Niigata

Japanese Prefecture and City.

Population 2.4 million (prefecture, 14th most populous in Japan)
Population 812,000 (city, 16th most populous in Japan)
Area: 2,475,724 km² (prefecture, 5th largest in Japan)
Approximately 250 km north of Tokyo (City to City)

The Niigata prefecture is sometimes called the "Manga Empire" because many of Japan's top manga artists come from the region, including but not limited to: Fujio Akatsuka, Ken Obata, Rumiko Takahashi, Hiroyuki Utatane, and Nobuhiro Watsuki.

Niigata is also one of Japan's principal production areas of rice, 16.5% of Niigata's population is said to live in "farming households."

The Niigata city is the largest and most important on Japans North coast (facing the Sea of Japan).

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