Japan is an

archipelago An archipelago ( ), sometimes called an island group or island chain, is a chain, cluster, or collection of islands, or sometimes a sea containing a small number of scattered islands. Examples of archipelagos include: the Indonesian Arc ...

of 6,852 islands, of which approximately 260 are inhabited. Japan is the largest

island country An island country, island state or an island nation is a country whose primary territory consists of one or more islands or parts of islands. Approximately 25% of all independent countries are island countries. Island countries are historically ...

East Asia East Asia is the eastern region of Asia, which is defined in both Geography, geographical and culture, ethno-cultural terms. The modern State (polity), states of East Asia include China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan. ...

and the fourth largest in the world.

Main islands

The four ''main islands'' of Japan are:Imperial Japanese Commission to the Louisiana Purchase Exposition. (1903)
''Japan in the Beginning of the 20th century'' (Haruki Yamawaki, editor), p. 2
*

Hokkaido is Japan's second largest island and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by the undersea railway Seikan Tunnel. The lar ...

- the northernmost and second largest main island. *

Honshu , historically called , is the largest and most populous island of Japan. It is located south of Hokkaidō across the Tsugaru Strait, north of Shikoku across the Inland Sea, and northeast of Kyūshū across the Kanmon Straits. The island se ...

- the largest and most populous island with the capital

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...

. * Kyushu - the third largest main island and nearest to the Asian continent. *

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'' (), '' ...

- the smallest main island, it is between Honshu and Kyushu.

Hokkaido prefecture

* Ōshima *

Okushiri Island is an island in Hokkaidō, Japan. It has an area of . The town of Okushiri and the Hiyama Prefectural Natural Park encompass the entire island. It has many pastures, beech tree forests, and a rocky coastline. There are two elementary schools, o ...

* Teuri Island *

Rebun Island is an island in the Sea of Japan off the northwestern tip of Hokkaidō, Japan. The island sits off the coast of Hokkaidō. Rebun stretches from north to south and from east to west. The island covers approximately . Rebun Island is located ...

Rishiri Island is a high island in the Sea of Japan off the coast of Hokkaido, Japan. Administratively the island is part of Hokkaido Prefecture, and is divided between two towns, Rishiri and Rishirifuji. The island is formed by the cone-shaped extinct ...

Yagishiri Island is a small, sparsely populated island in the Sea of Japan, northwest of Haboro Bay in Haboro, Hokkaido. The island, along with neighboring Teuri Island on its west side, belongs to the town of Haboro in Rumoi Subprefecture. It is noted for its ...

Kamome island is an island (or more precisely, peninsula) in the Sea of Japan just off the coast of the town of Esashi, Hokkaidō (Hiyama), Esashi, Hokkaidō, Japan. The island serves as a breakwater for the Esashi port. It has several historical sites and is ...

Islands of Honshu in the
Sea of Japan The Sea of Japan is the marginal sea between the Japanese archipelago, Sakhalin, the Korean Peninsula, and the mainland of the Russian Far East. The Japanese archipelago separates the sea from the Pacific Ocean. Like the Mediterranean Sea, i ...

Awashima Island, Niigata is an Islands of Japan, island in the Sea of Japan. The island is located approximately west of the city of Murakami, Niigata, Murakami in northern Niigata Prefecture. Awashima is administratively the village of Awashimaura, Niigata, Awashi ...

Kanmurijima is an island in the Sea of Japan administered under Maizuru in Kyoto Prefecture. It is about 2 km from Kutsujima, a similar smaller island. is located just midway between islands. A breeding ground for streaked shearwaters, the island ...

Kutsujima, Kyoto is a volcanic island in the Sea of Japan, 2.5 km from the coast of the Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Kutsujima Island is administered as part of Maizuru city. The island consist of two islets - the smaller northern (where highest elevation ...

Mitsukejima is an uninhabited island in Suzu, Ishikawa, Japan. Because of its shape, it is also known as , which is also the common name given to Hashima Island in Nagasaki Prefecture. According to folklore, the island was given the name "Mitsukejima" by ...

* Nanatsujima archipelago *

Notojima is a volcanic island in the Nanao Bay () portion of the Sea of Japan, less than 500 meters off the coast of the Ishikawa prefecture in Japan. Notojima Island is administered as part of Nanao city. The two bridges connecting Notojima to the ...

Oki Islands The is an archipelago in the Sea of Japan, the islands of which are administratively part of Oki District, Shimane Prefecture, Japan. The islands have a total area of . Only four of the around 180 islands are permanently inhabited. Much of the ...

(Oki Islands) Ponsonby-Fane, Richard. (1962). ''Sovereign and Subject,'' p. 332. ** Dōgo **

Nakanoshima is a 3 km long and 50 hectares narrow sandbank in Kita-ku, Osaka city, Japan, that divides the Kyū-Yodo into the Tosabori and Dōjima rivers. Many governmental and commercial offices (including the city hall of Osaka), museums and other ...

