Fukuoka, Japan, is located about the same distance from the major cities of Osaka, Tokyo, and Sapporo as it is from other key Asian cities, such as Busan, Seoul, Shanghai, Beijing, and Taipei. This gives rise to a high frequency of international flights arriving to and departing from local airports. Fukuoka has been known to have an advantageous position for trade and exchanges with Korea, China, and other Asian countries. The city is located in the heart of the crescent-shaped Fukuoka Plain. In the north, it faces the Genkai Sea and embraces Hakata Bay, which is parted by Itoshima Peninsula and Uminonakamichi Peninsula. In the south and east, there is a cascade of mountains. The climate is relatively warm with an average temperature of 17.2 degrees centigrade (2005).
Fukuoka enjoys the geographical advantage of being in close proximity to both the Korean peninsula and the Asian continent, and prospered accordingly as the first region in Japan to be exposed to the civilization of continental Asia. In 4th century BC, the first rice cultivation in Japan began in this area. The Gold Seal, presented to the ruler of Japan by the Han Emperor, was excavated from Shikanoshima Island in Hakata Bay, and is positive evidence of trade with China in the 1st century AD. From the 7th to 11th centuries, Korokan, a guesthouse, functioned as the center of international exchange and entertainment for Asian guests in Japan. In medieval times, Fukuoka became one of the few active international trade cities, hosting many foreign merchants, and in the 16th century, wealthy merchants went overseas to seek more profitable business. At that time, the city was called Hakata.
Known as both Fukuoka and Hakata, the city is famous having two names. How the two names became distinct is difficult for residents to explain, and is even more difficult for visitors to fathom. The name of Fukuoka’s airport is “Fukuoka International Airport” while the train station is called “Hakata Station”. Although the city’s name is Fukuoka, “Hakata” is often used to describe things; words like Hakata-ism, Hakata merchants, Hakata textiles, and Hakata dolls are well known across Japan. Hakata has been an important node in Asia since ancient times, and Hakata was also one of the most dynamic, active, and wealthy cities in Japan during medieval time – an international commercial city.
The history of successful Hakata merchants is being echoed by Fukuoka’s modern commercial enterprises. With tertiary industry being a major part of Fukuoka’s industrial structure, more than 70 percent of its enterprises are related to the wholesale, retail, food, and service industries. Fukuoka has developed as the political and economic center of Kyushu and western Japan, with many national government agencies, large companies, and financial institutions establishing branches in Fukuoka. The concentration of tertiary industry such as service industries has borne open-minded citizens, as shown in their hospitality towards visitors. Taking advantage of what it has to offer, Fukuoka will continue to grow existing industries and to create innovative urban industries, such as the convention and IT-related industries, in order to facilitate economic independence and to diversify its industrial structures. Fukuoka has developed as a center of international exchange and communication with Asia, and has the ability to continue playing this important role. It is hoped that the rest of Kyushu will follow suit and develop into a similar international hub of industry and communications.
Fukuoka combines the glamour of a modern city with the natural beauty of Hakata Bay, blending both the charm and splendor of its traditional culture with the characteristic amenities of a modern tourist city. Diversified tourism is offered to visitors, from resorts with the natural beauty of the coastline of Shikanoshima Island and Nokonoshima Island with entertainment facilities scattered on the shore, to urban tourism offering professional baseball, soccer, and Sumo tournaments, art performances and shopping, as well as central areas of Tenjin, Nakasu and Hakata, Canal City Hakata and Hakata Riverain. There is also festival-focused tourism such as Hakata Gion Yamakasa, the Hakata Dontaku Port Festival, Hojoya Festival, the Asian Month, as well as gourmet tourism where one can enjoy delicious seafood, Motsunabe and ramen at open-air stalls.
Fukuoka is striving to become a city that people want to live in and preserve forever. During this enormous transition, we must first and foremost promote the interests of the people of Fukuoka while protecting our natural resources, bearing in mind the history of medieval Hakata, which thrived as both a base of overseas exchange and a self-governing, self-sustaining city, so that we may incorporate its dynamism into the development of modern Fukuoka. The power of citizens, local communities, NPO’s and the private sector will help create a comfortable place in which to live and facilitate free economic activities, thus contributing to a more vibrant city. The local government will develop a base for supporting these activities, and each citizen should be aware of the autonomous management of the city, thus contributing to the vitality of the city. This is what Fukuoka City is truly striving to achieve.
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