List of islands of Japan facts for kids

Japanese islands outlined

Japan is an island country of 14,125 islands, of which approximately 260 are inhabited. Japan is the fourth-largest island country in the world, behind Indonesia, Madagascar, and Papua New Guinea. Japan is also the second-most-populous island country in the world, only behind Indonesia.

According to a survey conducted by the Japan Coast Guard in 1987, the number of islands in Japan was 6,852. At that time, the survey only counted islands with coastlines of 100 meters or more that were shown on paper maps. On February 28, 2023, the Geospatial Information Authority of Japan announced that the number of islands had been updated to 14,125 through a recount using digital maps. Since there is no international standard for counting islands, only islands with a coastline of 100 meters or more were counted, as in the past. According to the GSI, advances in surveying technology and the detailed representation of topographic features through digital mapping contributed to this announcement.

Japanese archipelago

Main islands

The four main islands of Japan are:

• Hokkaido – the northernmost and second largest main island, third most populous.
• Honshu – the largest and most populous island, with the capital Tokyo. Honshu is connected to the other three main islands by bridges and tunnels.
• Kyushu – the third largest main island, second most populous and the nearest to the Asian continent.
• Shikoku – the smallest and least populous main island, located between Honshu and Kyushu.

Hokkaido prefecture

• Ōshima
• Okushiri Island
• Teuri Island
• Rebun Island
• Rishiri Island
• Yagishiri Island
• Kamome island

Islands of Honshu in the Sea of Japan

• Awashima Island, Niigata
• Kanmurijima
• Kutsujima, Kyoto
• Mitsukejima
• Nanatsujima archipelago
• Notojima
• Oki Islands (Oki Islands)
  • Dōgo
  • Nakanoshima
  • Nishinoshima
  • Chiburijima
• Oomijima [ja]
• Sado
• Takashima, Shimane
• Tobishima (Yamagata)
  • Oshakujima [ja]
• Tsunoshima
• Umashima, Shimane

Islands in Tokyo Bay

• Dream Island (Yume No Shima)
• Odaiba (artificial island)
• Sarushima (natural)
• Jonan Island [ja]
• Heiwa Island [ja]
• Showa Island [ja]
• Keihin Island [ja]
• Tokyo International Airport (artificial island)
• Katsushima  [ja]
• Hakkeijima [ja]
• Higashi Ogijima [ja]
• Wakasu
• Oogishima [ja]
• Ukishima [ja]

Islands in Osaka Bay

• Maishima
• Yumeshima
• Sakishima [ja]
• Kansai International Airport (artificial island)
• Kobe Airport (artificial island)
• Port Island
• Rokkō Island
• Minami Ashiyahama [ja]
• Wakayama Marina City
• Nishinomiyahama [ja]

Islands in Ise Bay

• Chūbu Centrair International Airport (artificial island)
• Kami-shima
• Kashiko Island
• Kozukumi Island
• Mikimoto Pearl Island

Islands in Mutsu Bay

• Ōshima
• Taijima

Nanpō Islands (Nanpō Shotō)

Izu Islands

• Izu Islands
  • Aogashima
  • Hachijō
  • Izu Ōshima
  • Kōzu
  • Miyake-jima
  • Mikura-jima
  • Nii-jima
  • Shikine
  • Toshima
  • Tori-shima
  • Udonejima
• Ogasawara Islands (Bonin Islands)

Ogasawara Islands

• • Mukojima Rettō
  • Chichijima
  • Hahajima
  • Mukojima
• Kazan Rettō (Volcano Islands)
  • Nishinoshima
  • Kita Iwo Jima (North Iwo Jima)
  • Iwo Jima
  • Minami Iwo Jima (South Iwo Jima)

Other Japanese islands

• Minami Torishima (Marcus Island)
• Enoshima
• Okino Torishima (Parece Vela)

Islands around Kyushu

Most of these are located in the East China Sea.

• Amakusa
  • Shimoshima Island, Amakusa
  • Kamishima Island, Amakusa
• Nagashima Island, Kagoshima
• Aoshima
• Gotō Islands
• Danjo Islands
• Hizentorishima [ja]
• Hashima
• Hirado
• Iki
• Koshikijima Islands
  • Shimokoshiki-jima
  • Kamikoshiki-jima
• Tsushima
• Ukushima

Islands around Shikoku

• Kuro-shima (Ehime)
• Nii Ōshima

Ryukyu Islands (Nansei-shotō)

Ryukyu Islands

Satsunan Islands

The northern half is administratively part of Kagoshima Prefecture and Kyushu.

