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The story
In a thread titled “The Big 7 Things Fukuoka Prefecture Is Famous For,” posters were trying to pin down the seventh item to go alongside tonkotsu ramen, motsunabe (offal hot pot), mentaiko (spicy cod roe), Taro Aso, Kyushu University, and Sazae-san. As the discussion rolled on, other classic Fukuoka topics kept popping up — actress Kanna Hashimoto, Fukuoka Airport, Hakata Station, the faculty lineup at Kyushu University, and the pecking order among local universities like Fukuoka University and Kurume University. Meanwhile, the thread also drifted into the old debate over whether Kitakyushu or Kumamoto City is the more “urban” city, plus economic data showing Fukuoka Prefecture’s per-capita GDP is surprisingly low for its size — splitting opinion well beyond just naming the prefecture’s famous things.
What people said
What do you think the seventh one should be!?
Ranking of Kyushu's major cities by 'urban-ness'
*★ marks cities in Fukuoka Prefecture.
*Naha, Okinawa thrown in for comparison.
SS ★Fukuoka City
S ★Kitakyushu (Naha)
A+ Kumamoto City
A- Kagoshima City
B+ Nagasaki City Oita City
B- Miyazaki City
C ★Kurume City Saga City Sasebo City
D Everyone else
*★ marks cities in Fukuoka Prefecture.
*Naha, Okinawa thrown in for comparison.
SS ★Fukuoka City
S ★Kitakyushu (Naha)
A+ Kumamoto City
A- Kagoshima City
B+ Nagasaki City Oita City
B- Miyazaki City
C ★Kurume City Saga City Sasebo City
D Everyone else
Re: #3
For urban vibes, Kumamoto City beats Kitakyushu, no question.
Kitakyushu is basically two different cities (Kurosaki and Kokura) mashed together.
Neither core area is all that developed on its own.
For urban vibes, Kumamoto City beats Kitakyushu, no question.
Kitakyushu is basically two different cities (Kurosaki and Kokura) mashed together.
Neither core area is all that developed on its own.
Re: #17
So it's like Saitama City (Omiya, Urawa, etc.) or Iwaki in Fukushima (Taira, etc.)!
Though I'd say Kokura's still more developed than Iwaki… 😅
So it's like Saitama City (Omiya, Urawa, etc.) or Iwaki in Fukushima (Taira, etc.)!
Though I'd say Kokura's still more developed than Iwaki… 😅
Re: #17
For what it's worth, Kitakyushu actually had a bigger population than Fukuoka City up until the 1970s…
But it shrank as the Kitakyushu industrial zone declined.
Used to be over a million people, but now even Chiba City has passed it 😅
For what it's worth, Kitakyushu actually had a bigger population than Fukuoka City up until the 1970s…
But it shrank as the Kitakyushu industrial zone declined.
Used to be over a million people, but now even Chiba City has passed it 😅
• Motsunabe
A hot pot made mainly from beef offal (small intestine, large intestine, etc.) simmered with vegetables and seasoning.
Comes in soy sauce, miso, and salt-based varieties.
• Mentaiko
Salt-cured pollock roe.
• Kazuyoshi Morita (aka Tamori)
Fukuoka's leading comedian and TV host.
Best known for "Waratte Iitomo!" (Fuji TV) and "Tamori Club" (TV Asahi).
He was originally just a regular salaryman in Fukuoka before manga artist Fujio Akatsuka scouted him into show business.
• Taro Aso
A heavyweight politician and former Prime Minister (Japan's 92nd).
Heir to the Aso Group (the Aso family's business empire), one of Fukuoka's leading companies.
His maternal grandfather, incidentally, was Shigeru Yoshida.
Shuyukan, obviously.
Re: #11
Ah, the private prep school!
Mostly known as the alma mater of former PM Koki Hirota
Fun fact: Hirota was the only person executed as a Class-A war criminal who wasn't a military officer (unlike Tojo and the rest) — poor guy 😢
Ah, the private prep school!
Mostly known as the alma mater of former PM Koki Hirota
Fun fact: Hirota was the only person executed as a Class-A war criminal who wasn't a military officer (unlike Tojo and the rest) — poor guy 😢
Re: #18
Shuyukan's a public prefectural school
It traces back to the Fukuoka clan's domain school
Shuyukan's a public prefectural school
It traces back to the Fukuoka clan's domain school
Re: #18
It's public, man
You're always going on about high schools and you didn't know that?