** Nishinoshima ** Chiburijima * * SadoPonsonby-Fane, p. 331. *

Takashima, Shimane is a volcanic island in the Sea of Japan, 12 km from the coast of the Shimane prefecture in Japan. Takashima Island is administered as part of Masuda, Shimane Prefecture. Takashima takes its name, meaning "High Island" from its steep cliff ...

* Tobishima (Yamagata) ** * Tsunoshima * Umashima, Shimane

Islands in
Tokyo Bay is a bay located in the southern Kantō region of Japan, and spans the coasts of Tokyo, Kanagawa Prefecture, and Chiba Prefecture. Tokyo Bay is connected to the Pacific Ocean by the Uraga Channel. The Tokyo Bay region is both the most populous ...

* Dream Island (Yume No Shima) * Odaiba *

Sarushima , is a small island located off Yokosuka, Kanagawa in Japan. It is the only natural island in Tokyo Bay. Sarushima was used as a battery by the Tokugawa shogunate during the Edo period, and after the Meiji Restoration in 1868, the island was devel ...

(natural) * * * * *

Tokyo International Airport , officially , and sometimes called as Tokyo Haneda Airport or Haneda International Airport , is one of two international airports serving the Greater Tokyo Area, the other one being Narita International Airport (NRT). It serves as the primary ...

* * * *

Wakasu also ''Wakasu Island'', is an island located in Koto, Tokyo. It is located south of Shin-Kiba and is connected to a new unnamed island to the south by the Tokyo Gate Bridge. The place was known connected with the murder of Junko Furuta, a h ...

Islands in
Osaka Bay Osaka Bay (大阪湾 ''Ōsaka-wan'' ) is a bay in western Japan. As an eastern part of the Seto Inland Sea, it is separated from the Pacific Ocean by the Kii Channel and from the neighbor western part of the Inland Sea by the Akashi Strait. ...

* Maishima *

Yumeshima is an artificial island. It is part of Konohana-ku (此花区), one of the 24 wards of Osaka, Japan. It is near the mouth of the Yodo River. When all the landfill is completed the total area will be . It will be the site of Expo 2025, a World ...

* *

Kansai International Airport Kansai International Airport ( ja, 関西国際空港, Kansai Kokusai Kūkō) commonly known as is the primary international airport in the Greater Osaka Area of Japan and the closest international airport to the cities of Osaka, Kyoto, and ...

Kobe Airport is an airport on an artificial island just off the coast of Kobe, south of Sannomiya StationAIS Japan
Port Island is an artificial island in Chuo-ku, Kobe, Japan. It was constructed between 1966-1980 (Phase 1) and 1987-2009 (Phase 2) at Port of Kobe, and officially opened with an exposition called " Portopia '81." It now houses a heliport, numerous ho ...

Rokkō Island is a man-made island in Higashinada-ku, Kobe, Hyōgo, Japan. It is located in the southeast region of the Port of Kobe. The island has a rectangular shape, and covers . The residential area of the island, featuring apartment buildings—man ...

* * Wakayama Marina City *

Islands in
Ise Bay is a bay located at the mouth of the Kiso Three Rivers between Mie and Aichi Prefectures in Japan. Ise Bay has an average depth of and a maximum depth of . The mouth of the bay is and is connected to the smaller Mikawa Bay by two channels: ...

Chūbu Centrair International Airport is an international airport on an artificial island in Ise Bay, Tokoname City in Aichi Prefecture, south of Nagoya in central Japan. Centrair is classified as a first class airport and is the main international gateway for the Chubu (" ...

(artificial island) *

Kami-shima is an inhabited island located in Ise Bay off the east coast of central Honshu, Japan. It is administered as part of the city of Toba in Mie Prefecture. The name of Kami-shima has alternatively been written with as or ; its present form of Kam ...

Kashiko Island is an island in Ago Bay. It is in the city of Shima, Mie Prefecture, Japan. The island was uninhabited until the 1920s when a railway built by Shima Electric Railway (now known as the Shima Line) was constructed to serve as the endpoint of the ...

* Kozukumi Island *

Mikimoto Pearl Island is a small island in Ise Bay, offshore Toba, Mie Prefecture, Japan. The island is known as the birthplace of cultured pearl aquaculture. The island is owned by , which operates the island as a tourist attraction, exhibiting pearls and pearl c ...

Islands in
Mutsu Bay is a bay located within Aomori Prefecture, in the northern Tōhoku region of northern Japan. It has an east-west distance of approximately and a north-south distance of approximately at its eastern end, with a total area of approximately . ...

* Ōshima *

Taijima is an uninhabited set of rocky islands off the coast of the Shimokita Peninsula in Mutsu Bay. The island is a part of the city of Mutsu in Aomori Prefecture. The island has of coastline and an area of . It is a part of the prefecture-managed, ...

