
is a
prefecture
A prefecture (from the Latin word, "''praefectura"'') is an administrative jurisdiction traditionally governed by an appointed prefect. This can be a regional or local government subdivision in various countries, or a subdivision in certain inter ...
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 ...
located in the
Chūgoku region of
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 ...
. Shimane Prefecture is the
second-least populous prefecture of Japan at 665,205 (February 1, 2021) and has a geographic area of 6,708.26
km2. Shimane Prefecture borders
Yamaguchi Prefecture
is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. Yamaguchi Prefecture has a population of 1,377,631 (1 February 2018) and has a geographic area of 6,112 Square kilometre, km2 (2,359 Square mile, sq mi). ...
to the southwest,
Hiroshima Prefecture to the south, and
Tottori Prefecture to the east.
Matsue is the capital and largest city of Shimane Prefecture, with other major cities including
Izumo,
Hamada, and
Masuda. Shimane Prefecture contains the majority of the
Lake Shinji-
Nakaumi metropolitan area
A metropolitan area or metro is a region consisting of a densely populated urban area, urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories which share Industry (economics), industries, commercial areas, Transport infrastructure, transport network ...
centered on Matsue, and with a population of approximately 600,000 is Japan's third-largest metropolitan area on 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, it ...
coast after
Niigata and Greater
Kanazawa
is the capital of Ishikawa Prefecture in central Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 466,029 in 203,271 households, and a population density of 990 persons per km2. The total area of the city was .
Etymology
The name "Kanazaw ...
. Shimane Prefecture is bounded by the Sea of Japan
coastline
A coast (coastline, shoreline, seashore) is the land next to the sea or the line that forms the boundary between the land and the ocean or a lake. Coasts are influenced by the topography of the surrounding landscape and by aquatic erosion, su ...
on the north, where two-thirds of the population live, and the
Chūgoku Mountains on the south. Shimane Prefecture governs the
Oki Islands in the Sea of Japan which juridically includes the disputed
Liancourt Rocks (竹島, ''Takeshima''). Shimane Prefecture is home to
Izumo-taisha, one of the oldest
Shinto shrine
A Stuart D. B. Picken, 1994. p. xxiii is a structure whose main purpose is to house ("enshrine") one or more kami, , the deities of the Shinto religion.
The Also called the . is where a shrine's patron is or are enshrined.Iwanami Japanese dic ...
s in Japan, and the
Tokugawa-era
Matsue Castle.
History
Early history
The history of Shimane starts with Japanese mythology. The Shinto god
Ōkuninushi was believed to live in
Izumo, an old province in Shimane.
Izumo Shrine, which is in the city of
Izumo, honors the god. At that time, the current Shimane prefecture was divided into three parts:
Iwami,
Izumo, and
Oki. That lasted until the
abolition of the ''han'' system took place in 1871. During the
Nara period
The of the history of Japan covers the years from 710 to 794. Empress Genmei established the capital of Heijō-kyō (present-day Nara). Except for a five-year period (740–745), when the capital was briefly moved again, it remained the capita ...
,
Kakinomoto no Hitomaro wrote a poem on Shimane's nature when he was sent as the Royal governor.
Later on in the
Kamakura period
The is a period of History of Japan, Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura, Kanagawa, Kamakura by the first ''shōgun'' Minamoto no Yoritomo after the conclusion of the G ...
(1185–1333), the
Kamakura shogunate forced emperors
Go-Toba and
Godaigo into exile in Oki. Emperor Go-Daigo later escaped from Oki and began rallying supporters against the shogunate, which proved successful.
Middle ages

During the
Muromachi period (1336–1573), Izumo and Oki were controlled by the
Kyōgoku clan
The were a Japanese ''daimyō'' and samurai clan which rose to prominence during the Sengoku and Edo periods. The clan descend from the Uda Genji through the Sasaki clan.Papinot, Jacques. (2003)''Nobiliare du Japon'', pp. 27–28./ref> The ...
