Shimane Prefecture

Shimane Prefecture 島根県
Prefecture
Japanese transcription(s)
• Japanese	島根県
• Rōmaji	Shimane-ken
Oki Island Geopark Matsue Castle Lake Shinji Izumo Taisha Izumo Soba noodle A ruin of Iwami Silvemine Iwami Traditional Folk Dance (Iwami Kagura) Kōjindani Ruin Nima Sand Museum Herritage street and town in Tsuwano
Flag Symbol
Anthem: Usu-murasaki no yamanami
Country	Japan
Region	Chūgoku (San'in)
Island	Honshu
Capital	Matsue
Subdivisions	Districts: 5, Municipalities: 19
Government
• Governor	Tatsuya Maruyama
Area
• Total	6,708.26 km2 (2,590.07 sq mi)
• Rank	19th
Population  (February 1, 2021)
• Total	665,205
• Rank	46th
• Density	99/km2 (260/sq mi)
GDP [1]
• Total	JP¥ 2,689 billion US$ 24.7 billion (2019)
ISO 3166 code	JP-32
Website	www1.pref.shimane.lg.jp/contents/kokusai/kokusai-e/index.html
Symbols
Bird	Whooper swan (Cygnus cygnus)
Fish	Flying Fish
Flower	Moutan peony (Paeonia suffruticosa)
Tree	Japanese black pine (Pinus thunbergii)

Shimane prefecture (島根県, Shimane-ken) is a Japanese prefecture in the Chūgoku region of the island of Honshu.^[2] The capital is the city of Matsue.^[3] It has the second smallest population of any prefecture in Japan.

Shimane Prefecture is part of the San'in area. San'in means "the shady side of the mountains". There is a mountain range separating Shimane and neighboring Tottori from Hiroshima and Okayama. That means that the weather here is much wetter than further to the south.

1. ↑ "2020年度国民経済計算（2015年基準・2008SNA） : 経済社会総合研究所 - 内閣府". 内閣府ホームページ (in Japanese). Retrieved 2023-05-18.
2. ↑ Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Shimane Prefecture" in Japan Encyclopedia, p. 859; "Chūgoku" at p. 127.
3. ↑ Nussbaum, "Matsue" at p. 617.