Nanpō Islands The is a collective term for the groups of islands that are located to the south of the Japanese archipelago in Micronesia. They extend from the Izu Peninsula west of Tokyo Bay southward for about , to within of the Mariana Islands. The Nanp� ...
(''Nanpō Shotō'')

* Izu IslandsNussbaum
"''Izu Shotō''"
at p. 412. **

Aogashima is a volcanic island to the south of Japan in northernmost Micronesia. It is the southernmost and most isolated inhabited island of the Izus, which are politically and administratively part of Japan but geographically not part of the Japanes ...

** Hachijō **

Izu Ōshima is an inhabited volcanic island in the Izu archipelago in the Philippine Sea, off the coast of Honshu, Japan, east of the Izu Peninsula and southwest of Bōsō Peninsula. As with the other islands in the Izu Island group, Izu Ōshima for ...

** Kōzu **

Miyake-jima is an inhabited volcanic island in the Izu archipelago in the Philippine Sea approximately southeast of Tokyo, Japan. As with the other islands in the Izu Island group, Miyake-jima forms part of the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park. Etymology ...

Mikura-jima is a volcanic Japanese island in the Pacific Ocean. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Izu Shotō'',"''Japan Encyclopedia,'' p. 412. The island is administered by Tōkyō Metropolis and is located approximately south of Tokyo and south-s ...

** Nii-jima ** Shikine **

Toshima is a special ward in Tokyo, Japan. It is one of the eight central wards of the Tokyo Metropolitan area. Located in the northern area of Tokyo, Toshima is bordered by the wards of Nerima, Itabashi, and Kita in the north and Nakano, Shinjuku ...

** Tori-shima ** Udonejima *

Ogasawara Islands The Bonin Islands, also known as the , are an archipelago of over 30 subtropical and tropical islands, some directly south of Tokyo, Japan and northwest of Guam. The name "Bonin Islands" comes from the Japanese word ''bunin'' (an archaic readi ...

(

Bonin Islands The Bonin Islands, also known as the , are an archipelago of over 30 subtropical and tropical islands, some directly south of Tokyo, Japan and northwest of Guam. The name "Bonin Islands" comes from the Japanese word ''bunin'' (an archaic read ...

)Nussbaum
"Ogasawara Guntō"
at p. 737. Ogasawara_islands

** Mukojima Rettō **

Chichijima , native_name_link = , image_caption = Map of Chichijima, Anijima and Otoutojima , image_size = , pushpin_map = Japan complete , pushpin_label = Chichijima , pushpin_label_position = , pushpin_map_alt = , ...

Hahajima , native_name_link = , image_caption = Map of the Hahajima Rettō (Imōtojima is mislabeled as Tori-shima) , image_size = , pushpin_map = Japan complete , pushpin_label = Hahajima , pushpin_label_position = , pushp ...

** Mukojima * Kazan Rettō (Volcano Islands) ** Nishinoshima ** Kita Iwo Jima (

North Iwo Jima , native_name_link = , image_caption = Kita-Iwō-jima , image_size = , pushpin_map = Japan complete , pushpin_label = North Iwo Jima , pushpin_label_position = , pushpin_map_alt = , pushpin_relief ...

) ** Iwo Jima ** Minami Iwo Jima (

South Iwo Jima , native_name_link = , image_caption = Minami-Iōtō , image_size = , pushpin_map = Japan complete , pushpin_label = South Iwo Jima , pushpin_label_position = , pushpin_map_alt = , pushpin_relief ...

)

Other Japanese islands

Minami Torishima , also known as Marcus Island, is an isolated Japanese coral atoll in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, located some southeast of Tokyo and east of the closest Japanese island, South Iwo Jima of the Ogasawara Islands, and nearly on a straight li ...

(Marcus Island) *

Enoshima is a small offshore island, about in circumference, at the mouth of the Katase River which flows into the Sagami Bay of Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. Administratively, Enoshima is part of the mainland city of Fujisawa, and is linked to ...

Okino Torishima , or Parece Vela, is a coral reef with two rocks enlarged with tetrapod-cement structures. It is administered by Japan with a total shoal area of and land area . Its dry land area is mostly made up by three concrete encasings and there is a ...

(Parece Vela)

Islands around Kyushu

Most of these are located in the East China Sea. *

Amakusa , which means "Heaven's Grass," is a series of islands off the west coast of Kyushu, the southernmost of the four main islands of Japan. Geography The largest island of the Amakusa group is Shimoshima, which is 26.5 miles long and 13.5 mi ...

Shimoshima Island, Amakusa is the largest island in the Amakusa archipelago. Its coasts are washed by Ariake Sea, Amakusa-nada sea, East China Sea and Yatsushiro Sea. Most of ''Shimoshima Island'' is administered as part of Amakusa city, with 67 km2 patch on north-w ...

