Kagawa Prefecture 香川県
Prefecture
Japanese transcription(s)
• Japanese	香川県
• Rōmaji	Kagawa-ken
Flag Symbol
Country	Japan
Region	Shikoku
Island	Shikoku
Capital	Takamatsu
Government
• Governor	Keizō Hamada
Area
• Total	1,861.70 km2 (718.81 sq mi)
Area rank	47th
Population (May 1, 2016)
• Total	974,052
• Rank	40th
• Density	523.20/km2 (1,355.1/sq mi)
ISO 3166 code	JP-37
Districts	5
Municipalities	17
Flower	Olive (Olea europaea)
Tree	Olive (Olea europaea)
Bird	Lesser cuckoo (Cuculus poliocephalus)
Website	www.pref.kagawa.jp

Kagawa Prefecture (香川県, Kagawa-ken) is the smallest prefecture of Japan (by area). It is located on Shikoku island^[1] and the capital is Takamatsu.^[2]

History[edit]

Kagawa was formerly known as Sanuki Province.^[3]

For a brief period between August 1876 and December 1888, Kagawa was made a part of Ehime Prefecture.^[4]

Battle of Yashima[edit]

Located in Kagawa's capital city, Takamatsu, the mountain of Yashima was the battlefield for one of the best-known struggles between the Heike and the Genji clans.

Geography[edit]

Kagawa comprises the northeast corner of Shikoku, bordering Ehime Prefecture on the west and Tokushima Prefecture on the south, with a coastline on the Seto Inland Sea facing Okayama Prefecture and the Kansai. The Sanuki Mountains run along the southern border.

Kagawa is currently the smallest prefecture, by area, in Japan. Osaka Prefecture held that title until Kansai International Airport was reclaimed from the ocean in the early 1990s, pushing its land area slightly above Kagawa's^{[citation needed]}. Kagawa is a relatively narrow prefecture located between the mountains of Shikoku and the sea.

As of April 1, 2012, 11% of the total land area of the prefecture was designated as Natural Parks, namely Setonaikai National Park and Ōtaki-Ōkawa Prefectural Natural Park.^[5]

Cities[edit]

Map of Kagawa Prefecture.
     City      Town

Takamatsu

Marugame

Kotohira

Eight cities are located in Kagawa Prefecture:

Towns[edit]

These are the towns in each district:

Mergers[edit]

Economy[edit]

This section is empty. You can help by adding to it. (July 2010)

Foods[edit]

People queuing for udon in Kagawa

Sanuki udon (a type of udon noodle) is the most famous local food of Kagawa Prefecture. In 2008, there were over 700 udon restaurants in this prefecture alone.^{[citation needed]}

Aside from udon, Kagawa is also famous for "hone-tsuki-dori", seasoned chicken thigh cooked on the bone. Originating from Marugame City, the dish has now become a popular dish in izakaya restaurants across the country.

Olives and olive-related products have also come to be recognized as Kagawa foods. As the first place in Japan to successfully cultivate olives, Kagawa has been producing olive-related products since 1908. As well as winning both domestic and international awards for the quality of its olive oil, Kagawa has also created two offshoot food brands from its olive industry - "olive beef" and "olive yellowtail". Waste organic matter from olive pressing is used as feed for cattle and the Yellowtail Amberjack. Due to the high amount of polyphenol in the olive waste, the flesh of the respective meats does not oxidize or lose colour easily.

Other local specialties include wasanbon sugar sweets, sōmen noodles and shōyu soy sauce.
Rare sugar researches are thriving and have discovered mass production culture enzymes.D-tagatose 3-epimerase is an enzyme that catalyzes the reversible epimerization reaction of the 3rd carbon of ketose.

Demographics[edit]

This section is empty. You can help by adding to it. (July 2010)

Education[edit]

Universities[edit]

• 
  Kagawa University in Takamatsu


• Kagawa Prefectural College of Health Sciences


• 
  Shikoku Gakuin University in Zentsuji


• Takamatsu University


• 
  Tokushima Bunri University in Sanuki

Sports[edit]

The sports teams listed below are based in Kagawa.

