Wakayama Prefecture

Wakayama Prefecture (和歌山県, Wakayama-ken) is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu.^[2]: 1026 Wakayama Prefecture has a population of 944,320 (as of 1 October 2017) and has a geographic area of 4,724 square kilometres (1,824 sq mi). Wakayama Prefecture borders Osaka Prefecture to the north, and Mie Prefecture and Nara Prefecture to the northeast.

Wakayama Prefecture 和歌山県
Prefecture
Japanese transcription(s)
• Japanese	和歌山県
• Rōmaji	Wakayama-ken
Cherry blossoms bloom in the courtyard of Negoro-ji Temple in Iwade City, Wakayama Prefecture
Flag Symbol
Anthem: Wakayama kenminka
Country	Japan
Region	Kansai
Island	Honshū
Capital	Wakayama (city)
Subdivisions	Districts: 6, Municipalities: 30
Government
• Governor	Shūhei Kishimoto (since December 17, 2022)
Area
• Total	4,724.69 km2 (1,824.21 sq mi)
• Rank	30th
Population  (1 October 2017)
• Total	944,320
• Rank	39th
• Density	199.87/km2 (517.7/sq mi)
• Dialects	Kishū
GDP [1]
• Total	JP¥ 3,745 billion US$ 34.4 billion (2019)
ISO 3166 code	JP-30
Website	www.wakayama.lg.jp/ english/
Symbols of Japan
Bird	Japanese white-eye (Zosterops japonica)
Flower	Ume blossom (Prunus mume)
Tree	Ubame oak (Quercus phillyraeoides)

Wakayama is the capital and largest city of Wakayama Prefecture, with other major cities including Tanabe, Hashimoto, and Kinokawa.^[3]: 1025 Wakayama Prefecture is located on the southwestern coast of the Kii Peninsula on the Kii Channel, connecting the Pacific Ocean and Seto Inland Sea, across from Tokushima Prefecture on the island of Shikoku.

Present-day Wakayama is mostly the western part of the province of Kii.^[4]

On July 17–18, 1953, a torrential heavy rain occurred, followed by collapse of levees, river flooding and landslides in a wide area. Many bridges and houses were destroyed. According to an officially confirmed report by the Government of Japan, 1,015 people died, with 5,709 injured and 7,115 houses lost.^{[citation needed]}

As of 31 March 2020, 13 percent of the total land area of the prefecture was designated as Natural Parks, namely the Setonaikai and Yoshino-Kumano National Parks; Kongō-Ikoma-Kisen and Kōya-Ryūjin Quasi-National Parks; and Enju Kaigan, Hatenashi Sanmyaku, Hikigawa, Jōgamori Hokodai, Kōyasanchō Ishimichi-Tamagawakyō, Kozagawa, Nishiarida, Oishi Kōgen, Ōtōsan, Ryūmonzan, Shiramisan-Wadagawakyō, and Shirasaki Kaigan Prefectural Natural Parks.^[5]

Nine cities are in Wakayama Prefecture:

These are the towns and villages in each district:

Since 1996, population of Wakayama Prefecture has kept declining, and since 2010, it has been the only prefecture in Kansai region with population below 1,000,000. In 2017, Wakayama is ranked 40th by population in Japan with a population of 944,320. In the 2020 census, close to 32% of the population was over 65 years of age - the highest percentage in Japan and one of the highest for national subdivisions worldwide.^[6]

The current governor Shūhei Kishimoto was elected on 27 November 2022.^[7]

State-appointed governors:

Publicly-elected governors:

Mount Kōya (高野山, Kōya-san) in the Ito District is the headquarters of the Shingon sect of Japanese Buddhism. It is home to one of the first Japanese style Buddhist temples in Japan and remains a pilgrimage site and an increasingly popular tourist destination as people flock to see its ancient temples set amidst the towering cedar trees at the top of the mountain. The Sacred sites and pilgrimage routes in the Kii Mountain Range extend for miles throughout the prefecture and together have been recognized as Japan's 11th UNESCO World Heritage Site.^[9]

The Kumano Shrines are on the southern tip of the prefecture. Tomogashima (a cluster of four islands) is part of the prefecture.

Wakayama Prefecture ranks first in the production of oranges in Japan. Wakayama has its own brand of oranges, which is produced in Arida District and called 'Arida-Orange'. Arida District, where oranges have been produced for more than 400 years,^[10] yields about half of the orange crops in Wakayama today.^[11] Furthermore, the yield of Arida-Oranges accounts for about 10 percent of Japanese domestic production of oranges.^[12]

According to the survey by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of Japan, Wakayama stands first in the production of Japanese apricots (梅, Ume) in Japan. As of 2016, Wakayama made up about 70 percent of Japanese domestic production of Japanese apricots.^[13]

Wakayama Prefecture has friendship and sister relationships with six places outside Japan:^[14]

•   Florida, United States
•   Galicia, Spain
•   Pyrénées-Orientales, France
•   Shandong, People's Republic of China
•   Sichuan, People's Republic of China
•   Sinaloa, Mexico

Wakayama Prefecture has hot springs such as Shirahama, Kawayu, and Yunomine Onsen.

• Saikazaki, Wakanoura

• The Museum of Modern Art, Wakayama

• JR Central
  • Kisei Line
• JR West
  • Hanwa Line
  • Kinokuni Line
  • Wakayama Line
• Kishu Railway
• Nankai
  • Kada Line
  • Koya Line
  • Nankai Line
• Wakayama Electric Railway

• Hanwa Expressway
• Keinawa Expressway
• Nachi Katsuura Road
• Yuasa Gobo Road

• Route 24
• Route 26
• Route 42
• Route 168 (Shingu-Gojo-Ikoma-Hirakata)
• Route 169 (Shingu-Kumano-Kawakami-Yoshino-Asuka-Kashihara-Nara)
• Route 311 (Kamitonda-Tanabe-Shingu-kumano-Owase)
• Route 370 (Kainan-Hashimoto-Gojo-Uda-Nara)
• Route 371 (Kawachinagano-Hashimoto-Koya-Kushimoto)
• Route 424

• Wakayama-Tokushima

• Nanki Shirahama Airport

• Kinki University
• Koyasan University
• Wakayama Medical University
• Wakayama University

• Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric and Käthe Roth. (2005). Japan encyclopedia. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. ISBN 978-0-674-01753-5; OCLC 58053128

• Official Wakayama Prefecture Web Site
• The Official Wakayama, Kansai Travel Guide

34°3′N 135°21′E / 34.050°N 135.350°E