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Rivers of Japan - HTML

Japan's rivers are characterized by many short, rapid-flowing rivers due to the topographical feature that approximately 70% of the country is mountainous. There are approximately 35,000 rivers nationwide, of which 109 river systems with 14,083 rivers are designated as first-class rivers, and 2,710 river systems with 7,081 rivers are designated as second-class rivers. The Shinano River (367km) is the longest in Japan, while the Tone River holds the record for the largest basin area at 16,840km². These rivers are managed by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism and respective prefectures from the perspectives of flood control, water utilization, and environmental conservation.

rivers first-class rivers second-class rivers Shinano River Tone River MLIT flood control water utilization
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<thead><tr><th>code</th><th>slug</th><th>name</th><th>description</th><th>basinAreaKm2</th><th>lengthKm</th><th>mouth</th><th>prefectures</th><th>ranking</th><th>riverClass</th><th>source</th></tr></thead>
<tbody><tr><td>01</td><td>shinano-river</td><td>Shinano River</td><td>The longest river in Japan, flowing from Nagano Prefecture to Niigata Prefecture into the Sea of Japan.</td><td>11900</td><td>367</td><td>Sea of Japan (Niigata City)</td><td>[&quot;長野県&quot;,&quot;新潟県&quot;]</td><td>1</td><td>一級河川</td><td>Mount Kobushi (Nagano Prefecture)</td></tr>
<tr><td>02</td><td>tone-river</td><td>Tone River</td><td>The river with the largest basin area in Japan, flowing through the Kanto Plain into the Pacific Ocean.</td><td>16840</td><td>322</td><td>Pacific Ocean (Choshi City)</td><td>[&quot;群馬県&quot;,&quot;栃木県&quot;,&quot;埼玉県&quot;,&quot;茨城県&quot;,&quot;千葉県&quot;,&quot;東京都&quot;]</td><td>2</td><td>一級河川</td><td>Mount Ominesan (Gunma Prefecture)</td></tr>
<tr><td>03</td><td>ishikari-river</td><td>Ishikari River</td><td>The longest river in Hokkaido, famous for salmon fishing.</td><td>14330</td><td>268</td><td>Sea of Japan (Ishikari City)</td><td>[&quot;北海道&quot;]</td><td>3</td><td>一級河川</td><td>Mount Ishikari (Hokkaido)</td></tr>
<tr><td>04</td><td>teshio-river</td><td>Teshio River</td><td>The second longest river in Hokkaido, known as a famous canoeing spot.</td><td>5590</td><td>256</td><td>Sea of Japan (Teshio Town)</td><td>[&quot;北海道&quot;]</td><td>4</td><td>一級河川</td><td>Mount Teshio (Hokkaido)</td></tr>
<tr><td>05</td><td>kitakami-river</td><td>Kitakami River</td><td>A representative river of the Tohoku region, famous for the cherry blossom trees at Kitakami Tenshochi.</td><td>10150</td><td>249</td><td>Pacific Ocean (Ishinomaki City)</td><td>[&quot;岩手県&quot;,&quot;宮城県&quot;]</td><td>5</td><td>一級河川</td><td>Yumiya-no-Izumi spring (Iwate Prefecture)</td></tr>
<tr><td>06</td><td>abukuma-river</td><td>Abukuma River</td><td>A river flowing through Fukushima and Miyagi prefectures, with tourist attractions such as the Abukuma Line boat tours.</td><td>5400</td><td>239</td><td>Pacific Ocean (Sendai Plain)</td><td>[&quot;福島県&quot;,&quot;宮城県&quot;]</td><td>6</td><td>一級河川</td><td>Mount Asahi (Fukushima Prefecture)</td></tr>
<tr><td>07</td><td>mogami-river</td><td>Mogami River</td><td>A rapid river flowing through Yamagata Prefecture, known from Matsuo Basho's haiku.</td><td>7040</td><td>229</td><td>Sea of Japan (Sakata City)</td><td>[&quot;山形県&quot;]</td><td>7</td><td>一級河川</td><td>Mount Azuma (Yamagata Prefecture)</td></tr>
<tr><td>08</td><td>kiso-river</td><td>Kiso River</td><td>A river flowing from Nagano Prefecture to Mie Prefecture into Ise Bay.</td><td>9100</td><td>229</td><td>Ise Bay</td><td>[&quot;長野県&quot;,&quot;岐阜県&quot;,&quot;愛知県&quot;,&quot;三重県&quot;]</td><td>7</td><td>一級河川</td><td>Mount Hachimori (Nagano Prefecture)</td></tr>
<tr><td>09</td><td>tenryu-river</td><td>Tenryu River</td><td>A river flowing through Nagano, Aichi, and Shizuoka prefectures into the Enshu Sea.</td><td>5050</td><td>213</td><td>Pacific Ocean (Enshu Sea)</td><td>[&quot;長野県&quot;,&quot;愛知県&quot;,&quot;静岡県&quot;]</td><td>9</td><td>一級河川</td><td>Lake Suwa (Nagano Prefecture)</td></tr>
<tr><td>10</td><td>aganogawa-river</td><td>Agano River</td><td>A river flowing through Fukushima and Niigata prefectures, winding through deep mountains.</td><td>7710</td><td>210</td><td>Sea of Japan (Niigata City)</td><td>[&quot;福島県&quot;,&quot;新潟県&quot;]</td><td>10</td><td>一級河川</td><td>Mount Araumi (Fukushima Prefecture)</td></tr>
<tr><td>15</td><td>fuji-river</td><td>Fuji River</td><td>One of Japan's three great rapid rivers, flowing through Shizuoka Prefecture.</td><td>3990</td><td>128</td><td>Suruga Bay</td><td>[&quot;長野県&quot;,&quot;山梨県&quot;,&quot;静岡県&quot;]</td><td>15</td><td>一級河川</td><td>Mount Noko (Yamanashi Prefecture)</td></tr>
<tr><td>B7</td><td>yodo-river</td><td>Yodo River</td><td>A river flowing through the center of the Kinki region, with the largest basin population in western Japan.</td><td>8240</td><td>75</td><td>Osaka Bay</td><td>[&quot;滋賀県&quot;,&quot;京都府&quot;,&quot;大阪府&quot;,&quot;兵庫県&quot;,&quot;奈良県&quot;,&quot;三重県&quot;]</td><td></td><td>一級河川</td><td>Lake Biwa (Shiga Prefecture)</td></tr></tbody>
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