Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Introducion
Welcome to Okinawa and the Ry-
ukyus
Although it is said that Japan (
日本
; Nihon or Nippon, literally “sun's origin” but usually
translated as “land of the rising sun”) is an island nation, it's perhaps more accurate to
describe it as a nation of islands for, depending on who's counting, there are anywhere from
3,000 to 6,852 of them. The first figure, although an approximation, is widely agreed upon by
most encyclopedias and reference manuals. It includes islands that are at least 0.039 square
miles (0.1 square kilometer) in size. The larger number of 6,852 is published by the Japan
Maritime Public Relations Center and includes all islands that have at least 330 feet (100
meters) of shoreline. Obviously, that latter figure would include virtually every rock, isle and
islet in the Japanese Archipelago. More useful perhaps is the often-cited number of inhabited
islands. That number is 426.
From north to south, Japan's four main islands are Hokkaido (
北海道
; Hokkaidō, lit.
“North Sea Circuit,” circuit being a mostly archaic political subdivision); Honshu (
本州
; Hon-
shū, meaning “Main State”), where the capital Tokyo is located; Shikoku (
四国
; Shikoku,
meaning “Four Provinces”) and Kyushu (
九州
; Kyūshū; “Nine Provinces”).
Honshu is the largest of Japan's islands, Hokkaido the second largest, then Kyushu, then
Shikoku. In total, Japan has about 18,645 miles (30,000 kilometers) of shoreline. Since, ulti-
mately, it is an archipelago of islands, it has no land boundaries with any other country. Its
northern shores on Hokkaido face the Russian Sea of Okhotsk and its eastern shores front the
Pacific Ocean. Most of the country's west faces the Sea of Japan and its southwest looks to the
East China Sea.
Ranked by size, Japan is the 61st largest country on earth. Its area is 145,920 square miles
(377,930 square kilometers), a bit larger than Germany and somewhat similar in overall shape
and size (a little smaller) than the US state of California. Together, the four main islands, of-
ten called the Japanese “homeland” or “mainland,” account for 97 percent of Japan's total land
area.
Thus, thousands of small, very small and really, really small islands constitute the remain-
ing 3 percent of Japan's territory. These islands are located at all points of the compass sur-
