Kinki Prefectures
6 entries — explore the kanji meanings and true etymologies.
滋賀
Prefecture
Kinki
Shiga
滋賀 (しが)
Literal: "Nourishing Celebration"
The characters suggest 'nourishing' or 'flourishing' (滋) and 'celebration' or 'joy' (賀), but these are likely ateji (pho…
京都
Prefecture
Kinki
Kyoto
京都 (きょうと)
Literal: "Capital City"
The name literally means 'capital city' (京 = capital, 都 = metropolis/city). When Emperor Kanmu relocated the imperial co…
大阪
Prefecture
Kinki
Osaka
大阪 (おおさか)
Literal: "Great Slope"
The name derives from 'Ōsaka' (大坂), meaning 'great slope' or 'great hill.' The original character was 坂 (hill/slope), re…
兵庫
Prefecture
Kinki
Hyogo
兵庫 (ひょうご)
Literal: "Weapons Storehouse"
The name means 'weapons storehouse' (兵 = soldier/weapon, 庫 = storehouse). An imperial weapons depot was established here…
奈良
Prefecture
Kinki
Nara
奈良 (なら)
Literal: "Leveled Land"
The name is derived from the verb 'ならす' (narasu), meaning 'to level' or 'to flatten.' The Nara basin was cleared and fla…
和歌山
Prefecture
Kinki
Wakayama
和歌山 (わかやま)
Literal: "Harmonious Song Mountain"
The name combines 'waka' (和歌, Japanese poetry/song), 'yama' (山, mountain). The mountain (Wakayama Castle hill) was named…