Hokuriku region
The Hokuriku region北陸地方, was located in a northwestern component of Honshu, a main island of Japan. It lay along the Sea of Japan within the Chūbu region, which it is currently a factor of. It is near equivalent to Koshi Province in addition to Hokurikudō area in pre-modern Japan. Since the Heian period until the Edo period the region was a core recipient of population, the population grew to be much larger proportionately than it is today, despite the rural character. With the growth of urban centers in the 20th century, particularly Tokyo as well as Chūkyō, the Hokuriku has steadily declined in importance to become relative backwaters. The region is also invited for traditional culture that originated from elsewhere that has been long lost along the Taiheiyō Belt.
The Hokuriku region includes the four prefectures of Ishikawa, Fukui, Niigata and Toyama, although Niigata is sometimes talked in one of the following regions: