The is a coastal region on the Pacific Ocean, extending from southern

Aomori Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan in the Tōhoku region. The prefecture's capital, largest city, and namesake is the city of Aomori. Aomori is the northernmost prefecture on Japan's main island, Honshu, and is bordered by the Pacific Ocean to the eas ...

, through Iwate Prefecture and northern Miyagi Prefecture in northeastern Honshū, which is Japan's main island. The name comes from the historical region of

Sanriku , sometimes known as , lies on the northeastern side of the island of Honshu, corresponding to today's Aomori, Iwate and parts of Miyagi Prefecture and has a long history. The 36 bays of this irregular coastline tend to amplify the destructivenes ...

(lit. "three ''riku''"), referring to the former provinces of Rikuō, Rikuchū and

Rikuzen is an old province of Japan in the area of Miyagi Prefecture (excluding Igu, Katta District and Watari Districts) and parts of Iwate Prefecture (specifically Kesen District). Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Rikuzen''" in . It was some ...

Tourist destination

There are the Tanesashi Coast, the Rikuchu Kaigan National Park and the Minami-Sanriku Kinkazan Quasi-National Park in the Sanriku Coast region.

Earthquakes and tsunami

The bays of this

ria A ria (; gl, ría) is a coastal inlet formed by the partial submergence of an unglaciated river valley. It is a drowned river valley that remains open to the sea. Definitions Typically rias have a dendritic, treelike outline although they ca ...

coastline tend to amplify the destructiveness of tsunami waves. Significant events which devastated coastal communities include: *

869 Jogan Sanriku earthquake __NOTOC__ Year 869 ( DCCCLXIX) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * Summer – Emperor Basil I allies with the Frankish emperor L ...

1611 Keicho Sanriku earthquake Events January–June * February 27 – Sunspots are observed by telescope, by Frisian astronomers Johannes Fabricius and David Fabricius. Johannes publishes the results of these observations, in ''De Maculis in Sole observat ...

* 1896 Meiji Sanriku earthquake * 1933 Showa Sanriku earthquake *

1960 Valdivia earthquake The 1960 Valdivia earthquake and tsunami ( es, link=no, Terremoto de Valdivia) or the Great Chilean earthquake (''Gran terremoto de Chile'') on 22 May 1960 was the most powerful earthquake ever recorded. Various studies have placed it at 9.4– ...

2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami The occurred at 14:46 JST (05:46 UTC) on 11 March. The magnitude 9.0–9.1 (M) undersea megathrust earthquake had an epicenter in the Pacific Ocean, east of the Oshika Peninsula of the Tōhoku region, and lasted approximately six mi ...

Prior to 2011, the tsunami history of Sanriku might have been interpreted as a story of progressively fewer casualties due to human intervention and planning. The 2011 disaster created a new baseline for analysis of regularly occurring tsunamis.Clancy, Gregory
"Sanriku: Japan's 'Tsunami Coast',"
''The Telegraph'' (UK). March 14, 2011.

Notes

Regions of Japan Geography of Aomori Prefecture Geography of Iwate Prefecture Geography of Miyagi Prefecture Landforms of Aomori Prefecture Landforms of Iwate Prefecture Landforms of Miyagi Prefecture Coasts of Japan {{miyagi-geo-stub

Tourist destination

Earthquakes and tsunami

See also

Notes