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Fukuoka, often referred to as Hakata, is the capital city of Fukuoka
prefecture at the northern tip of the island of Kyushu in Japan, facing
Honshu across Kanmon Strait. Fukuoka is one of two largest cities in Kyushu
besides Kitakyushu.
Situated across the Korea Strait from South Korea's Busan, the city has
been strongly influenced by Korean cuisine and is attempting to situate
itself as a hub for East Asian cultural interchange.
As of July 2003, the city has an estimated population of 1,325,611 and
the density of 4,054.18 persons per km². The total area is 339.38 km². With
an average age of 38.6 years, Fukuoka is Japan's second youngest major city
and with a growth rate of 4.4%, is also Japan's second-fastest growing city
(based on 2000 census data).
It is the home of the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks, one of Japan's top
professional baseball teams and is served by Fukuoka Airport.
History
Fukuoka was formerly the residence of the powerful daimyo of Chikuzen,
and played a conspicuous part in the medieval history of Japan; the renowned
temple of Ieiyasu in the district was destroyed by fire during the
revolution of 1868. (from 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica)
Hakata (博多) is an older name for the city which is now known as Fukuoka,
on Kyushu island in Japan.
The city was founded on April 1, 1889 with the merger of Hakata and
Fukuoka. The Hakata area was and remains the main business area.
historically Hakata was the port and merchant district, and as such more
associated with the area's culture. On the other hand, the name of Fukuoka
has been used since Kuroda Nagamasa, who was the first daimyo of Chikushi
(Chikuzen), named it after his birthplace in Okayama Prefecture. The Fukuoka
area was home to many samurai and is the main shopping area today. When the
two areas of Hakata and Fukuoka decided to merge a meeting was held to
decide the name for the new city. Hakata was chosen but a group of samurai
crashed the meeting and forced those present to choose Fukuoka as the name
for the merged cities. For this reason and for the fact that the airport and
main station, Hakata Station, are in Hakata, the city is often referred to
as Hakata.
When the two cities merged in 1889, the name Fukuoka was chosen to
represent both of them. However, the old name still lives on as the name of
an area of the city, as well as the main train station serving the city,
Hakata Station. The station is the terminus of the Sanyo Shinkansen.
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