Saga佐賀県
Saga-ken, さがけん. The name ends in 県 (ken), prefecture.
Saga is the smallest prefecture in Kyūshū. It is known for Arita and Imari porcelain.
Facts
- Japanese name
- 佐賀県
- Reading
- Saga-ken / さがけん
- Region
- Kyūshū-Okinawa 九州・沖縄
- Capital
- Saga 佐賀市
- Population
- 811,442 (2020 census)
- Area
- 2,441 km²
- Density
- 332 people per km²
- Municipalities
- 20: 10 cities and 10 towns
- Designated cities
- None
- Districts (郡)
- 6
- Codes
- JIS 41, ISO 3166-2 JP-41
- Website
- www.pref.saga.lg.jp
- Tree
- camphor tree クスノキ
- Flower
- camphor blossom クスの花
- Bird
- magpie カササギ（カチガラス）
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saga City佐賀市 | 233,301 | 431.84 | 28.8% |
| Karatsu City唐津市 | 117,373 | 487.6 | 14.5% |
| Tosu City鳥栖市 | 74,196 | 71.72 | 9.1% |
| Imari City伊万里市 | 52,629 | 255.25 | 6.5% |
| Takeo City武雄市 | 47,914 | 195.4 | 5.9% |
| Ogi City小城市 | 43,952 | 95.81 | 5.4% |
| Kanzaki City神埼市 | 31,022 | 125.13 | 3.8% |
| Kashima City鹿島市 | 27,892 | 112.12 | 3.4% |
| Ureshino City嬉野市 | 25,848 | 126.41 | 3.2% |
| Miyaki Townみやき町 | 25,511 | 51.92 | 3.1% |
2020 census. Share is the municipality's part of the prefecture's population. The other 10 are listed below.
How an address here begins
佐賀県佐賀市…
Saga-ken, Saga-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 Saga市区町村
20 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 Saga
- Is Saga a city or a prefecture?
- Saga (佐賀県) is a prefecture, one of Japan's 47. Saga City (佐賀市) 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 Saga?
- Saga City (佐賀市). The prefectural office is there. It is also the largest municipality in the prefecture.
- What does 県 mean in 佐賀県?
- 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 Saga?
- 20: 10 cities and 10 towns. 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 Saga?
- 811,442 at the 2020 census, on 2,441 km², which is 332 people per km². Saga is the 41st most populous of the 47 prefectures and the 42nd largest by area.
- Which prefectures border Saga?
- Two prefectures: Fukuoka (福岡県) and Nagasaki (長崎県). Borders across water are not counted.
- What region is Saga in?
- Kyūshū-Okinawa (九州・沖縄). A region is a customary grouping of prefectures, not a government, so Saga elects a governor and an assembly but the region elects nothing.
- How is Saga written in Japanese?
- 佐賀県, read Saga-ken and written さがけん 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 Saga begin?
- With the prefecture name, then the municipality name: 佐賀県佐賀市… (Saga-ken, Saga-shi, …). After that are written the named area, the chōme, the block, and the building number.
- What is the largest city in Saga?
- Saga City (佐賀市), with 233,301 people at the 2020 census. It is also the capital. The three most populous municipalities are Saga City (佐賀市, 233,301), Karatsu City (唐津市, 117,373), and Tosu City (鳥栖市, 74,196).
- What are the symbols of Saga?
- The prefectural tree is the camphor tree (クスノキ), the flower the camphor blossom (クスの花), and the bird the magpie (カササギ（カチガラス）). Saga 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.