AOMORI – Green Woods 青森県
Aomori is the northernmost prefecture on the Honshu mainland facing the Tsugaru Strait and Hokkaido.
・The name “Aomori” originated from the aomori green woods (likely Japanese pine trees) on a hill on shore in Aomori Honcho (central Aomori city). It was visible from the ocean and used as a landmark by seafarers. The original green woods no longer exist.
・The area was named “Aomori” by the Hirosaki Clan in 1624 when they started building the port town in Aomori.
・When the prefectural capital moved from Hirosaki-cho town to Aomori-cho town in 1871, the prefecture was named after the new location of the prefectural capital.
・Aomori Prefecture is Japan’s No. 1 producer of apples, Chinese yam, and garlic. Also famous for the Nebuta and Neputa Matsuri summer festivals.
Old province name: Rikuou-no-Kuni (also pronounced Mutsu-no-Kuni) (陸奥国). Rikuou/Mutsu means “Backroad” or michi-no-oku (道奥). The word Michi for road morphed into Mutsu.
*The AI-generated image is for illustrative purposes only and may not accurately depict any particular place in the prefecture.
*Major reference sources: Official prefectural website, Japanese Wikipedia, other websites.
Origin of other prefectural names (etymologies)
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