. However, after the
Ōnin War, the
Amago clan expanded power based in
Gassantoda Castle and the
Masuda clan dominated
Iwami Province. The
Iwami Ginzan Silver Mine was located between Amago territory and Masuda territory, and there were many battles between the clans for the silver. In 1566
Mōri Motonari conquered Izumo, Iwami, and Oki.
In 1600, after over 30 years of Mori control, Horio Yoshiharu entered Izumo and Oki as the result of
Battle of Sekigahara, which Mori lost. Following the change, Horio Yoshiharu decided to move to build
Matsue Castle instead of Gassan-Toda, and soon after Yoshiharu's death the castle was completed. In 1638, the grandson of
Tokugawa Ieyasu
Tokugawa Ieyasu (born Matsudaira Takechiyo; 31 January 1543 – 1 June 1616) was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan, which ruled from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was the third of the three "Gr ...
became the ruler because the Horio clan had no heir, and his family ruled until the abolition of the ''han'' system.
The Iwami area was split into three regions: the mining district, under the direct control of the Shogunate, the Hamada clan region, and the Tsuwano clan region. The
Iwami Ginzan, now a UNESCO
World Heritage Site
World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...
, produced silver and was one of the nation's largest silver mines by the early 17th century. The Hamada clan was on the shogunate's side in the
Meiji Restoration
The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored Imperial House of Japan, imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Althoug ...
, and the castle was burned down. The Tsuwano clan, despite then being ruled by the Matsudaira, was on the emperor's side in the restoration.
[History of Shimane Prefecture](_blank)
Modern age
In 1871, the abolition of the ''han'' system placed the old Shimane and Hamada Provinces in the current area of Shimane Prefecture. Later that year, Oki became part of Tottori. In 1876, Hamada Prefecture was merged into Shimane Prefecture. Also,
Tottori Prefecture was added in the same year. However, five years later, in 1881, the current portion of Tottori Prefecture was separated and the current border was formed.
Geography
Shimane Prefecture is situated on 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, it ...
side of the
Chūgoku region. Because of its mountainous landscape, rice farming is done mostly in the Izumo plain where the city of Izumo is located.
Another major landform is the Shimane peninsula. The peninsula is located across the Sea of Japan from Izumo to
Sakaiminato, which is located in Tottori prefecture. Also, the peninsula created two brackish lakes,
Lake Shinji and
Nakaumi. The island of Daikon is located in Nakaumi. Off the main island 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 ...
, the island of
Oki belongs to Shimane prefecture as well. The island itself is in the Daisen-Oki National Park.
Shimane also claims the use of
Liancourt Rocks, over which they are in dispute with
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...
.
As of 1 April 2012, 6% of the total land area of the prefecture was designated as
Natural Parks, namely
Daisen-Oki National Park;
Hiba-Dōgo-Taishaku and
Nishi-Chūgoku Sanchi Quasi-National Parks; and eleven Prefectural Natural Parks.
Most major cities are located either on the seaside, or along a river.
Cities
Eight cities are located in Shimane Prefecture, the largest in population being Matsue, the capital, and the smallest being Gōtsu. The cities Masuda, Unnan, Yasugi, and Gōtsu had a slight population increase due to the mergers in the early 2000s.
Towns and villages
These are the towns and villages of each
district
A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municip ...
. The number of towns and villages greatly decreased during the mergers. However, they hold about one-third of the prefecture's population.
Mergers
Climate
Shimane prefecture has a sub-tropical climate. Winter is cloudy with a little snow, and summer is humid. The average annual temperature is . It rains almost every day in the rainy season, from June to mid-July. The highest average monthly temperature occurs in August with . The average annual precipitation is , higher than Tokyo's and
Obihiro with .
