separates Hokkaidō from Kunashir Island in the Russian Kuril Islands . The governmental jurisdiction of Hokkaidō incorporates several smaller islands, including Rishiri , Okushiri Island , and Rebun . (By Japanese reckoning, Hokkaidō also incorporates several of
1222-433: Is almost 11 times bigger than the national average of 2.4 hectares. Tourism is an important industry, especially during the cool summertime when visitors are attracted to Hokkaidō's open spaces from hotter and more humid parts of Japan and other Asian countries. During the winter, skiing and other winter sports bring other tourists, and increasingly international ones, to the island. Coal mining played an important role in
1316-492: Is an east–west cross street). The street address may alternatively be given as 烏丸通七条下ル (with street ( 通 , dōri ) inserted), indicating clearly that the address is on Karasuma street. However, the system is flexible and allows for various alternatives, such as: For less well known buildings, the official address is often given after the informal one, as in the address for the Shinatora Ramen restaurant: As
1410-681: Is common to form them into a string separated by hyphens or the possessive suffix の ( no ), resulting in Asakusa 4-5-10 or Asakusa 4の5の10. This renders the two styles indistinguishable, but since each municipality adopts one style or the other, there is no risk of ambiguity. The apartment number may also be appended, resulting in 4-5-10-103. Street names are seldom used in postal addresses (except in Kyoto and some Hokkaidō cities such as Sapporo ). Banchi blocks often have an irregular shape, as banchi numbers were assigned by order of registration in
1504-653: Is divided into 179 municipalities. There are 35 cities in Hokkaidō: These are the towns and villages in Hokkaido Prefecture: As Japan's coldest region, Hokkaidō has relatively cool summers and icy/snowy winters. Most of the island falls in the humid continental climate zone with Köppen climate classification Dfb ( hemiboreal ) in most areas but Dfa (hot summer humid continental) in some inland lowlands. The average August temperature ranges from 17 to 22 °C (62.6 to 71.6 °F), while
1598-491: Is easily understood. For example, 京都市 Kyōto-shi is abbreviated to 京、 Kyō– and 下京区 Shimogyō-ku is abbreviated to 下、 Shimo– . Combining these (and dropping okurigana ), one may abbreviate the address of Kyoto Tower to: Sapporo's system, though official, differs in structure from regular Japanese addresses. The city-center is divided into quadrants by two intersecting roads, Kita-Ichijo and Soseigawa; blocks are then named based on their distance from this point, and farther from
1692-599: Is normally not affected by the June–July rainy season and the relative lack of humidity and typically warm, rather than hot, summer weather makes its climate an attraction for tourists from other parts of Japan. Hokkaidō's largest city is the capital, Sapporo , which is a designated city. The island has two core cities: Hakodate in the south and Asahikawa in the central region. Other important population centers include Tomakomai , Iwamizawa , Kushiro , Obihiro , Kitami , Abashiri , Wakkanai , and Nemuro . Although there
1786-581: Is often believed to be present-day Hokkaidō. However, many theories exist concerning the details of this event, including the location of Watarishima and the common belief that the Emishi in Watarishima were the ancestors of the present-day Ainu people . During the Nara and Heian periods (710–1185), people in Hokkaidō conducted trade with Dewa Province , an outpost of the Japanese central government. From
1880-416: Is some light industry (most notably paper milling and beer brewing) most of the population is employed by the service sector. In 2001, the service sector and other tertiary industries generated more than three-quarters of the gross domestic product. Agriculture and other primary industries play a large role in Hokkaidō's economy. Hokkaidō has nearly one fourth of Japan's total arable land. It ranks first in
1974-449: Is the name of the city district; and 7-2 is the city block and building number. In practice it is common for the chōme to be prefixed, as in Japanese, resulting in the somewhat shorter: While almost all elements of the address are reversed when written in rōmaji , connected strings of numbers are treated as units and not reversed. Firstly, the "city block and building number" is a unit, and its digits are not reversed – in this example it
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#17327808409852068-496: Is the only one of the eight to have such offices covering the whole of its territory outside the main cities (rather than having them just for outlying islands or remote areas). This is mostly because of its great size; many parts of the prefecture are simply too far away to be effectively administered by Sapporo. Subprefectural offices in Hokkaidō carry out many of the duties that prefectural offices fulfill elsewhere in Japan. Hokkaidō
