Shimane Prefecture

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**Shimane Prefecture (島根県 *Shimane-ken*)**

Capital	Matsue
Region	Chūgoku
Island	Honshū
Governor	Nobuyoshi Sumita
Area	6,707.29 km² (18^th)
- % water	2.7%
Population (October 1, 2000)
- Population	761,503 (46^th)
- Density	114 /km²
Districts	8
Municipalities	23
ISO 3166-2	JP-32
Website	www.pref.shimane.jp/ section/kokusai/foreign/
Prefectural Symbols
- Flower	Moutan peony (Paeonia suffruticosa)
- Tree	Japanese black pine (Pinus thunbergii)
- Bird	Whooper swan (Cygnus cygnus)
Symbol of Shimane Prefecture

Shimane Prefecture (島根県, Shimane-ken^?) is located in the Chūgoku region on Honshū island, Japan. The capital is Matsue. It is the second least populous prefecture in Japan, next to the Tottori Prefecture that is a neighboring prefecture on the east side. The prefecture has an area elongated from east to west facing the Chūgoku Mountain Range on the south side and to the Sea of Japan on the north side. Most of the cities are near the shoreline of the Sea of Japan. There is Izumo Taisha in Izumo City, which is one of the oldest Shinto shrines in Japan.

The Oki Islands in the Sea of Japan are also part of Shimane Prefecture, which also claims to have jurisdiction over the South Korea-controlled island of Dokdo (Takeshima).

1 History
- 1.1 Old provinces
2 Geography
3 Economy
4 Demographics
5 Culture
- 5.1 Universities in Shimane Prefecture
6 Tourism
7 Prefectural symbols
8 Miscellaneous topics
9 See also
10 External links

[edit] History

[edit] Old provinces

See also: Old provinces of Japan

[edit] Geography

Map of Shimane Prefecture.

[edit] Cities

Eight cities are located in Shimane Prefecture:

Matsue (capital)
Oda
Unnan
Yasugi

[edit] Towns and villages

Towns and villages in each district:

Hikawa District

Hikawa

Iishi District

Iinan

Kanoashi District

Tsuwano

Yoshika

Nita District

Okuizumo

Ochi District

Kawamoto

Misato

Oonan

Oki District

Yatsuka District

Higashiizumo

[edit] Mergers

On October 1, 2004, the town of Saigou and the villages of Fuse, Goka and Tsuma (all from Oki District) merged to form the new town of Okinoshima.

On October 1, 2004, the towns of Iwami and Mizuho and the village of Hasumi (all from Ochi District) merged to form the new town of Oonan.

On October 1, 2004, the town of Ochi and the village of Daiwa (both from Ochi District) merged to form the new town of Misato.

On October 1, 2004, the town of Sakurae from Ochi District merged into the city of Gotsu.

On October 1, 2004, the towns of Hakuta and Hirose from Nogi District merged with the city of Yasugi to form the new city of Yasugi. Nogi District was dissolved as a result.

On November 1, 2004, the towns of Daito, Kamo and Kisuki from Ohara District and the towns and villages of Kakeya, Mitoya and Yoshida from Iishi District merged to form the new city of Unnan. Ohara District was dissolved as a result.

On January 1, 2005, the towns of Akagi and Tonbara from Iishi District merged to form the new town of Iinan.

On March 22, 2005, the cities of Izumo and Hirata and the towns of Koryo, Sada, Taisha and Taki from Hikawa District merged to form the new the city of Izumo.

On January 31, 2005, the towns of Nita and Yokota from Nita District merged to form the new town of Okuizumo.

On March 31, 2005, the towns of Kashima, Mihonoseki, Shimane, Shinji, Tamayu and Yatsuka and the village of Yakumo (all from Yatsuka District) merged with the city of Matsue to form the new city of Matsue.

On September 25, 2005, the towns of Nichihara and Tsuwanofrom Kanoashi District merged to form the new town of Tsuwano.

On October 1, 2005, the village of Kakinoki and the town of Muikaichi from Kanoashi District merged to form the new town of Yoshika.

On October 1, 2005, the towns of Nima and Yunotsu from Nima District merged with the city of Oda to form the new city of Oda. Nima District was dissolved as a result.

On October 1, 2005, the towns of Asahi, Kanagi, Misumi and Yasaka from Naka District merged with the city of Hamada to form the new city of Hamada. Naka District was dissolved as a result.