Overview
- ​Examines a shrinking Japan through the historical regional variation perspective of the Goki-Shichido
- Highlights the power unique to each municipality which can mobilize a shrinking Japan to one that is sustainable
- Focuses on Fukui Prefecture of the Hokurikudo, Nagano and Gifu prefectures of the Tosando
Part of the book series: SpringerBriefs in Population Studies (BRIEFSPOPULAT)
Part of the book sub series: Population Studies of Japan (POPULAT)
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About this book
This book provides an insightful sociological study of the shrinking Japanese population through a regional variation perspective as it varies significantly by municipality, even within the same prefecture. Using demographic data on municipal levels, the book identifies the power unique to each municipality, which can mobilize a shrinking but sustainable Japan. 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. The theoretical framework of this study, i.e., the reason for regional variations in Japan, is the Goki-Shichido (Five Home Provinces and Seven Circuits of Ancient Japan). This historical knowledge helps in understanding the significance of the regional cultural heritage that remains in each municipality today. The book pays special attention to municipal variations within the same prefecture, utilizing a completely unique approach, unlike those that have been pursued by other researchers. This book studies three present-day prefectures for detailed analyses based on the Goki-Shichido framework for impacts of regional variations of population decline in Japan. They are Niigata Prefecture, made up of the formerly named Echigo and Sado provinces; Ishikawa Prefecture, formed by the ancient Kaga and Noto provinces; Fukui Prefecture, based on the earlier Wakasa and Echizen provinces of the Hokurikudo; Nagano Prefecture, still called Shinano province today and commonly divided into four areas and ten regions; and Gifu Prefecture, composed of the ancient Mino and Hida provinces of the Tosando as examples of the impact of municipal power on regional variations of shrinking Japan. However, due to the limitation of the number of pages set forth for Springer Briefs in Population Studies: Population Studies of Japan, for which the current publication is a part, it has become necessary to divide the book into two volumes, namely Volume I and Volume II. Because of this limitation, the current Volume II consisted of four chapters. They are Chapter 1: Fukui Prefecture in the Hokurikudo; Chapter 2: Nagano Prefecture in the Tosando; Chapter 3: Gifu Prefecture in the Tosando, and Chapter 4: Epilogue: The Future of Shrinking Japan. The remaining two prefectures, i.e., Niigata and Ishikawa prefectures in the Hokurikudo area have been discussed in the Volume I of this book. By presenting unique analyses of regional variations on small municipal levels, with demographic variables, social indicators, and historical identities, this book offers suggestions for effective regional policies to revitalize a shrinking Japan to a sustainable one.
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Keywords
Table of contents (4 chapters)
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Front Matter
Authors and Affiliations
About the author
Fumie KUMAGAI (Ph.D.) is a professor emeritus of Kyorin University in Tokyo. She holds an American doctorate in sociology with extensive experience 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 26 volumes of books and monographs in Japanese and/or English. Of them, her sole-authored books in English include Unmasking Japan Today: The Impact of Traditional Values on Modern Japanese Society (1996, Prager), Families in Japan: Changes, Continuities, and Regional Variations (2008, University Press of America), Family Issues on Marriage, Divorce, and Older Adults in Japan: With Special Attention to Regional Variations (2015, Springer), Municipal Power and Population Decline in Japan: Goki-Shichido and Regional Variations (2020, Springer), and numerous numbers of refereed articles in such journals as Journal of Family History, Journal of Marriage and Family, Journal of Comparative Family Studies, Journal of Cross-Cultural Gerontology, and Victimology.​​
Bibliographic Information
Book Title: Shrinking Japan and Regional Variations: Along the Hokurikudo and the Tosando II
Authors: Fumie Kumagai
Series Title: SpringerBriefs in Population Studies
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-6609-4
Publisher: Springer Singapore
eBook Packages: Social Sciences, Social Sciences (R0)
Copyright Information: The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2021
Softcover ISBN: 978-981-16-6608-7Published: 04 January 2022
eBook ISBN: 978-981-16-6609-4Published: 03 January 2022
Series ISSN: 2211-3215
Series E-ISSN: 2211-3223
Edition Number: 1
Number of Pages: XV, 103
Number of Illustrations: 58 b/w illustrations, 9 illustrations in colour
Topics: Demography, Human Geography, Public Policy, Social Philosophy