2162-534: Is zoned to Toyosu Elementary School ( 豊洲小学校 ). Toyosu 5-6-chome are zoned to Toyosu West Elementary School ( 豊洲西小学校 ). Toyosu 1-4-chome and much of 5-chome are zoned to Fukagawa 5th Junior High School ( 深川第五中学校 ). Toyosu 6-chome and parts of 5-chome are zoned to Ariake Nishi Gakuen ( 有明西学園 ) for junior high school. 35°39′18″N 139°47′46″E / 35.65500°N 139.79611°E / 35.65500; 139.79611 Japanese addressing system When written in Japanese characters , addresses start with
2256-596: The iroha ordering (イ・ロ・ハ・ニ ... ) instead of numbers for blocks. These are called bu (部). For example, the address of the Kagaya Hotel in Nanao is: Some cities, including parts of Nagaoka, Niigata , use jikkan (甲・乙・丙 ... ) prefixed to the block number to indicate traditional divisions. These function similarly to chōme and are treated as such in addresses. For example, Yoita police station in Nagaoka has
2350-426: The special ward ( 特別区 , tokubetsu-ku ) with added authority to the mayors. For smaller municipalities, the address includes the district ( gun , 郡) followed by the town ( chō or machi , 町) or village ( mura or son , 村). In Japan, a city is separate from districts, which contain towns and villages. For addressing purposes, municipalities may be divided into chō or machi (two different readings of
2444-463: The Ainu language as critically endangered. Given the Meiji state's full political control over the island, the subsequent subjugation of its indigenous inhabitants, aggressive economic exploitation, and ambitious permanent settlement endeavors, Hokkaido emerged as the sole successful settler colony of Japan. After the Meiji colonization of Hokkaido, Meiji Japan depended on prison labour to accelerate
2538-635: The Hakodate Main Line or large roads to mark the new numbering. For example, far in the outskirts is the Sapporo Tachibana Hospital, at: Building 12 on block 3 of a chōme measuring 11 jō north and 2 chōme west of where the Hakodate Main Line meets Tarukawa Street. Or Toyohira Ward office, at: Building 1 on block 1 of a chōme measuring 6 jō south and 10 chōme east of where a small street meets
2632-582: The Japanese home islands would be accepted by General Douglas MacArthur per the 1943 Cairo Declaration . Hokkaidō became equal with other prefectures in 1947, when the revised Local Autonomy Act became effective. The Japanese central government established the Hokkaidō Development Agency ( 北海道開発庁 , Hokkaidō Kaihatsuchō ) as an agency of the Prime Minister 's Office in 1949 to maintain its executive power in Hokkaidō. The agency
2726-455: The Kuril Islands , which are administered by Russia , though the four most southerly are claimed by Japan . The position of the island on the northern end of the archipelago results in a colder climate, with the island seeing significant snowfall each winter. Despite the harsher climate, it serves as an agricultural breadbasket for many crops. Hokkaido was formerly known as Ezo , Yezo , Yeso , or Yesso . Although Japanese settlers ruled
2820-406: The Kuril Islands .) Hokkaidō Prefecture is the largest and northernmost Japanese prefecture . The island ranks 21st in the world by area . Hokkaidō has the third-largest population of Japan's five main islands, with 5,111,691 people as of 2023 . It has the lowest population density in Japan, with just 61 inhabitants per square kilometre (160/sq mi). Hokkaidō ranks 21st in population among
2914-546: The Oshima Peninsula , with a series of fortified residences such as that of Shinoridate . As more people moved to the settlement to avoid battles, disputes arose between the Japanese and the Ainu. The disputes eventually developed into war. Takeda Nobuhiro (1431 – 1494) killed the Ainu leader, Koshamain, and defeated the opposition in 1457. Nobuhiro's descendants became the rulers of the Matsumae-han , which
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3008-807: The Sea of Japan (to the west of the island), the Sea of Okhotsk (to the north), and the Pacific Ocean (to the east). The center of the island is mountainous, with volcanic plateaux . Hokkaidō has multiple plains such as the Ishikari Plain 3,800 km (1,500 sq mi), Tokachi Plain 3,600 km (1,400 sq mi), the Kushiro Plain [ ja ] 2,510 km (970 sq mi) (the largest wetland in Japan) and Sarobetsu Plain 200 km (77 sq mi). Hokkaidō
3102-409: The Sea of Okhotsk is often complicated by large floes of drift ice . Combined with high winds that occur during winter, this frequently brings air travel and maritime activity to a halt beyond the northern coast of Hokkaidō. Ports on the open Pacific Ocean and Sea of Japan are generally ice-free year round, though most rivers freeze during the winter. Unlike the other major islands of Japan, Hokkaidō
