Provincial Map of Japan in the 8th Century AD

Gokishichidō (五畿七道,, Gokishichidō^? Gokishichidō, lit. five provinces and seven circuits) was the name for ancient administrative units organized in Japan during the Asuka Period (AD 538–710), as part of a legal and governmental system borrowed from the Chinese. The, was a period in the History of Japan lasting from 538 to 710 (or 592-645 although its beginning could be said to overlap with the preceding Kofun period. Events By Place Europe March 12 — Witiges, king of the Ostrogoths, ends his siege of Rome and retreats to For the area code see Area code 710. For the Los Angeles-area freeway see Interstate 710. is the historical Law system based on the philosophies of Confucianism and Chinese Legalism in Japan. Though these units did not survive as administrative structures beyond the Muromachi Period (1336–1573), they did remain important geographical entities up until the 19th century. The Muromachi period ( Japanese: 室町時代 Muromachi-jidai, also known as the Muromachi era, the Muromachi bakufu, the Ashikaga era ^[1] The Gokishichidō consisted of five provinces in the Kinai (畿内) or capital region, plus seven dō (道) or circuits, each of which contained provinces of its own. The or the lies in the southern-central region of Japan 's main island Honshū. In Law, a circuit is an appellate judicial district used in the Court systems of several nations Before the modern prefecture system was established the land of Japan was divided into tens of kuni (国 countries) usually known in

Five Provinces

The five Kinai provinces were local areas in and around the imperial capital (first Heijo-kyo at Nara, then Heian-kyo at Kyoto). is the capital city of Nara Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan. (IPA /kʲoːto / is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. They were:

• Yamato Province (now Nara Prefecture)
• Yamashiro Province (now the southern part of Kyoto Prefecture, including the city of Kyoto)
• Kawachi Province (now the southeastern part of Osaka Prefecture)
• Settsu Province (now the northern part of Osaka Prefecture, including the city of Osaka, and parts of Hyōgo Prefecture)
• Izumi Province (now the southern part of Osaka Prefecture)

Seven Circuits

The seven dō or circuits were administrative areas stretching away from the Kinai region in different directions. was a province of Japan, located in Kinai, corresponding to present-day Nara Prefecture in Honshū. WikipediaWikiProject Japanese prefectures for guidelines --> is a prefecture in the Kinki region on Honshū Island, Japan was a province of Japan, located in Kinai. It overlaps the southern part of modern Kyoto Prefecture on Honshū. WikipediaWikiProject Japanese prefectures for guidelines --> is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kinki region of the island of Honshū was a province of Japan in Kinai, classified as a greater province WikipediaWikiProject Japanese prefectures for guidelines --> is a prefecture located in the Kinki region on Honshū, the main island of was a province of Japan, which today comprises the eastern part of Hyōgo Prefecture and the northern part of Osaka Prefecture. WikipediaWikiProject Japanese prefectures for guidelines --> is a prefecture located in the Kinki region on Honshū, the main island of is a city in Japan, located at the mouth of the Yodo River on Osaka Bay, in the Kansai region of the main island of Honshū WikipediaWikiProject Japanese prefectures for guidelines --> is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kinki region on Honshū Island The characters 泉州 are also used for the name of the Chinese city of Quanzhou. WikipediaWikiProject Japanese prefectures for guidelines --> is a prefecture located in the Kinki region on Honshū, the main island of Running through each of the seven areas was an actual road of the same name, connecting the imperial capital with all of the provincial capitals along its route. The seven dō were:

