Akita秋田県
Akita-ken, あきたけん. The name ends in 県 (ken), prefecture.
Akita is on the Sea of Japan coast and grows rice and brews sake. Its population is shrinking faster than any other prefecture's.
Facts
- Japanese name
- 秋田県
- Reading
- Akita-ken / あきたけん
- Region
- Tōhoku 東北
- Capital
- Akita 秋田市
- Population
- 959,502 (2020 census)
- Area
- 11,638 km²
- Density
- 82 people per km²
- Municipalities
- 25: 13 cities, 9 towns, and 3 villages
- Designated cities
- None
- Districts (郡)
- 6
- Codes
- JIS 05, ISO 3166-2 JP-05
- Website
- www.pref.akita.lg.jp
- Tree
- Akita cedar 秋田杉
- Flower
- butterbur bud フキノトウ
- Bird
- copper pheasant ヤマドリ
The tree, flower, and bird are the prefectural symbols, chosen by ordinance. Every prefecture has all three.
The most populous municipalities
| Municipality | Population | km² | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Akita City秋田市 | 307,672 | 906.07 | 32.1% |
| Yokote City横手市 | 85,555 | 692.8 | 8.9% |
| Daisen City大仙市 | 77,657 | 866.79 | 8.1% |
| Yurihonjo City由利本荘市 | 74,707 | 1,209.59 | 7.8% |
| Odate City大館市 | 69,237 | 913.22 | 7.2% |
| Noshiro City能代市 | 49,968 | 426.95 | 5.2% |
| Yuzawa City湯沢市 | 42,091 | 790.91 | 4.4% |
| Katagami City潟上市 | 31,720 | 97.72 | 3.3% |
| Kitaakita City北秋田市 | 30,198 | 1,152.76 | 3.1% |
| Kazuno City鹿角市 | 29,088 | 707.52 | 3.0% |
2020 census. Share is the municipality's part of the prefecture's population. The other 15 are listed below.
How an address here begins
秋田県秋田市…
Akita-ken, Akita-shi, …
The prefecture name is written first, then the municipality name. The guide explains the rest of the address, and the map finds any address you paste into it.
Neighbouring prefectures
Every municipality in Akita市区町村
25 local governments, each with its own mayor and assembly. Each has a page with its population, area, neighbours, and boundary on the map.
Cities市
Districts, with their towns and villages郡 町 村
A district is a name that groups towns and villages in an address. It has no office and no election. Each town and village in it is a government.
Questions about Akita
- Is Akita a city or a prefecture?
- Akita (秋田県) is a prefecture, one of Japan's 47. Akita City (秋田市) is a municipality inside it and its capital. On its own, the name usually means the city. With 県 on the end it means the prefecture.
- What is the capital of Akita?
- Akita City (秋田市). The prefectural office is there. It is also the largest municipality in the prefecture.
- What does 県 mean in 秋田県?
- 県 (ken) means prefecture. It is the ordinary word for prefecture, used by 43 of the 47. The other four are Tokyo (都), Hokkaidō (道), Osaka, and Kyoto (府), which are the same kind of government with a different word at the end of the name.
- How many municipalities are in Akita?
- 25: 13 cities, 9 towns, and 3 villages. Each is a local government with its own mayor and assembly. The towns and villages are grouped into six districts (郡), names used in addresses, not governments.
- What is the population of Akita?
- 959,502 at the 2020 census, on 11,638 km², which is 82 people per km². Akita is the 38th most populous of the 47 prefectures and the 6th largest by area.
- Which prefectures border Akita?
- Four prefectures: Aomori (青森県), Iwate (岩手県), Miyagi (宮城県), and Yamagata (山形県). Borders across water are not counted.
- What region is Akita in?
- Tōhoku (東北). A region is a customary grouping of prefectures, not a government, so Akita elects a governor and an assembly but the region elects nothing.
- How is Akita written in Japanese?
- 秋田県, read Akita-ken and written あきたけん in hiragana. The last character, 県, is the word for prefecture, and the name is often used without it in English.
- How does an address in Akita begin?
- With the prefecture name, then the municipality name: 秋田県秋田市… (Akita-ken, Akita-shi, …). After that are written the named area, the chōme, the block, and the building number.
- What is the largest city in Akita?
- Akita City (秋田市), with 307,672 people at the 2020 census. It is also the capital. The three most populous municipalities are Akita City (秋田市, 307,672), Yokote City (横手市, 85,555), and Daisen City (大仙市, 77,657).
- What are the symbols of Akita?
- The prefectural tree is the Akita cedar (秋田杉), the flower the butterbur bud (フキノトウ), and the bird the copper pheasant (ヤマドリ). Akita chose them by ordinance, as every prefecture has.
Boundaries: MLIT 国土数値情報. Population: 2020 Population Census (令和2年国勢調査). Area: Geospatial Information Authority of Japan (全国都道府県市区町村別面積調, 2020). Municipality counts are from the boundary data on the map. Website and symbols: the prefecture's Japanese Wikipedia article, read in September 2026.