3196-731: The Toyohira River . The direction is understood based on the quadrant of the city the jō is considered to be in, which may be off from the actual direction to the city center, depending on the landmark used. Far-flung and less crowded parts of the city may instead use a standard chō name, rather than a numbered jō , such as Makomanai . Many areas of Ōita Prefecture including the cities of Ōita and Usuki commonly use an unofficial parallel system known as "administrative wards" ( 行政区 , gyōseiku ) or "neighbourhood council names" ( 自治会名 , jichikaimei ) . While outwardly similar, these addresses end in kumi (組) or ku (区): As
3290-449: The chō divisions are very small, numerous, and there is often more than one chō with the same name within a single ward, making the system extremely confusing. As a result, most residents of Kyoto use an unofficial system based instead on street names, a form of vernacular geography . This system is, however, recognized by the post office and by government agencies. For added precision, the street-based address can be given, followed by
3384-506: The feudal period , the people in Hokkaidō began to be called Ezo . Hokkaidō subsequently became known as Ezochi ( 蝦夷地 , lit. "Ezo-land") or Ezogashima ( 蝦夷ヶ島 , lit. "Island of the Ezo") . The Ezo mainly relied upon hunting and fishing and obtained rice and iron through trade with the Japanese. During the Muromachi period (1336–1573), the Japanese established a settlement at the south of
3478-411: The "land of gods" ( kamuymosir ). When contrasted with sisammosir (the land of the neighbors, often pointing to Honshu or Japanese settlements on the southern tip of Hokkaido), it means the land of the Ainu people, which, depending on context, can refer to Hokkaido, although from a modern ethnolinguistic point of view, the Ainu people have extended their domain to a large part of Sakhalin and
3572-549: The "transformation" theory postulates that native Jōmon peoples changed gradually with the infusion of Yayoi immigrants into the Tōhoku region of northern Honshu, in contrast to the "replacement" theory that posits the Jōmon was replaced by the Yayoi. There were numerous revolts by the Ainu against feudal rule. The last large-scale resistance was Shakushain's revolt in 1669–1672. In 1789,
3666-581: The Ainu as "inhuman and the inferior descendants of dogs". The Tokugawa irregularly imposed various assimilation programs on the Ainu due to the Tokugawa's perception of a threat from Russia. For example, assimilation programs were implemented in response to perceived threats from Russia, which included the Laxman expedition [ ru ] of 1793 and the Golovnin Incident of 1804. Once
3760-525: The Ainu people by forcing them to leave their traditional lands and relocating them to the rugged, mountainous regions in the center of the island. The act prohibited the Ainu from fishing and hunting, which were their main source of subsistence. The Ainu were valued primarily as a source of inexpensive manual labor, and discriminatory assimilation policies further entrenched their sense of inferiority as well as worsened poverty and disease within Ainu communities. These policies exacerbated diasporic trends among
3854-603: The Ainu population, as many sought employment with the government or private enterprises, often earning meager wages that barely sustained their families. The Meiji government embarked on assimilation campaigns aimed not only at assimilating the Ainu but also eradicating their language and culture entirely. They were forced to take on Japanese names and language, and gradually saw their culture and traditions eroded. The Ainu were forbidden to speak their own language and taught only Japanese at school. Facing pervasive stigma, many Ainu concealed their heritage. UNESCO has recognized
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3948-613: The Development Commission was to secure Hokkaidō before the Russians extended their control of the Far East beyond Vladivostok . The Japanese failed to settle in the interior lowlands of the island because of aboriginal resistance. The resistance was eventually destroyed, and the lowlands were under the control of the commission. The most important goal of the Japanese was to increase the farm population and to create
4042-434: The Emishi of northern Honshu were a distinctive group related to the Ainu. The Emishi were conquered and integrated into the Japanese state dating back as far as the 8th century and as result began to lose their distinctive culture and ethnicity as they became minorities. By the time the Matsumae clan ruled over the Ainu, most of the Emishi were ethnically mixed and physically closer to Japanese than they were to Ainu. From this,