• Tōkaidō (running east along Japan's Pacific coast). The was originally an old Japanese geographical region that made up the Gokishichidō system and was situated along the southeastern edge of Honshū, its name literally ^[1]
• Tōsandō (northeast through the Japanese Alps). was an old Japanese geographical region that made up the Gokishichidō system and was situated along the central mountains of Honshū. The is a series of Mountain ranges in Japan that bisect the main island of Honshū. ^[1]
• Hokurikudō (northeast along the Sea of Japan coast). was an old Japanese geographical region situated along the northwestern edge of Honshū, its name literally means 'North Land Way' The Sea of Japan is a Marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean, bordered by Japan, Korea, North Korea and Russia ^[2]
• San'indō (west along the Sea of Japan coast). is a Japanese term denoting both an ancient division of the country corresponding for the most part with the modern conception of the San'in region, and the main road running through The Sea of Japan is a Marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean, bordered by Japan, Korea, North Korea and Russia ^[3]
• San'yōdō (west along the northern side of the Seto Inland Sea). is a Japanese term denoting both an ancient division of the country corresponding for the most part with the modern conception of the San'yō region, and the main road running through An inland sea is a shallow Sea that covers central areas of continents during high stands of Sea level that result in marine transgressions In modern days ^[3]
• Nankaidō (south to the Kii Peninsula and the islands of Awaji and Shikoku). The, literally meaning "southern sea road" was both an ancient Region of Japan and an ancient Road which connected provincial capitals in this region The is one of the largest Peninsulas on the island of Honshū in Japan. is an Island in Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan, in the eastern part of the Seto Inland Sea between the islands of Honshū and Shikoku is the smallest (225 km long and between 50 and 150 km wide and least populous (4141955 as of 2005 of the four main islands of Japan, located south of Honshū ^[4]
• Saikaidō (the southern island, Kyūshū). is one of the main circuits of the Gokishichidō system which was originally established during the Asuka Period. or Kyushu is the third-largest Island of Japan and most southwesterly of its four main islands.

Other Areas

A few Japanese regions, such as Hokuriku and Sanyō, still retain their ancient Gokishichidō names. is the (subregion along the Sea of Japan within the Chūbu region, the central region of Honshū, the main island The San'yō Region (山陽 地方 San'yō-chihō) is an area in the south of Honshū, the main island of Japan. Other parts of Japan, namely Hokkaidō and the Ryukyu Islands, were never included in the Gokishichidō because they were not colonized by Japan until the 19th century, just as the Gokishichidō geographic divisions and the feudal han (藩) domains were being replaced with the modern system of prefectures. WikipediaWikiProject Japanese prefectures for guidelines --> formerly known as Ezo, Yezo, Yeso, or Yesso, is Japan 's The Ryukyu Islands, in Japanese called the (literally Southwest Islands are a chain of Japanese islands in the western Pacific Ocean at the eastern limit The, or domains, were the Fiefs of Feudal Lords of Japan that were created by Toyotomi Hideyoshi and existed until their The prefectures of Japan are the country's 47 sub-national Jurisdictions one "metropolis" (都 to) Tokyo; one " circuit Initially the government tried to organize Hokkaidō as an eighth dō (hence the name), but it was soon consolidated into a single prefecture. More information can be found at Wikipedia's Provinces of Japan article. Before the modern prefecture system was established the land of Japan was divided into tens of kuni (国 countries) usually known in

Gokaidō

The Gokishichidō roads should not be confused with the Edo Five Routes (五街道 Gokaidō), which were the five major roads leading to Edo during the Edo Period (1603–1867). The were the five major roads ( Kaidō) that started at Edo (now Tokyo) during the Edo period, the most important of which was the Tōkaidō literally bay - Door, " Estuary " edo once also spelled Yedo or Yeddo, is the The, also referred to as the Tokugawa period (徳川時代 Tokugawa-jidai) is a division of Japanese history running from 1603 to 1868 Year 1867 ( MDCCCLXVII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting The Tōkaidō (road) was one of the five routes, but the others were not. The was the most important of the Five Routes of the Edo period, connecting Edo (modern-day Tokyo) to Kyoto in Japan.

References

• Titsingh, Isaac, ed. Isaac Titsingh ( 10 January 1745 in Amsterdam – 2 February 1812 in Paris) was a Dutch surgeon scholar merchant-trader (1834). [Siyun-sai Rin-siyo/Hayashi Gahō, 1652], Nipon o daï itsi ran; ou, Annales des empereurs du Japon, tr. Hayashi Gahō (林鵞峰 (1618 &ndash 1688 also known as Hayashi Shunsai, was a Japanese Neo-Confucian scholar teacher and administrator in the system of is a 17th century chronicle of the serial reigns of Japanese emperors with brief notes about some of the noteworthy events or other happenings during each period par M. Isaac Titsingh avec l'aide de plusieurs interprètes attachés au comptoir hollandais de Nangasaki; ouvrage re. , complété et cor. sur l'original japonais-chinois, accompagné de notes et précédé d'un Aperçu d'histoire mythologique du Japon, par M. J. Klaproth. Julius Heinrich Klaproth (1783-1835 German Orientalist and traveller Paris: Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland. The Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland (RAS was according to its Royal Charter of August 11, 1824 ... Click link to digitized, full-text copy of this book (in French)