** Kamishima Island, Amakusa * Nagashima Island, Kagoshima *

Aoshima Aoshima is a Japanese name meaning "blue island". It is most commonly written as 青島, but may also be written 青嶋, 蒼島, and 青嶌. Aoshima may refer to: Companies *Aoshima Bunka Kyozai, a well-known Japanese model car, model aircraft a ...

Gotō Islands The are Japanese islands in the East China Sea, off the western coast of Kyūshū. They are part of Nagasaki Prefecture. Geography There are 140 islands, including five main ones: , , , , and . The group of islands runs approximately fr ...

* Danjo Islands * * Hashima *

Hirado is a city located in Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan. The part historically named Hirado is located on Hirado Island. With recent mergers, the city's boundaries have expanded, and Hirado now occupies parts of the main island of Kyushu. The component ...

Iki IKI may refer to: * Internationales Kulturinstitut in Vienna * Iodine potassium-iodide, a chemical compound * Russian Space Research Institute originally known as IKI RAN * Iki Airport, IATA code Iki or iki may refer to: * Iki Island, a Japanese ...

Koshikijima Islands The in the East China Sea are an island chain located 38 km west of the port city of Ichikikushikino, Kagoshima. Major islands Minor islands All minor islands are currently (as in 2017) uninhabited. #seems to undergo significant eros ...

** Shimokoshiki-jima **

Kamikoshiki-jima is the second largest island in the Koshikijima Islands. Its coasts are washed by East China Sea. The island's highest peak is Mount Tomekiyama high. Settlements and administrative units * *Kamikoshiki, Kagoshima ** ** ** ** ** ** ** Geogra ...

* Tsushima *

Ukushima Ukujima (, also called Uku Island) is an island in the northernmost part of the Gotō archipelago, about 50 km west of the mainland of Kyushu, Japan. It is administratively part of Sasebo City, Nagasaki Prefecture. The entire island lies wit ...

Islands around Shikoku

* Kuro-shima (Ehime) *

Nii Ōshima , or sometimes just , is an inhabited island located roughly 1.5 kilometers northeast of the city of Niihama (which it is officially a part of) in Ehime Prefecture, Japan. Geography Nii Ōshima is located in the Seto Inland Sea. It has a circu ...

Ryukyu Islands The , also known as the or the , are a chain of Japanese islands that stretch southwest from Kyushu to Taiwan: the Ōsumi, Tokara, Amami, Okinawa, and Sakishima Islands (further divided into the Miyako and Yaeyama Islands), with Yona ...
(''Nansei-shotō'')

Satsunan Islands

The northern half is administratively part of Kagoshima Prefecture and Kyushu.

=
Ōsumi Islands The is an archipelago in the Nansei Islands, and are the northernmost group of the Satsunan Islands, which is in turn part of the Ryukyu Archipelago. The chain extends from the southern tip of Kyushu to Yakushima. Administratively, the group bel ...

= The North-Eastern Group: *

Tanegashima is one of the Ōsumi Islands belonging to Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. The island, 444.99 km2 in area, is the second largest of the Ōsumi Islands, and has a population of 33,000 people. Access to the island is by ferry, or by air to Ne ...

Yakushima is one of the Ōsumi Islands in Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. The island, in area, has a population of 13,178. Access to the island is by hydrofoil ferry (7 or 8 times a day from Kagoshima, depending on the season), slow car ferry (once or twic ...

Kuchinoerabujima , native_name_link=, image_caption=Kuchinoerabu-jima from Nagatadake on Yakushima, image_size=, map_image=OsumiIslands.png, map_caption=, location=East China Sea, coordinates=, archipelago=Ōsumi Islands, total_islands=, major_islands=, area_km2=38 ...

* Mageshima The North-Western Group: * Iōjima *

Shōwa Iōjima , also known as , is one of the Satsunan Islands, usually classed with the Ōsumi Islands, belonging to Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. A deserted volcanic island, it is located just off the northern shore of Iōjima, Kagoshima. Geography Shō ...

KuroshimaTakeshima

=
Tokara Islands The is an archipelago in the Nansei Islands, and are part of the Satsunan Islands, which is in turn part of the Ryukyu Archipelago. The chain consists of twelve small islands located between Yakushima and Amami-Oshima. The islands have a tota ...

= The Shichi-tō: *

Kuchinoshima , literally "mouth island", is one of the Tokara Islands, belonging to Kagoshima Prefecture. The island, in area, and has a population of 140 persons. The island can only be reached by boat as it has no airport, there are regular ferry service to ...

Nakanoshima (Kagoshima) , native_name_link = , image_caption = , image_size = , map_image = Tokara-eilanden.png , map_caption = , location = East China Sea , coordinates = , archipelago = Tokara Islands , total_islands ...