4136-422: The Japanese was organized and supported through collaboration between the Japanese state and American experts and technology. From the 1870s to the 1880s, Japanese leaders placed their efforts on settling Hokkaido by systematically migrating former samurai lords, samurai retainers, and common citizens, which included farmers and peasants, providing them with "free" land and financial assistance. This transformation
4230-596: The Pacific side. The generally high quality of powder snow and numerous mountains in Hokkaidō make it a popular region for snow sports. The snowfall usually commences in earnest in November and ski resorts (such as those at Niseko, Furano, Teine and Rusutsu) usually operate between December and April. Hokkaidō celebrates its winter weather at the Sapporo Snow Festival . During the winter, passage through
4324-486: The United States. This included declaring large portions of Hokkaido as ownerless land, providing a pretext for the dispossession of the Ainu people. Japan established the Hokkaido Colonization Board in 1869, a year after the start of the Meiji era, with the goal of encouraging Japanese settlers to Hokkaido. Mainland Japanese settlers began migrating to Hokkaido, leading to Japan's colonization of
4418-503: The actual cardinal names of kita (north), minami (south), nishi (west), and higashi (east). The directional names for jō extend for about 7 kilometers to the north–south along the main Soseigawa Dori, but only about 3 kilometers at the most to the east and west; outside of that area, jō have other names, though the starting point of each is still the corner in the direction of the city center, often using landmarks such as
4512-411: The address is north ( 上ル , agaru , "above") , south ( 下ル , sagaru , "below") , east ( 東入ル , higashi-iru , "enter east") , or west ( 西入ル , nishi-iru , "enter west") of the intersection. More precisely, the two streets of the intersection are not treated symmetrically: one names the street that the address is on, then gives a nearby cross street, and then specifies the address relative to
4606-453: The address: The current addressing system was established after World War II as a slight modification of the scheme used since the Meiji era . For historical reasons, names quite frequently conflict. It is typical in Hokkaidō where many place names are identical to those found in the rest of Japan, for example Shin-Hiroshima (literally new Hiroshima) to Hiroshima, largely as the result of
4700-470: The area of Toyosu was created on reclaimed land . There were dockyard, power plant, gas plant, freight station, warehouses till the early 1990s. Its proximity to central Tokyo made it valuable real estate, so the redevelopment was robust. Highrise apartments, office buildings, shopping centres were built one after another. The former gas plant site was chosen in 2001 by former Governor of Tokyo Shintarō Ishihara for relocating Tsukiji fish market , but there
4794-594: The areas, and this claim was invalidated by the movement of Russia into the Northeast Pacific area and by Russian settlements on Kamchatka (from 1699), Sakhalin (1850s) and the Sea of Okhotsk Coast (1640s onwards). Prior to the Meiji Restoration of 1868, the Tokugawa shogunate realized the need to prepare northern defenses against a possible Russian invasion and took over control of most of Ezochi in 1855-1858. Many Japanese settlers regarded
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#17327808409854888-498: The average January temperature ranges from −12 to −4 °C (10.4 to 24.8 °F), in both cases depending on elevation and distance from the ocean, though temperatures on the western side of the island tend to be a little warmer than on the eastern. The highest temperature ever recorded is 39.5 °C (103.1 °F) on 26 May 2019. The northern portion of Hokkaidō falls into the taiga biome with significant snowfall. Snowfall varies widely from as much as 11 metres (400 in) on
4982-686: The character 町, depending on the particular case) and/or aza (字). Despite using the same character as town, the machi here is purely a unit of address, not administration; likewise, there are also ku address divisions that are not administrative special wards. There are two common schemes: However, exceptions abound, and the line between the schemes is often blurry as there are no clear delimiters for machi , aza , etc. There are also some municipalities like Ryūgasaki, Ibaraki which do not use any subdivisions. Below this level, two styles of addressing are possible. In both styles, since all address elements from chōme down are numeric, in casual use it
