Kanagawa Prefecture (神奈川県, Kanagawa-ken; Japanese pronunciation: [ka.naꜜ.ɡa.wa, -ŋa.wa, -na.ɡa.waꜜ.keɴ, -ŋa.waꜜ-]) is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Kanagawa Prefecture is the second-most populous prefecture of Japan at 9,221,129 (1 April 2022) and third-densest at 3,800 inhabitants per square kilometre (9,800/sq mi). Its geographic area of 2,415 km2 (932 sq mi) makes it fifth-smallest. Kanagawa Prefecture borders Tokyo to the north, Yamanashi Prefecture to the northwest and Shizuoka Prefecture to the west.
Yokohama is the capital and largest city of Kanagawa Prefecture and the second-largest city in Japan, with other major cities including Kawasaki, Sagamihara, and Fujisawa. Kanagawa Prefecture is located on Japan's eastern Pacific coast on Tokyo Bay and Sagami Bay, separated by the Miura Peninsula, across from Chiba Prefecture on the Bōsō Peninsula. Kanagawa Prefecture is part of the Greater Tokyo Area, the most populous metropolitan area in the world, with Yokohama and a number of its cities being major commercial hubs and southern suburbs of Tokyo. Kanagawa Prefecture was the political and economic center of Japan during the Kamakura period when Kamakura was the de facto capital and largest city of Japan as the seat of the Kamakura shogunate from 1185 to 1333. Kanagawa Prefecture is a popular tourist area in the Tokyo region, with Kamakura and Hakone being two popular side trip destinations.
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History
The prefecture has some archaeological sites going back to the Jōmon period (around 400 BCE). About 3,000 years ago, Mount Hakone produced a volcanic explosion which resulted in Lake Ashi on the western area of the prefecture.
It is believed that the imperial dynasty ruled this area from the 5th century onwards. In the ancient era, its plains were sparsely inhabited.
In medieval Japan, Kanagawa was part of the provinces of Sagami and Musashi. Kamakura in central Sagami was the capital of Japan during the Kamakura period (1185–1333).
During the Edo period, the western part of Sagami Province was governed by the daimyō of Odawara Castle, while the eastern part was directly governed by the Tokugawa shogunate in Edo (modern-day Tokyo).
Commodore Matthew Perry landed in Kanagawa in 1853 and 1854 and signed the Convention of Kanagawa to force open Japanese ports to the United States. Yokohama, the largest deep-water port in Tokyo Bay, was opened to foreign traders in 1859 after several more years of foreign pressure, and eventually developed into the largest trading port in Japan. Nearby Yokosuka, closer to the mouth of Tokyo Bay, developed as a naval port and now serves as headquarters for the U.S. 7th Fleet and the fleet operations of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force. After the Meiji period, a number of foreigners lived in Yokohama City, and visited Hakone. The Meiji government developed the first railways in Japan, from Shinbashi (in Tokyo) to Yokohama in 1872.
The epicenter of the 1923 Great Kantō earthquake was deep beneath Izu Ōshima (island) in Sagami Bay. It devastated Tokyo, the port city of Yokohama, surrounding prefectures of Chiba, Kanagawa, and Shizuoka, and caused widespread damage throughout the Kantō region. The sea receded as much as 400 metres from the shore at Manazuru Point, and then rushed back towards the shore in a great wall of water which swamped Mitsuishi-shima. At Kamakura, the total death toll from earthquake, tsunami, and fire exceeded 2,000 victims. At Odawara, ninety percent of the buildings collapsed immediately, and subsequent fires burned the rubble along with anything left standing.
Geography
Kanagawa is a relatively small prefecture located at the southeastern corner of the Kantō Plain wedged between Tokyo on the north, the foothills of Mount Fuji on the northwest, and the Sagami Bay and Tokyo Bay on the south and east. The eastern side of the prefecture is relatively flat and heavily urbanized, including the large port cities of Yokohama and Kawasaki.
The southeastern area nearby the Miura Peninsula is less urbanized, with the ancient city of Kamakura drawing tourists to temples and shrines. The western part, bordered by Yamanashi Prefecture and Shizuoka Prefecture on the west, is more mountainous and includes resort areas like Odawara and Hakone. The area, stretching 80 kilometres (50 mi) from west to east and 60 kilometres (37 mi) from north to south, contains 2,400 square kilometres (930 sq mi) of land, accounting for 0.64% of the total land area of Japan.