Ōsumi Islands

The North-Eastern Group:

• Tanegashima
• Yakushima
• Kuchinoerabujima
• Mageshima

The North-Western Group:

• Iōjima
• Shōwa Iōjima
• Kuroshima
• Takeshima

Tokara Islands

The Shichi-tō:

• Kuchinoshima
• Nakanoshima (Kagoshima)
• Gajajima
• Suwanosejima
• Akusekijima
• Tairajima
• Kodakarajima
• Takarajima

Amami Islands

• Amami Ōshima
• Kikaijima
• Kakeromajima
• Yoroshima
• Ukeshima
• Tokunoshima
• Okinoerabujima
• Yoronjima

Ryukyu Islands (Ryūkyū-shotō)

The Southern Half, Okinawa Prefecture

Okinawa Islands

The Central Group or Ryukyu proper:

• Okinawa Island
• Kumejima
• Iheyajima
• Izenajima
• Agunijima
• Iejima
• Iōtorishima
• Kerama Islands
  • Tokashikijima
  • Zamamijima
  • Akajima
  • Gerumajima
• Daitō Islands
  • Kitadaitojima
  • Minamidaitōjima
  • Okidaitōjima

Sakishima Islands

Also known as the Further Isles:

• Miyako Islands
  • Miyako-jima
  • Ikema
  • Ogami
  • Irabu Island
  • Shimoji
  • Kurima-jima
  • Minna
  • Tarama
• Yaeyama Islands
  • Iriomote
  • Ishigaki
  • Taketomi
  • Kohama
  • Kuroshima
  • Aragusuku
  • Hatoma
  • Yubujima
  • Hateruma
  • Yonaguni
• Senkaku Islands - controlled by Japan, disputed by China and Taiwan.
  • Uotsurijima
  • Kuba Jima
  • Taisho Jima
  • Kita Kojima
  • Minami Kojima

Seto Inland Sea islands

Seto Inland Sea

• Kasaoka Islands
  • Takashima Island (Okayama) 高島 (岡山県笠岡市)
  • Shiraishi Island
  • Kitagi Island, 北木島
  • Obishi Island, 大飛島
  • Kobi Island, 小飛島
  • Manabeshima, 真鍋島
  • Mushima Island (Okayama), 六島 (岡山県)
• Shiwaku Islands
• Awaji
• Etajima
• Kurahashi-jima
• Inujima
• Itsukushima (popularly known as "Miyajima")
• Shōdoshima
• Naoshima Islands
• Suō-Ōshima, Yamaguchi
• Himeshima, Ōita
• Aoshima, Ehime
• Hashira Island
• Okamura Island
• Ōshima (Ehime)
• Mukaishima Island, Hiroshima
• Ōmishima Island, Ehime
• Ōkunoshima (often called "Rabbit Island")

Islands in lakes

• Daikon-island
• Bentenjima in Lake Tōya
• Bentenjima in Lake Hamana

Other artificial islands

• Chūbu Centrair International Airport
• Dejima
• New Kitakyushu Airport
• Midori No Shima [ja], off Hakodate (artificial)
• Malimpia Okinosu [ja] (artificial)
• Wakaejima (artificial)
• Island City, Fukuoka (artificial)

Claims but does not control

Kuril islands and the Northern Territories

The Northern Territories

There are four disputed Kuril Islands that are controlled by Russia and claimed by Japan. These islands are called the Chishima Islands.

• Iturup - Etorofu (択捉島, Etorofu-tō)
• Kunashir - Kunashiri (国後島, Kunashiri-tō)
• Shikotan - Shikotan (色丹島, Shikotan-tō)
• Habomai Islands - Habomai (歯舞群島, Habomai-guntō)

Others

• Liancourt Rocks (Dokdo/Takeshima) - controlled by South Korea, disputed by Japan and North Korea.

Former

• South Seas Mandate (1919–1947) - part of the Japanese colonial empire until its defeat in 1945. Formally revoked by the United Nations in 1947. The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands later became a U.S. territory.
• Taiwan and Penghu (1895–1952) - part of the Japanese colonial empire until its defeat in 1945. Returned to the Republic of China in 1945 but unrecognized by the Allies. All claims relinquished by the Treaty of San Francisco signed in 1951.
• Karafuto (1905–1949) - the southern half of the island of Sakhalin, controlled by Japan after the Russo-Japanese War. Japan lost control of Karafuto after its invasion by the Soviet Union during World War II. Formally abolished as a legal entity by Japan in 1949. Japan in addition controlled the northern half of Sakhalin between 1920 and 1925, during and after the Russian Civil War.
• Jeju Island (1910–1952) - part of Korea.

Largest islands of Japan

These are the 50 largest islands of Japan. It excludes the disputed Kuril islands known as the northern territories.

See also

In Spanish: Anexo:Islas de Japón para niños

• Geography of Japan
• Japanese archipelago
• List of islands of Japan by area
• List of islands
• Names of Japan