5076-429: The chō and land number. Sometimes multiple houses share a given land number, in which case the name (either just family name, or full name of resident) must also be specified; this name is generally displayed in front of the house on a hyōsatsu ( 表札 , name plate ) , often decoratively presented, as are house numbers in other countries. The system works by naming the intersection of two streets and then indicating if
5170-421: The city center, multiple blocks are included in each. The east–west distance is indicated by chōme (a slightly unorthodox usage of chōme ), while the north–south distance is indicated by jō , which has been incorporated into the chō name. The address to Sapporo JR Tower is: This address indicates that it is the fifth building on a block located on 5 jō north and 2 chōme west of the center, named with
5264-423: The city district name and block number, and detailed block maps of the immediate area are sometimes posted near bus stops and train stations in larger cities. In addition to the address itself, all locations in Japan have a postal code . After the reform of 1998, this begins with a three-digit number, a hyphen, and a four-digit number, for example 123-4567. A postal mark , 〒, may precede the code to indicate that
5358-523: The city of Tomakomai , causing a blackout across the whole island. On May 16, 2021, an earthquake measuring 6.1 on the Richter scale struck off Japan's Hokkaidō prefecture. * designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO on 2005-07-14. As of April 2010 , Hokkaidō has nine General Subprefectural Bureaus (総合振興局) and five Subprefectural Bureaus (振興局). Hokkaidō is one of eight prefectures in Japan that have subprefectures (支庁 shichō ). However, it
5452-922: The colonization process. The Japanese built three prisons and rendered Hokkaido a prison island, where political prisoners were incarcerated and used as prison labour. During the opening ceremony of the first prison, the Ainu name “Shibetsuputo” was replaced with the Japanese name “Tsukigata,” as an attempt to “Japanize” Hokkaido's geography. The second prison opened near the Hokutan Horonai coal mine , where Ainu people were forced to work. Cheap prison labour played an important role in coal and sulphur mining, as well as road construction in Hokkaido. Eventually, several types of indentured labour, Korean labour, child labour and women labour replaced convict labour in Hokkaido. Working conditions were difficult and dangerous. Japan's transition to capitalism depended heavily on
5546-537: The cross street. What this means is that a building can have more than one address depending on which cross street intersection is chosen. For instance, the address of Kyoto Tower is listed on their website as: Following the postcode, this contains the city and ward, followed by the unofficial address, a space, and then the official address: This address means "south of the intersection of Karasuma and Shichijō streets" – more precisely, "on Karasuma, below (south of) Shichijō" (Karasuma runs north–south, while Shichijō
5640-650: The differing system has been incorporated into the official system, as in Sapporo , while in Kyoto the system is completely different from, but used alongside the official system. Kyoto and Sapporo have addresses based on their streets being laid out in a grid plan , unlike most Japanese cities. Although the official national addressing system is in use in Kyoto – in Chiban style, with ward ( 区 , ku ) , district ( 丁目 , chōme ) , and land number ( 番地 , banchi ) ,
5734-570: The entire Kuril Islands. Another phrase, yaunmosir (ヤウンモシㇼ) has gained prominence. It literally means the "onshore land", as opposed to the "offshore land" ( repunmosir ), which, depending on context, can refer to the Kuril Islands, Honshu, or any foreign country. If the speaker is a resident of Hokkaido, yaunmosir can refer to Hokkaido. Yet another phrase, akor mosir (アコㇿモシㇼ) means " our (inclusive) land". If uttered among Hokkaido Ainus, it can refer to Hokkaido or Japan as
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#17327808409855828-555: The growth of the coal mining sector in Hokkaidō. The importance of coal from Hokkaidō increased throughout the First World War, and the mines required a large amount of labourers. In mid-July 1945, various shipping ports, cities, and military facilities in Hokkaidō were attacked by the United States Navy 's Task Force 38 . On 14–15 July, aircraft operating from the task force's aircraft carriers sank and damaged