It's public, man
You're always going on about high schools and you didn't know that?
• Kanna Hashimoto
An actress from Jonan Ward, Fukuoka City.
• Fukuoka Airport (Fukuoka International Airport)
Kyushu's leading international airport.
In fact, it ranks among Japan's biggest airports alongside Narita and Haneda (Greater Tokyo), Kansai International, Chubu Centrair, New Chitose (Hokkaido), and Naha (Okinawa).
Despite being huge, it sits close to downtown Fukuoka, with great subway access from both JR Hakata Station and Nishitetsu Fukuoka (Tenjin) Station.
Re: #14
Outside the three biggest metro areas (Narita, Haneda, Kansai, Chubu Centrair), Fukuoka Airport is the most "international-feeling" airport out there, with a solid lineup of routes to East Asia (South Korea, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, etc.) and Southeast Asia (Singapore, etc.).
That said, it currently has no routes to Europe/the US, the Mariana Islands (Guam, Saipan), or Hawaii…
Outside the three biggest metro areas (Narita, Haneda, Kansai, Chubu Centrair), Fukuoka Airport is the most "international-feeling" airport out there, with a solid lineup of routes to East Asia (South Korea, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, etc.) and Southeast Asia (Singapore, etc.).
That said, it currently has no routes to Europe/the US, the Mariana Islands (Guam, Saipan), or Hawaii…
Re: #23
My bad
It's not actually private
Still, Fukuoka's unusual for a non-metro prefecture in that its private prep schools are strong too
There's also the Kurume University affiliated school
My bad
It's not actually private
Still, Fukuoka's unusual for a non-metro prefecture in that its private prep schools are strong too
There's also the Kurume University affiliated school
Re: #29
"Affiliated"?
It's Kurume University Fusetsu (附設), not Fuzoku (附属)
What is with you
"Affiliated"?
It's Kurume University Fusetsu (附設), not Fuzoku (附属)
What is with you
Re: #29
Fusetsu's just an outlier anyway — the public schools are stronger overall
Shuyukan, Fukuoka, Chikushigaoka, Kokura, Tochiku, Meizen
Fusetsu's just an outlier anyway — the public schools are stronger overall
Shuyukan, Fukuoka, Chikushigaoka, Kokura, Tochiku, Meizen
• JR Hakata Station
Kyushu's biggest terminal station, located in Hakata Ward, Fukuoka City.
It serves the Sanyo Shinkansen (through-running with the Tokaido Shinkansen), the Hakata-Minami Line, the Kyushu Shinkansen, the Kagoshima Main Line, the Fukuhoku Yutaka Line (Sasaguri Line), and the Fukuoka City Subway (Airport Line and Nanakuma Line).
There's also the "Relay Kamome" limited express to Takeo-Onsen Station, where you can transfer to the Nishi-Kyushu (Nagasaki) Shinkansen.
Re: #35
Hakata Station's Shinkansen (& Hakata-Minami Line) platforms
Shinkansen transfer gate
Shinkansen central gate
Hakata Station's Shinkansen (& Hakata-Minami Line) platforms
Shinkansen transfer gate
Shinkansen central gate
Latest poverty-rate figures released
Prefectures with the highest welfare-recipient rates (i.e., higher poverty)
#1 Okinawa: 2.28%
#2 Aomori: 2.19%
#3 Hokkaido: 2.14%
#4 Fukuoka: 2.09% ←
Prefectures with the highest welfare-recipient rates (i.e., higher poverty)
#1 Okinawa: 2.28%
#2 Aomori: 2.19%
#3 Hokkaido: 2.14%
#4 Fukuoka: 2.09% ←
Re: #49
Fukuoka's per-capita GDP is kind of low for such a big metro area… 😅
I think it's even dicey whether it beats Miyagi (Sendai), which is a smaller-tier city by comparison
And it also loses out to Hiroshima — you know, the Mazda prefecture…
Fukuoka's per-capita GDP is kind of low for such a big metro area… 😅
I think it's even dicey whether it beats Miyagi (Sendai), which is a smaller-tier city by comparison
And it also loses out to Hiroshima — you know, the Mazda prefecture…
Re: #49
Well, at least it's better than Hokkaido or Okinawa 😅
Well, at least it's better than Hokkaido or Okinawa 😅
Udon
Toorimon (a famous local sweet)
Bikkuritei
Mutchan Manju
Itoshima
Canal City
Uminonakadou
I'm not even from Fukuoka, but these are what come to mind for me
Also an honorable mention for Mt. Sarakura
Toorimon (a famous local sweet)
Bikkuritei
Mutchan Manju
Itoshima
Canal City
Uminonakadou
I'm not even from Fukuoka, but these are what come to mind for me
Also an honorable mention for Mt. Sarakura
• Canal City Hakata
A massive shopping mall in Hakata Ward, Fukuoka City.
