| Gifu Prefecture (岐阜県, Gifu-ken) is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu.: 246 : 126 Gifu Prefecture has a population of 1,991,390 (as of 1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of 10,621 square kilometres (4,101 sq mi). Gifu Prefecture borders Toyama Prefecture to the north; Ishikawa Prefecture to the northwest, Fukui Prefecture and Shiga Prefecture to the west, Mie Prefecture to the southwest, Aichi Prefecture to the south, and Nagano Prefecture to the east.
Gifu is the capital and largest city of Gifu Prefecture, with other major cities including Ōgaki, Kakamigahara, and Tajimi.: 246 Gifu Prefecture is located in the center of Japan, one of only eight landlocked prefectures, and features the country's center of population. Gifu Prefecture has served as the historic crossroads of Japan with routes connecting the east to the west, including the Nakasendō, one of the Five Routes of the Edo period. Gifu Prefecture was a long-term residence of Oda Nobunaga and Saitō Dōsan, two influential figures of Japanese history in the Sengoku period, spawning the popular phrase of "control Gifu and you control Japan" in the late Medieval era. Gifu Prefecture is known for its traditional Washi paper industry, including Gifu lanterns and Gifu umbrellas, and as a center for the Japanese swordsmithing and cutlery industries. Gifu Prefecture is home to Gifu Castle, the 1,300-year-old tradition of Cormorant fishing on the Nagara River, and the site of the Battle of Sekigahara. |
