Copyright © 2026 Kotomora. All Rights Reserved.
都道府県 (とどうふけん, todoufuken) Japanese meaning | Kotomora
Report an issue with this page
There are 47 prefectures in Japan in total.
Let's look at the population statistics by prefecture.
Kanji 都 metropolis, capital, all 道 road-way, street, district 府 borough, urban prefecture, govt office Related words 都道府県 covers all forty-seven prefectures—Tokyo (都), Hokkaido (道), Osaka/Kyoto (府), and the rest (県)—while 府県 refers only to the 府 and 県 types, excluding 都 and 道.
Don't confuse with 県 names a single ordinary prefecture, while 都道府県 is the umbrella term covering all 47 prefectural-level units (都, 道, 府, and 県 together).
都 refers specifically to Tokyo Metropolis, whereas 都道府県 collectively names all four types of top-level divisions including 都.
道 refers specifically to Hokkaido, whereas 都道府県 is the general term covering 道 along with the other three division types.
都道府県 refers to the prefectural level (like states or provinces), while 市町村 refers to the municipal level within those prefectures, so learners often mix up which term covers which administrative tier.
Word family prefectural governor
prefectural police
prefectural assemblies
Etymology Compound of 都 (to, 'metropolis'), 道 (dō, 'circuit'), 府 (fu, 'urban prefecture'), and 県 (ken, 'prefecture'), collectively referring to Japan's four types of top-level administrative divisions.
