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| Honshu | |
| Aliases: | Honshū |
| Category: | Island |
| Continent: | Asia |
| Country: | Japan |
| Points of interest: | Hiroshima; Mount Fuji; Toyama; Yamagata |
Honshu is the name of an island in the nation of Japan. It is the main island in the country and the island with the highest population center, with more than 103 million people. The island has a total land area of 88,016.85 square miles, a length of 810 miles and a width of 31 x 143 miles. It is divided into five regions and contains thirty-four prefectures. Honshu is located south of Hokkaido across the Tsugaru Strait, north of Shikoku across the Inland Sea, and northeast of Kyushu across the Kanmon Straits. It's largest region is Kantō, which includes Tokyo Prefecture. Other notable cities include Hiroshima, Toyama and Yamagata.
Honshu has played a consistent role in the daikaiju ("giant monster") films of the Shōwa period and Heisei periods. Beginning with 1954's Gojira and extending into the modern era, Honshu and its many inhabitants have had to deal with all sorts of atomically mutated monsters including Godzilla, Rodan, Mothra, King Ghidorah, Anguirus and many others. Godzilla first set his sights on the island after causing some mayhem on nearby Oto Island. Members of the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force mustered up all of their military might to combat him, as he laid waste to bridges, towers, and skyscrapers, but were unable to stop his rampage. Ultimately, it was the work of one tormented scientist, Daisuke Serizawa, and his Oxygen Destroyer, which finally put the monster down for good... or did it? Like the proverbial bad penny, Godzilla and his pals found a way to spring back up time and time again to make trouble for the poor folks on Honshu.
Points of Interest[]
Regions[]
- Chūbu region
- The Chūbu region is the central region of Honshū. It encompasses nine prefectures: Aichi, Fukui, Gifu, Ishikawa, Nagano, Niigata, Shizuoka, Toyama, Yamanashi, and often Mie. The region is the widest part of Honshū and the central part is characterized by high, rugged mountains. The Japanese Alps divide the country into the Pacific side, sunny in winter, and the Sea of Japan side, snowy in winter.
- Chūgoku region
- The Chūgoku region is the westernmost region of Honshū, the largest island of Japan. It consists of the prefectures of Hiroshima, Okayama, Shimane, Tottori and Yamaguchi. The Chūgoku region is characterized by irregular rolling hills and limited plain areas and is divided into two distinct parts by mountains running east and west through its center. The city of Hiroshima, the "capital" of the Chūgoku region, was rebuilt after being destroyed by an atomic bomb in 1945, and is now an industrial metropolis of more than one million people.
- Kansai region
- The Kansai region lies in the southern-central region of Japan's main island Honshū. The region includes the prefectures of Mie, Nara, Wakayama, Kyoto, Osaka, Hyōgo, and Shiga. Depending on who makes the distinction, Fukui, Tokushima and even Tottori Prefecture are also included. While the use of the terms "Kansai" and "Kinki" have changed over history, in most modern contexts the use of the two terms is interchangeable. The urban region of Osaka, Kobe and Kyoto (Keihanshin region) is the second most populated in Japan after the Greater Tokyo Area.
- Kantō region
- The Kantō region is a geographical area of Honshu, the largest island of Japan. The region includes the Greater Tokyo Area and encompasses seven prefectures: Gunma, Tochigi, Ibaraki, Saitama, Tokyo, Chiba, and Kanagawa. Within its boundaries, slightly more than 45 percent of the land area is the Kantō Plain. The rest consists of the hills and mountains that form the land borders.
- Tōhoku region
- The Tōhoku region consists of the northeastern portion of Honshu, the largest island of Japan. The region consists of six prefectures (ken): Akita, Aomori, Fukushima, Iwate, Miyagi and Yamagata. Tōhoku retains a reputation as a remote, scenic region with a harsh climate. In the 20th century, tourism became a major industry in the Tōhoku region.
Prefectures[]
- Akita Prefecture
- Akita Prefecture a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of northern Honshu, the main island of Japan. The capital is the city of Akita. Akita Prefecture played a minor role in the 1965 film Frankenstein Conquers the World.
- Miyagi Prefecture
- Miyagi Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku Region on Honshu island. The capital is Sendai. It has an area of 7,285.16 km² with a population of 2,337,513. It has 10 districts and 36 municipalities.
- Niigata Prefecture
- Niigata Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Honshū on the coast of the Sea of Japan. The capital is the city of Niigata with which it shares the same name. Godzilla series actress Kumi Mizuno was born in the city of Niigata on January 1st, 1937.
- Okayama Prefecture
- Okayama Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region on the main island of Honshu. The capital is the city of Okayama.
- Tokyo
- Tokyo is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. It is located on the eastern side of the main island Honshū and includes the Izu Islands and Ogasawara Islands. Tokyo Metropolis was formed in 1943 from the merger of the former Tokyo Prefecture and the city of Tokyo. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family.
- Toyama Prefecture
- is a prefecture of Japan located in the Hokuriku region on the main Honshu island. The capital is the city of Toyama. Toyama is the leading industrial prefecture on the Japan Sea coast, and has the industrial advantage of cheap electricity from abundant hydroelectric resources.
Films that take place in Honshu[]
Comics that take place in Honshu[]
Characters from Honshu[]
People who were born in Honshu[]
People who died in Honshu[]
Notes & Trivia[]
- Honshu is the seventh largest island in the world.
External Links[]
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