Shimane Prefecture

Shimane Prefecture
島根県
Japanese transcription(s)
 • Japanese島根県
 • RōmajiShimane-ken
Flag of Shimane Prefecture
Official logo of Shimane Prefecture
Anthem: Usu-murasaki no yamanami
Location of Shimane Prefecture
CountryJapan
RegionChūgoku (San'in)
IslandHonshu
CapitalMatsue
SubdivisionsDistricts: 5, Municipalities: 19
Government
 • GovernorTatsuya Maruyama
Area
 • Total6,708.26 km2 (2,590.07 sq mi)
 • Rank19th
Population
 (February 1, 2021)
 • Total665,205
 • Rank46th
 • Density99/km2 (260/sq mi)
GDP
 • TotalJP¥ 2,689 billion
US$ 24.7 billion (2019)
ISO 3166 codeJP-32
Websitewww1.pref.shimane.lg.jp/contents/kokusai/kokusai-e/index.html
Symbols of Japan
BirdWhooper swan (Cygnus cygnus)
FishFlying Fish
FlowerMoutan peony (Paeonia suffruticosa)
TreeJapanese black pine (Pinus thunbergii)
The coast of Gōtsu City, Shimane Prefecture seen from the Osakihana lighthouse

Shimane Prefecture (島根県, Shimane-ken) is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu.[2] Shimane Prefecture is the second-least populous prefecture of Japan at 665,205 (February 1, 2021) and has a geographic area of 6,708.26 km2. Shimane Prefecture borders Yamaguchi Prefecture to the southwest, Hiroshima Prefecture to the south, and Tottori Prefecture to the east.

Matsue is the capital and largest city of Shimane Prefecture, with other major cities including Izumo, Hamada, and Masuda.[3] Shimane Prefecture contains the majority of the Lake Shinji-Nakaumi metropolitan area centered on Matsue, and with a population of approximately 600,000 is Japan's third-largest metropolitan area on the Sea of Japan coast after Niigata and Greater Kanazawa. Shimane Prefecture is bounded by the Sea of Japan coastline on the north, where two-thirds of the population live, and the Chūgoku Mountains on the south. Shimane Prefecture governs the Oki Islands in the Sea of Japan which juridically includes the disputed Liancourt Rocks (竹島, Takeshima). Shimane Prefecture is home to Izumo-taisha, one of the oldest Shinto shrines in Japan, and the Tokugawa-era Matsue Castle.

  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 May 18, 2023.
  2. ^ Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Shimane Province" in Japan Encyclopedia, p. 859, p. 859, at Google Books; "Chūgoku" at p. 127, p. 127, at Google Books
  3. ^ Nussbaum, "Matsue" at p. 617, p. 617, at Google Books