As of 1 April 2012, 23% of the total land area of the prefecture was designated as Natural Parks, namely the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park; Tanzawa-Ōyama Quasi-National Park; and Jinba Sagamiko, Manazuru Hantō, Okuyugawara, and Tanzawa-Ōyama Prefectural Natural Parks.
Topography
Topographically, the prefecture consists of three distinct areas. The mountainous western region features the Tanzawa Mountain Range and the volcano Mount Hakone. The hilly eastern region is characterized by the Tama Hills and Miura Peninsula. The central region, which surrounds the Tama Hills and Miura Peninsula, consists of flat stream terraces and low lands around major rivers including the Sagami River, Sakai River, Tsurumi River, and Tama River.
The Tama River forms much of the boundary between Kanagawa and Tokyo. The Sagami River flows through the middle of the prefecture. In the western region, the Sakawa runs through a small lowland, the Sakawa Lowland, between Mount Hakone to the west and the Ōiso Hills to the east, and flows into Sagami Bay.
The Tanzawa Mountain Range, part of the Kantō Mountain Range, contains Mount Hiru (1,673 m or 5,489 ft), the highest peak in the prefecture. Other mountains measure similar mid-range heights: Mount Hinokiboramaru (1,601 m or 5,253 ft), Mount Tanzawa, (1,567 m or 5,141 ft), Mount Ōmuro (1,588 m or 5,210 ft), Mount Himetsugi (1,433 m or 4,701 ft), and Mount Usu (1,460 m or 4,790 ft). The mountain range is lower in height southward leading to Hadano Basin to the Ōiso Hills. At the eastern foothills of the mountain range lies the Isehara Plateau and across the Sagami River the Sagamino plateau.
Cities
Nineteen cities are located in Kanagawa Prefecture.
Towns and villages
These are the towns and villages in each district:
Demographics
In 1945, Kanagawa was the 15th most populous prefecture in Japan, with a population of about 1.9 million. In the years after the war, the prefecture underwent rapid urbanization as a part of the Greater Tokyo Area. The population as of September 1, 2014 is estimated to be 9.1 million. Kanagawa became the second most populous prefecture in 2006.
Festivals and events
Chigasaki Hamaori Festival (July)
Hiratsuka Tanabata Festival (July)
Kamakura Festival (April)
Odawara Hōjō Godai Festival (May)
Tama River Firework event
Yokohama Port Anniversary Festival (June)
Yugawara Kifune Festival (July)
Transportation
Kanagawa's transport network is heavily intertwined with that of Tokyo (see: Transportation in Greater Tokyo). Shin-Yokohama and Odawara stations on the Tōkaidō Shinkansen are located in the prefecture, providing high-speed rail service to Tokyo, Nagoya, Osaka, and other major cities.
Railways
East Japan Railway Company
Tōkaidō Main Line
Nambu Line
Tsurumi Line
Yokohama Line
Negishi Line
Yokosuka Line
Sagami Line
Chūō Main Line
Central Japan Railway Company
Tokaido Shinkansen
Gotemba Line
Keikyu
Main Line
Daishi Line
Kurihama Line
Zushi Line
Odakyu
Odawara Line
Enoshima Line
Tama Line
Sagami Railway
Main Line
Izumino Line
Shin-Yokohama Line
Tokyu
Tōyoko Line
Den-en-toshi Line
Ōimachi Line
Meguro Line
Subways
Yokohama Municipal Subway
Blue Line
Green Line
Monorail
Shonan Monorail
People movers
Kanazawa Seaside Line
Road
Chūō Expressway
Shuto Expressway
Tōmei Expressway
Tokyo Bay Aqua-Line
Route 1
Route 15
Route 16
Route 20
Route 129 (Hiratsuka-Atsugi-Sagamihara)
Route 132
Route 133
Route 134
Route 135 (Shimoda–Atami-Odawara)
Route 138
Route 246 (Chiyoda, Tokyo-Kawasaki-Machida-Atsugi-Isehara-Gotenba–Numazu)
Route 255
Route 357 (Chiba–Funabashi–Daiba of Tokyo-Yokohama-Yokosuka)
Route 409
Route 412
Route 413 (Fujiyoshida–Lake Yamanaka-Sagamihara)
Route 466 (Setagaya, Tokyo-Kawasaki-Yokohama)
Route 467
Ports
Misaki Port—Ferry Route to Kisarazu
Port of Yokohama—International container hub port
Education
The Kanagawa Prefectural Board of Education manages and oversees individual municipal school districts. The board of education also directly operates most of the public high schools in the prefecture.
