(福岡市; -shi) is the capital
City of
Fukuoka Prefecture and is situated on the northern shore of the island of
Kyushu in
Japan , across the
Korea Strait from
South Korea's Busan . Its geographical coordinates is .
It is the most populous city in Kyushu, followed by
Kitakyushu . The city was designated on
April 1 ,
1972 by
Government Ordinance .
Fukuoka is served by
Fukuoka Airport , the
Sanyo Shinkansen high speed rail line at
Hakata Station and by
Ferry . JR Kyushu operates a
Hydrofoil between Hakata and
Busan ,
South Korea . The
Subway opened a new line, the Nanakuma line, on
February 2 ,
2005 . Bayside Place was declared bankrupt on September 13, 2005.
Fukuoka has produced a higher number of successful music artists than any other city in Japan. Big names in
J-pop include
Ayumi Hamasaki (allegedly Japan's richest woman), hugely popular singer/songwriter duo
Chage & Aska ,
Shiina Ringo ,
Spitz , and up-and-coming artist/songwriter
YUI . During the 1970s, local musicians prided themselves on their origins and dubbed their sound, ''Mentai Rock''. In recent years, the music scene has been rejuvenated by the willingness of local players to perform with foreign musicians located in the area. These hybrid bands include the likes of Fever, Cut Flowers, Dr. Funkinstein, F8 & The Routes.
Fukuoka is also the setting for popular
Anime and
Manga series, ''
Excel Saga ''.
Fukuoka's
Hakata Bay is
Japan 's gateway to
Korea and
China . Gateways, of course, attract interest; after having conquered and terrorised the continent, the great
Mongol Kublai Khan of the
Mongol Empire turned his attention to Japan starting in
1268 , exerting a new external pressure on Japan with which it had no experience. Kublai Khan first sent an envoy to Japan to make the Shogunate acknowledge Khan's suzerainty. The Kamakura Shogunate refused.
Mongolia repeatedly sent envoys thereafter, each time urging the Shogunate accept their proposal, but to no avail.
In
1274 Kublai Khan mounted an invasion of the northern part of Kyushu with a fleet of 900 ships 33,000 troops, which included troops from Goryeo (currently the
Korean Peninsula ). This first invasion was compromised by a combination of incompetence and storms.
After the first invasion of 1274, the Japanese samurai built a stone barrier 20 kilometers in length bordering the coast of Hakata Bay in what is now Fukuoka city. The wall, between 2-3 metres in height and having a base width of 3 metres, was constructed between 1276 and 1277 and was excavated again in the
1930s .
Kublai sent another envoy to Japan in
1279 . At that time,
Hojo Tokimune of the
Hojo Clan (1251-1284) was the Eighth Regent. Not only did he decline the offer, but he beheaded the five Mongolian emissaries after summoning them to
Kamakura . Infuriated, Kublai made another attack on Fukuoka Prefecture in
1281 , reinforcing the troops to 140,000 soldiers and 4,000 ships. The Japanese warriors, numbering around 40,000, were no match for Mongolians and the Kublai invasion force made it as far as
Dazaifu , 15 kilometers south of the city of Fukuoka. By sheer luck, the Japanese were aided by another typhoon which struck a crushing blow to the Mongolian troops, however, and the invasion was thwarted.
It was this typhoon that came to be called the ''
Kamikaze '' (Divine Wind).
Fukuoka was formerly the residence of the powerful
Daimyo of
Chikuzen , and played a conspicuous part in the medieval history of Japan; the renowned temple of
Ieyasu in the district was destroyed by fire during the
Boshin War of
1868 . (adapted ''from
1911 Encyclopedia Britannica '')
The modern city was formed on , the first
Daimyo of Chikuzen, named it after his birthplace in
Okayama Prefecture . Today, the old Fukuoka is the main shopping area called Tenjin.
