The Kansai region (関西地方 Kansai-chihō ) or the Kinki region (近畿地方 Kinki-chihō ) lies in the southern-central region of Japan's main island Honshū. The region includes the prefectures of Mie, Nara, Wakayama, Kyoto, Osaka, Hyōgo, and Shiga. Sometimes Fukui and Tokushima are also included. While the use of the terms "Kansai" and "Kinki" have changed over history, in most modern contexts the two can be considered the same. The urban region of Osaka, Kobe and Kyoto (Keihanshin region) is the second most populated in Japan after the Greater Tokyo Area.
The Kansai region is the cultural and historical heart of Japan with 11% of its land area and 22,732,176 residents as of 2008. The Kinki Plain with the cities of Osaka and Kyoto forms the core of the region, from there the Kansai area stretches west along the Seto Inland Sea towards Himeji and Kobe and east encompassing Lake Biwa, Japan's largest freshwater lake. In the north the region is bordered by the Sea of Japan, to the south by the Kii Peninsula and Pacific Ocean, and to the east by the Japanese Alps (for Kansai) or Ise Bay (for Kinki). Four of Japan's national parks lie within its borders, in whole or in part. The area also contains six of the seven top prefectures in terms of national treasures. Other geographical features include Amanohashidate in Kyoto Prefecture and Awaji Island in Hyōgo.
The Kansai region is often compared with the Kantō region, which lies to its east and consists primarily of Tokyo and the surrounding area. Whereas the Kanto region is symbolic of standardization throughout Japan, the Kansai region displays many more idiosyncrasies: the culture in Kyoto, the mercantilism of Osaka, the history of Nara, or the cosmopolitanism of Kobe, and represents the focus of counterculture in Japan. This East-West rivalry has deep historical roots, particularly from the Edo period. With a samurai population of less than 1% the culture of the merchant city of Osaka stood in sharp contrast to that of Edo, the seat of power for the Tokugawa shogunate.
Many characteristic traits of Kansai people descend from Osaka merchant culture. Catherine Maxwell, an editor for the newsletter Omusubi, writes: "Kansai residents are seen as being pragmatic, entrepreneurial, down-to-earth and possessing a strong sense of humour. Kanto people on the other hand are perceived as more sophisticated, reserved and formal, in keeping with Tokyo’s history and modern status as the nation’s capital and largest metropolis."
Popular regional dishes include takoyaki, okonomiyaki and kitsune udon. Hyōgo Prefecture is well known for its Kobe beef and other dairy products. Sake is another specialty of the region, the areas of Nada and Fushimi produce 45% of all sake in Japan. As opposed to food from Eastern Japan, food in the Kansai area tends to be sweeter, and foods such as nattō tend to be less popular.
The dialects (弁, -ben) of the people of the Kansai region have their own variations of pronunciation, vocabulary, and grammar. Kansai-ben is the group of dialects spoken in the Kansai area, but is often treated as a dialect in its own right. Kansai-ben is especially strong in cities such as Osaka, Kyoto, and Kobe.
The terms Kansai (関西), Kinki (近畿), and Kinai (畿内) have a very deep history, dating back almost as far as the nation of Japan itself. As a part of the Ritsuryō reforms of the 6th century, the Gokishichidō system established the provinces of Yamato, Yamashiro, Kawachi, Settsu and Izumi. Kinai and Kinki, both roughly meaning "the neighbourhood of the capital", referred to these provinces. In common usage, Kinai now refers to the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto (Keihanshin) area, the center of the Kansai region.
Kansai (literally "west of the border") in its original usage refers to the land west of the Osaka Checkpoint (逢坂の関), the border between Yamashiro Province and Ōmi Province (present-day Kyoto and Shiga prefectures). During the Kamakura period, this border was redefined to include Ōmi and Iga Provinces. It is not until the Edo period that Kansai came to acquire its current form. (see Kamigata) Like all regions of Japan, the Kansai region is not an administrative unit, but rather a cultural and historical one.
The Kansai region lays claim to the earliest beginnings of Japanese civilization. It was Nara, the most eastern point on the Silk Road, that became the site of Japan's first permanent capital. This period (AD 710–784) saw the spread of Buddhism to Japan and the construction of Tōdai-ji in 745. The Kansai region also boasts the Shinto religion's holiest shrine at Ise Shrine (built in 690 AD) in Mie prefecture.
The Heian period saw the capital moved to Heian-kyō (平安京, present-day Kyoto), where it would remain for over a thousand years until the Meiji Restoration. During this golden age, the Kansai region would give birth to traditional Japanese culture. In 788, Saicho, the founder of the Hokke Buddhism|Tendai sect of Buddhism established his monastery at Mount Hiei in Shiga prefecture. Japan's most famous tale, and some say the world's first modern novel, The Tale of Genji was penned by Murasaki Shikibu while performing as a lady-in-waiting in Heian-kyo. Noh and Kabuki, Japan's traditional dramatic forms both saw their birth and evolution in Kyoto, while Bunraku, Japanese puppet theater, is native to Osaka.
