Ishikari Subprefecture
Template:Nihongo is a subprefecture of Hokkaido Prefecture, Japan, located in the western part of the island. The subprefecture covers Template:Convert and on July 31, 2023 had a population of 2,379,802.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The subprefecture takes its name from the Ishikari River, the third longest in Japan, which flows through western Hokkaido and empties into the Sea of Japan in the city of Ishikari. There are 6 cities, three towns, and one village under its jurisdiction. Sapporo is both the capital of Hokkaido Prefecture and Ishikari Subprefecture. Shikotsu-Toya National Park is located in the southern part of the subprefecture, and Shokanbetsu-Teuri-Yagishiri Quasi-National Park in the north.<ref name="enc-ishikari">Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref>
Etymology
The word Ishikari comes from the Ainu language, and several theories exist as to the meaning of the name.<ref name="enc-ishikari" /><ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref>
- The most common translation of "Ishikari", proposed by the missionary and researcher of the Ainu language John Batchelor (1854 – 1944) in 1935, is "a greatly wandering river", a reference to the meandering path of the Ishikari River. According to Batchelor Ishikari is a corruption of "i-sikar-pet" or "ishikaripet". The 'i' sound of i-sikar-pet is a prefix meaning "greatly" or "exceedingly"; shikari meaning "zigzag" or "serpentine", and pet is the Ainu word for river.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
- Tōgo Yoshida (1864 – 1918), proposed in the Dai Nihon Chimei Jisho, published between 1907 and 1910, that "Ishikaripet" had its origin in the Ainu language word "Ishikarapet", meaning "a beautifully formed river"; ishu meaning "beautiful", kara meaning "constructed" and pet meaning river.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
"Ishikari" is written in the Japanese language using ateji, or kanji characters used to phonetically represent native or borrowed words. The first, Template:Linktext, means to "stone", and the second, Template:Linktext, means "to hunt". The meaning of the written form of Ishikari has no relationship to the meaning of word in the Ainu language.
Geography
Municipalities
| Name | Area (km2) | Population | District | Type | Map | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rōmaji | Kanji | |||||
 Chitose
|
千歳市 | 594.5 | 98,047 | no district | City | 
|
 Ebetsu
|
江別市 | 187.38 | 118,764 | 
| ||
 Eniwa
|
恵庭市 | 294.65 | 70,278 | 
| ||
 Ishikari
|
石狩市 | 722.42 | 57,764 | 
| ||
 Kitahiroshima
|
北広島市 | 119.05 | 57,019 | 
| ||
 Sapporo (prefectural and subprefectural capital)
|
札幌市 | 1,121.26 | 1,959,750 | 
| ||
 Shinshinotsu
|
新篠津村 | 78.04 | 2,833 | Ishikari District | Village | 
|
 Tōbetsu
|
当別町 | 422.86 | 15,347 | Town | 
| |
Mergers
History
- 1897: Sapporo Subprefecture established.
- 1922: Renamed Ishikari Subprefecture.
- 1996: Hiroshima Town becomes Kitahiroshima City, dissolving Sapporo District.
Transportation
Ishikari Prefecture has two airports, both serving the greater Sapporo area.
- Okadama Airport (Domestic)
- New Chitose Airport (International) (Located in the city of Chitose)