Gajajima , is an abandoned island in the Tokara Islands, a sub-group of the Satsunan Islands belonging to Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. The island has an area of 4.07 km2 in area and was inhabited to 1970. Geography Gajajima is located west of Na ...

Suwanosejima is one of the Tokara Islands, belonging to Kagoshima Prefecture. The island covers 27.66 km² in area and has a population of 48 people. Although the island has an airport, there are no regularly scheduled services, and access is normally b ...

Akusekijima , is one of the Tokara Islands, a sub-group of the Satsunan Islands belonging to Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. The island, 7.42 km² in area, has a population of 59 persons. The island can only be reached by boat as it has no airport; there is ...

Tairajima , is one of the Tokara Islands, a sub-group of the Satsunan Islands belonging to Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. The island, 2.08 km² in area, has a population of 89 persons. The island can only be reached by boat as it has no airport; there is ...

Kodakarajima , literally "small treasure island", is one of the Tokara Islands, belonging to Kagoshima Prefecture. The island, 1.0 km² in area, is the smallest inhabited island in the archipelago, and has a population of 49 people. The island can only be ...

Takarajima , literally "treasure island", is one of the Tokara Islands, belonging to Kagoshima Prefecture. The island, 7.14 km² in area, has a population of 116 persons. The island can only be reached by boat as it has no airport; there is regular ferr ...

=
Amami Islands The The name ''Amami-guntō'' was standardized on February 15, 2010. Prior to that, another name, ''Amami shotō'' (奄美諸島), was also used. is an archipelago in the Satsunan Islands, which is part of the Ryukyu Islands, and is southwest of ...

= *

Amami Ōshima , also known as Amami, is the largest island in the Amami archipelago between Kyūshū and Okinawa. It is one of the Satsunan Islands. The island, 712.35 km2 in area, has a population of approximately 73,000 people. Administratively it is ...

Kikaijima is one of the Satsunan Islands, classed with the Amami archipelago between Kyūshū and Okinawa. The island, in area, has a population of approximately 7,657 persons. Administratively the island forms the town of Kikai, Kagoshima Prefecture ...

* Kakeromajima *

Yoroshima is one of the Satsunan Islands, classed with the Amami archipelago between Kyūshū and Okinawa.''Teikoku's Complete Atlas of Japan'', Teikoku-Shoin Co., Ltd., Tokyo, , The island, 9.35 km² in area, has a population of approximately 14 ...

* Ukeshima *

Tokunoshima , also known in English as is an island in the Amami archipelago of the southern Satsunan Islands of Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. The island, in area, has a population of approximately 27,000. The island is divided into three administrative ...

Okinoerabujima , also known as Okinoerabu, is one of the Satsunan Islands, classed with the Amami archipelago between Kyūshū and Okinawa. The island, 93.63 km² in area, has a population of approximately 14,000 persons. Administratively it is divided into th ...

Yoronjima , also known as Yoron, is one of the Amami Islands.''Teikoku's Complete Atlas of Japan'', Teikoku-Shoin Co., Ltd., Tokyo, The island, 20.8 km² (8 sq. mi.) in area, has a population of approximately 6,000 people, and is administered as the ...

Ryukyu Islands (''Ryūkyū-shotō'')

The Southern Half, Okinawa Prefecture

=
Okinawa Islands The Okinawa Islands ( or ) are an island group in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan and are the principal island group of the prefecture. The Okinawa Islands are part of the larger Ryukyu Islands group and are located between the Amami Islands of Ka ...

= The Central Group or Ryukyu proper: * Okinawa Island *

Kumejima is a town located in Shimajiri District, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. The town consists of the islands of Kume, Ōjima, Ōhajima, Torishima, and Iōtorishima. Among the islands, only Kumejima and Ōjima are populated. Kumejima is located approx ...

* Iheyajima * Izenajima
Agunijima
*

Iejima , previously romanized in English as Ie Shima, is an island in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan, lying a few kilometers off the Motobu Peninsula on Okinawa Island. The island measures in circumference and covers . As of December 2012 the island ...

Io-Torishima
(Iōtorishima) *

Kerama Islands The are a subtropical island group southwest of Okinawa Island in Japan. Geography Four islands are inhabited: Tokashiki Island, Zamami Island, Aka Island, and Geruma Island. The islands are administered as Tokashiki Village and Zamami Vi ...

** Tokashikijima **

Zamamijima is an island in the Pacific Ocean. It is part of the Kerama Islands group and administered as the village of Zamami in Shimajiri District is a district located in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. Modern translation of Shimajiri means "Butt of t ...

Akajima is an island in the Pacific Ocean and is part of the Kerama Islands group in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. The island is commonly known as Aka or Aka-shima and is located some 15 miles to the southwest of Okinawa Island. It has a subtropical climat ...

Gerumajima is an island in the Pacific Ocean. It is part of the Kerama Islands group in Shimajiri District is a district located in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. Modern translation of Shimajiri means "Butt of the island" which may refer to its southerly p ...