Transportation
Airports
Three airports serve Shimane. The Izumo Airport located in
Izumo is the largest airport in the prefecture in terms of passengers and has regular flights to
Haneda Airport,
Osaka Airport,
Fukuoka Airport, and
Oki Airport. The Iwami Airport has two flights each day to Haneda and Osaka and 2 arrivals. Oki Airport has scheduled flights to Osaka and Izumo Airports.
*
Izumo Airport
*
Iwami Airport
*
Oki Airport
Rail
JR West
, also referred to as , is one of the Japan Railways Group (JR Group) companies and operates in western Honshu. It has its headquarters in Kita-ku, Osaka. It is listed in the Tokyo Stock Exchange, is a constituent of the TOPIX Large70 index, ...
and
Ichibata Electric Railway serves the prefecture in terms of rail transportation. The
Sanin Main Line goes through the prefecture on 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, it ...
side into major cities such as Matsue and Izumo.
[Route map for JR West](_blank)
/ref> and stations are the major stops in the prefecture. The Kisuki line, which forks from Shinji Station on the Sanin Line, connects with the Geibi Line in Hiroshima Prefecture, cutting into the Chūgoku Mountains. Ichibata Electric Railway serve the Shimane peninsula from Dentetsu-Izumoshi Station and Izumo Taisha-mae Station to Matsue Shinjiko-Onsen Station.
JR West has three Limited Express trains to Shimane, which are '' Super Matsukaze'', '' Super Oki'', and '' Yakumo''. Additionally, the overnight limited express '' Sunrise Izumo'' operates daily between Tokyo
Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...
and Izumoshi.
* West Japan Railway Company
** Kisuki Line
The is a railway line in Japan operated by West Japan Railway Company (JR West). The line connects in Matsue, Shimane with in Shōbara, Hiroshima.
Stations
Four〜10 Diesel trains are operated every day. There are more trains between Shi ...
** Sanin Main Line
** Sankō Line
The is a former railway line and current bus line in western Japan operated by the West Japan Railway Company (JR West). The 108.1 km (67.2 mi) line connected in Shimane Prefecture to in Hiroshima Prefecture and featured 30 tunnels. ...
** Yamaguchi Line
* Ichibata Electric Railway
** Kita-Matsue Line
** Taisha Line
Roads
General roads
*Japan National Route 9
is an important highway in the Kansai and Chūgoku regions. It connects the prefectural capitals of Kyoto, Tottori, Matsue ( Shimane Prefecture), and Yamaguchi. Other significant cities along the route include Yonago, Tottori and Shimo ...
** Izumo Bypass
** Gōtsu Road
* Japan National Route 54
* Japan National Route 180
* Japan National Route 184
* Japan National Route 186
* Japan National Route 187
* Japan National Route 191
* Japan National Route 261
* Japan National Route 314
* Japan National Route 375
* Japan National Route 431
* Japan National Route 432
* Japan National Route 485
* Japan National Route 488
Highways
The four expressways in the prefecture connect major cities with other prefectures. The Matsue expressway connects Matsue with Unnan and Yonago in Tottori prefecture. Hamada Expressway forks from the Chūgoku Expressway at Kita-Hiroshima and stretches to Hamada.
* Sanin Expressway
* Matsue Expressway
* Hamada Expressway
* Chūgoku Expressway
Ferries
* Oki Kisen
Gallery
File:IzumoStationbuilding 2018-1-5.jpg, JR Izumo Station
File:Kiha187-Sanin-Line.jpg, Super Oki express in Sanin Line
File:Ichibata-Taisya-line Series7000.jpg, Ichibata Electric Railway
File:Izumoenmusubi.jpg, Izumo Enmusubi Airport
File:Terminal building in port of Saigo (Shimane).JPG, Oki Saigo Port
Economy
In Shimane, the largest employer is the retail industry, employing over 60,000 workers. The supermarket, Mishimaya, and the hardware store, Juntendo, are examples of companies based in Shimane. The manufacturing industry has the second highest number of employees with 49,000 workers.
