Introduction: Issues, Theoretical Framework, and Methodology

Abstract

Shrinking Japan literally means that the population of Japan is shrinking. It is widely believed that two essential factors for this “shrinking” are declining fertility and population aging. This book, however, is not to examine causes of the shrinking nation. Instead, the book is a sociological study of the changing Japanese population through a regional perspective since it varies significantly among municipalities, even within the same prefecture, because of the “municipal power.” The municipal power (Chiiki-ryoku, literally meaning regional power or strength, includes both the pros and cons of regional characteristics) of Japan is based on historical, geographic, socioeconomic, and demographic features from a historical context. The theoretical framework of regional variations within the same prefecture are twofold: First, the Goki-Shichido (The Five Home Provinces and Seven Circuits) which lasted until the Meiji Restoration; Second, the Baku-Han Taisei of the Edo Period. The socio-cultural impacts of the central government of the Edo Shogunate, and the Han system, representing the local feudal domain headed by the feudal lord, still exist in Japanese municipalities today. The current study uses various open small area data in the e-Stat compiled by the Statistics Bureau of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communication. With these small area open data at hand, the highlighted regional variations are shown by GPS statistical software tools such as G-census and EvaCva within a historical perspective. This book studies the municipal power of five prefectures in detail. These prefectures are Niigata, Ishikawa, and Fukui of the Hokurikudo area, and Nagano and Gifu of the Tosando area. However, due to the limitation of the number of pages set forth for Springer Briefs in Population Studies: Population Studies of Japan, for which the current publication is a part, it has been necessary to divide the book into two volumes, namely Volume I and Volume II. Because of this limitation the current volume I is consisted of three chapters, namely, this Chapter: Issues, theoretical framework, and methodology; Chap. 2: Niigata Prefecture in the Hokurikudo; and Chap. 3: Ishikawa Prefecture in the Hokurikudo. The remaining three prefectures, i.e., Fukui in the Hokurikudo area, Nagano and Gifu both in the Tosando area will be discussed in the Volume II of this book.