Core cities of Japan explained

A is a class or category of Japanese cities. It is a local administrative division created by the national government.^[1] Core cities are delegated many functions normally carried out by prefectural governments, but not as many as designated cities. To become a candidate for core city status, a city must have a population greater than 300,000 and an area greater than 100 square kilometers, although special exceptions may be made by order of the cabinet for cities with populations under 300,000 but over 200,000.^[2] After the abolition of special city status on April 1, 2015, any city with a population above 200,000 may apply for core city status.^[3]

Application for designation is made by a city with the approval of both the city and prefectural assemblies.

History

The term "core city" was created by the first clause of Article 252, Section 22 of the Local Autonomy Law of Japan.^[4]

List of core cities

As of 1 April 2021, 62 cities have been designated core cities:

Name	Japanese	Area (km²)	Population (2012)	Date of designation	Region	Prefecture
Akashi	Japanese: 明石市	49.22	290,927	2018-04-01	Kansai	Hyōgo
Akita	Japanese: 秋田市	906.07	322,224	1997-04-01	Tōhoku	Akita
Amagasaki	Japanese: 尼崎市	49.77	451,353	2009-04-01	Kansai	Hyōgo
Aomori	Japanese: 青森市	824.61	297,348	2006-10-01	Tōhoku	Aomori
Asahikawa	Japanese: 旭川市	747.6	351,765	2000-04-01	Hokkaidō
Fukui	Japanese: 福井市	536.41	266,612	2019-04-01	Chūbu	Fukui
Fukushima	Japanese: 福島市	767.72	289,355	2018-04-01	Tōhoku	Fukushima
Fukuyama	Japanese: 福山市	518.14	462,144	1998-04-01	Chūgoku	Hiroshima
Funabashi	Japanese: 船橋市	85.62	610,492	2003-04-01	Kantō	Chiba
Gifu	Japanese: 岐阜市	203.60	412,718	1996-04-01	Chūbu	Gifu
Hachinohe	Japanese: 八戸市	305.56	241,613	2017-01-01	Tōhoku	Aomori
Hachiōji	Japanese: 八王子市	186.38	579,799	2015-04-01	Kantō	Tokyo
Hakodate	Japanese: 函館市	677.89	279,056	2005-10-01	Hokkaidō
Higashiōsaka	Japanese: 東大阪市	61.78	508,267	2005-04-01	Kansai	Osaka
Himeji	Japanese: 姫路市	534.43	536,218	1996-04-01	Kansai	Hyōgo
Hirakata	Japanese: 枚方市	65.08	407,997	2014-04-01	Kansai	Osaka
Ichinomiya	Japanese: 一宮市	113.82	379,654	2021-04-01	Chūbu	Aichi
Iwaki	Japanese: いわき市	1,232.02	332,994	1999-04-01	Tōhoku	Fukushima
Kagoshima	Japanese: 鹿児島市	547.58	607,257	1996-04-01	Kyushu	Kagoshima
Kashiwa	Japanese: 柏市	114.74	404,863	2008-04-01	Kantō	Chiba
Kanazawa	Japanese: 金沢市	468.64	462,796	1996-04-01	Chūbu	Ishikawa
Kawagoe	Japanese: 川越市	109.13	345,361	2003-04-01	Kantō	Saitama