5922-570: The imperial court and its proxies, the Kamakura shogunate and Ashikaga shogunate . Feudal strongmen sometimes defined their own roles within the medieval institutional order, taking shogunate titles, while in other times they assumed titles that seemed to give them a non-Japanese identity. In fact, many of the feudal strongmen were descended from Emishi military leaders who had been assimilated into Japanese society. The Matsumae clan were of Yamato descent like other ethnic Japanese people , whereas
6016-543: The industrial development of Hokkaidō, with the Ishikari coalfield . Cities such as Muroran were primarily developed to supply the rest of the archipelago with coal. In 2023, Rapidus Corporation announced Hokkaido's largest business investment with a 5 trillion yen plan to build a semiconductor manufacturing factory in Chitose . The site is expected to eventually host over 1,000 employees. Hokkaido's only land link to
6110-528: The initial part of the address is familiar, it is often abbreviated – for example, Kyōto-fu, Kyōto-shi ( 京都府京都市 , "Kyoto Prefecture, Kyoto City") can be abbreviated to Kyōto-shi ( 京都市 , "Kyoto City") , as in the Kyoto Tower listing. More informally, particularly on return addresses for in-town mail, the city and ward can be abbreviated to the initial character, with a dot or comma to indicate abbreviation – there are only 11 wards of Kyoto , so this
6204-489: The island's population shifted away from hunting and gathering towards agriculture. The Nihon Shoki , finished in 720 AD, is often said to be the first mention of Hokkaidō in recorded history . According to the text, Abe no Hirafu led a large navy and army to northern areas from 658 to 660 and came into contact with the Mishihase and Emishi . One of the places Hirafu went to was called Watarishima ( 渡島 ) , which
6298-531: The island. Motivated by capitalist and industrial goals, the Meiji government forcefully appropriated fertile land and mineral-rich regions throughout Hokkaido, without consideration for their historical Ainu inhabitancy. The Meiji government implemented land seizures and enacted land ownership laws that favored Japanese settlers, effectively stripping Ainu people of their customary land rights and traditional means of subsistence. The 1899 Hokkaido Former Aborigines Protection Act further marginalized and impoverished
6392-551: The island. There are more brown bears in Hokkaidō than anywhere else in Asia besides Russia. The Hokkaidō brown bear is separated into three distinct lineages. There are only eight lineages in the world. Those on Honshu died out long ago. The native conifer species in northern Hokkaidō is the Sakhalin fir ( Abies sachalinensis ). The flowering plant Hydrangea hirta is also found on the island. Like many areas of Japan, Hokkaidō
6486-416: The largest and northernmost prefecture , making up its own region . The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu ; the two islands are connected by the undersea railway Seikan Tunnel . The largest city on Hokkaido is its capital, Sapporo , which is also its only ordinance-designated city . Sakhalin lies about 43 kilometres (27 mi) to the north of Hokkaidō, and to the east and northeast are
6580-450: The largest geographical entity and proceed to the most specific one. The Japanese system is complex and idiosyncratic , the product of the natural growth of urban areas, as opposed to the systems used in cities that are laid out as grids and divided into quadrants or districts. When written in Latin characters , addresses follow the convention used by most Western addresses and start with
6674-807: The mission. Kuroda and his government were likely intrigued by Capron's previous colonial experience, particularly his involvement in the forced removal of Native Americans from Texas to new territories after the Mexican–American War . Capron introduced capital-intensive farming techniques by adopting American methods and tools, importing seeds for Western crops, and bringing in European livestock breeds, which included his favorite North Devon cattle . He founded experimental farms in Hokkaido, conducted surveys to assess mineral deposits and agricultural potential, and advocated for improvements in water access, mills, and roads. The settler colonization of Hokkaido by
6768-502: The mountains adjacent to the Sea of Japan down to around 1.8 metres (71 in) on the Pacific coast. The island tends to have isolated snowstorms that develop long-lasting snowbanks. Total precipitation varies from 1,600 millimetres (63 in) on the mountains of the Sea of Japan coast to around 800 millimetres (31 in) (the lowest in Japan) on the Sea of Okhotsk coast and interior lowlands and up to around 1,100 millimetres (43 in) on
