Geography of Hokkaido
Overview of the Geography of Hokkaido / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dear Wikiwand AI, let's keep it short by simply answering these key questions:
Can you list the top facts and stats about Geography of Hokkaido?
Summarize this article for a 10 year old
The island of Hokkaidō is located in the north of Japan, near Russia (Sakhalin Oblast). It has coastlines on the Sea of Japan (to the west of the island), the Sea of Okhotsk (to the north), and the Pacific Ocean (to the east). The center of the island is mountainous, with volcanic plateaux. Hokkaidō has multiple plains such as the Ishikari Plain 3,800 km2 (1,500 sq mi), Tokachi Plain 3,600 km2 (1,400 sq mi), the Kushiro Plain 2,510 km2 (970 sq mi) (the largest wetland in Japan) and Sarobetsu Plain 200 km2 (77 sq mi). Hokkaidō is 83,423.84 km2 (32,210.12 sq mi) which makes it the second-largest island of Japan.
Native name: 北海道 | |
---|---|
Geography | |
Location | East Asia |
Coordinates | 43°N 142°E |
Archipelago | Japanese archipelago |
Area | 77,981.87 km2 (30,108.97 sq mi) |
Highest elevation | 2,290 m (7510 ft) |
Highest point | Mount Asahi |
Administration | |
Japan | |
Prefectures | Hokkaidō |
Largest settlement | Sapporo (pop. 1,890,561) |
Demographics | |
Population | 5,377,435 (September 30, 2016) |
Pop. density | 64.5/km2 (167.1/sq mi) |
Ethnic groups | Ainu Japanese |
The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu (Aomori Prefecture);[1] La Pérouse Strait separates Hokkaidō from the island of Sakhalin in Russia; Nemuro Strait separates Hokkaidō from Kunashir Island in the Russian Kuril Islands.
The governmental jurisdiction of Hokkaidō incorporates several smaller islands, including Rishiri, Okushiri Island, and Rebun. (By Japanese reckoning, Hokkaidō also incorporates several of the Kuril Islands.) Hokkaidō Prefecture is the largest and northernmost Japanese prefecture. The island ranks 21st in the world by area.