List of extreme points of Japan

The extreme points of Japan include the coordinates that are the farthest north, south, east and west in Japan, and the ones that are at the highest and the lowest elevations in the country. Japan's northernmost point is disputed, because Japan considers it to be on Iturup, an island de facto governed by Russia. The southernmost point is Okinotorishima; the westernmost is Cape Irizaki on Yonaguni Island in Okinawa Prefecture, and the easternmost is Minami Torishima. The highest point in Japan is the summit of Mount Fuji at 3,776.24 m (12,389 ft). At 150 m (492 ft) below sea level, the bottom of Hachinohe mine is the country's lowest point. The surface of Hachirōgata is Japan's lowest natural point at 4 m (13 ft) below sea level. With the exception of Cape Irizaki, the westernmost location of Japan, all other extreme locations are uninhabited.

Extreme points of Japan marked on the map

Japan extends from 20° to 45° north latitude (Okinotorishima to Benten-jima) and from 122° to 153° east longitude (Yonaguni to Minami Torishima).^[1] The coordinates used in this article are sourced from Google Earth, which makes use of the World Geodetic System (WGS) 84.

Extreme points

A monument indicates the northernmost point of Japan at Cape Sōya on Hokkaido.

Cape Irizaki, Japan's westernmost point on Yonaguni Island

Japan's easternmost point lies on Minami Torishima in the Pacific Ocean.

Japan's southernmost point on Hateruma island

The northernmost point that Japan claims lies on the disputed island of Iturup. Japan's claim to the three southernmost islands of the Kuril Islands is disputed by Russia, which de facto controls the islands. This list provides the northernmost point as claimed by Japan as well as the northernmost undisputed point in Japan.

Overall

Heading	Location	Prefecture	Bordering entity	Coordinates†	Ref
North (disputed)	Cape Kamoiwakka	Hokkaido‡	Sea of Okhotsk	45°33′26″N 148°45′09″E	[2]
North (undisputed)	Benten-jima	Hokkaidō	La Pérouse Strait	45°31′38″N 141°55′06″E	[3]
South	Okinotorishima	Tokyo	Philippine Sea	20°25′31″N 136°04′11″E
East	Minami Torishima	Tokyo	Pacific Ocean	24°16′59″N 153°59′11″E
West	Yonaguni	Okinawa	East China Sea	24°26′58″N 122°56′01″E	Monument of Japan the westernmost

Five main islands

The five main islands of Japan are Honshū, Hokkaidō, Shikoku, Kyūshū and Okinawa.^[4] All of these points are accessible to the public.

Heading	Location	Prefecture	Bordering entity	Coordinates†	Ref
North	Cape Sōya	Hokkaidō	La Pérouse Strait	45°31′22″N 141°56′11″E
South	Cape Takanasaki	Okinawa	East China Sea	26°04′30″N 127°40′51″E
East	Cape Nosappu	Hokkaidō	Pacific Ocean	43°23′06″N 145°49′03″E
West	Cape Irizaki	Okinawa	East China Sea	26°11′55″N 127°38′11″E

Hokkaidō

Heading	Location	Prefecture	Bordering entity	Coordinates†	Ref
North	Cape Sōya	Hokkaidō	La Pérouse Strait	45°31′22″N 141°56′11″E
South	Cape Shirakami	Hokkaidō	Tsugaru Strait	41°23′51″N 140°11′51″E
East	Cape Nosappu	Hokkaidō	Pacific Ocean	43°23′06″N 145°49′03″E
West	Cape Obana	Hokkaidō	Sea of Japan	42°18′11″N 139°46′01″E

Honshū

Northernmost point

• Cape Ōma (大間崎, Ōmazaki), Ōma, Aomori Prefecture

Southernmost point

• Cape Shionomisaki (潮岬, Shiono-misaki), Kushimoto, Wakayama Prefecture

Westernmost point

• Cape Bishanohana (毘沙ノ鼻), Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi Prefecture

Easternmost point

• Cape Todo (魹ヶ崎, Todogasaki), Miyako, Iwate Prefecture

Shikoku

Heading	Location	Prefecture	Bordering entity	Coordinates†	Ref
North	Cape Takei	Kagawa	Bungo Channel	34°24′01″N 134°08′12″E
South	Cape Ashizuri	Kōchi	Philippine Sea	32°43′19″N 133°00′19″E
East	Cape Gamōda	Tokushima	Kii Channel	33°50′03″N 134°45′00″E
West	Cape Sada	Ehime	Hōyo Strait	33°20′38″N 132°00′45″E

Kyūshū

Northernmost point

• Tanoura reclaimed area (田野浦埋立地, Tanorua umetatechi), Kitakyūshū, Fukuoka Prefecture

Southernmost point

• Cape Sata (佐多岬, Sata-misaki), Minamiōsumi, Kagoshima Prefecture 30°59′10″N 130°39′42″E

Westernmost point

• Kōzakihana (神崎鼻), Sasebo, Nagasaki Prefecture 33°12′51″N 129°33′18″E

Easternmost point

• Cape Tsurumi (鶴御崎, Tsurumisaki), Saiki, Ōita Prefecture

Okinawa

Northernmost

• Cape Hedo (Kunigami District, Okinawa)

Southernmost

• Cape Arasaki (Itoman, Okinawa)

Easternmost

• Setasaki (Kunigami District, Okinawa)

Westernmost

• Oosaki (Naha, Okinawa Prefecture)

Extreme altitudes

The summit of Mount Fuji is the highest point in Japan.

Hachirogata is the lowest natural point in Japan.

Extremity	Name	Altitude	Prefecture	Coordinates†	Ref
Highest	Mount Fuji	3,776 m (12,388 ft)	Yamanashi	35°21′29″N 138°43′52″E	[5]
Lowest (man-made)	Hachinohe mine	−170 m (−558 ft)	Aomori	40°27′10″N 141°32′16″E	[6]
Lowest (natural)	Hachirōgata	−4 m (−13 ft)	Akita	39°54′50″N 140°01′15″E	[5]

See also

• Geography of Japan
• Japanese archipelago
• List of Japanese islands
• Extreme points of Asia
• Kuril Islands dispute

Notes

^† Coordinates obtained from Google Earth. Google Earth makes use of the WGS84 geodetic reference system.

^‡ Although Japan claims this island as part of Hokkaido, this territory is disputed and Iturup is currently under Russian administration.

References

1. "GeoHack - Geography of Japan". GeoHack. Retrieved October 14, 2018.
2. "Google Maps (Cape Kamoiwakka)". Google. Retrieved 2009-07-29.
3. "Google Maps (Bentenjima)". Google. Retrieved 2009-07-29.
4. "離島とは(島の基礎知識) (what is a remote island?)". MLIT (Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism) (in Japanese). Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. 22 August 2015. Archived from the original (website) on 2007-11-13. Retrieved 9 August 2019. MILT classification 6,852 islands(main islands: 5 islands, remote islands: 6,847 islands)
5. "Japan: Geography". The World Factbook. CIA. Retrieved 2009-03-04.
6. 施設見学ガイド　八戸鉱山株式会社　八戸石灰鉱山(八戸キャニオン). The Information Center for Energy and Environment Education (in Japanese). Retrieved 2016-04-06.