Daitō Islands The are an archipelago consisting of three isolated coral islands in the Philippine Sea southeast of Okinawa. The islands have a total area of and a population of 2,107. Administratively, the whole group belongs to Shimajiri District of Okina ...

** Kitadaitojima ** Minamidaitōjima ** Okidaitōjima

=
Sakishima Islands The (or 先島群島, ''Sakishima-guntō'') ( Okinawan: ''Sachishima'', Miyako: ''Saksїzїma'', Yaeyama: ''Sakїzїma'', Yonaguni: ''Satichima'') are an archipelago located at the southernmost end of the Japanese Archipelago. They are part ...

= Also known as the Further Isles: *

Miyako Islands The (also Miyako Jima group) are a group of islands in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan, belonging to the Ryukyu Islands. They are situated between the Okinawa Island and Yaeyama Islands. In the early 1870s, the population of the islands was est ...

Miyako-jima is the largest and the most populous island among the Miyako Islands of Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. Miyako Island is administered as part of the City of Miyakojima, which includes not only Miyako Island, but also five other populated island ...

** Ikema ** Ogami ** Irabu Island ** Shimoji ** Kurima-jima **

Minna Minna is a city in Middle Belt Nigeria. It is the capital city of Niger State, one of Nigeria's 36 federal states. It consists of two major ethnic groups: the Gbagyi and the Nupe. History Archaeological evidence suggests settlement in th ...

** Tarama *

Yaeyama Islands The Yaeyama Islands (八重山列島 ''Yaeyama-rettō'', also 八重山諸島 ''Yaeyama-shotō'', Yaeyama: ''Yaima'', Yonaguni: ''Daama'', Okinawan: ''Yeema'', Northern Ryukyuan: ''Yapema'') are an archipelago in the southwest of Okinawa P ...

Iriomote is the largest of the Yaeyama Islands of Japan, and the second largest in Okinawa Prefecture after Okinawa Island itself. The island has an area of and a 2005 population of 2,347. The island does not have an airstrip, and most visitors — ...

** Ishigaki **

Taketomi is an island in the town of Taketomi, within Yaeyama District of Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. Taketomi is one of the Yaeyama Islands. The population of Taketomi Island was 323 as of January 2012. Geography Taketomi Island is located south of Is ...

** Kohama ** Kuroshima ** Aragusuku **

Hatoma Hatoma (鳩間島, ''Hatoma-jima''; Yaeyama: ''Patuma''; Okinawan: ''Hatuma'') is a small island of the Yaeyama Islands, barely 1 kilometer in diameter. It is under the administration of Taketomi District, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. In local ...

** Yubujima **

Hateruma Hateruma (波照間島; ''Hateruma-jima''; Yaeyama: ''Patirooma'', Hateruma dialect: ''Besїma'' "our island", Okinawan: ''Hatiruma'', Northern Ryukyuan: ''Patara'') is an island in the Yaeyama District of Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. It is th ...

Yonaguni , one of the Yaeyama Islands, is the westernmost inhabited island of Japan, lying from the east coast of Taiwan, between the East China Sea and the Pacific Ocean proper. The island is administered as the town of Yonaguni, Yaeyama Gun, Okin ...

* Senkaku Islands - controlled by Japan, disputed by China and

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

. ** Uotsurijima **

Kuba Jima The are a group of uninhabited islands in the East China Sea, administered by Japan. They are located northeast of Taiwan, east of China, west of Okinawa Island, and north of the southwestern end of the Ryukyu Islands. They are known in main ...

Taisho Jima The are a group of uninhabited islands in the East China Sea, administered by Japan. They are located northeast of Taiwan, east of China, west of Okinawa Island, and north of the southwestern end of the Ryukyu Islands. They are known in m ...

** Kita Kojima ** Minami Kojima

Seto Inland Sea islands

Kasaoka Islands The are a group of 31 islands in the Seto Inland Sea of Okayama Prefecture. They are part of the city of Kasaoka. The seven inhabited islands in the group are: * Takashima Island 高島 (岡山県笠岡市) * Shiraishi Island is an island i ...

Takashima Island (Okayama) Takashima may refer to: People with the surname *Gara Takashima (born 1954), Japanese voice actor * Kazusa Takashima, Japanese manga artist *Kōbōyama Daizō, Japanese former sumo wrestler now known as Takashima Oyakata *, Japanese ice hockey play ...

高島 (岡山県笠岡市) ** Shiraishi Island ** Kitagi Island, 北木島 ** Obishi Island, 大飛島 ** Kobi Island, 小飛島 **

Manabeshima is an island in the Seto Inland Sea, part of the municipality of Kasaoka, Okayama Prefecture, Japan. The island has an area of and is one of the seven inhabited islands of the Kasaoka Islands group. The island's main commercial activity is f ...