6862-727: The names indicate, these derive from traditional neighbourhood councils. While they continue to be used locally (e.g. school and electoral districts) and may be accepted for mail delivery, they are not considered official addresses, and individual buildings in each kumi will also have a standard ōaza-banchi address. For example, Usuki City Hall, while within Suzaki 4-chome 1-kumi, has the formal address of Usuki 72–1, which may be prepended with ōaza [ ja ] for clarity: Some cities in Ishikawa Prefecture , including Kanazawa and Nanao , sometimes use katakana in
6956-404: The nation in the production of a host of agricultural products, including wheat, soybeans, potatoes, sugar beets, onions, pumpkins, corn, raw milk, and beef. Hokkaidō also accounts for 22% of Japan's forests with a sizable timber industry. The prefecture is first in the nation in production of marine products and aquaculture. The average farm size in Hokkaidō is 26 hectares per farmer in 2013, which
7050-503: The number following is a postal code. In Japanese, the address is written in order from largest unit to smallest, with the addressee's name last of all. For example, the address of the Tokyo Central Post Office is or The order is reversed when writing in rōmaji . The format recommended by Japan Post is: In this address, Tokyo is the prefecture; Chiyoda-ku is one of the special wards; Marunouchi 2-Chome
7144-520: The older system, meaning that especially in older areas of the city they will not run in a linear order. For this reason, when giving directions to a location, people will often offer cross streets, visual landmarks and subway stations, such as "at Chūō-dori and Matsuya-dori across the street from Matsuya and Ginza station" for a store in Tokyo. Many businesses feature maps on their literature and business cards. Signs attached to utility poles often specify
7238-584: The provinces of Oshima , Shiribeshi , Iburi , Ishikari , Teshio , Kitami , Hidaka , Tokachi , Kushiro , Nemuro and Chishima . The initiative to colonize Ezo, which later became Hokkaido, traces back to 1869, where Japanese proponents argued that the colonization of Ezo would serve as a strategic move to enhance Japan's standing and influence on the global stage, particularly in negotiations with Western powers, specifically Russia. The Meiji government invested heavily in colonizing Hokkaido for several reasons. Firstly, they aimed to assert their control over
7332-412: The region as a buffer against potential Russian advances. Secondly, they were attracted to Hokkaido's rich natural resources, including coal, timber, fish, and fertile land. Lastly, since Western powers viewed colonial expansion as a symbol of prestige, Japan viewed the colonization of Hokkaido as an opportunity to present itself as a modern and respected nation to Western powers. The primary purpose of
7426-453: The respective Russian threats appeared to subside, the assimilation programs were halted until 1855. However, in 1855, once the Treaty of Shimoda was signed, which defined the borders between Russian Empire and Tokugawa Japan, the Tokugawa again viewed Russia as a threat to Japanese sovereignty over Hokkaido and reinstated assimilation programs on the Ainu. Prior to the Meiji era, the island
7520-434: The rise of indigenous rights movements, there emerged a notion that Hokkaido should have an Ainu language name. If a decision to change the name is made, however, whichever Ainu phrase is chosen, its original referent is critically different from the large geographical entity. The phrase aynumosir ( アイヌモシㇼ ) has been a preferred choice among Japanese activists. Its primary meaning is the "land of humans", as opposed to
7614-422: The same as 府 ( -fu ) for Osaka and Kyoto , and 県 ( -ken ) for the rest of the "prefectures". Dō , as shorthand, can be used to uniquely identify Hokkaido, for example as in 道道 ( dōdō , "Hokkaido road") or 道議会 ( Dōgikai , " Hokkaido Assembly "), the same way 都 ( -to ) is used for Tokyo . The prefecture's government calls itself the "Hokkaidō Government" rather than the "Hokkaidō Prefectural Government". With
7708-487: The smallest geographic entity (typically a house number) and proceed to the largest. However, even when translated using Latin characters, Japan Post requires that the address also is written in Japanese to ensure correct delivery. Japanese addresses begin with the largest division of the country, the prefecture . Most of these are called ken (県), but there are also three other special prefecture designations: to (都) for Tokyo , dō (道) for Hokkaidō and fu (府) for
7802-412: The southern tip of the island since the 16th century, Hokkaido was primarily inhabited by the Ainu people . In 1869, following the Meiji Restoration , the entire island was annexed , colonized and renamed Hokkaido by Japan. Japanese settlers dispossessed the Ainu of their land and forced them to assimilate . In the 21st century, the Ainu are almost totally assimilated into Japanese society; as