When Hakata and Fukuoka decided to merge, a meeting was held to decide the name for the new city. Hakata was initially chosen, but a group of samurai crashed the meeting and forced those present to choose Fukuoka as the name for the merged cities. However, Hakata is still used to refer to the Hakata area of the city, and most famously to refer to the city's train station,
Hakata Station , and its dialect, ''Hakata-ben''.
- , is founded. In 1911 the college is renamed to Kyushu Imperial University and established as a separate entity.
- 1910 : Fukuoka streetcar service begins.
- - Tokyo route.
- 1945 : Saturation bombing of Japanese cities commences on Honshu with Fukuoka one of the targets. Vivisections of American POWs are performed at Kyushu Imperial University Hospital.
- .
- 1951 : Fukuoka airport opens.
- 1953 : Fukuoka Zoo opens.
- 1981 : Subway commences service.
- 1988 : Osaka's pro baseball team, the Nankai Hawks, are moved to Fukuoka and renamed the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks.
- 1995 : ACROS (sian '''Cr'''ossroads '''O'''ver the '''S'''ea), a multipurpose convention and cultural center, is founded to encourage increased relations with other Asian countries. It is located downtown in Tenjin, and features a large park, terraced gardens, a library and other facilities for encouraging peaceful relations with other Asian cultures.
Fukuoka is bordered on three sides by mountains and opens, on the north, to the Sea of Genkai. Much of the city is now built on reclaimed land, with ongoing developments in Higashi-ku building more artificial islands.
Located 1100 km from
Tokyo , 540 km from
Seoul and 870 km from
Shanghai , Fukuoka's proximity to Korea and China has led it to seek closer ties with those countries while acting as a hub for Asian cultural and economic exchange.
Along with much of the prefecture, Fukuoka City has a moderate climate with an annual average temperature of 16.3°C, average humidity of 70%, 1811 annual daylight hours and 205 cm of precipitation. Roughly 40% of the year is cloudy.
Winter temperatures rarely drop below 0°C and it is generally rainy with occasional, brief snowfalls. Spring is warm and more sunny, with Cherry blossoms appearing in late March or early April. The rainy season (''tsuyu'') lasts for approximately six weeks through June and July, during which time the humidity is very high and temperatures hover between 25°C and 30°C. Summers are humid and hot, with temperatures peaking around 37°C. Fall, often considered to be Fukuoka's best season, is mild and dry, though the typhoon season runs between August and September.
''Main article:
2005 Fukuoka Earthquake ''
Fukuoka is not as seismically active as many other parts of Japan, but does experience occasional ,
Easter Sunday 2005, killing one person and injuring more than 400. The epicentre of the earthquake was in the Sea of Genkai, along a yet-undiscovered extension of the Kego fault that runs through the centre of Fukuoka.
Genkai-jima (Genkai island), a part of
Nishi-ku , was the most severely damaged by the earthquake and almost all island residents were forced to evacuate.
Aftershock s continued intermittently throughout the following weeks as construction crews worked to rebuild damaged buildings throughout the city. Traditional Japanese houses, particularly in the areas of Daimyo and Imaizumi, were the most heavily damaged and many were marked for demolition, along with several apartment buildings. Insurance payments for damages were estimated at approximately 15.8 billion yen.
Fukuoka's most famous major fault, the Kego fault, was runs northwest to southeast, roughly parallel to
Nishitetsu's Omuta train line, and was previously thought to be 22 km long. It is estimated to be produce earthquakes as strong as
Magnitude 7 at the focus approximately once every 15,000 years. If the focus were located at a depth of 10km, this would translate to an earthquake of a lower-6 magnitude (similar to the March 20, 2005 earthquake) in downtown Fukuoka if it were the epicenter. The
Probability of an earthquake along the known length of the Kego fault occurring within 30 years was estimated at 0.4% prior to the March 20, 2005 earthquake, but this probability has been revised upwards since. Including the new extension out into the Sea of Genkai, Kego fault is now thought to be 40 km long.