Companies based in Shimane
Manufacturing
* Izumo Murata Manufacturing
* Mitsubishi Agricultural Machinery
* Shimane Fujitsu
Financial
* The San-in Godo Bank
* The Shimane Bank
Others
* Ichibata Electric Railway
* Juntendo
* Mishimaya
* Network Applied Communication Laboratory
Major factories
* Hitachi Metals
Demographics
One-third of the prefecture's population is concentrated in the Izumo- Matsue area. Otherwise, over two-thirds of the population is on the coastline
A coast (coastline, shoreline, seashore) is the land next to the sea or the line that forms the boundary between the land and the ocean or a lake. Coasts are influenced by the topography of the surrounding landscape and by aquatic erosion, su ...
. A reason for the population distribution is that the Chūgoku Mountains make the land inland harder to inhabit. The capital, Matsue, has the smallest population of all 47 prefectural capitals. Shimane has also the largest percentage of elderly people. The province had an estimated 743 centenarians per million inhabitants in September 2010, the highest ratio in Japan, overtaking Okinawa Prefecture
is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan. It consists of three main island groups—the Okinawa Islands, the Sakishima Islands, and the Daitō Islands—spread across a maritime zone approximately 1,000 kilometers east to west an ...
(667 centenarians per million).
Population by age
Total Population in age groups
2007 Estimated Population
Unit: Thousands
Population in age groups by gender
2007 Estimated population
Unit: Thousands
*Source
Graph 10/Prefectures Age(In Age groups), Gender divided population-Total Population
br/>(Ministry of Internal Affairs Statistics Bureau)
Culture
Cultural assets
;World Cultural Heritage
* The Historic Remains of Iwami Ginzan Silver Mine and its Cultural Background (Ōda City)
;National Treasures
* Armour Laced with white thread ( Hinomisaki Shrine)
* Bronze bells from the Kamo-Iwakura site Unearthed bronze bell-shaped vessel (Unnan City)
* Izumo-taisha Main Shrine (Izumo City)
* Kamosu Shrine Main Shrine (Matsue City)
* Kojindani Ruins Unearthed ruins (Izumo City)
* Toiletry case with autumn field and deer design (Izumo-taisha)
;Important Traditional Building Preservation Area
* Ōmori (Ōda City)
* Yunotsu (Ōda City)
Dialects
* Iwami dialect
* Unpaku dialect (Izumo dialect, Oki dialect, etc.)
Universities in Shimane Prefecture
* Shimane University, Matsue and Izumo (National university)
* The University of Shimane, Hamada (Prefectural university)
Tourism
* Adachi Museum of Art
* Aquas Aquarium
* Iwami Art Museum
* Iwami Ginzan Silver Mine
* Izumo-taisha
* Izumo Province
* Matsue Castle
* Mt. Sanbe
* Shimane Art Museum
* Shimane Vogel Park
* Shimane Winery
* Tamatsukuri Onsen
Prefectural symbols
The prefectural flower is the mountain peony
The peony or paeony () is any flowering plant in the genus ''Paeonia'', the only genus in the family Paeoniaceae. Peonies are native to Asia, Europe, and Western North America. Scientists differ on the number of species that can be distinguish ...
. On the island of Daikonjima, they have been grown from at least the 18th century.Symbols of Shimane Prefecture: From Shimane Prefecture website
See also
*
Lafcadio Hearn
Notes
References
* Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric and Käthe Roth. (2005)
''Japan encyclopedia.''Cambridge:
Harvard University Press
Harvard University Press (HUP) is an academic publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University. It is a member of the Association of University Presses. Its director since 2017 is George Andreou.
The pres ...
.
OCLC 58053128
External links
* National Archives of Japa
... Shimane map (1891)Sightseeing In Shimane
{{Coord, 35, 13, N, 132, 40, E, scale:500000, display=title
Chūgoku region
Prefectures of Japan