Path: ccsf.homeunix.org!news.moat.net!uio.no!newsfeed1.funet.fi!newsfeed3.funet.fi!newsfeeds.funet.fi!fi.sn.net!newsfeed2.fi.sn.net!news.song.fi!not-for-mail From: "Mr.Jason" Newsgroups: fj.life.in-japan Subject: The Japan Fact sheet Date: Mon, 29 Aug 2005 21:29:52 +0300 X-Priority: 3 X-MSMail-Priority: Normal X-Newsreader: Microsoft Outlook Express 6.00.2900.2180 X-RFC2646: Format=Flowed; Original X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V6.00.2900.2180 Lines: 97 Message-ID: <4313541b$0$30308$f4da826c@news.24online.fi> Organization: 24online Internet NNTP-Posting-Host: net2-5.24online.fi X-Trace: 1125340187 news.24online.fi 30308 84.239.128.5:3851 X-Complaints-To: abuse@24online.fi Xref: ccsf.homeunix.org fj.life.in-japan:29192 read full article here: http://hanami.ath.cx/japanfactsheet.html The Land and Geographic Facts of Japan The Land: Japan is a country located in Pacific Ocean, east from China and Korea. The surface area of Japan is 374,744 square kilometers. Japan is actually smaller than California which has area of 411,00 square kilometers. After World War II, Japan's land was reduced to it's present size. Okinawa remained however under American control until 1971. Japan is a country on volcanic land - most unsuitable for urbanization. This makes the land very fertile but also produces many earthquakes. There are 80 active volcanoes in Japan, 10% of world's 800 volcanoes. The highest point of Japan is a dormant volcano Mount Fuji. It has a height of 3,776 metres (12,388 feet). The Islands: Japan has five main islands, Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, Kyushu and Okinawa. Okinawa is the southernmost island, while Hokkaido is the northernmost. In addition to these largest islands, there are many small islands around Japan. Such are Kagoshima, south from Kyushu (not shown in the map) and Kunashiri-to which is northeast from Hokkaido. Also, south from the Bay of Tokyo there are so called Izu islands that consists O-shima, To-shima, Nii-jima, Miyake-jima, Mikura-jima Hachijo-jima, Aoga-shima and most distant, small Tori-shima, famoust of it's volcano Izu-Torishima. Island is called "shima" in Japanese, which explains the suffix. The Lakes: There are about 100 lakes in Japan. The most famous and largest freshwater lake is Biwa, located near Kyoto. Lake Biwa has been the subject for haiku poets and artists through times. The area of Biwa is 670 square kilometers. Inawashiro-ko, in Fukushima prefecture, and Kasumiga-ura in Ibaraki are another famous lakes in Japan. Lakes are called "ko" in Japanese. Therefore it's Biwako. The Rivers: Rivers of Japan flow rapidly since Japan is mountainous country. This causes rivers of Japan to be prone to flooding. River called Tone in Ibaraki prefecture floods almost every spring. Most famous river in Japan could be Sumidagawa which flows literally inside Tokyo. As Lake Biwa for people in Kyoto, Sumidagawa has been a lyrical paradise for haikuists in Tokyo. Rivers in Japan are galled with suffix "gawa". Rivers are facing a serious pollution problem especially in large populated areas in Japan if something is not done and fast. The Cities: The capital city of Japan today is Tokyo. In fact it has not always been the capital - Kyoto was the capital of Japan until Meiji Restoration of 1868, when Emperor packed his bags and moved to Edo. The name was then changed from Tokyo which means eastern capital. Other famous cities in Japan are are Nakano, Sapporo city in Hokkaido island, Hiroshima and Fukuoka in Kyushu. Suburbs in Japan are formed usually around the railway lines and stations. Most Japanese do not use car to get to work since trains are more fast and convenient, even if very crowded. The Prefectures: Japan is divided to 47 prefectures that all carry out independent administrative duties. You can see these prefectures illustrated in Hanami Web Maps. Timezone: Japan time zone is GMT +9. Climate: Since northern islands reach up north, while southernmost islands south, there is great variation in weather conditions in Japan. Winter is as cold as in Finland in Hokkaido, while Okinawa is in fact a tropical island. The rainy season, tsuyu is in June and actual summer begins in Japan usually in July. Summer is generally very hot and humid season in Japan. Almost every house is airconditioned in Japan not only to remove moist from the air but to cool down the temperature into a bearable level. Natural disasters: Japan is a country on volcanic soil - therefore there are earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Mt.Fuji is an active volcano only in dormant state and is expected to wakeup sometimes not too far in the future.. Most recent terrible earthquake happened in Kobe, 1995 and is known as "The Great Hanshin Earthquake". It is expected that Tokyo would have it's most terrible earthquake ever, the so called "Big One" soon. The earthquakes in Pacific can also cause the feared tsunami. Typhoons are storms that come from Southern Pacific Ocean. Although they are not as dangerous as earthquakes and tsunamis are, it's wise to stay inside when typhoon warning has given. -- Hanami Web - Special Knowledge about Japan http://hanami.ath.cx