, 真鍋島 ** Mushima Island (Okayama), 六島 (岡山県) *

Shiwaku Islands The or are an archipelago in the Seto Inland Sea, between the larger Japanese islands of Honshu and Shikoku. The group is situated between Okayama Prefecture and Kagawa Prefecture in the western Bisan Seto and consists of 28 islands of variou ...

* Awaji *

Etajima , also called , ''Nomijima'', ''Nomi Island'', or is an island in Hiroshima Bay located in southwestern Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. The mess with island name originates from the ancient (and possibly legendary) strait at now town . Geography Th ...

* Kurahashi-jima * Inujima *

Itsukushima is an island in the western part of the Inland Sea of Japan, located in the northwest of Hiroshima Bay. It is popularly known as , which in Japanese means "Shrine Island". The island is one of Hayashi Gahō's Three Views of Japan specified in ...

(popularly known as "Miyajima") *

Shōdoshima Shōdoshima or is an island located in the Inland Sea of Japan. The name means "Island of Small Beans". There are two towns on the island: Tonoshō and Shōdoshima, composing the district of Shōzu. The island is famous as the setting for th ...

Naoshima is an island in Japan's Seto Inland Sea, part of Kagawa Prefecture. The island is best known for its many contemporary art installations and museums. The administers Naoshima and 26 smaller islands nearby. As of 2020, the town has an estimated ...

Islands * Suō-Ōshima, Yamaguchi *

Himeshima, Ōita is a village located in Higashikunisaki District, Ōita Prefecture, Japan. The name ''Himeshima'' literally means "Princess Island". The village is on a small island, sometimes referred to as Hime Island, just off the Japanese island of Kyūsh ...

Aoshima, Ehime , also known as , is an island in Ehime Prefecture, Japan, known for its large number of feline residents. Felines have been reported by news outlets to outnumber humans by ratios between 6:1 and 10:1, but as elderly inhabitants of the island h ...

* Hashira Island * Okamura Island * Ōshima (Ehime) *

Mukaishima Island, Hiroshima is the northernmost island in Geiyo Islands chain accommodating Nishiseto Expressway connecting Honshu and Shikoku islands. Its coasts are washed by Seto Inland Sea. The island's highest peak is high. Geography The Mukaishima is pear-shaped ...

Ōmishima Island, Ehime is the largest island in the Geiyo Islands chain, and the westernmost which accommodates the Nishiseto Expressway between Honshu and Shikoku. It is located in the Seto Inland Sea. The island's highest peak is at an altitude of . Geography Ō ...

Ōkunoshima is a small island in the Inland Sea of Japan. It is considered to be part of the city of Takehara, Hiroshima Prefecture. It is accessible by ferry from Tadanoumi and Ōmishima. There are campsites, walking trails and places of historical i ...

(often called "Rabbit Island")

Islands in lakes

* Daikon-island * Bentenjima in

Lake Tōya is a volcanic caldera lake in Shikotsu-Toya National Park, Abuta District, Hokkaidō, Japan. It is part of "Toya Caldera and Usu Volcano Global Geopark" which joins in Global Geoparks Network. The stratovolcano of Mount Usu lies on the souther ...

* Bentenjima in

Lake Hamana is a brackish lagoon in Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan. Formerly a true lake, it is now connected to the Pacific Ocean by a channel. As an internal body of water, it is considered Japan's tenth-largest lake (by area). It spans the boundaries of the ...

Other artificial islands

Dejima , in the 17th century also called Tsukishima ( 築島, "built island"), was an artificial island off Nagasaki, Japan that served as a trading post for the Portuguese (1570–1639) and subsequently the Dutch (1641–1854). For 220 years, i ...

New Kitakyushu Airport , sometimes called Kokuraminami Airport, is an airport in Kokuraminami-ku, Kitakyushu, Fukuoka, Japan. It is built on an artificial island in the western Seto Inland Sea, away from the main body of the city. It opened on 16 March 2006, as but ...

* , off Hakodate (artificial) * (artificial) *

Wakaejima is an artificial island, the oldest in Japan, now in ruins. The name means "Waka Bay Island" from Waka, Zaimokuza's old name (see the text of the commemorative stele, below). Its remains are located at the east end of Zaimokuza Beach near Kamaku ...

(artificial) * Island City, Fukuoka (artificial)

Claims but does not control

The Northern Territories

There are four disputed Kuril Islands that are controlled by Russia and claimed by Japan. These islands are called the Chishima Islands.Imperial Japanese Commission
p. 3
* Iturup - *

Kunashir , other_names = kz, Kün Ashyr; ja, 国後島 , location = Sea of Okhotsk , locator_map = File:Kurily Kunashir.svg , coordinates = , archipelago = Kuril Islands , total_islands = , major_islands = , area = , length = , width = fr ...

