Kanagawa Prefecture

Japanese: 神奈川[県] - かながわ

A prefecture in the southwest of the Kanto region, facing the Pacific Ocean and bordering Tokyo to the south. The prefectural capital is Yokohama City. It has an area of 2,415.83 ^km2 and a population of 9,048,331 (2010). It is the fourth smallest prefecture in Japan in terms of area, but the third largest in terms of population after Tokyo and Osaka. It plays the role of a satellite city of Tokyo within the metropolitan area, and its population has increased rapidly since around 1960 due to the expansion of industrial and residential areas. [History] It corresponds to the entire Sagami Province and part of Musashi Province. In the Middle Ages, Kamakura, where the Kamakura Shogunate was located, flourished as the center of samurai politics, and after the collapse of the Shogunate, Hojo Soun entered Odawara and controlled the entire Kanto region after a long dispute. In the Edo period, the Okubo clan was placed in Odawara, the Yonekura clan in Kanazawa, and the rest were divided into chigyosho and tenryo. Ashigara and Hakone were key points to the Kanto region throughout each era. At the end of the Edo period, Uraga and Yokohama became gateways to Western civilization. In 1871, Kanagawa and Ashigara prefectures were formed, and in 1876, the two prefectures merged to form Kanagawa prefecture, and in 1893, the three Tama districts were transferred to Tokyo prefecture. [Nature] The Miura Peninsula, which protrudes to the southeast, divides Tokyo Bay to the east from Sagami Bay to the south. The coast of Sagami Bay, called Shonan, has a monotonous coastline made up of sand dunes, while the coast of Tokyo Bay to the east is largely reclaimed land and is mostly artificial. The northwest is the Tanzawa Mountains, and the southwest is the mountainous region of the Hakone volcano, which is part of the Fuji volcanic belt. Plains have developed in the basin of the Sakawa River and the Sagami River, which flow south and empty into Sagami Bay, and the alluvial plateau of Sagamihara spreads in the central part. The mountainous region in the northeast is part of the Tama Hills. It has a warm climate with a lot of rain, and the Shonan region in particular is warm in winter due to the influence of the Kuroshio Current, and has long been famous as a winter resort. [Industry] The population composition by industry is primary at only 1.0%, secondary at 23.7%, and tertiary at 72.1% (2005), with secondary and tertiary industries being significantly higher. The core of industry is the Keihin Industrial Zone on the coast of Tokyo Bay, centered on the two cities of Kawasaki and Yokohama. Industries such as petroleum, metals, machinery, shipbuilding, glass, and cement have developed on reclaimed land in the waterfront of both cities, while in the lower Tama River basin, industries such as physicochemical instruments, measuring instruments, and optical instruments have developed. In recent years, large companies in the fields of automobiles, electrical appliances, and communications have also moved into the inland areas of Yokohama and Kawasaki, and have developed significantly. Meanwhile, in the reclaimed land in the waterfront areas of Nishi-ku and Naka-ku, former factory sites are being redeveloped for the new urban center of the 21st century, and the Minato Mirai 21 (MM21) project is underway. The two cities of Hiratsuka and Fujisawa facing Sagami Bay, the Ofuna district of Kamakura City, and the inland Sagamihara City area have also been industrialized since around 1960, with the development of transportation routes to inland areas. In the west, there has been remarkable development in seafood processing in Odawara City and photographic film manufacturing in Minamiashigara City. The prefecture's manufacturing shipment value was 18,752.2 billion yen (2003), second only to Aichi Prefecture. Agriculture is focused on the large Keihin market, and horticultural crops such as vegetables, fruit trees, and flowers (persimmons) are produced, but farming is generally small-scale, and the number of part-time farmers is increasing. The rapid development of industrialization and residential areas since around 1960 has led to a trend of agricultural abandonment. Forestry is centered on the Tanzawa Mountains, and reforestation projects are underway. Fishing has declined along the coast of Tokyo Bay due to land reclamation and water pollution, and the main fishing of bonito, tuna, and yellowtail is conducted at the ports of Miura Misaki and Odawara on the coast of Sagami Bay. In terms of tourism, there is Hakone in the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park, and Tanzawa-Oyama Quasi-National Park. In the Shonan area, there are the ancient capital of Kamakura, Enoshima, Oiso, Manazuru, the streetscape and shopping districts of the Yamanote district of Yokohama, Yokohama Port where the Yokohama Bay Bridge was completed in 1989, and the Minato Mirai 21 district where the Yokohama Landmark Tower was completed in 1993. [Transportation] The eastern part of the prefecture is connected to Tokyo by the JR Keihin Tohoku, Yokosuka, Yokohama, and Nambu lines, the private Tokyu, Odakyu, and Keikyu lines, the Metropolitan Expressway, and the First, Second, and Third Keihin Expressways. The Tokaido Main Line and National Route 1 run along the coast of Sagami Bay, the Tomei Expressway, Sagami Line, and Sagami Railway run in the central area, and the Gotemba Line, Izu Hakone Railway, and Hakone Tozan Railway run in the west, and there are private railway and bus networks throughout the prefecture. The Tokaido Shinkansen connects Yokohama and Odawara. The Yokohama New Urban Transit Line (1989) and the Metropolitan Expressway connect the reclaimed land on the bay coast. Yokohama Port is one of Japan's leading trade ports, designated as a specific important port and with many foreign ships coming in and out. In December 1997, the Tokyo Bay Aqua-Line opened between Kawasaki Ward, Kawasaki City and Kisarazu City, Chiba Prefecture.
→ Related topics Kanto region

