is the most common name given to the region comprising the metropolitan areas of the cities of

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

Kitakyushu is a Cities of Japan, city located in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. As of June 1, 2019, Kitakyushu has an estimated population of 940,978, making it the second-largest city in both Fukuoka Prefecture and the island of Kyushu after the city of Fuk ...

Fukuoka Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Fukuoka Prefecture has a population of 5,109,323 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of 4,986 Square kilometre, km2 (1,925 sq mi). Fukuoka Prefecture borders ...

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 ...

and in between. Alternate names are many, including Kitakyushu-Fukuoka Greater Metropolitan Region (北九州・福岡大都市圏), Northern Part of Kyushu Greater Metropolitan Region (北部九州大都市圏) One reason for complications in naming is because the whole region itself was once referred to as "Kitakyushu", which had become ambiguous after the city merger in 1963 which created the city by the same name. These cities may be referred to separately, but often are lumped together since they are close and lie in the same prefecture. Furthermore, their economic spheres, infrastructure, and transport links overlap. Note that the metro areas include the tip of Honshu island (

Shimonoseki file:141122 Shimonoseki City Hall Yamaguchi pref Japan01s3.jpg, 260px, Shimonoseki city hall is a Cities of Japan, city located in Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 248,193 in 128,762 households and a pop ...

on Honshu is a significant suburb of Kitakyushu), as well as the northern part of Kyushu. The definition of Northern Kyushu is not a

superset In mathematics, a set ''A'' is a subset of a set ''B'' if all elements of ''A'' are also elements of ''B''; ''B'' is then a superset of ''A''. It is possible for ''A'' and ''B'' to be equal; if they are unequal, then ''A'' is a proper subset ...

of Fukuoka–Kitakyushu; among the ways it differs: it generally does not include any cities on

Honshu , 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 list of islands by area, seventh-largest island in the world, and the list of islands by ...

island.

Definition

The region consists of the following areas: * The Ube region may or may not be considered part of this region, depending on definition * Note: The cities of Ōita, Sasebo,

Kumamoto is the capital Cities of Japan, city of Kumamoto Prefecture on the island of Kyushu, Japan. , the city has an estimated population of 738,907 and a population density of 1,893 people per km2. The total area is 390.32 km2. had a populat ...

are never included as being part of Fukuoka–Kitakyushu, despite their relative proximity to Fukuoka and Kitakyushu, rather, they are part of Northern Kyūshū.

Trends

There is a trend for concentration near Fukuoka, with the other areas declining in importance. File:Kitakyushu Metropolitan Employment Area.svg, Kitakyushu MEA as of 2010 File:Kurume Metropolitan Employment Area.svg, Kurume MEA as of 2010 File:Shimonoseki Metropolitan Employment Area.svg, Shimonoseki MEA as of 2010 File:Iizuka Metropolitan Employment Area.svg, Iizuka McEA as of 2010

Transport

References

Metropolitan areas of Japan Kyushu region {{Fukuoka-geo-stub