Prefecture 都道府県 Todōfuken |
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Category | Unitary State |
Location | Japan |
Number | 47 |
Populations | 584,982 (Tottori) – 12,059,237 (Tōkyō) |
Areas | 1,861.7 km2 (718.8 sq mi) (Kagawa) – 83,453.6 km2 (32,221.6 sq mi) (Hokkaido) |
Government | Prefecture Government, Central Government |
Subdivisions | Districts |
The Prefectures of Japan (都道府県 Todōfuken?) consist of 47 prefectures. They form the first level of jurisdiction and administrative division of Japan. They consist of 43 prefectures (県 ken?) proper, two urban prefectures (府 fu?, Osaka and Kyoto), one "circuit" or "territory" (道 dō?, Hokkaido) and one "metropolis" (都 to?, Tokyo). The Meiji Fuhanken sanchisei administration created the first prefectures to replace the provinces of Japan in 1868.