This book pays special attention to municipal variations within the same prefecture, presenting a completely unique approach from what other researchers have pursued. Taking the Goki-Shichido (Five Home Provinces and Seven Circuits of Ancient Japan) as a theoretical framework, this book examines shrinking Japan from a regional variation perspective by municipality along the ancient Sannindo, which comprises eight provinces, and four prefectures today. The study identifies the principal explanatory factors based on the small area data of e-Stat through GPS statistical software tools such as G-census and EvaCva, within a historical perspective. This historical knowledge helps in understanding the significance of the regional cultural heritage that remains in each municipality today.
This book studies two present-day prefectures along the ancient Sannindo for detailed analyses of the impacts of regional variations of population decline in Japan. They are northern and central parts of Kyoto Prefecture, made up of the former Tango and Tamba provinces, and Tottori Prefecture, formed by the ancient provinces of Inaba and Houki. The reasons for selecting these two prefectures of the ancient Sannindo are twofold. First, they are made up of a multiple number of the ancient provinces. Second, other prefecture that fall under the Sannindo, i.e., Shimane Prefecture has been studied in the previous works of the present author by adopting the same methods of analyses. Thus, by presenting unique analyses of regional variations on small municipal levels in Kyoto and Tottori prefectures along the Sannindo, this book offers suggestions for effective regional policy to revitalize shrinking Japan to a sustainable one.
Preface.- Prologue - Introduction Shrinking Japan the Goki-Shichido, the
Sannindo, the Municipal Power and the Methodology.- Kyoto Prefecture along
the Sannindo of the Goki-Shichido and Regional Variations with Special
Attention to the Tango and Nantan Areas.- Tottori Prefecture along the
Sannindo of the Goki-Shichido and Regional Variations.- Epilogue Shrinking
Japan and Foreign Residents with Special Attention to Sannindo.
Fumie Kumagai (Ph.D.) is a professor emeritus of Kyorin University in Tokyo. She holds an American doctorate in sociology with extensive experiences in the West as a student, college professor, and researcher. Her overseas experience affords her a unique cross-cultural perspective in the field of families and demography, social issues, and intercultural communication. Her major interest is in regional variations on Japanese population, families, and socio-cultural characteristics based on municipality, but not by prefecture, or Japan by any means. She has published 29 volumes of books and monographs in Japanese and/or English, including the one forthcoming.
