Osaka Prefecture (大阪府 Ōsaka-fu) is part of the Kinki region on Honshu island, Japan. The capital is the city of Osaka.
History
Knock Yokoyama became governor of Osaka Prefecture in 1995 but resigned in 2000 following allegations of sexual harassment. He was replaced by Fusae Ota.
Geography
Cities
Towns and villages
These are the towns and villages in each district.
Mergers
(as of 12/26/05)
The town of Mihara merged into the city of Sakai.
Economy
- Gross prefectural product: ¥40.9 trillion
- Annual industrial output: ¥17.2 trillion
- Annual retail sales: ¥76.6 trillion
Major companies based in Osaka Prefecture include Hankyu, Kintetsu, Matsushita, Sharp, Sanyo, Nissin and Glico.
Transportation
Demographics
The population of Osaka Prefecture taken during the 2000 National Census is 8,804,806, or about seven percent of the total population of Japan, ranking second after Tokyo Prefecture.
Culture
Universities in Osaka Prefecture
Tourism
Osaka-fu has three airports (Kansai International Airport, Osaka International Airport, and Yao Airport).
Prefectural symbols
The symbol of Osaka Prefecture, called the sennari byōtan or "thousand gourds," was originally the crest of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the feudal lord of Osaka Castle.
Miscellaneous topics
- Until the reclamation of the Kansai International Airport island, Osaka was the smallest prefecture by area; it is now merely the second-smallest.
- Osaka is the only unlandlocked prefecture that does not have any natural islands.
- In 2000, Osaka became the first prefecture in Japan to elect a woman governor.
External links
The content of this page is retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osaka_Prefecture under GFDL
