Tochigi Prefecture

Tochigi Prefecture (栃木県, Tochigi-ken) lies in the Kantō region of Honshu, one of only eight landlocked prefectures in Japan. It shares borders with Fukushima to the north, Gunma to the west, Saitama to the south, and Ibaraki to the southeast. The capital and largest city is Utsunomiya; other major cities include Oyama, Tochigi, and Ashikaga.

The northern part of the prefecture is mountainous and draws many visitors. The Nasu area features hot springs, local sake, ski resorts, an Imperial Family villa, and the Nasushiobara Shinkansen station. Nikkō, home to ancient Shintō shrines and Buddhist temples, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Tochigi covers 6,408 square kilometers, making it the 20th largest prefecture, with a population of about 1,897,649 as of June 2023. Its climate is humid temperate, with dry winters and humid summers prone to thunderstorms. The largest open plain in the Kantō region sits at the prefecture’s center. Mountains include Shirane (2,578 meters), Nantai (2,484 meters), and Nasudake (1,917 meters). The Kinugawa, Nakagawa, and Watarase Rivers originate here and flow across the Kantō plain to the Pacific. As of April 2012, 21% of the land was designated as natural parks, including Nikkō National Park, Oze National Park, and eight prefectural parks.

Historically, the area was known as Shimotsuke Province before the Meiji Restoration. In the early 15th century, the Ashikaga Gakkō, Japan’s oldest higher education institution, was re-established here, hosting over 3,000 students by the 1500s. Saint Francis Xavier described it as the best university in Japan. After Tokugawa Ieyasu unified Japan in the early 17th century, the Nikkō Tōshō-gū shrine was built in 1617 on sacred ground to honor him, putting Nikkō on the national map. Later shōguns built the Nikkō Kaidō road and made grand pilgrimages there. Following the shogunate’s fall in the late 19th century, the new government created prefectures. The capital was set in Tochigi city after Utsunomiya and Tochigi prefectures merged in 1873, but moved to Utsunomiya by 1884. In March 2011, after the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster, radioactivity levels in Utsunomiya were 33 times above normal.

Utsunomiya is known for its many gyoza shops and also hosts Bell Mall, one of the largest shopping centers in North Kantō. The prefecture has fourteen cities and several towns. Close to Tokyo, Tochigi contains many corporations and industrial zones, including the Kiyohara Industrial Complex, one of Japan’s largest inland industrial parks. Manufacturing accounts for 36.6% of output, led by vehicle parts and accessories, vehicles, radios and televisions, pharmaceuticals, and wireless communication equipment. Agriculture yields about 274 billion yen annually, with rice, vegetables, and livestock. Tochigi is famous for strawberries, Chinese chives, and Japanese pears sold nationwide and abroad. Forests cover 55% of the land; mushrooms, especially shiitake, make up half of forest industry output, worth about 5.6 billion yen.

The prefecture hosts numerous universities and colleges, including Ashikaga Institute of Technology, Bunsei University of Art, Dokkyo University School of Medicine, Hakuoh University, International University of Health and Welfare, Jichi Medical University, Oyama National College of Technology, Sakushin Gakuin University, Sano College, Teikyo University, three Tochigi Colleges of Industry and Technology, Utsunomiya Kyowa University, and Utsunomiya University. Sports teams include Tochigi City FC and Tochigi SC (football), Nikkō Ice Bucks (ice hockey), Utsunomiya Brex (basketball), and motorsport venues Twin Ring Motegi and Nikkō Circuit. The Tour de Tochigi is a three-day road race on the UCI Asia Tour. Nikkō National Park, with its UNESCO World Heritage Site, is a major tourist draw.