Nara Prefecture

is part of the Kinki region on Honshu Island, Japan. The capital is the city of Nara.

History

Historically, Nara Prefecture was also known as Yamato-no-kuni or Yamato Province.

It is certain that a political force established at the foot of Mt. Miwa in the east of Nara basin succeeded in unifying most parts of Japan from the third century until the fourth century, though the process was not well documented. At the dawn of history Yamato was clearly the political center of Japan.

Due to connections with the southern parts of the Korean Peninsula, many continental immigrants were introduced into the metropolitan regions to enhance civilization. The royal court also established relations with Sui and then Tang Dynasty China and sent students to the Middle Kingdom to learn high civilization. In the 8th century, the royal court, which had been itinerant from place to place, constructed a new capital modelled after the Chinese capital, Chang'an (today's Xi'an). The first high civilization with royal patronage of Buddhism flourished in today's Nara city (710–784 AD).

Even after the political capital moved to Kyoto, Buddhist temples in Nara remained powerful and continued to enjoy religious fame. In the medieval age, many local samurai clans sprang up and fought with each other. The Tokugawa Shogunate, ultimately unifying warring lords, directly ruled the city of Nara and most parts of Yamato province with a few feudal lords allocated at Koriyama, Takatori and other places. With the commercial economy developing in the eighteenth century, the economy of the province was incorporated into prosperous Osaka, the commercial capital of Japan at that time. The economic dependency to Osaka characterizes even today's Nara Prefecture, for many inhabitants commute to Osaka to work or study there.

Nanendo at Kofukuji, a World Heritage Site in the city of Nara

Geography

Map of Nara Prefecture.

Nara Prefecture is located in the middle of the Kii Peninsula on the western half of Honshu, Japan. Nara Prefecture is part of the Kansai, or Kinki, region of Japan. Nara Prefecture is landlocked. The northern plains of the prefecture are bounded by the tallest mountains in the Kansai, located in the south of the prefecture. It is 78.5 km from East to west and 103.6 km from North to South.

Nara is bordered to the west by Wakayama Prefecture and Osaka Prefecture; on the north by Kyoto Prefecture and on the east by Mie Prefecture.

Despite being in the middle of Japan, Nara is one of Japan's warmest prefectures; snow is a rarity in Nara, although there is some accumulation in the southern mountains during the winter. Winter temperatures average about 5Â°C (with −10Â°C being the extreme minimum in mountain areas). Summer in Nara is known for being hot and humid, with high temperatures ranging between 25Â°C in the mountains and 35Â°C in the northern plains. Nara takes pride in being one of the hottest prefectures in all of Japan.

Spring and fall are both temperate and beautiful. The mountainous region of Yoshino has been popular both historically and presently for its beautiful cherry blossoms in the spring. Yoshino and Omine, in these mountains, recently shared the honor of designation as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

In the fall, the southern mountains are equally beautiful with the changing of the oak trees.