Japan: Prefectures, metropolises, etc.

Geography time! Japan is divided up into 47 prefectures, called the 47 todōfuken (都道府県). Prefectures are basically like states or provinces, and are divided up like so:

• Most prefectures are called ken (県), so Kanagawa Prefecture is just kanagawaken (神奈川県).
• Tokyo metropolitan area is listed as to (都), and has the same concept as the “District of Columbia” in the US: it’s a city, but run like a separate state.
• Both Kyoto and Osaka are also treated as “city prefectures”, but use the kanji fu (府) as in Ōsakafu and Kyōtofu.
• The island of Hokkaido is also treated as a dō (道) or “road”. The characters of Hokkaido are 北海道, or “Northern Sea Road”, so as a Prefecture, it’s just called Hokkaidō

So now you know.