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The bureaucratic administration of Japan is divided into three basic levels; national, prefectural, and municipal. Below the national government there are 47 prefectures, six of which are further subdivided into subprefectures to better service large geographical areas or remote islands. The municipalities (cities, towns and villages) are the lowest level of government; the twenty most-populated cities outside Tokyo Metropolis are known as designated cities and are subdivided into wards.

Prefectural divisions

47 prefectural entities of Japan

The top tier of administrative divisions are the 47 prefectural entities: 43 prefectures (?, ken) proper, two urban prefectures (?, fu, Osaka and Kyoto), one "circuit" (?, d?, Hokkaido), and one "metropolis" (?, to, Tokyo Metropolis). Although different in name, they are functionally the same.

Ken

"Prefecture" (?, ken) are the most common types of prefectural divisions total of 43 ken. The Classical Chinese character from which this is derived means "county".

To

Tokyo Metropolis is referred to as a "metropolis" (?, to) after the dissolution of Tokyo City in 1943, T?ky?-fu (Tokyo Prefecture) was upgraded into T?ky?-to and the former Tokyo City's wards were upgraded into special wards. The Classical Chinese character from which this is derived means "capital".

Fu

Osaka Prefecture and Kyoto Prefecture are referred to as an "urban prefecture" (?, fu). The Classical Chinese character from which this is derived implies a core urban zone of national importance in middle period of China, or implies a sub division of a province in late period of China.

D?

Hokkaido is referred to as a "circuit" (?, d?), this term was originally used to refer to Japanese regions consisting of several provinces. This was also a historical usage of the character in China meaning circuit.

Subprefectural divisions

There are only two types of subprefectural divisions: subprefecture and district.

Subprefecture

Subprefectures (, shich?) are a Japanese form of self-government which focuses on local issues below the prefectural level. It acts as part of the greater administration of the state and as part of a self-government system.^[1]

District

Districts (?, gun) were administrative units in use between 1878 and 1921 that were roughly equivalent to the counties of China or the United States. In the 1920s, municipal functions were transferred from district offices to the offices of the towns and villages within the district. District names remain in the postal address of towns and villages, and districts are sometimes used as boundaries for electoral districts, but otherwise serve no official function. The Classical Chinese character from which this is derived means commandery.

Municipal divisions

1,742 municipal and 175 submunicipal entities of Japan

The municipal divisions are divided into three main categories city, town, and village. However the city entities are further categorized. The Special wards of Tokyo are also considered to be municipal divisions.

Cities

Cities in Japan are categorized into four different types, from the highest the designated city, the core city, the special city, and the regular city at the lowest.

Designated city

A city designated by government ordinance (, seirei shitei toshi), also known as a designated city (?, shitei toshi) or government ordinance city (, seirei shi), is a Japanese city that has a population greater than 500,000 and has been designated as such by an order of the cabinet of Japan under Article 252, Section 19 of the Local Autonomy Law. Designated cities are also subdivided into wards.

Core city

A core city (, Ch?kakushi) is a Japanese city that has a population greater than 300,000 and an area greater than 100 square kilometers, although special exceptions may be made by order of the cabinet for cities with populations under 300,000 but over 200,000.^[2] Core city was created by the first clause of Article 252, Section 22 of the Local Autonomy Law of Japan.

Special city

A special city (, Tokureishi) of Japan is a city with a population of at least 200,000. This category was established by the Local Autonomy Law, article 252 clause 26.

City

A city (?, shi) is a local administrative unit in Japan with a population of at least 50,000 of which at least 60% of households must be established in a central urban area, and at least 60% of households must be employed in commerce, industry or other urban occupations. Cities are ranked on the same level as towns (?, machi) and villages (?, mura); the only difference is that they are not a component of districts (?, gun). Like other contemporary administrative units, they are defined by the Local Autonomy Law of 1947.

Town

A town (?, ch? or machi) is a local administrative unit in Japan. It is a local public body along with prefecture (ken or other equivalents), city (shi), and village (mura). Geographically, a town is contained within a prefecture.

Village

A village (?, mura, sometimes son) is a local administrative unit in Japan. It is a local public body along with prefecture (?, ken, or other equivalents), city (?, shi), and town (?, ch?, sometimes machi). Geographically, a village's extent is contained within a prefecture. It is larger than an actual settlement, being in actuality a subdivision of a rural district (?, gun), which are subdivided into towns and villages with no overlap and no uncovered area.

Special Ward

The special wards (, tokubetsu-ku) are 23 municipalities that together make up the core and the most populous part of Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. Together, they occupy the land that was originally the Tokyo City before it was abolished in 1943 to become part of the newly created Tokyo Metropolis. The special wards' structure was established under the Japanese Local Autonomy Law and is unique to Tokyo Metropolis.

Submunicipal divisions

Ward

A ward (?, ku) is a subdivision of the cities of Japan that are large enough to have been designated by government ordinance.^[3]

History

Although the details of local administration have changed dramatically over time, the basic outline of the current two-tiered system since the abolition of the han system by the Meiji government in 1871 are similar. Before the abolition of the han system, Japan was divided into province (?, kuni) then subdivided into district (?, gun) and then village (?/?, sato) at the bottom.

Structural hierarchy

Prefecture	Kanji	Region	City [all-types] (Special ward)	Ward	District	Town	Village
Aichi		Ch?bu	38	16	7	14	2
Akita		T?hoku	13		6	9	3
Aomori		T?hoku	10		8	22	8
Chiba		Kant?	37	6	6	16	1
Ehime		Shikoku	11		7	9
Fukui		Ch?bu	9		7	17
Fukuoka		Kyushu	28	14	12	30	2
Fukushima		T?hoku	13		13	31	15
Gifu		Ch?bu	21		9	19	2
Gunma		Kant?	12		7	15	8
Hiroshima		Ch?goku	14	8	5	9
Hokkaid?		Hokkaido	35	10	66	129	15[4]
Hy?go		Kansai	29	9	8	12
Ibaraki		Kant?	32		7	10	2
Ishikawa		Ch?bu	11		5	8
Iwate		T?hoku	14		10	15	4
Kagawa		Shikoku	8		5	9
Kagoshima	?	Kyushu	19		8	20	4
Kanagawa	?	Kant?	19	28	6	13	1
K?chi		Shikoku	11		6	17	6
Kumamoto		Kyushu	14	5	9	23	8
Ky?to		Kansai	15	11	6	10	1
Mie		Kansai	14		7	15
Miyagi		T?hoku	13	5	10	21	1
Miyazaki		Kyushu	9		6	14	3
Nagano		Ch?bu	19		14	23	35
Nagasaki		Kyushu	13		4	8
Nara		Kansai	12		7	15	12
Niigata		Ch?bu	20	8	9	6	4
?ita		Kyushu	14		3	3	1
Okayama		Ch?goku	15	4	10	10	2
Okinawa		Kyushu	11		5	11	19
?saka		Kansai	33	31	5	9	1
Saga		Kyushu	10		6	10
Saitama		Kant?	40	10	8	22	1
Shiga		Kansai	13		3	6
Shimane		Ch?goku	8		5	10	1
Shizuoka		Ch?bu	23	10	5	12
Tochigi		Kant?	14		5	12
Tokushima		Shikoku	8		8	15	1
T?ky?		Kant?	26 (23)		1	5	8
Tottori		Ch?goku	4		5	14	1
Toyama		Ch?bu	10		2	4	1
Wakayama	?	Kansai	9		6	20	1
Yamagata		T?hoku	13		8	19	3
Yamaguchi		Ch?goku	13		4	6
Yamanashi		Ch?bu	13		5	8	6

References

External links