Source : Heibonsha Encyclopedia About MyPedia Information

Japanese:

関東地方南西部，太平洋に面して東京都の南に接する県。県庁所在地は横浜市。2415.83km²。904万8331人（2010）。面積は全国で４番目の狭さ，人口は東京，大阪に次いで第３位の多さである。首都圏の中で東京の衛星都市的役割を果たし，1960年ごろからの工業地帯，住宅地の拡大によって人口が急増した。〔沿革〕　かつての相模国全域と武蔵国の一部に当たる。中世鎌倉幕府のあった鎌倉が武家政治の中心として栄え，幕府倒壊後はながい係争の末，小田原に北条早雲がはいって関東一円を支配した。江戸時代には小田原に大久保氏，金沢に米倉氏が置かれ，他は知行所，天領に分かれていた。足柄，箱根は各時代を通じ関東への要衝であった。幕末，浦賀，横浜は西洋文明の窓口となった。1871年神奈川・足柄２県，1876年２県が合して神奈川県となり，1893年多摩３郡を東京府へ移した。〔自然〕　南東部に突出する三浦半島が東の東京湾と南の相模湾を分け，湘南(しょうなん)と呼ばれる相模湾岸は砂丘地からなる単調な海岸線をなし，東の東京湾岸は埋立地が広く，ほとんどが人工海岸となっている。北西部は丹沢山地，南西部は富士火山帯に属する箱根火山の山地である。南流して相模湾に注ぐ酒匂(さかわ)川と相模川流域に平野が発達，中部には洪積台地の相模原が広がる。北東部の山地は多摩丘陵の一部。温暖多雨で，特に湘南地方は黒潮の影響もあり冬暖かく，古くから避寒地として有名。〔産業〕　産業別人口構成は第１次がわずかに1.0％，第２次23.7％，第３次72.1％（2005）と第２次・第３次産業が著しく高い。工業の中核は川崎，横浜の２市を中心とする東京湾岸の京浜工業地帯である。両市の臨海部埋立地を中心に石油，金属，機械，造船，ガラス，セメントなど，多摩川下流域には理化学器械，計量器，光学器械などの工業が発達している。また近年，横浜市，川崎市の内陸部にも自動車，電器，通信などの大企業が進出して大きく発展している。一方，臨海部の西区・中区の埋立地では，21世紀の新都心のために工場跡地が再開発され，みなとみらい21（MM21）計画が進行中である。相模湾に臨む平塚・藤沢２市，鎌倉市大船地区，内陸の相模原市地区も1960年ごろから内陸部への交通路の発達に伴って工業化が進み，西部では小田原市の水産加工，南足柄市の写真フィルム製造などの発展が著しい。県の製造品出荷額は18兆7522億円（2003）を上げ，愛知県に次いで全国２位である。農業は京浜の大市場をひかえ野菜，果樹，花卉(かき)などの園芸作物を産するが，経営は一般に零細で兼業農家も増加，1960年ごろからの急速な工業地化・住宅地化の進展で農業放棄の傾向も進む。林産は丹沢山地が中心で造林事業が進められている。漁業は東京湾岸が埋立てと水質汚染で衰退，相模湾岸の三浦三崎港，小田原港でのカツオ，マグロ，ブリ漁業が主である。観光面では富士箱根伊豆国立公園中の箱根，丹沢大山国定公園があり，湘南地方は古都鎌倉，江の島，大磯，真鶴(まなづる)，横浜市山の手地区の街並みの景観と商店街，1989年横浜ベイ・ブリッジが完成した横浜港，1993年横浜ランドマークタワーの完成したみなとみらい21地区などが行楽地としてにぎわう。〔交通〕　県東部はJRの京浜東北・横須賀・横浜・南武各線，私鉄の東急・小田急・京浜急行各線，首都高速道路，第一・第二・第三京浜道路などが通じ，すべて東京都と密接に結びつく。ほぼ相模湾岸沿いに東海道本線，国道１号線，中部に東名高速道路，相模線，相模鉄道，西部に御殿場線，伊豆箱根鉄道，箱根登山鉄道が通じ，県下一帯に私鉄の鉄道・バス網がある。横浜，小田原に東海道新幹線が通じる。また湾岸の埋立地にも横浜新都市交通（1989年），首都高速道路各線が通じている。横浜港は日本有数の貿易港で，特定重要港湾に指定され外国船舶の出入が多い。1997年12月，川崎市川崎区と千葉県木更津市との間に東京湾アクアラインが開通した。
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