7896-601: The standard orthographic form to be used when referring to Ainu and related peoples; it is possible that Matsuura's kai was actually an alteration, influenced by the Sino-Japanese reading of 蝦夷 Ka-i , of the Nivkh exonym for the Ainu, namely Qoy or IPA: [kʰuɣɪ] . In 1947, Hokkaidō became a full-fledged prefecture. The historical suffix 道 ( -dō ) translates to "prefecture" in English, ambiguously
7990-466: The systematic group emigration projects since the late 19th century to Hokkaidō; people from villages across mainland Japan dreamt to become wealthy farmers. Historians note that there is also a significant similarity between place names in Kansai region and those in northern Kyūshū . See Japanese place names for more. Named roads ( 通り , tōri, dōri) are roads or sections deemed noteworthy and given
8084-485: The two urban prefectures of Osaka and Kyoto . Following the prefecture is the municipality . For a large municipality this is the city ( shi , 市). Cities that have a large enough population (greater than 500,000 residents) and are regarded as such by order of the Cabinet of Japan are called designated cities , and are subdivided into wards ( ku , 区), where in the prefecture of Tokyo , 23 of them are designated as
8178-453: The world's islands. Major cities include Sapporo and Asahikawa in the central region, and the port of Hakodate facing Honshu in the south. Sapporo is Hokkaidō's largest city and the fifth-largest in Japan. It had a population of 1,959,750 as of 31 July 2023 and a population density of 1,748/km (4,530/sq mi). There are three populations of the Ussuri brown bear found on
8272-543: Was a longstanding controversy over this plan due to the toxic contamination of the chosen relocation area. The move to Toyosu Market was planned to have taken place in November 2016, in preparation for the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo . Part of the plan was to retain a retail market, roughly a quarter of the current operation, in Tsukiji. On 31 August 2016, the Tsukiji fish market move was postponed. The Tsukiji fish market
8366-609: Was absorbed by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport in 2001. The Hokkaidō Bureau ( 北海道局 , Hokkaidō-kyoku ) and the Hokkaidō Regional Development Bureau ( 北海道開発局 , Hokkaidō Kaihatsukyoku ) of the ministry still have a strong influence on public construction projects in Hokkaidō. The island of Hokkaidō is located in the north of Japan, near Russia ( Sakhalin Oblast ). It has coastlines on
8460-407: Was annexed into Japanese territory. Ezochi was subsequently put under control of Hakodate Prefectural Government. When establishing the Development Commission ( 開拓使 , Kaitakushi ) , the Meiji government introduced a new name. After 1869, the northern Japanese island was known as Hokkaidō, which can be translated to "northern sea route," and regional subdivisions were established, including
8554-571: Was called Ezochi, which can be translated as "land of the barbarians" or "the land for people who did not obey the government." Shortly after the Boshin War in 1868, a group of Tokugawa loyalists led by Enomoto Takeaki temporarily occupied the island (the polity is commonly but mistakenly known as the Republic of Ezo ), but the rebellion was defeated in May 1869. Through colonial practices, Ezochi
8648-448: Was caught in a controversy with the shop owners surrounding the former fish market rioting as they would lose their job if the fish market transfers its location. Opening of the fish market was subsequently rescheduled for 11 October 2018 despite concerns about pollution. Koto Ward Board of Education operates public elementary and junior high schools. Toyosu 1-3- chome are zoned to Toyosu North Elementary School ( 豊洲北小学校 ). Toyosu 4-chome
8742-415: Was facilitated with the expertise of American advisors who introduced various colonization technologies, transforming Hokkaido into land suitable for Japan's capitalist aspirations. Japanese leaders drew inspiration from American settler colonialism during their diplomatic visits to the United States. Japanese colonial officials learned settler colonial techniques from Western imperial powers, particularly
8836-670: Was granted exclusive trading rights with the Ainu in the Azuchi-Momoyama and Edo periods (1568–1868). The Matsumae family 's economy relied upon trade with the Ainu, who had extensive trading networks. The Matsumae held authority over the south of Ezochi until the end of the Edo period. The Matsumae clan rule over the Ainu must be understood in the context of the expansion of the Japanese feudal state. Medieval military leaders in northern Honshu (ex. Northern Fujiwara , Akita clan ) maintained only tenuous political and cultural ties to
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