Japanese | English

# Consulate-General of Japan, Melbourne
Victoria, Tasmania and South Australia
在メルボルン日本国総領事館

## School project helper - General facts about Japan

- Emperor : Emperor Akihito - acceded to the throne on January 7, 1989
- Empress : Empress Michiko
- Name of Emperor's Reign : Heisei - meaning 'Peace and Concord' ( 2007 = 19th year of Heisei)
- Official National Anthem : 'Kimigayo'
- Prime Minister : Mr Yukio Hatoyama - Democratic Party of Japan (DP) - elected 2009 (Japan's 92nd Prime Minister)
  http://www.kantei.go.jp/foreign/index-e.html
- Currency : Yen
- Main Religions : Shinto, Buddhism
- Four Main Islands : Hokkaido, Honshu, Kyushu, Shikoku http://jin.jcic.or.jp/atlas/index.html
- Number of Prefectures : 47 http://jin.jcic.or.jp/atlas/regions/region_fr.html
- Total Population : 126.9 million (2000) http://jin.jcic.or.jp/stat/index.html
- Population Density : 335 people per square km (1998) http://jin.jcic.or.jp/stat/index.html
- Capital City : Tokyo
- Population of Tokyo : 8,139,000 metropolitan Tokyo (23 wards only - 2001)
- Highest Mountain : Mt. Fuji - 3,776 metres high
- Longest River : Shinano-gawa - 367 km long
- Largest Lake : Lake Biwa (Shiga Prefecture), surface area - 670.5 square km
- Total Land Area : 377,829 square km
- Mountainous Area : 68% of total land area
- Plains and Basins : 32% of total land area
- Time Difference : Japan is one hour behind Australian Eastern Standard Time
- Major Exports of Japan : Electrical machinery, transport equipment, general machinery, chemical products http://www.jetro.org.au
- Major Imports of Japan : Machinery and equipment, mineral fuels, foodstuffs, raw materials http://www.jetro.org.au
- Australia - Japan Trade : Australia was Japan's 5th most important supplier of imports in 2002. Australia was Japan's 13th largest export market in 2002. http://www.jetro.org.au
- Average Life Expectancy : Males: 77.6 years Females: 84.6 years(2000)
- Unemployment Rate : 5.0% (2001)
- Average working days per month : 19.7 (2001)
- Average working hours per week : 33 hours (35.6 hours including overtime) (2001)
- Average wage per hour : Y 2,293 (1999)
- Paid vacation : 18 (average number of days offered) (2000) / 8.9 (average number of days taken) (2000)
- Average composition of % household expenditures : (2001)
- Most popular hobbies : watching videos, listening to music, gardening, going to movies, playing computer games / using the internet, going to concerts, watching sporting events
- Most popular participation sports : calisthenics, bowling, jogging, competitive running, swimming, baseball, fishing, cycling, table tennis, golf
- Foreign destinations of Japanese tourists (2000) : USA, Korea, Europe, Thailand, Australia
- Number of Japanese living overseas (2000) : North America 332,042, Asia 163,108, Western Europe 142,202, South America 99,496, Oceania 51,909* (* 15% increase on previous year)