is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of

Shikoku is the smallest of the four main islands of Japan. It is long and between wide. It has a population of 3.8 million (, 3.1%). It is south of Honshu and northeast of Kyushu. Shikoku's ancient names include ''Iyo-no-futana-shima'' (), '' ...

. Kōchi Prefecture has a population of 757,914 (1 December 2011) and has a geographic area of 7,103 km² (2,742

sq mi The square mile (abbreviated as sq mi and sometimes as mi2)Rowlett, Russ (September 1, 2004) University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Retrieved February 22, 2012. is an imperial and US unit of measure for area. One square mile is an are ...

). Kōchi Prefecture borders Ehime Prefecture to the northwest and Tokushima Prefecture to the northeast. Kōchi is the capital and largest city of Kōchi Prefecture, with other major cities including Nankoku, Shimanto, and Kōnan. Kōchi Prefecture is located on Japan's

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the contine ...

coast surrounding a large bay in the south of Shikoku, with the southernmost point of the island located at

Cape Ashizuri is a headland at the southernmost tip of the Japanese island of Shikoku, in the city of Tosashimizu, Kōchi Prefecture. The promontory extends into the Pacific Ocean and is situated within Ashizuri-Uwakai National Park. Above the cape is , whic ...

in Tosashimizu. Kōchi Prefecture is home to Kōchi Castle, considered the most intact

Japanese castle are fortresses constructed primarily of wood and stone. They evolved from the wooden stockades of earlier centuries, and came into their best-known form in the 16th century. Castles in Japan were built to guard important or strategic sites, such ...

, and the

Shimanto River The is a river in western Kōchi Prefecture, Japan. 196 km in length, it has a watershed of 2,270 km². Its name is written with kanji meaning "forty thousand and ten". Since the river is remote from major cities and does not have a ...

, one of the few undammed rivers in Japan.

History

Kōchi Prefecture was historically known as Tosa Province and was controlled by the Chōsokabe clan in the Sengoku period and the Yamauchi clan during the

Edo period The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional '' daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was characte ...

. Kōchi city is also the birthplace of noted revolutionary

Sakamoto Ryōma was a Japanese ''samurai'', a '' shishi'' and influential figure of the ''Bakumatsu'' and establishment of the Empire of Japan in the late Edo period. He was a low-ranking ''samurai'' from the Tosa Domain on Shikoku and became an active oppo ...

, who became one of the main instigators of the Meiji Restoration.

Geography

Kōchi Prefecture comprises the southwestern part of the island of

, facing the Pacific Ocean. It is bordered by

Ehime is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Shikoku. Ehime Prefecture has a population of 1,342,011 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of 5,676 km2 (2,191 sq mi). Ehime Prefecture borders Kagawa Prefecture to the northeast, Tok ...

to the north-west and Tokushima to the north-east. It is the largest but least populous of Shikoku's four prefectures. Most of the province is mountainous, and in only a few areas such as around Kōchi and Nakamura is there a coastal plain. Kōchi is famous for its many rivers. Inamura-yama in Tosa-cho is the highest peak in Kōchi prefecture with an altitude of 1,506 meters above sea level. As of April 1, 2012, 7% of the total land area of the prefecture was designated as Natural Parks, namely the

Ashizuri-Uwakai National Park is a national park at the southwestern tip of the island of Shikoku, Japan. The park is spread over small areas on the western side of Shikoku between Ehime and Kōchi prefectures. The main feature of the park is Cape Ashizuri, the southernmo ...

;

Ishizuchi The is a limited express train service in Japan operated by JR Shikoku, which runs from to , and . The ''Ishizuchi'' service was introduced on 10 April 1988. Route The main stations served by this service are as follows. - - - - Rollin ...

, Muroto-Anan Kaigan, and Tsurugisan Quasi-National Parks; and eighteen Prefectural Natural Parks. Map of Kochi Prefecture Ja

Cities

Eleven cities are located in Kōchi Prefecture: File:Kochi Japan.jpg, Kōchi City File:Okouzyou02.jpg, Nankoku City File:SHIMANTO CITY.jpg, Shimanto City File:Susaki city view.jpg, Susaki City File:手結漁港 - panoramio.jpg, Kōnan City File:Sukumo-Station-square-rotary.jpg, Sukumo City

Towns and villages

These are the towns and villages in each district: File:いの町新町付近 - panoramio.jpg, Ino Town File:くろ鉄奈半利駅からの眺め・南向き - panoramio.jpg, Nahari Town File:Irino no Matsubara, enkei.jpg, Kuroshio Town File:土佐あかうしの放牧.jpg, Motoyama Town File:Yokokurayama07.jpg, Ochi Town

Mergers

Tourism

* Kōchi Castle, one of only 12 original castles left in Japan *

Aki Castle was a Japanese castle, castle of the Aki clan in what is now the city of Aki, Kōchi, Aki, Kōchi Prefecture, Japan. Ruins still remain and the site was designated an Aki City Historic Site. It is believed the castle was built by Aki Chikauji in 1 ...

and samurai's residence district called ''Doi Kachū'' * Okō Castle, Chōsokabe clan's prime castle ruins. * Kōchi Prefectural Museum of History, Historical Museum located on Okō Castle * Katsurahama * Ryugado Cave, one of Japan's top three caves *

, the only undammed river in Japan * Godaisan * Anpanman Museum

Media

The 2021 movie Belle (Ryū to Sobakasu no Hime) is set in Kōchi. The 2013 movie Hospitality Department (Kencho Omotenashi Ka) is set in Kōchi. The film shows views of Kōchi Prefecture. The 2009 movie '' The Harimaya Bridge'' starring Danny Glover was set in Kochi.

Culture

Yosakoi Performers at Kochi Yosakoi Matsuri 2008 40

Food

Like most areas of Japan, Kōchi advertises itself as specialising in a major food item, in this case, katsuo no tataki. Katsuo no tataki is skipjack tuna or bonito, lightly seared. Traditionally this is done over the straw generated as a by-product of the rice harvest. Sawachi is a term which refers to "a style of meal" in Kochi prefecture, according to Kochi-City Tourism Association. It says that the characteristic of the style of eating is "its freeness in the arrangement of food on a large dish" People eat Sawachi in the situation of "Enkai" which refers to a gathering of family, friends and relatives. They surround "Sawachi", feasts on large dishes, and take own portions by themselves. The style represents the cultural climate of Kochi Prefecture, which dislikes formal arrangements and respects freedom.

Festival and events

;Festival * Yosakoi Festival - Yosakoi (よさこい) is a unique style of dance that originated in Japan and that is performed at festivals and events all over the country.

Sports

The sports teams listed below are based in Kōchi. ;Baseball * Kōchi Fighting Dogs ;Football * Kōchi United SC

Notes

References

* Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric and Käthe Roth. (2005)
''Japan encyclopedia.''
Cambridge:

Harvard University Press Harvard University Press (HUP) is a publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University, and focused on academic publishing. It is a member of the Association of American University Presses. After the retir ...

.
OCLC 58053128

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kochi Prefecture Shikoku region Prefectures of Japan