Baseball

• Kagawa Olive Guyners

Basketball

• 
  Kagawa Five Arrows (Takamatsu)

Football (Soccer)

• 
  Kamatamare Sanuki (Takamatsu)

Volleyball

• Shikoku Eighty 8 Queen

Ice Hockey

• Kagawa Ice Fellows (see Japan Ice Hockey Federation)

Tourism[edit]

Kanamaruza Kabuki Theatre

Benesse House, Naoshima

Manno Lake

Sanuki Manno National Park

• 
  Kotohira
  
  • Kanamaruza Kabuki Theatre
  
  
  • Konpira Shrine
  
  


• 
  Manno
  
  • Manno Lake
  
  
  • Sanuki Manno National Park
  
  


• 
  Marugame
  
  • Marugame Castle
  
  
  • Marugame Genichiro-Inokuma Museum of Contemporary Art
  
  


• 
  Naoshima Island
  
  • Ando Museum
  
  
  • Benesse House
  
  
  • Chichu Art Museum
  
  
  • Lee Ufan Museum
  
  


• Setonaikai National Park


• 
  Shikoku Pilgrimage – Zentsū-ji, Motoyama-ji, Yashima-ji, etc.

Kankakei

• 
  Shodoshima
  
  • Kankakei Gorge
  
  
  • Shodoshima Olive Park
  
  


• 
  Takamatsu
  
  • 
    Megijima and Ogijima
    
  
  
  • Ritsurin Garden
  
  
  • Takamatsu Castle
  
  
  • 
    Yashima, the island on which the Battle of Yashima was fought
    
    

    
    

    Ritsurin Garden

    
    
    
    
  
  


• 
  Teshima Island
  
  • Shima Kitchen
  
  
  • Teshima Art Museum
  
  

Based on its ancient name, Sanuki, Kagawa is famous for its Sanuki udon (wheat noodles). Recent years have seen an interest in Sanuki udon across Japan^{[citation needed]}, and many Japanese now take day-trips to taste the many Sanuki udon restaurants in Kagawa.

Transportation[edit]

Railroad[edit]

• 
  JR Shikoku
  
  • Honshi-Bisan Line
  
  
  • Yosan Line
  
  
  • Dosan Line
  
  
  • Kotoku Line
  
  


• Kotoden (Takamatsu Kotohira Electric Railroad)
  
  • Kotohira Line
  
  
  • Shido Line
  
  
  • Nagao Line
  
  

Bus[edit]

Departure from Takamatsu[edit]

• Tokyo Station


• 
  Shinjuku of Tokyo


• Tokyo Disneyland


• Hachioji


• Yokohama


• Nagoya


• Kyoto Station


• 
  Osaka
  
  • Umeda
  
  
  • Nanba
  
  


• Kansai Int'l Airport


• 
  Kobe
  
  • Sannomiya
  
  
  • Maiko Bus Stop
  
  


• Tokushima


• Kōchi


• Matsuyama


• Yawatahama


• Hiroshima


• 
  Fukuoka
  
  • Kokura Station
  
  
  • Hakata Station
  
  
  • Tenjin Station
  
  

Road[edit]

Expressway[edit]

• Seto Chuo Expressway


• Takamatsu Expressway


• Matsuyama Expressway

National Highway[edit]

• Route 11 (Tokushima-Takamatsu-Marugame-Niihama-Maysuyama)


• Route 30


• Route 32 (Takamatsu-Kotohira-Kochi)


• Route 193


• Route 318


• Route 319


• Route 377


• Route 436


• Route 438

Port[edit]

• 
  Port of Takamatsu – Ferry route to Uno, Tonoshō (Shōdoshima Island), Kobe, Naoshima


• Port of Marugame


• Port of Tadotsu


• Port of Tonoshō – Ferry route to Okayama, Himeji, Kobe and Osaka.

Airport[edit]

• Takamatsu Airport

In popular culture[edit]

The novel Battle Royale by Koushun Takami was set in the fictional town of Shiroiwa ('Castle Rock') in the Kagawa Prefecture. Okishima, the fictional island on which much of the novel takes place is placed in the Seto Inland Sea. The manga also places Shiroiwa in Kagawa Prefecture, while the film moves Shiroiwa to Kanagawa Prefecture.

Takamatsu, Kagawa Prefecture is also the main setting of the book "Kafka on the Shore" by Haruki Murakami.

Kagawa Prefecture is also the setting of the anime Poco's Udon World, My Bride is a Mermaid, and Yuki Yuna is a Hero.

References[edit]

External links[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kagawa prefecture.

• Kagawa Prefecture English homepage


• 
  (in Japanese) Official Kagawa Prefecture Japanese homepage
  


• National Archives of Japan ... Kagawa map (1891)
  


• 
  Notes from Shikoku in English

Coordinates: 34°16′N 133°57′E / 34.267°N 133.950°E / 34.267; 133.950