Sports
Facilities
Hiratsuka Athletics Stadium
Nippatsu Mitsuzawa Stadium (Mitsuzawa Stadium)—in Yokohama, only for football
Nissan Stadium (International Stadium Yokohama)—in Yokohama, the final venue of 2002 FIFA World Cup, FIFA Club World Cup in 2005–2007 and 2019 Rugby World Cup
Sagamihara Gion Stadium
Todoroki Athletics Stadium—in Kawasaki, the final venue of 2007 IFAF World Cup (American football).
Kawasaki Stadium—former homeground of Taiyo Whales (now Yokohama BayStars) and Lotte Orions (now Chiba Lotte Marines).
Yokohama Stadium—for baseball (Yokohama DeNA BayStars) and hosted Australian rules football
Yokosuka Stadium—home field of Shonan Searex, minor league team of Yokohama BayStars
Odawara Arena—2020 Kanagawa Pre-Games training facilities
Todoroki Arena—in Kawasaki and multi-purpose venue (including basketball)
Yokohama Arena—also for music concert
Yokohama Cultural Gymnasium—a volleyball venue of 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo
Enoshima Yacht Course—used for 1964 Summer Olympics.
Hakone Ekiden Course—from Tokyo to Hakone, 108.0 km, mostly on Japan National Route 1 and Route 15. Runners run on the divided route for ten parts on January 2 (to Hakone) and January 3 (to Tokyo) every year.
Teams
Kawasaki Frontale (Kawasaki)—Todoroki Athletics
SC Sagamihara (Sagamihara)—Gion Stadium
Shonan Bellmare (Hiratsuka, Odawara and some cities and towns in central and western area of Kanagawa)—Hiratsuka Athletic Stadium (football) and Odawara Arena (futsal)
Yokohama F.C. (Yokohama)—Mitsuzawa Ballpark
Yokohama F. Marinos (Yokohama, Yokosuka)—Nissan Stadium
Yokohama BayStars (Yokohama)—Yokohama Stadium, and Yokosuka Stadium (for its farm team, "Shonan Searex").
Toshiba Brave Thunders Kanagawa (Kawasaki)—Todoroki Arena
NEC Red Rockets (Kawasaki)—Todoroki Arena
Visitor attractions and places of interest
Yokohama Chinatown
Yokohama Municipal Children's Botanical Garden
Yokohama War Cemetery
Notable people
Kaoru Otsuki (born 6 August 1888 – 21 December 1970), was the Japanese second wife of Sun Yat-sen, the founder and first president of the Republic of China.
Lynn, voice actress
Ryoko Mima (born 1984), model and entertainer
Kaede, dancer, singer, model and actress, member of F5ve, formerly a member of E-girls and its subunit Happiness
International relations
Kanagawa Prefecture has sister relationships with these places:
Maryland, United States (1981)
Liaoning Province, China (1983)
Odesa Oblast, Ukraine (1986)
Baden-Württemberg, Germany (1989)
Gyeonggi Province, Republic of Korea (1990)
Queensland, Australia (1990)
Penang, Malaysia (1991)
Västra Götaland County, Sweden (1998)
Aguascalientes, México (2013)
In popular culture
The Japanese anime and manga series Anonymous Noise takes place in Kanagawa, mostly Kamakura (Kamakura Yuigahama Beach).
The Japanese anime and manga series Astro Fighter Sunred is set in Kanagawa Prefecture, specifically Kawasaki City and the area around the Tama River.
The Japanese anime and manga series Bungo Stray Dogs is set in Yokohama.
The Japanese manga series Elfen Lied takes place in Kanagawa, mainly in Kamakura and Enoshima (Fujisawa).
The Japanese anime series Gundam Wing's early episodes feature Kanagawa prominently, mainly Yokohama and Yokosuka.
The Japanese anime and manga series Hamatora takes place in Kanagawa, mainly in Yokohama.
The Japanese anime and manga series His and Her Circumstances takes place in Kanagawa Prefecture, mainly in Kawasaki city and Yokohama.
The Japanese anime and manga series Initial D Fifth Stage is set in Kanagawa, and Final Stage is set in Hakone.
The Japanese manga and anime series Kenkō Zenrakei Suieibu Umishō takes place in the fictional Kanagawa city of Umineko.
The Japanese anime and manga series The Knight in the Area takes place in Kanagawa, mostly Kamakura.
It's never been said, but the Japanese manga series Komi Can't Communicate is set in Kanagawa. One of the characters lives in a building complex in the city of Chigasaki that exists in real life.