| View of Momochi, Fukuoka. Fukuoka Tower and Fukuoka Dome are visible. |
Fukuoka (福岡市; -shi), sometimes referred to as Hakata, is the capital city city of Fukuoka prefecture at the northern tip of the island of Kyushu in Japan, facing Honshu across Kanmon Strait. Fukuoka is the largest city in Kyushu, followed closely by Kitakyushu.
Situated across the Korea Strait from South Korea's Busan, the city has been strongly influenced by Korean cuisine and is attempting to situate itself as a hub for East Asian cultural interchange.
As of July 2003, the city has an estimated population of 1,325,611 and the density of 4,054.18 persons per km². The total area is 339.38 km². With an average age of 38.6 years, Fukuoka is Japan's second youngest major city and with a growth rate of 4.4%, is also Japan's second-fastest growing city (based on 2000 census data).
It is the home of the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks, one of Japan's top professional baseball teams and is served by Fukuoka Airport.
Sky Dream Fukuoka, located in Fukuokoa City's western ward, is the world's second biggest ferris wheel at 120 metres. London's London Eye is the biggest at 135 metres.
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Fukuoka was formerly the residence of the powerful daimyo of Chikuzen, and played a conspicuous part in the medieval history of Japan; the renowned temple of Ieiyasu in the district was destroyed by fire during the revolution of 1868. (from 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica)
Hakata (博多) is an older name for the city which is now known as Fukuoka, on Kyushu island in Japan.
The city was founded on April 1, 1889 with the merger of Hakata and Fukuoka. The Hakata area was and remains the main business area. historically Hakata was the port and merchant district, and as such more associated with the area's culture. On the other hand, the name of Fukuoka has been used since Kuroda Nagamasa, who was the first daimyo of Chikushi (Chikuzen), named it after his birthplace in Okayama Prefecture. The Fukuoka area was home to many samurai and is the main shopping area today. When the two areas of Hakata and Fukuoka decided to merge a meeting was held to decide the name for the new city. Hakata was chosen but a group of samurai crashed the meeting and forced those present to choose Fukuoka as the name for the merged cities. For this reason and for the fact that the airport and main staition, Hakata Station, are in Hakata, the city is often referred to as Hakata.
When the two cities merged in 1889, the name Fukuoka was chosen to represent both of them. However, the old name still lives on as the name of an area of the city, as well as the main train station serving the city, Hakata Station. The station is the terminus of the Sanyo Shinkansen.
Fukuoka is divided into seven wards: Chuo, Hakata, Higashi, Jonan, Minami, Nishi, and Sawara.
History
Subdivisions
Universities
External Links
Masanobu Fukuoka, author of 'The One Straw Revolution', is the pioneer of 'No Till' grain growing (see also permaculture)
Fukuoka is also a town in Toyama, Japan.