Administrative divisions of Japan

Japan is divided into 47 prefectural entities and these are further subdivided into Sub-prefectural entities and/or directly into Municipal entities which may further subdivide into Sub-municipal wards.

Structural hierarchy

Prefectural	Sub-prefectural		Municipal	Sub-municipal
Prefecture "urban prefecture" "circuit"	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		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	City [all-types] (Special ward)	Ward	District	Town	Village
Aichi	38	16	7	14	2
Akita	13		6	9	3
Aomori	10		8	22	8
Chiba	37	6	6	16	1
Ehime	11		7	9
Fukui	9		7	17
Fukuoka	28	14	12	30	2
Fukushima	13		13	31	15
Gifu	21		9	19	2
Gunma	12		7	15	8
Hiroshima	14	8	5	9
Hokkaidō	35	10	66	129	15
Hyōgo	29	9	8	12
Ibaraki	32		7	10	2
Ishikawa	11		5	8
Iwate	14		10	15	4
Kagawa	8		5	9
Kagoshima	19		8	20	4
Kanagawa	19	28	6	13	1
Kōchi	11		6	17	6
Kumamoto	14	5	9	23	8
Kyōto	15	11	6	10	1
Mie	14		7	15
Miyagi	13	5	10	21	1
Miyazaki	9		6	14	3
Nagano	19		14	23	35
Nagasaki	13		4	8
Nara	12		7	15	12
Niigata	20	8	9	6	4
Ōita	14		3	3	1
Okayama	15	4	10	10	2
Okinawa	11		5	11	19
Ōsaka	33	31	5	9	1
Saga	10		6	10
Saitama	40	10	8	22	1
Shiga	13		3	6
Shimane	8		5	10	1
Shizuoka	23	10	5	12
Tochigi	14		5	12
Tokushima	8		8	15	1
Tōkyō	26 (23)		1	5	8
Tottori	4		5	14	1
Toyama	10		2	4	1
Wakayama	9		6	20	1
Yamagata	13		8	19	3
Yamaguchi	13		4	6
Yamanashi	13		5	8	6

Prefectural divisions

Main article: Prefectures of Japan

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

Further information: Circuit (administrative division)

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

Further information: Fu (country subdivision)

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.

Sub-prefectural divisions

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

Subprefecture

Main article: Subprefectures of Japan

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.

District

Main article: Districts of Japan

Districts' (郡, gun) are administrative units of a sort more frequently in use between 1878 and 1921 than at present and which were roughly equivalent to the counties of China or the United States.

Municipal divisions

File:Japan Municipality Map.png

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

Main article: Municipalities 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

Main article: Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan

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

Main article: Core cities of Japan

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. Core city was created by the first clause of Article 252, Section 22 of the Local Autonomy Law of Japan.

Special city

Main article: Special cities of Japan

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

Main article: Cities of Japan

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

Main article: List of towns in Japan

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

Main article: List of villages in Japan

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

Main article: Special wards of Tokyo

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

Main article: Wards of Japan

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

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.