Because of its unique position in Japanese history, the Kansai region hosts a number of well-known historical and cultural landmarks, including five of Japan's thirteen World Heritage Sites: Hōryū-ji, Himeji Castle, Kiyomizu-dera, Tōdai-ji, and Mount Koya.
Hōryū-ji Golden Hall, the oldest wooden structure in the world
Tōdai-ji Main Hall, the largest wooden structure in the world
Lake Biwa, the largest lake in Japan and the 3rd oldest lake in the world
Kongō Gumi, world's oldest continuously operating company, constructed several Japan's cultural assets
Kansai (関西) is the western region of the main Japanese island of Honshu, second only to Kanto region of Eastern Japan in population. The area is also known as Kinki (近畿) District, literally "near the capital" (referring to ancient capital Kyoto), and its three big cities — Osaka, Kyoto, and Kobe — as Keihanshin (京阪神).
Differences between Kansai and Kanto (the eastern region dominated by Tokyo) are slight but numerous. Kansai people speak a distinctive dialect of Japanese, use lighter-colored soy in their cooking, ride on the other side of escalators and are renowned for humor and their love of food.
The Kansai dialect (関西弁 Kansai-ben) is Japan's liveliest, and largest dialect group after Kanto's Japanese dialect group collectively. There are many subdialects, ranging from the effete Kyo-kotoba (京言葉) of Kyoto's courtiers to the gruff but imaginative gangster slang of Osaka, much favored by Japanese comedians. Some notable features include the copula ya instead of da, the negative ending -hen instead of -nai and the use of akan instead of dame for "No way!".
That said, most Kansaites are perfectly conversant in standard Japanese, so knowledge of the local dialect is by no means necessary, but even a few words will be appreciated. The canonical Osakan greeting is Mōkarimakka? ("Making money?"), to which the canonical reply is Bochi-bochi denna ("Well, so-so"); trying this out on a friend or acquaintance is guaranteed to produce a surprised smile, and make you look like a kettai (funny, strange) or omoroi (funny) guy.
There are three major airports in the Kansai Metropolitan Area. International flights land at Kansai International Airport. The primary domestic airport is Osaka's Itami Airport (officially called Osaka International Airport even though there are no longer any international flights). A new regional airport opened in Kobe in 2006, right across the bay from Kansai International — in fact, Kansai was originally supposed to be built there!
The three major cities of Kansai - Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe - are connected by a myriad of train routes. When traveling between two of these cities, it helps to determine what method of transportation fits your travel needs, and fits your budget... unless you have a Japan Rail Pass, of course.
Besides the Shinkansen, Japan Railways operates the main trunk line - the Tokaido Line - between Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe. The Kyoto-Osaka segment is known as the JR Kyoto Line, while the segment from Osaka to Kobe is the JR Kobe Line. The Special Rapid, or Shin-Kaisoku (新快速), generally leaves every 15 minutes with very fast transit times. If you do not have a Japan Rail Pass, however, JR can be more expensive compared to private railways.
If you do travel via the Keihan, an interesting thing to listen out for are the departure melodies - songs that are played before the train departs a station. Composed by Casiopea keyboardist and railroad enthusiast Minoru Mukaiya (向谷 実), each departure melody is part of an entire song - you will hear all parts of the song if you travel along the full route.
Another private railway that runs into Kyoto and Osaka is the Kintetsu Line (近鉄). However, traveling via Kintetsu between the two cities is not recommended. Services run on separate lines requiring you to change trains, and the total travel time is not worth the cost. On the other hand, Kintetsu is a great way to travel between Kyoto and Nara.
To go from Kyoto to southern Osaka (where Kintetsu trains terminate), you would be better off taking one of the other routes listed above; when you reach Osaka, change to the southbound Midosuji subway line and get off at Nanba.
Most of Kansai's regional transportation companies have tied up to offer the ICOCA tickets, which can be used on pretty much any train, subway, monorail, cable car or bus in the region. The Nankai and JR trains from Kansai Airport are also included, and you can buy your card or pass at the airport's train station.
With its political and geographical significance in the history of Japan, the region of Kansai possesses three quarters of Japan's "National Treasure" buildings, half of its "National Treasure" artworks, as well as five UNESCO World Heritage Sites, making it an unmatched destination for heritage tourists to Japan.
Kansai cooking is subtly different from the Kanto style, although the average short-term visitor is unlikely to spot many differences. Perhaps the most visible differences are a tendency to use light-colored soy instead of dark, especially in soups, and a preference for thick white udon noodles over the thin buckwheat soba noodles of eastern Japan.
Some famous Kansai dishes include:
Kansai is sake country, with Nada (in Kobe) and Fushimi (in Kyoto) alone accounting for 45% of the country's production. Kobe in particular is a good place to tour sake breweries, many of which are open to visitors.
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