The , or simply Setouchi, is a geographic region of Japan. Setouchi includes the

Seto Inland Sea The , sometimes shortened to the Inland Sea, is the body of water separating Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu, three of the four main islands of Japan. It serves as a waterway connecting the Pacific Ocean to the Sea of Japan. It connects to Osaka Ba ...

and the adjacent coastal areas of

Honshū , historically known as , is the largest of the four main islands of Japan. It lies between the Pacific Ocean (east) and the Sea of Japan (west). It is the seventh-largest island in the world, and the second-most populous after the Indonesian ...

Shikoku is the smallest of the List of islands of Japan#Main islands, four main islands of Japan. It is long and between at its widest. It has a population of 3.8 million, the least populated of Japan's four main islands. It is south of Honshu ...

, and

Kyūshū is the third-largest island of Japan's four main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands (i.e. excluding Okinawa and the other Ryukyu (''Nansei'') Islands). In the past, it has been known as , and . The historical regio ...

, three of the four main islands of

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. Yamaguchi,

Hiroshima is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 1,199,391. The gross domestic product (GDP) in Greater Hiroshima, Hiroshima Urban Employment Area, was US$61.3 billion as of 2010. Kazumi Matsui has b ...

Okayama is the prefectural capital, capital Cities of Japan, city of Okayama Prefecture in the Chūgoku region of Japan. The Okayama metropolitan area, centered around the city, has the largest urban employment zone in the Chugoku region of western J ...

, Hyōgo,

Osaka is a Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the List of cities in Japan, third-most populous city in J ...

, Kagawa, Ehime,

Fukuoka is the List of Japanese cities by population, sixth-largest city in Japan and the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The city is built along the shores of Hakata Bay, and has been a center of international commerce since ancient times. ...

, and Ōita prefectures all have coastlines in Setouchi; the cities of

Iwakuni file:20100724 Iwakuni 5235.jpg, 270px, Kintai Bridge file:Iwakuni city center area Aerial photograph.2008.jpg, 270px, Iwakuni city center is a Cities of Japan, city located in Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of ...

Takamatsu file:Takamatsu City Hall.jpg, 270px, Takamatsu City Hall file:Takamatsu city center area Aerial photograph.2007.jpg, 270px, Aerial view of Takamatsu city center file:Takamatsu200910cut.JPG, 270px, View from Yashima to Takashima port is a capital ...

, and

Matsuyama 270px, Matsuyama City Hall 270px, Ehime Prefectural Capital Building is the capital city of Ehime Prefecture, on the island of Shikoku, in Japan and is also Shikoku's largest city. , the city had an estimated population of 505,948 in 243,541 h ...

are also located within the region.

History

Since the 1980s, the sea's northern and southern shores have been connected by the three routes of the Honshū–Shikoku Bridge Project, including the Great Seto Bridge, which serves both railroad and automobile traffic.

Geography

The Setouchi region is known for its moderate climate, with a stable year-round temperature and relatively low rainfall levels. The sea is also famous for its periodic caused by dense aggregations of certain

phytoplankton Phytoplankton () are the autotrophic (self-feeding) components of the plankton community and a key part of ocean and freshwater Aquatic ecosystem, ecosystems. The name comes from the Greek language, Greek words (), meaning 'plant', and (), mea ...

that result in the deaths of large numbers of fish.

References

External links

Setouchi - English Travel
- Setouchi Trip
Setouchi
- JNTO
Setouchi Art Festival

- Japan Guide {{coord missing, Japan Regions of Japan Landforms of Ehime Prefecture Landforms of Yamaguchi Prefecture Landforms of Hiroshima Prefecture Landforms of Okayama Prefecture Landforms of Hyōgo Prefecture Landforms of Fukuoka Prefecture Landforms of Ōita Prefecture Landforms of Kagawa Prefecture

History

Geography

See also

References

External links