[For Seniors] Fun Multiple-Choice Geography Quiz for Everyone (3 Options)

doughnut effect

People who work and shop tend to gather in urban areas. As a result, at night, the people who were in the city move en masse to the suburbs. This phenomenon is likened to the hole of a donut and is called the donut effect.

47

You often see this in various quizzes, but it’s surprisingly hard to recall: there are 47 prefectures in total. Specifically, there is 1 metropolis (Tokyo), 1 circuit (Hokkaido), 2 urban prefectures (Osaka and Kyoto), and 43 prefectures. This number was set in 1972 when Okinawa was returned by the United States to Japan, so try remembering that together as well.

Aomori Prefecture

When asked which is the northernmost prefecture in Japan, you might be tempted to answer Hokkaido, but since the question specifies a “prefecture,” the correct answer is Aomori Prefecture. Located in the Tohoku region, Aomori sits at the northern tip of Honshu and is famous for its apple production and the Aomori Nebuta Festival. In recent years, “Ōma tuna” has also frequently made the news, making it a region you should definitely keep an eye on.

3,776m

Mount Fuji is widely known not only in Japan but also overseas as a symbol of the country. Straddling Shizuoka and Yamanashi Prefectures, it is an active volcano. It has long been a subject in various art forms, including Japanese painting, crafts, and photography. Incidentally, 3,193 meters is the elevation of Mount Kitadake in the Southern Alps, the second-highest mountain after Mount Fuji.

Nagasaki Prefecture

The prefecture with the largest number of islands in Japan is Nagasaki Prefecture, located in the Kyushu region. In 2022, when the government recounted Japan’s islands for the first time in 35 years, it announced that Nagasaki Prefecture has 1,479 islands among the more than 10,000 across the country. Nagasaki is home to islands of historical significance and tourism interest, such as the Goto Islands and Hashima, better known as “Gunkanjima” (Battleship Island). If you have the chance to visit Nagasaki, consider stopping by these islands.

Ishikawa Prefecture

Fukui Prefecture has Fukui City and Toyama Prefecture has Toyama City as their respective prefectural capitals, but Ishikawa Prefecture has no place called Ishikawa City; its capital is Kanazawa City. Did you know that, historically, during the Meiji era, the Kaga Domain became the Kanazawa Domain and then Kanazawa Prefecture? It is said that Ishikawa Prefecture was later created to organize the complex map of the Hokuriku region, and Kanazawa City, located at its center, was designated as the prefectural capital.

Okinotorishima

The island located at the southernmost point of Japan is Okinotorishima, which belongs to Ogasawara Village, Tokyo. It lies about 1,700 km from central Tokyo and about 1,000 km from Chichijima in the Ogasawara Islands, and has drawn attention for its diverse fish and valuable marine minerals. By the way, among the other options, Yonaguni Island is known as Japan’s westernmost point, and Minamitorishima is known as Japan’s easternmost island, so keep those in mind for other quiz questions as well.