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Unless you’re the lucky resident of Tokyo’s Sumida Ward, there’s not much one can do in Japan to show off a bit of local pride in the form of license plates. A fix is in the works, however, allowing residents to showcase what their region is renowned for.
Starting October this year, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism will issue 41 beautifully designed license plates that capture each region’s specialty. Whether it’s the delicious cherries of Yamagata Prefecture or the hot springs of Oita Prefecture, motorists can bring a piece of home with them wherever they go.
▼ The Tohoku region plates
From the order of left to right, top to bottom, here’s what each plate represents:
Morioka – Kozukata (the city’s ancient name)
Iwate – "Night on the Galactic Railroad" (a novel which also pays tribute to the Iwate Galaxy Railway Line)
Hiraizumi – World Heritage Sites
Sendai – Date Masamune (Edo period political leader) and Sendai Tanabata Festival
Yamagata – Villages filled with cherries
Shonai – “Waves of ears of rice” (a famous orchestral music) and Mount Chokai
▼ Kanto region
Tsuchiura – Hobiki-sen (a traditional fishing sailboat) and fireworks
Tsukuba – Mount Tsukuba
Maebashi – Mount Akagi
Koshigaya – Gaya-chan (the city’s duck mascot) participating in the awa odori (a traditional dance festival)
Narita – Airplanes taking off from Narita Airport
Kashiwa – Lake Teganuma
▼ Kanto and Hokushin’etsu regions
Kanto region (top row)
Setagaya – Tama River and white egret flower
Suginami – A city of Japanese cedar
Mount Fuji – Mount Fuji
Hokushin’etsu region (bottom row)
Niigata – Bandai Bridge and the Japanese crested ibis
Nagaoka – Nagaoka fireworks
Toyama – Tateyama Mountain Range
▼ Hokushin’etsu and Chubu regions
Hokushin’etsu region
Kanazawa – Yukitsuri (a unique Japanese technique for protecting trees from heavy snow) and the umebachi crest (family crest of a powerful feudal lord)
Ishikawa – Mount Haku and waves from Noto’s sea villages
Chubu region
Fukui – Dinosaurs fossils from the Fukui Prefectural Dinosaur Museum
Mount Fuji – Mount Fuji and rice fields
Toyota – Toyota Stadium and the Grampus family (a family of mascots representing a football club)
Kasugai – Tofu-kun and Kasugai Cacti (local mascots)
▼ Kinki and Chugoku regions
Kinki region (top row)
Shiga – Lake Biwa
Kyoto – Hanamonyo (a traditional textile store), Amanohashidate (a scenic strip of land), and the five-story pagoda
Nara – Cherry blossoms and autumn foliage
Chugoku region (bottom row)
Tottori – Tottori sand dunes, Mount Daisen, and Japanese pear
Fukuyama – Hiroshima Toyo Carp (a professional baseball team)
Shimonoseki – Kaikyo Yume Tower, Akama Shrine, Shimonoseki Marine Science Museum, and Kanmon Bridge
▼ Chugoku, Shikoku, and Kyushu regions
Chugoku region
Yamaguchi – Akiyoshidai Plateau and Kintai Bridge
Shikoku region
Tokushima – Awa odori (a dance festival)
Kagawa – Seto Inland Sea and olives
Ehime – Mikyan (a mandarin orange cat mascot)
Kochi – Harimaya Bridge and skipjack tuna
Kyushu region
Nagasaki – Stained glass
Sasebo – Stained glass
Kumamoto – Kumamon (one of Japan’s most famous mascots)
Oita – Hot springs
Miyazaki – Sun-soaked locales and the sea
Kagoshima – Sakurajima (an active volcanic island)
Obtaining one of the 41 colorful license plates requires a mere donation of at least 1,000 yen, the proceeds of which will go towards tourism promotion and traffic improvement. What a fantastic way for motorists to show support for their hometown.
