Hokkaido

This article is about the island, region, and prefecture of Japan. For other uses, see Hokkaido (disambiguation).
"Mosir" redirects here. For entity dedicated to promoting physical culture, named "Mosir", see Sports and Recreation Center (Poland).
Hokkaido
北海道 Ainu Moshiri
Prefecture and region
Japanese transcription(s)
 • Japanese北海道
 • RōmajiHokkaidō
Satellite image of Hokkaido by Terra, May 2001
Satellite image of Hokkaido by Terra, May 2001
Flag of Hokkaido
Flag
Official logo of Hokkaido
Symbol
Anthem: Hikari afurete, Mukashi no mukashi and Hokkai bayashi
Location of Hokkaido
Coordinates: 43°N 142°E / 43°N 142°E / 43; 142
CountryJapan
RegionHokkaido
IslandHokkaido
CapitalSapporo
Largest citySapporo
SubdivisionsDistricts: 74, Municipalities: 179
Government
 • GovernorNaomichi Suzuki
Area
 • Total
83,423.84 km2 (32,210.12 sq mi)
 • Rank1st
Population
 (July 31, 2023)
 • Total
5,111,691
 • Rank8th
 • Density61/km2 (160/sq mi)
GDP
[1]
 • TotalJP¥ 20,465 billion
US$ 187.7 billion (2019)
ISO 3166 codeJP-01
Websitewww.pref.hokkaido.lg.jp
Symbols of Hokkiado
BirdTanchō (red-crowned crane, Grus japonensis)
FlowerHamanasu (rugosa rose, Rosa rugosa)
MascotKyun-chan (キュンちゃん)
TreeEzomatsu (Jezo spruce, Picea jezoensis)

Hokkaido (Japanese: 北海道, Hepburn: Hokkaidō, pronounced [hokkaꜜidoː] ⓘ, lit. 'Northern Sea Circuit') (Ainu: Ainu Moshiri)[2] is the second-largest island of Japan and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region.[3] The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by the undersea railway Seikan Tunnel.

The largest city on Hokkaido is its capital, Sapporo, which is also its only ordinance-designated city. Sakhalin lies about 43 kilometres (27 mi) to the north of Hokkaidō, and to the east and northeast are the Kuril Islands, which are administered by Russia, though the four most southerly are claimed by Japan. The position of the island on the northern end of the archipelago results in a colder climate, with the island seeing significant snowfall each winter. Despite the harsher climate, it serves as an agricultural breadbasket for many crops.

Hokkaido was formerly known as Ezo, Yezo, Yeso, or Yesso.[4] Although Japanese settlers ruled the southern tip of the island since the 16th century, Hokkaido was primarily inhabited by the Ainu people.[5] In 1869, following the Meiji Restoration, the entire island was annexed, colonized and renamed Hokkaido by Japan.[6][7][8][9][10][11] Japanese settlers dispossessed the Ainu of their land and forced them to assimilate.[5][9] In the 21st century, the Ainu are almost totally assimilated into Japanese society; as a result, the majority of Japanese of Ainu descent have no knowledge of their heritage and culture.[12][13][14]

  1. ^ "2020年度国民経済計算（2015年基準・2008SNA） : 経済社会総合研究所 - 内閣府". 内閣府ホームページ (in Japanese). Retrieved 2023-05-18.
  2. ^ "Japan's forgotten indigenous people". www.bbc.com. Retrieved 2024-11-21.
  3. ^ "離島とは(島の基礎知識) (what is a remote island?)". MLIT (Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism) (in Japanese). Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. 22 August 2015. Archived from the original (website) on 2007-11-13. Retrieved 9 August 2019. MILT classification 6,852 islands (main islands: 5 islands, remote islands: 6,847 islands)
  4. ^ Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Hokkaidō" in Japan Encyclopedia, p. 343, p. 343, at Google Books
  5. ^ a b Seaton, Philip (2017). "Japanese Empire in Hokkaido". Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Asian History. doi:10.1093/acrefore/9780190277727.013.76. ISBN 978-0-19-027772-7.
  6. ^ Mason, Michele (2012). Dominant Narratives of Colonial Hokkaido and Imperial Japan: Envisioning the Periphery and the Modern Nation-State. Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 7–9. ISBN 978-1-349-45025-1.
  7. ^ "University of Hawai'i Press - Manifold".
  8. ^ Hennessey, John (2018). "Engineering Japanese Settler Colonialism in Hokkaido: A Postcolonial Reevaluation of William Wheeler's Work for the Kaitakushi" (PDF). Asia in Focus. 6 (6): 3.
  9. ^ a b Jolliffe, Pia M. (15 October 2020). "Forced Labour in Imperial Japan's First Colony: Hokkaidō". The Asia–Pacific Journal. 18 (20).
  10. ^ "How the Sharing of Ainu Culture Became One Man's Lifework｜Features｜HOKKAIDO LOVE! -Hokkaido Official Tourism Site". 15 July 2023.
  11. ^ https://www.hm.pref.hokkaido.lg.jp/wp-content/themes/hokkaidomuseum/images/forign_pdf/ENG-2-4.pdf [bare URL PDF]
  12. ^ Cobb, Ellie (20 May 2020). "Japan's forgotten indigenous people". BBC Travel. Retrieved 29 December 2023.
  13. ^ Honna, Nobuyuki; Tajima, Hiroko Tina; Minamoto, Kunihiko (2000). "Japan". In Kam, Ho Wah; Wong, Ruth Y. L. (eds.). Language Policies and Language Education: The Impact in East Asian Countries in the Next Decade. Singapore: Times Academic Press. ISBN 978-9-81210-149-5.
  14. ^ Hohmann, S. (2008). "The Ainu's modern struggle". World Watch. 21 (6): 20–24.