Following reports that the city has only prepared for earthquakes up to a magnitude of 6.5, several strong aftershock renewed fears that the quakes might cause the portion of the Kego faultline that lies under the city to become active again, leading to an earthquake as big as, or bigger than, the March 20th quake.
, green: ]]
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As Of March 2005 , the city had an estimated
Population of 1,391,146 and a
Density of 4,084.40 persons per
Km&2 . The total area is 340.60 km&
2. With an average age of 38.6 years, Fukuoka is Japan's second youngest major city and with a growth rate of 4.4%, is also Japan's second-fastest growing city (
Based On 2000 Census Data ).
Sky Dream Fukuoka , located in Fukuoka City's western ward, is one of the world's largest
Ferris Wheels at a height of 120
Metres (about 400
Feet ).
Fukuoka Castle located adjacent to Ohori Koen (Park) features the remaining stone walls and ramparts left after a devastating fire during the upheaval of the
Meiji Restoration . It has now been preserved along with some reconstructed prefabricate concrete towers constructed during the
1950s and
1960s , when there was a trend across
Japan to rebuild damaged castles as tourist attractions.
The Marine Park Uminonakamichi is located on a narrow cape on the northern side of the Bay of Hakata. The park has an amusement park, petting zoo, gardens, beaches, a hotel and a large marine aquarium.
]]
Fukuoka is home to many
Festival s that are held throughout the year. Of these, the most famous are Hakata Dontaku and Hakata Gion Yamagasa.
Yamakasa(山笠), held for two weeks each July, is Fukuoka's oldest festival with a history of over 700 years. Teams of men (no women, except small girls, are allowed), representing different districts in the city, race against the clock around a set course carrying on their shoulders floats weighing several thousand pounds. Participants all wear "
Shimekomi " (called "fundoshi" in other parts of Japan), which are the loin cloths worn by
Sumo wrestlers. Each day of the two-week festival period is marked by special events and practice runs, culminating in the official race that takes place the last morning before dawn. Tens of thousands line the streets to cheer on the teams. During the festival period, men can be seen walking around many parts Fukuoka in long "happi" coats bearing the distinctive mark of their team affiliation and traditional "
Geta " sandles. The costumes are worn with pride and are considered appropriate wear for even formal occasions, such as weddings and cocktail parties, during the festival period.
Hakata Dontaku (博多どんたく) is held in Fukuoka city on
May 3rd and
4th . Boasting over 800 years of history, Dontaku is attended by more than 2 million people, making it the Japanese festival with the highest attendance during Japan's
Golden Week holidays. During the festival, stages are erected throughout downtown for traditional performances and a parade of floats is held. Its full proper name is Hakata Dontaku Minato Matsuri (博多どんたく港まつり).
The festival was stopped for 7 years during the
Meiji Era , and since it was restarted in the 12th year of the Meiji era it has been known as Hakata Dontaku.
Fukuoka is the home of the
Fukuoka Softbank Hawks , one of Japan's top professional
Baseball teams. Threatened with bankruptcy and forced by its creditors to restructure, in
2004 former owner Daiei sold the Hawks to
Masayoshi Son of
Softbank Capital . The team name was changed to
Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks from the
2005 season.
Fukuoka is also home to a professional
Soccer team,
Avispa Fukuoka , which is currently playing in Japan's second-tier league J2.
The Mayor of Fukuoka, Hirotaro Yamasaki, has ambitions to bring the for
2016 , whose controversial mayor
Shintaro Ishihara has made disparaging remarks about Fukuoka's planned bid as being small scale. (It is also thought by some that Yamasaki is making the bid in order to be sure of approval for building a new airport.)
Annual sporting events include:
Fukuoka City operates all public elementary and junior high schools, while the prefecture operates the high schools.
One high school, Hakata Seisho High School
{Link without Title} , does not require a uniform, which is rare for Japanese secondary schools.
Fukuoka has several
Sister Cities :
