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TheHokuriku region (北陸地方,Hokuriku chihō) is located in the northwestern part ofHonshu, the main island ofJapan. It lies along theSea of Japan and is part of the largerChūbu region.[1] It is almost equivalent to the formerKoshi Province andHokurikudō area in pre-modern Japan.
From theHeian period until theEdo period, the region was a core recipient of population, and grew to be proportionately much larger than it is today, despite the rural character; in modern times, its population has remained consistent, with most urban growth in the 20th century instead taking place inKanto,Chūkyō, andKansai. The Hokuriku region is also known for traditional culture that originated from elsewhere that has been long lost along theTaiheiyō Belt.
The Hokuriku region includes the four prefectures ofIshikawa,Fukui,Niigata andToyama,[2] although Niigata is sometimes included as an addition rather than being one of the core prefectures. It is similar to the following region definitions:
The major population centers of Hokuriku are:
Of these, Niigata is the largest with a population of over 800,000.
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The main industries in the Hokuriku area include chemicals, medicine, tourism, textiles and textile machinery, heavy machinery, farming, and fishing.Koshihikari, a popular variety of rice is a special product of Hokuriku subregion.
Per Japanese census data,[3][4] Hokuriku subregion has had negative population growth since year 2000.
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 1920 | 3,846,000 | — |
| 1930 | 4,087,000 | +6.3% |
| 1940 | 4,289,000 | +4.9% |
| 1950 | 5,179,000 | +20.8% |
| 1960 | 5,201,000 | +0.4% |
| 1970 | 5,137,000 | −1.2% |
| 1980 | 5,467,000 | +6.4% |
| 1990 | 5,584,000 | +2.1% |
| 2000 | 5,606,505 | +0.4% |
| 2010 | 5,443,799 | −2.9% |
| 2020 | 5,186,388 | −4.7% |
The Hokuriku region has the highest volume of snowfall of any inhabited and arable region in the world. This is because drySiberianair masses, which develop highhumidity over theSea of Japan, are forced upwards when they encounter the mountains ofHonshū, causing the humidity to condense as snow.
The long winters and deep snow of this region are depicted inHokuetsu Seppu, an encyclopedic work of the lateEdo period which describes life in theUonuma district of Niigata Prefecture.
The Hokuriku region is also the setting forYasunari Kawabata's novelSnow Country.
In 2014 the Hokuriku region was listed among the Top 10 Regions by travel mediaLonely Planet.[5] The region has seen an influx of tourists since 2015 as theHokuriku Shinkansen (formerly Nagano Shinkansen) extended its services from Nagano to Kanazawa, enabling direct bullet train services to the Hokuriku region fromTokyo. When services commenced in March 2015, the travel time from Tokyo to Toyama was reduced to about 2 hours, with Kanazawa an additional 30 minutes away.[6] In March 2024, the Hokuriku Shinkansen was further extended toTsuruga via Fukui, with travel time from Tokyo to Fukui and Tokyo to Tsuruga reduced to 2 hours and 51 minutes and 3 hours and 8 minutes respectively.[7][8]
37°54′58″N139°02′11″E / 37.91611°N 139.03639°E /37.91611; 139.03639