And although Hakone isn’t on the list at the moment, we’re hoping that authorities are working hard to bring back those awesome "Evangelion" plates.
Source: Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism via Japaaan
Images: Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism
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- External Link
- https://soranews24.com/2018/05/28/new-stylish-japanese-license-plates-lets-people-show-off-prefecture-pride-on-the-move/
27 Comments
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TumbleDry
Isn’t the baseball team a brand?
Dango bong
I thought for Toyota they would have a young teenager crouched down smoking a cig while his motorcycle riding friend yells at passersby.. Have you ever been to Toyota station? It is frightening...
serendipitous1
Nothing for Kanagawa (Yokohama)?
ClippetyClop
These are great, and a bargain at only 1,000 yen! Hope the paperwork isn'r too painful.
papigiulio
No Osaka one with the kanidoraku or the tsutenkaku? Im disappoint.
lucabrasi
Imagine these back in England. Turning up at Old Trafford for the Liverpool game with Merseyside plates...
KnowBetter
Finally something more than just a 'back lit' plate to stand out a bit from the crowd in Japan. The only problem I see with some designs are that they may make it more difficult to read the number plate under certain lighting conditions. This I have had first hand experience while driving in British Columbia, Canada. They have some special edition parks BC number plates that make reading the letters and numbers quite difficult under certain lighting conditions.
maybeperhapsyes
No Shonan?
Luddite
What's the point?
lucabrasi
@Knik
Very true. Aah... I miss England ; )
Jalapeno
It's going to distract drivers enamored by the design and cause carnage on the road.
And the numbers are supposed to be super-visible in case the car kills a gorilla and witnesses need to ID the vehicle of the assailant.
shogun36
Why is this by Region? Way too many in Japan. Why not make one for each Prefecture instead?
theeastisred
Er, number of registered vehicles too large perhaps?
Anyway I think these are great! Really nice idea.
DaveAllTogether
Why did the Narita one have to be so lame? Don't think I will be getting that one.
Haruka
Can I get one for Shonan for my Bike? Yes, Bike! I do not have a motor vehicle.
In Florida, there are so many varieties of plates it must super confuse the cops.
starpunk
I seriously doubt it. I've been all over the USA + Canada and the license plates can be very colorful with various background scenes. For America the states of California (of course), Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Colorado, Pennsylvania often have beautiful background scenes and pictures. Some of them also have sayings on the bottom of the plate too - like 'Rocky Mountains' for Colorado, 'Beehive State' for Utah, 'Famous Potatoes' for Idaho, 'Oklahoma is OK' and so on. That hardly has ever caused distracted driving or accidents. The problem in America is that too many text while driving, use their cell phones while driving and/or drive drunk.
Belrick
Yamaguchi has that childish mascot on it. Won't be on my car.
Mocheake
About time. The drab black and white plates are so 1960s.
garypen
The same as that of a pretty kimono, or a nice shirt, or a mural of Fujisan at the sento, I imagine.
mmwkdw
Wonder if they'll be attributed to accidents as Motorists pay more attention to what style of number-plate each other has, rather than what's in front of them... perhaps then, for Eldery drivers a flashing fluorescent pink/yellow number-plate would be useful, in order to serve as a warning to keep your eyes on the road as danger is ahead to other drivers.
Brian Wheway
@lucabrasi, hahaha! I see your point! some people take food ball to seriously and I could see the opposing teams getting there own back on a rival football teams car, You can imagine the damage that could be done, slashed tyres, covered in phloem, urine, poo, toilet rolls, smashed side windows, I would not take my car to a football match in that situation. But I do like the number plates there representative to the area, altho some could be changed, do they plan to roll out this through out Japan?
Brian Wheway
I wonder what the plate would look like from Fukushima? answers on a postcard to
starpunk
A lot of these license plates look pretty cool.
AustPaul
1000yen? That's cheap for a bit of colour!
Private plates in my state are about $300. Good to finally see some colour and variety in Japanese number plates, they are pretty boring!