Kawaguchi	Japanese: 川口市	61.95	561,788	2018-04-01	Kantō	Saitama
Kōchi	Japanese: 高知市	309.22	342,568	1998-04-01	Shikoku	Kōchi
Kōfu	Japanese: 甲府市	212.47	197,318	2019-04-01	Chūbu	Yamanashi
Kōriyama	Japanese: 郡山市	757.20	331,140	1997-04-01	Tōhoku	Fukushima
Koshigaya	Japanese: 越谷市	60.24	328,079	2015-04-01	Kantō	Saitama
Kurashiki	Japanese: 倉敷市	355.63	477,086	2002-04-01	Chūgoku	Okayama
Kure	Japanese: 呉市	352.80	236,595	2016-04-01	Chūgoku	Hiroshima
Kurume	Japanese: 久留米市	229.96	301,821	2008-04-01	Kyushu	Fukuoka
Maebashi	Japanese: 前橋市	311.59	338,481	2009-04-01	Kantō	Gunma
Matsue	Japanese: 松江市	572.99	208,160	2018-04-01	Chūgoku	Shimane
Matsumoto	Japanese: 松本市	978.47	239,466	2021-04-01	Chūbu	Nagano
Matsuyama	Japanese: 松山市	429.40	516,823	2000-04-01	Shikoku	Ehime
Mito	Japanese: 水戸市	217.32	269,162	2020-04-01	Kantō	Ibaraki
Miyazaki	Japanese: 宮崎市	643.67	402,289	1998-04-01	Kyushu	Miyazaki
Morioka	Japanese: 盛岡市	886.47	299,734	2008-04-01	Tōhoku	Iwate
Naha	Japanese: 那覇市	39.98	321,695	2013-04-01	Kyushu	Okinawa
Nagano	Japanese: 長野市	834.81	380,581	1999-04-01	Chūbu	Nagano
Nagasaki	Japanese: 長崎市	240.71	440,911	1997-04-01	Kyushu	Nagasaki
Nara	Japanese: 奈良市	276.84	365,421	2002-04-01	Kansai	Nara
Neyagawa	Japanese: 寝屋川市	24.73	238,819	2019-04-01	Kansai	Osaka
Nishinomiya	Japanese: 西宮市	99.96	483,878	2008-04-01	Kansai	Hyōgo
Ōita	Japanese: 大分市	502.38	476,008	1997-04-01	Kyushu	Ōita
Okazaki	Japanese: 岡崎市	387.20	374,085	2003-04-01	Chūbu	Aichi
Ōtsu	Japanese: 大津市	464.51	339,469	2009-04-01	Kansai	Shiga
Sasebo	Japanese: 佐世保市	426.06	259,676	2016-04-01	Kyushu	Nagasaki
Shimonoseki	Japanese: 下関市	716.14	277,937	2005-10-01	Chūgoku	Yamaguchi
Suita	Japanese: 吹田市	36.11	357,917	2020-04-01	Kansai	Osaka
Takamatsu	Japanese: 高松市	375.41	420,356	1999-04-01	Shikoku	Kagawa
Takasaki	Japanese: 高崎市	459.16	371,820	2011-04-01	Kantō	Gunma
Takatsuki	Japanese: 高槻市	105.31	355,840	2003-04-01	Kansai	Osaka
Tottori	Japanese: 鳥取市	765.31	196,538	2018-04-01	Chūgoku	Tottori
Toyama	Japanese: 富山市	1,241.77	421,393	2005-04-01	Chūbu	Toyama
Toyohashi	Japanese: 豊橋市	261.86	375,804	1999-04-01	Chūbu	Aichi
Toyonaka	Japanese: 豊中市	36.38	390,457	2012-04-01	Kansai	Osaka
Toyota	Japanese: 豊田市	918.32	420,680	1998-04-01	Chūbu	Aichi
Utsunomiya	Japanese: 宇都宮市	416.85	513,722	1996-04-01	Kantō	Tochigi
Wakayama	Japanese: 和歌山市	210.25	368,684	1997-04-01	Kansai	Wakayama
Yamagata	Japanese: 山形市	381.58	254,519	2019-04-01	Tōhoku	Yamagata
Yao	Japanese: 八尾市	41.71	270,735	2018-04-01	Kansai	Osaka
Yokosuka	Japanese: 横須賀市	100.7	415,259	2001-04-01	Kantō	Kanagawa

