Ishikawa Prefecture

Ishikawa Prefecture (石川県, Ishikawa-ken) is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu island. Ishikawa Prefecture has a population of 1,096,721 (1 January 2025) and has a geographic area of 4,186 km (1,616 sq mi). Ishikawa Prefecture borders Toyama Prefecture to the east, Gifu Prefecture to the southeast, and Fukui Prefecture to the south.
Kanazawa is the capital and largest city of Ishikawa Prefecture, with other major cities including Hakusan, Komatsu, and Kaga. Ishikawa is located on the Sea of Japan coast and features most of the Noto Peninsula which forms Toyama Bay, one of the largest bays in Japan. Ishikawa Prefecture is part of the historic Hokuriku region and formerly an important populated center that contained some of the wealthiest han (domains) of the Japanese feudal era. Ishikawa Prefecture is home to Kanazawa Castle, Kenroku-en one of the Three Great Gardens of Japan, Nyotaimori ("body sushi"), and Kutani ware.
Ishikawa was formed in 1872 from the merger of Kaga Province and the smaller Noto Province, with the seat of the government being located in Mikawa. The political center of Ishikawa was moved to Kanazawa in 1873.
The newly formed Ishikawa Prefecture came to be regarded with caution by the national government following the Kioizaka Incident [ja] in 1878, in which 6 shizoku (士族), dissatisfied by the Meiji government's "maladministration, suppression of civil rights, and misuse of government property", assassinated Japanese statesman Ōkubo Toshimichi. Concerned about the possibility of a Hokuriku bloc forming in support of the Freedom and People's Rights Movement, and thus wanting to weaken the influence of the former Kaga lords, the national government made the decision to divide the prefecture. This took place in two stages, beginning in 1881, when Fukui Prefecture was formed, and ending in 1883 with the formation of Toyama Prefecture.
On the 1 January 2024, a 7.5 magnitude earthquake struck Ishikawa Prefecture, specifically the Noto Peninsula. In Ishikawa, a total of 508 people were killed and 2 people are currently reported missing as a result of the earthquake. Overall it is estimated that 1,200 people were injured across different prefectures.
In September 2024, severe rainfall in the prefecture led to deadly floods and landslides, causing at least six deaths and widespread damage. Thousands were evacuated as rivers overflowed, while recovery from a prior earthquake complicated relief efforts. Emergency warnings remain in place.
Ishikawa is on the Sea of Japan coast. The northern part of the prefecture consists of the narrow Noto Peninsula, while the southern part is wider and consists mostly of mountains with the prefecture's chief city, Kanazawa, located in the coastal plain. The prefecture also has some islands, including Notojima, Mitsukejima, Hegurajima.
As of 1 April 2012, 13% of the total land area of the prefecture was designated as Natural Parks, namely the Hakusan National Park; Echizen-Kaga Kaigan and Noto Hantō Quasi-national parks; and five prefectural natural parks.
The cities of Ishikawa are:
Towns are grouped into five districts, which are geographical and not governmental:
Ishikawa's industry is dominated by the textile industry, particularly artificial fabrics, and the machine industry, particularly construction machinery.
Ishikawa Prefecture has an area of 4,186.09 km and, as of 1 April 2011, it has a population of 1,166,643 persons.
The area is noted for arts and crafts and other cultural traditions:
The most popular destination in Ishikawa is Kanazawa. Tourists can get to Ishikawa by plane via either the Komatsu or Noto airports. Popular sites include:
Ishikawa has a number of universities:
The current governor of Ishikawa is Hiroshi Hase who was first elected in 2022. He defeated six time incumbent Masanori Tanimoto. Prior to his defeat, Tanimoto was one of two governors who were in their sixth term nationwide, the other being Masaru Hashimoto of Ibaraki. Hase is only the fifth governor of Ishikawa since 1947 when prefectural governors became elected offices, as Tanimoto had held the governorship for twenty eight years, first coming to office in 1994, succeeding Yōichi Nakanishi, who had served from 1963 until his death in 1994.
The Ishikawa Prefectural Assembly [ja] has 43 members and is elected in unified local elections (last round: 2011) in 15 SNTV electoral districts – six single-member, five two-member, one three-member, two four-member districts and the Kanazawa City district that elects 16 members. As of February 26, 2014, the LDP prefectural assembly caucus has 25 members and no other group has more than four members.
In the National Diet, Ishikawa is represented by three directly elected members of the House of Representatives and two (one per election) of the House of Councillors. Additional members from the prefecture may be elected in the proportional representation segments of both houses: the Hokuriku-Shin'etsu proportional representation block in the lower house, the proportional election to the upper house is nationwide. After the Diet elections of 2010, 2012 and 2013, the five directly elected members from Ishikawa districts are all Liberal Democrats, namely: