Kansai region 関西地方
—  Region  —
The Kansai region in Japan
Area
• Total	27,335.11 km2 (10,554.14 sq mi)
Population (1 October, 2010)[1]
• Total	22,757,897
• Density	830/km2 (2,200/sq mi)
Time zone	JST (UTC+9)

The Kansai region (関西地方, Kansai-chihō^?) or the Kinki region (近畿地方, Kinki-chihō^?) lies in the southern-central region of Japan's main island Honshū.^[2] The region includes the prefectures of Mie, Nara, Wakayama, Kyoto, Osaka, Hyōgo, and Shiga. Depending on who makes the distinction, Fukui, Tokushima and even Tottori Prefecture are also included. While the use of the terms "Kansai" and "Kinki" have changed over history, in most modern contexts the two can be considered the same. The urban region of Osaka, Kobe and Kyoto (Keihanshin region) is the second most populated in Japan after the Greater Tokyo Area.

Overview[link]

The Akashi-Kaikyō Bridge, the longest suspension bridge in the world, with a centre span of 1,991 m

The Kansai region is the cultural and historical heart of Japan with 11% of its land area and 22,757,897 residents as of 2010.^[1] The Kinki Plain with the cities of Osaka and Kyoto forms the core of the region, from there the Kansai area stretches west along the Seto Inland Sea towards Himeji and Kobe and east encompassing Lake Biwa, Japan's largest freshwater lake. In the north the region is bordered by the Sea of Japan, to the south by the Kii Peninsula and Pacific Ocean, and to the east by the Ibuki Mountains and Ise Bay.^[3] Four of Japan's national parks lie within its borders, in whole or in part. The area also contains six of the seven top prefectures in terms of national treasures.^[4] Other geographical features include Amanohashidate in Kyoto Prefecture and Awaji Island in Hyōgo.

The Kansai region is often compared with the Kantō region, which lies to its east and consists primarily of Tokyo and the surrounding area. Whereas the Kanto region is symbolic of standardization throughout Japan, the Kansai region displays many more idiosyncrasies: the culture in Kyoto, the mercantilism of Osaka, the history of Nara, or the cosmopolitanism of Kobe, and represents the focus of counterculture in Japan. This East-West rivalry has deep historical roots, particularly from the Edo period. With a samurai population of less than 1% the culture of the merchant city of Osaka stood in sharp contrast to that of Edo, the seat of power for the Tokugawa shogunate.^[5]

Kansai region with prefectures

Many characteristic traits of Kansai people descend from Osaka merchant culture. Catherine Maxwell, an editor for the newsletter Omusubi, writes: "Kansai residents are seen as being pragmatic, entrepreneurial, down-to-earth and possessing a strong sense of humour. Kanto people on the other hand are perceived as more sophisticated, reserved and formal, in keeping with Tokyo’s history and modern status as the nation’s capital and largest metropolis."^[5][6]

Osaka is known for its food, as supported by the saying "Kyotoites are ruined by overspending on clothing, Osakans are ruined by overspending on food" (京の着倒れ、大阪の食い倒れ, Kyō no Kidaore, Ōsaka no Kuidaore^?). Popular Osakan dishes include takoyaki, okonomiyaki and kitsune udon. Kyoto is considered one of a mecca of traditional Japanese cuisine. Hyōgo Prefecture is well known for its Kobe beef and dairy products. Sake is another specialty of the region, the areas of Nada and Fushimi produce 45% of all sake in Japan.^[7] As opposed to food from Eastern Japan, food in the Kansai area tends to be sweeter, and foods such as nattō tend to be less popular.^[5][6]

The dialects (弁, -ben) of the people of the Kansai region have their own variations of pronunciation, vocabulary, and grammar. Kansai-ben is the group of dialects spoken in the Kansai area, but is often treated as a dialect in its own right.

Kansai is one of the most prosperous area of baseball in Japan. Two Nippon Professional Baseball teams, Hanshin Tigers and Orix Buffaloes, are based in Kansai. Koshien Stadium, a home studium of the Hanshin Tigers is also famous for the nationwide high school baseball tournaments. For association football purposes, the regional Kansai Football League excludes clubs in Mie Prefecture, who instead compete in the Tōkai Football League.

History[link]

The terms Kansai (関西^?), Kinki (近畿^?), and Kinai (畿内^?) have a very deep history, dating back almost as far as the nation of Japan itself. As a part of the Ritsuryō reforms of the 6th century, the Gokishichidō system established the provinces of Yamato, Yamashiro, Kawachi, Settsu and Izumi. Kinai and Kinki, both roughly meaning "the neighbourhood of the capital", referred to these provinces.^[8] In common usage, Kinai now refers to the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto (Keihanshin) area, the center of the Kansai region.

Kansai (literally Western Tollgates) in its original usage refers to the land west of the Osaka Tollgate (逢坂の関), the border between Yamashiro Province and Ōmi Province (present-day Kyoto and Shiga prefectures).^[9] During the Kamakura period, this border was redefined to include Ōmi and Iga Provinces.^[9] It is not until the Edo period that Kansai came to acquire its current form.^[10] (see Kamigata) Like all regions of Japan, the Kansai region is not an administrative unit, but rather a cultural and historical one, which emerged much later during the Heian Period after the expansion of Japan saw the development of the Kanto Region to the east and the need to differentiate what was previously the center of Japan in Kansai emerged.

Himeji Castle

The Kansai region lays claim to the earliest beginnings of Japanese civilization. It was Nara, the most eastern point on the Silk Road, that became the site of Japan's first permanent capital.^[11] This period (AD 710–784) saw the spread of Buddhism to Japan and the construction of Tōdai-ji in 745. The Kansai region also boasts the Shinto religion's holiest shrine at Ise Shrine (built in 690 AD) in Mie prefecture.^[12]

The Heian period saw the capital moved to Heian-kyō (平安京, present-day Kyoto), where it would remain for over a thousand years until the Meiji Restoration. During this golden age, the Kansai region would give birth to traditional Japanese culture. In 788, Saicho, the founder of the Tendai sect of Buddhism established his monastery at Mount Hiei in Shiga prefecture. Japan's most famous tale, and some say the world's first modern novel, The Tale of Genji was penned by Murasaki Shikibu while performing as a lady-in-waiting in Heian-kyo. Noh and Kabuki, Japan's traditional dramatic forms both saw their birth and evolution in Kyoto, while Bunraku, Japanese puppet theater, is native to Osaka.

Because of its unique position in Japanese history, the Kansai region hosts a number of well-known historical and cultural landmarks, including five of Japan's sixteen World Heritage Sites: Hōryū-ji, Himeji Castle, Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto (Kyoto, Uji and Otsu Cities), Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara, and Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the Kii Mountain Range.^[13]

World Heritage Sites in Kansai Region

Gallery[link]

• 

  Daisenryo Kofun, the largest burial mound in the world^[14].

• 

  Hōryū-ji Golden Hall, the oldest wooden structure in the world.

• 

  Daibutsu at Tōdai-ji, the largest bronze statue in the world.

• 

  Tōdai-ji Main Hall, the largest wooden structure in the world.

• 

  Lake Biwa, the largest lake in Japan and 3rd oldest lake in the world.

• 

  Izumo no Okuni, who founded Kabuki in Kyoto.

• 

  Kongō Gumi, used to be the world's oldest continuously operating company, constructed several Japan's cultural assets.

• 

  Amanohashidate, one of Three Views of Japan.

• 

  Sen no Rikyū, a merchant from Sakai, perfected the courtesy of tea ceremony.

• 

  Japan's tallest temple pagoda in Tō-ji, Kyoto.

• 

  Nintendo became the world's most successful video game company.

• 

  Osaka Castle.

See also[link]

• Geography of Japan
• List of regions in Japan
• Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto

Notes[link]

References[link]

• Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric and Käthe Roth. (2005). Japan encyclopedia. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. 10-ISBN 0-674-01753-6; 13-ISBN 978-0-674-01753-5; OCLC 58053128

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Kansai region

• Kansai travel guide from Wikitravel
• Visit Kansai travel guide
• Kansai Connect
• Kansai News
• Welcome! KANSAI
• Kansai Window
• Kansai Economic Federation

v t e Regions and administrative divisions of  Japan Regions Hokkaido Tōhoku Kantō Nanpō Islands Chūbu Hokuriku Kōshin'etsu Shin'etsu Tōkai Kansai Chūgoku San'in San'yō Shikoku Kyushu Northern Kyushu Ryukyu Islands Prefectures Hokkaido Hokkaido Tōhoku Aomori Iwate Miyagi Akita Yamagata Fukushima Kantō Ibaraki Tochigi Gunma Saitama Chiba Tokyo Kanagawa Chūbu Niigata Toyama Ishikawa Fukui Yamanashi Nagano Gifu Shizuoka Aichi Kansai Mie Shiga Kyoto Osaka Hyōgo Nara Wakayama Chūgoku Tottori Shimane Okayama Hiroshima Yamaguchi Shikoku Tokushima Kagawa Ehime Kōchi Kyushu Fukuoka Saga Nagasaki Kumamoto Ōita Miyazaki Kagoshima Okinawa

Coordinates: 35°N 135°E / 35°N 135°E / 35; 135

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Amancio Ortega
Born	Amancio Ortega Gaona (1936-03-28) March 28, 1936 (age 76) Busdongo de Arbás, León, Spain
Residence	A Coruña, Spain
Nationality	Spanish
Occupation	Businessman
Known for	Co-founder of the Inditex group, World's #7 wealthiest person
Net worth	US$37.5 billion (2012)[1]
Board member of	Inditex (CEO)
Spouse	Rosalía Mera (divorced), Flora Pérez Marcote (2001-)
Children	Sandra Ortega Mera, Marcos Ortega Mera, Marta Ortega Pérez
Signature

Amancio Ortega Gaona (born March 28, 1936) is a Spanish fashion executive and founding chairman (1985) of the Spanish clothing merchandiser Inditex. He is ranked by Forbes as Spain's richest man; Europe's second richest man; and the fifth richest man in the world in 2011.^[2] He currently lives with his second wife in a discreet apartment building in the centre of A Coruña.

Ortega was born in Busdongo de Arbás, León, and lived his childhood in León. He moved to La Coruña, Spain, at the age of 14, due to the job of his father, a railway worker. Starting as a gofer in various shirt stores in La Coruña, Galicia, in 1972 he founded Confecciones Goa (his initials in reverse), which made bathrobes. In 1975 he opened the first store in what would grow into the enormously popular chain of fashion stores called Zara. He owns 59.29% of the Inditex group (Industrias de Diseño Textil Sociedad Anónima) which includes the brands Zara, Massimo Dutti, Oysho, Zara Home, Kiddy's Class, Tempe, Stradivarius, Pull and Bear/Often and Bershka and has more than 92,000 employees.^[3]

Ortega keeps a very low profile. He refuses to wear a tie, and likes to dress in blue jeans and T-shirts. He is said to take a very active part in the production and design process in the company.

When he made a public appearance in 2000 - as part of the warm-up prior to floating his company on the stock market in 2001 - it made headlines in the Spanish financial press. However, he has never given an interview, and his secrecy has led to the publication of books such as Amancio Ortega: DE CERO A ZARA (From Zero to Zara).

Ortega, announced his imminent retirement from the fast-fashion giant Inditex, parent company of the Zara chain, stating that he will ask Inditex vice-president and CEO Pablo Isla to take his place at the helm of the textile empire.^[4]

See also[link]

• List of billionaires

Bibliography[link]

• Blanco, Xabier; Salgado, Jesús (2004). Amancio Ortega, de cero a Zara: El primer libro de investigación sobre el imperio Inditex. Esfera de los Libros. pp. 271. ISBN 978-84-9734-167-7. 

References[link]