Former core cities

Name	Japanese	Area (km²)	Population	Date of designation	Date of reclassification	Region	Prefecture
Hamamatsu	Japanese: 浜松市	1,558.06	795,350	1996-04-01	2007-04-01 (Designated city)	Chūbu	Shizuoka
Kumamoto	Japanese: 熊本市	390.32	737,812	1996-04-01	2012-04-01 (Designated city)	Kyushu	Kumamoto
Niigata	Japanese: 新潟市	726.45	807,450	1996-04-01	2007-04-01 (Designated city)	Chūbu	Niigata
Okayama	Japanese: 岡山市	789.95	720,841	1996-04-01	2009-04-01 (Designated city)	Chūgoku	Okayama
Sagamihara	Japanese: 相模原市	328.91	720,986	2003-04-01	2010-04-01 (Designated city)	Kantō	Kanagawa
Sakai	Japanese: 堺市	149.82	833,544	1996-04-01	2006-04-01 (Designated city)	Kansai	Osaka
Shizuoka	Japanese: 静岡市	1,411.90	697,578	1996-04-01	2005-04-01 (Designated city)	Chūbu	Shizuoka

Scheduled to become a core city

Name	Japanese	Area (km²)	Population (2012)	Scheduled date	Region	Prefecture
Chigasaki	Japanese: 茅ヶ崎市	35.71	236,222	2020-04-01	Kantō	Kanagawa
Fuji	Japanese: 富士市	244.95	253,455	TBD	Chūbu	Shizuoka
Kishiwada	Japanese: 岸和田市	72.68	198,615	2020-04-01	Kansai	Osaka
Odawara	Japanese: 小田原市	113.79	197,413	2020-04-01	Kantō	Kanagawa
Tsukuba	Japanese: つくば市	283.72	216,221	TBD	Kantō	Ibaraki
Tokorozawa	Japanese: 所沢市	72.11	342,321	TBD	Kantō	Saitama
Yokkaichi	Japanese: 四日市市	206.44	307,599	2020 (aiming)	Kansai	Mie

Cities that meet the requirements but have not yet been nominated

The following cities have populations greater than 200,000 but have not yet been nominated. (Special cities and cities planning to apply for core city status are not shown.)

Name	Japanese	Area (km²)	Population	Region	Prefecture
Ageo	Japanese: 上尾市	45.51	229,517	Kantō	Saitama
Chōfu	Japanese: 調布市	21.58	240,668	Kantō	Tokyo
Fuchū	Japanese: 府中市	29.43	260,891	Kantō	Tokyo
Fujisawa	Japanese: 藤沢市	69.57	420,254	Kantō	Kanagawa
Ichihara	Japanese: 市原市	368.17	274,117	Kantō	Chiba
Ichikawa	Japanese: 市川市	56.39	491,804	Kantō	Chiba
Machida	Japanese: 町田市	71.80	429,040	Kantō	Tokyo
Matsudo	Japanese: 松戸市	61.38	498,575	Kantō	Chiba
Nishitokyo	Japanese: 西東京市	15.75	206,047	Kantō	Tokyo
Tokushima	Japanese: 徳島市	191	258,554	Shikoku	Tokushima
Tsu	Japanese: 津市	711.11	279,304	Kansai	Mie

External links

"Japan's Evolving Nested Municipal Hierarchy: The Race for Local Power in the 2000s", by A. J. Jacobs at Urban Studies Research, Vol. 2011 (2011);
"Large City System of Japan" —graphic shows core cities compared with other Japanese city types at p. 1 (PDF p. 7 of 40)
"Growth in Second Tier Cities - Urban Policy Lessons from Japan"—briefing by CLAIR London on classes of Japanese cities (PDF)

Notes and References

Web-Japan.org, "Local self-government", p. 3; retrieved 2012-11-28.
Web site: http://nippon.zaidan.info/seikabutsu/1999/00168/contents/145.htm . ja:日本財団図書館（電子図書館）ＲｅｖｉｓｅｄＬｏｃａｌＡｕｔｏｎｏｍｙＬａｗ. nippon.zaidan.info.
Web site: http://www.soumu.go.jp/cyukaku/ . ja:日本總務省 - 中核市・施行時特例市 . soumo.go.jp . ja.
Web site: http://nippon.zaidan.info/seikabutsu/1999/00168/contents/143.htm . ja:日本財団図書館（電子図書館）ＲｅｖｉｓｅｄＬｏｃａｌＡｕｔｏｎｏｍｙＬａｗ. nippon.zaidan.info.