It has a movie theater too.
Uminonakadou (a scenic seaside park)
Re: #52
The minimum wage there is pretty low, too
And local industry is basically just Yaskawa and the toilet company
It's a branch-office economy after all
The minimum wage there is pretty low, too
And local industry is basically just Yaskawa and the toilet company
It's a branch-office economy after all
Re: #56
I think per-capita prefectural income in Fukuoka even trails Fukushima and Nagano — prefectures less than half its size
Scale-wise, Fukuoka's one of Japan's "big four" cities, but in terms of per-capita economic power there's actually a huge gap versus the three major metro areas
In other words (same goes for Sapporo, Hokkaido), it's kind of like the capital of a developing country — big population, not much wealth per head
I think per-capita prefectural income in Fukuoka even trails Fukushima and Nagano — prefectures less than half its size
Scale-wise, Fukuoka's one of Japan's "big four" cities, but in terms of per-capita economic power there's actually a huge gap versus the three major metro areas
In other words (same goes for Sapporo, Hokkaido), it's kind of like the capital of a developing country — big population, not much wealth per head
Re: #56
The toilet company — you mean TOTO!
Isn't their HQ in Kitakyushu?
The toilet company — you mean TOTO!
Isn't their HQ in Kitakyushu?
• Kyushu University (Kyudai)
Kyushu's leading national university, and one of the former Imperial Universities.
It has faculties of Medicine, Dentistry, Pharmacy, Engineering, Agriculture, Science, Law, Economics, Letters, Education, Design (formerly the Kyushu Institute of Design), and the Faculty of Arts and Science for Future Co-creation (established 2018).
Its campus used to be in the Hakozaki area near downtown Fukuoka, but is now out in Ito, far to the west of the city center.
Only the medical, dental, and pharmacy departments plus the affiliated hospital remain on a campus near downtown, in the Maidashi area.
Re: #62
Maidashi Campus
Ohashi Campus
*Home to the Faculty of Design (formerly the Kyushu Institute of Design).
Maidashi Campus
Ohashi Campus
*Home to the Faculty of Design (formerly the Kyushu Institute of Design).
Re: #62
By the way, here's roughly how I'd rank the old Imperial Universities in terms of strength.
*Also includes a few other major national/public universities for reference.
【Science & Engineering】
Tokyo≧Kyoto＞(Science Tokyo/Tokyo Tech)≧Osaka＞Tohoku, Nagoya＞Hokkaido, Kyushu, (Tsukuba), (Kobe)＞(Chiba), (Osaka Metropolitan/Osaka Prefecture)
【Humanities & Social Sciences】
Tokyo＞Kyoto≧(Hitotsubashi)＞Osaka＞Nagoya, (Tokyo University of Foreign Studies), (Kobe), (Akita International/AIU)＞Hokkaido, Tohoku, Kyushu, (Tsukuba), (Yokohama National)＞(Chiba), (Osaka Metropolitan/Osaka City)
*Tohoku University's sciences (especially engineering) are excellent, but honestly its humanities aren't that strong. It even loses to Akita's International University (AIU), so it's arguably not even the strongest university in the Tohoku region.
【Medicine/Dentistry/Pharmacy】
Tokyo (Science Course III)≧Kyoto＞(Science Tokyo/Tokyo Medical and Dental)≧Osaka＞Kyushu, Nagoya, (Chiba)＞Tohoku, (Kyoto Prefectural Medical), (Kobe), (Okayama)＞Hokkaido, (Yokohama City), (Osaka Metropolitan/Osaka City)
*Note: in the medicine/dentistry/pharmacy field specifically, Tohoku actually ranks above Hokkaido.
By the way, here's roughly how I'd rank the old Imperial Universities in terms of strength.
*Also includes a few other major national/public universities for reference.
