Chubu Prefectures
10 entries — explore the kanji meanings and true etymologies.
新潟
Prefecture
Chubu
Niigata
新潟 (にいがた)
Literal: "New Lagoon"
The name derives from a newly formed sandbar or tidal flat (潟, kata) that emerged at the mouth of the Shinano River. 'Ni…
富山
Prefecture
Chubu
Toyama
富山 (とやま)
Literal: "Abundant Mountain"
The characters suggest 'rich' or 'abundant' (富) mountain (山). The most likely origin, however, is phonetic: the area was…
石川
Prefecture
Chubu
Ishikawa
石川 (いしかわ)
Literal: "Stone River"
The name literally means 'stone river,' describing the rocky, swift-flowing rivers that characterize the region, particu…
福井
Prefecture
Chubu
Fukui
福井 (ふくい)
Literal: "Fortunate Well"
The name combines 'fuku' (福, fortune/blessing) and 'i' (井, well). The city of Fukui grew around a settlement with a nota…
山梨
Prefecture
Chubu
Yamanashi
山梨 (やまなし)
Literal: "Mountain Pear Tree"
The characters mean 'mountain' (山) and 'pear' (梨), suggesting the wild pear trees (yamanashi, Pyrus pyrifolia var. pyrif…
長野
Prefecture
Chubu
Nagano
長野 (ながの)
Literal: "Long Field"
The name straightforwardly describes the geography: a long (長) valley or plain (野) stretching along the Chikuma River ba…
岐阜
Prefecture
Chubu
Gifu
岐阜 (ぎふ)
Literal: "Mountain Mound (Named by Oda Nobunaga)"
The name was personally chosen by Oda Nobunaga in 1567 after he captured Inabayama Castle. He took two Chinese place nam…
静岡
Prefecture
Chubu
Shizuoka
静岡 (しずおか)
Literal: "Quiet Hill"
The name combines 'shizu' (静, quiet/calm) and 'oka' (岡, hill). The name was given in 1869 by merging the former castle t…
愛知
Prefecture
Chubu
Aichi
愛知 (あいち)
Literal: "Love and Wisdom"
Despite the appealing literal reading ('love' 愛 + 'wisdom' 知), the characters are phonetic substitutes (ateji). The area…
三重
Prefecture
Chubu
Mie
三重 (みえ)
Literal: "Triple Layer"
The name's origin is uncertain. The literal meaning is 'three layers' or 'triple fold.' One theory holds that the landsc…