- *

Shikotan ; ja, 色丹島 , location = Pacific Ocean , coordinates = , archipelago = Kuril Islands , total_islands = 1 , major_islands = , area_km2 = 225 , length = , width = , coastline ...

- *

Habomai Islands ; ja, 歯舞群島, Habomai guntō , location = Pacific Ocean , coordinates = , archipelago = Kuril Islands , total_islands = 10 + several rocks , major_islands = , area_km2 = 100 , length = , ...

Others

Liancourt Rocks The Liancourt Rocks, also known by their Korean name of Dokdo or their Japanese name of Takeshima,; ; . form a group of islets in the Sea of Japan between the Korean peninsula and the Japanese archipelago. The Liancourt Rocks comprise tw ...

(Dokdo/Takeshima) - controlled by

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its eas ...

, disputed by Japan and

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu (Amnok) and T ...

Former

* South Seas Mandate (1919–1947) - part of the

Japanese colonial empire The territorial conquests of the Empire of Japan in the Western Pacific and East Asia regions began in 1895 with its victory over Qing China in the First Sino-Japanese War. Subsequent victories over the Russian Empire (Russo-Japanese War) and Ge ...

until its defeat in 1945. Formally revoked by the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...

in 1947. The Commonwealth of the

Northern Mariana Islands The Northern Mariana Islands, officially the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI; ch, Sankattan Siha Na Islas Mariånas; cal, Commonwealth Téél Falúw kka Efáng llól Marianas), is an unincorporated territory and commonw ...

later became a

U.S. territory In the United States, a territory is any extent of region under the sovereign jurisdiction of the federal government of the United States, including all waters (around islands or continental tracts). The United States asserts sovereign rights for ...

. *

and Penghu (1895–1945) - part of the Japanese colonial empire until its defeat in 1945. Returned to the Republic of China in 1945. *

Karafuto Karafuto Prefecture ( ja, 樺太庁, ''Karafuto-chō''; russian: Префектура Карафуто, Prefektura Karafuto), commonly known as South Sakhalin, was a prefecture of Japan located in Sakhalin from 1907 to 1949. Karafuto became ter ...

(1905–1949) - the southern half of the island of

Sakhalin Sakhalin ( rus, Сахали́н, r=Sakhalín, p=səxɐˈlʲin; ja, 樺太 ''Karafuto''; zh, c=, p=Kùyèdǎo, s=库页岛, t=庫頁島; Manchu: ᠰᠠᡥᠠᠯᡳᠶᠠᠨ, ''Sahaliyan''; Orok: Бугата на̄, ''Bugata nā''; Nivkh ...

, controlled by Japan after the

Russo-Japanese War The Russo-Japanese War ( ja, 日露戦争, Nichiro sensō, Japanese-Russian War; russian: Ру́сско-япóнская войнá, Rússko-yapónskaya voyná) was fought between the Empire of Japan and the Russian Empire during 1904 and 1 ...

. Japan lost control of Karafuto after its invasion by the Soviet Union during World War II. Formally abolished as a legal entity by Japan in 1949.

Largest islands of Japan

These are the 50 largest islands of Japan. It excludes the disputed Kuril islands known as the northern territories.

References

{{Authority control * * Japan, List of islands of

Islands An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...

Main islands

Hokkaido prefecture

Islands of Honshu in the Sea of Japan The Sea of Japan is the marginal sea between the Japanese archipelago, Sakhalin, the Korean Peninsula, and the mainland of the Russian Far East. The Japanese archipelago separates the sea from the Pacific Ocean. Like the Mediterranean Sea, i ...

Islands in Tokyo Bay is a bay located in the southern Kantō region of Japan, and spans the coasts of Tokyo, Kanagawa Prefecture, and Chiba Prefecture. Tokyo Bay is connected to the Pacific Ocean by the Uraga Channel. The Tokyo Bay region is both the most populous ...

Islands in Osaka Bay Osaka Bay (大阪湾 ''Ōsaka-wan'' ) is a bay in western Japan. As an eastern part of the Seto Inland Sea, it is separated from the Pacific Ocean by the Kii Channel and from the neighbor western part of the Inland Sea by the Akashi Strait. ...

Islands in Ise Bay is a bay located at the mouth of the Kiso Three Rivers between Mie and Aichi Prefectures in Japan. Ise Bay has an average depth of and a maximum depth of . The mouth of the bay is and is connected to the smaller Mikawa Bay by two channels: ...

Islands in Mutsu Bay is a bay located within Aomori Prefecture, in the northern Tōhoku region of northern Japan. It has an east-west distance of approximately and a north-south distance of approximately at its eastern end, with a total area of approximately . ...

Nanpō Islands The is a collective term for the groups of islands that are located to the south of the Japanese archipelago in Micronesia. They extend from the Izu Peninsula west of Tokyo Bay southward for about , to within of the Mariana Islands. The Nanp� ... (''Nanpō Shotō'')