Aichi

Aichi (ī`chē), prefecture (1990 pop. 6,690,440), 1,962 sq mi (5,082 sq km), central Honshu, Japan. Bounded on the S and W by Ise Bay, Aichi consists of a coastal plain (the Nobi Plain) and a mountainous, forested interior. It is drained by the Kiso River, an important source of hydroelectric power. Nagoya, the capital, and its surrounding suburbs make up the Chukyo Industrial Region, which is Japan's third largest industrial concentration. It produces automobiles, textiles, ceramics, machinery, and chemicals. Aichi's major industrial centers are Nagoya, Toyohashi, Okazaki, Ichinomiya, Toyota, Tanjo, and Seto. Agricultural products and raw silk are produced, and lignite and quartz are mined. Expo 2005 was held in Aichi. Central Japan International Airport is located nearby on an artificial island in Ise Bay near Tokoname.

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Aichi 

a prefecture in Japan, in central Honshu Island. It has an area of 5,000 sq km and a population of 4.8 million (1965), 80 percent of which is urban. Its administrative center is Nagoya. A large part of the area consists of hilly coastal lowlands and plateaus surrounding the Ise, Chita, and Atsumi bays. The southern spurs of the Kiso and Akaishi mountain ranges, rising to an elevation of 600–700 m, are located in the northeast.

Aichi is the nucleus of an industrial region known as Chukyo. The cities of Nagoya, Kariya, and Toyota form a solid industrial zone. With 860,000 people employed in industry (1964), Aichi produces 10 percent (in money value) of the country’s industrial output. Aichi’s major industries (1964) are textiles (22 percent); transportation machine building, including automobiles (16.4 percent); heavy chemistry (6 percent); machine-tool building (7.4 percent); metallurgy (6 percent); and food (8.6 percent). Its talc extraction is the largest in Japan (1.5 million tons).

The cultivated area covers 123,000 hectares and is concentrated mainly in the coastal regions. Of this area, 68 percent is under rice and more than 6 percent is under orchards. In 1966, 193,000 tons of rice and 24,000 tons of wheat were harvested. Fruits and flowers are also grown. The harvest of raw silk amounted to 600 tons. Animal husbandry statistics are cattle, 47,500 head, including 30,000 cows; pigs, 301,000; and poultry, 8 million. The fishing industry has also been developed, with a total catch of 54,500 tons in 1964. There are resorts along the seashore.

N. A. SMIRNOV