【Science & Engineering】
Tokyo≧Kyoto＞(Science Tokyo/Tokyo Tech)≧Osaka＞Tohoku, Nagoya＞Hokkaido, Kyushu, (Tsukuba), (Kobe)＞(Chiba), (Osaka Metropolitan/Osaka Prefecture)
【Humanities & Social Sciences】
Tokyo＞Kyoto≧(Hitotsubashi)＞Osaka＞Nagoya, (Tokyo University of Foreign Studies), (Kobe), (Akita International/AIU)＞Hokkaido, Tohoku, Kyushu, (Tsukuba), (Yokohama National)＞(Chiba), (Osaka Metropolitan/Osaka City)
*Tohoku University's sciences (especially engineering) are excellent, but honestly its humanities aren't that strong. It even loses to Akita's International University (AIU), so it's arguably not even the strongest university in the Tohoku region.
【Medicine/Dentistry/Pharmacy】
Tokyo (Science Course III)≧Kyoto＞(Science Tokyo/Tokyo Medical and Dental)≧Osaka＞Kyushu, Nagoya, (Chiba)＞Tohoku, (Kyoto Prefectural Medical), (Kobe), (Okayama)＞Hokkaido, (Yokohama City), (Osaka Metropolitan/Osaka City)
*Note: in the medicine/dentistry/pharmacy field specifically, Tohoku actually ranks above Hokkaido.
• Fukuoka University of Education
A national university in Munakata City with nothing but an education faculty.
It exists because Kyudai (the old Imperial University) has no teacher-training program, so this fills that gap.
*Hokkaido University of Education and Miyagi University of Education hold the same kind of position, for reference.
• Kyushu Dental University
A public university in Kokurakita Ward, Kitakyushu, with nothing but a dentistry faculty.
• Kyushu Institute of Technology (Kyutech)
A national science/engineering university spread across Kitakyushu (Tobata and Wakamatsu wards) and Iizuka City.
Actually the second-best science/engineering school in Kyushu, right after Kyudai.
• Fukuoka University
Kyushu's leading private university — a large comprehensive university, which is rare outside Japan's three biggest metro areas.
It started out as a humanities school but now has a science side (engineering), and even has medical and pharmacy faculties.
It's top-tier among Kyushu's private universities alongside Seinan Gakuin. (Its admission difficulty sits somewhere between the "Nittokomasen" and "Daitoakoku" tiers of private universities.)
• Kurume University
A prestigious private medical university in Kurume City.
It actually has humanities faculties too, not just medicine.
These days, though, it might be more famous for its affiliated prep high school than for the university itself…
AI art of Mabel-chan and friends eating tonkotsu ramen
Rabbit girl "Mabel-chan"
*Version cosplaying as Nezuko Kamado from "Demon Slayer"
Rabbit girl "Pacifica-chan"
*AI art done Dragon Ball-style (in the manner of Akira Toriyama)
Rabbit girl "Mabel-chan"
*Version cosplaying as Nezuko Kamado from "Demon Slayer"
Rabbit girl "Pacifica-chan"
*AI art done Dragon Ball-style (in the manner of Akira Toriyama)
Re: #71
Hey Tetsugaku News (a matome/summary blog)!
Do a roundup of this one!
Hey Tetsugaku News (a matome/summary blog)!
Do a roundup of this one!
Background and Key Points of the Debate
Fukuoka Prefecture has Kyushu’s largest metropolitan area, yet its per-capita GDP and prefectural income trail some Hokkaido and Tohoku prefectures — it’s known as a region where population size and economic strength don’t line up. The thread’s “urban-ness” debate split along different criteria: Kitakyushu wins out if you weight population density, while Kumamoto City comes out ahead if you weight how lively its downtown shopping district feels. One reply also mistakenly called Shuyukan High School private — it’s actually a public prefectural school rooted in the old Fukuoka clan’s domain school, and Kyushu has plenty of public prep schools tracing back to the old-system middle schools. The welfare-recipient-rate rankings that came up are also worth reading carefully, since differences in each prefecture’s industrial makeup and aging population can skew the numbers — they shouldn’t be taken as a simple “rich vs. poor” measure.
*This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Nandemo Jikkyo G) thread “The Big 7 Things Fukuoka Prefecture Is Famous For: Tonkotsu Ramen, Motsunabe, Mentaiko, Taro Aso, Kyushu University, Sazae-san.”
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