Mutsu Province (陸奥国, Mutsu no kuni), officially called Rikuō Province (陸奥国, Rikuō no kuni) was an old province of Japan in the area of Iwate and Aomori prefecture.[1]

Rikuō Province
陸奥国
Province of Japan
1869–1871

Map of Japanese provinces (1869) with Rikuō Province highlighted
History 
• Established
1869
• Disestablished
1871
Preceded by
Succeeded by
Mutsu Province
Tonami Prefecture
Shichinohe Prefecture
Hirosaki Prefecture
Kuroshi Prefecture
Hachinohe Prefecture
Today part ofIwate Prefecture
Aomori Prefecture

It was also known as Ōshū (奥州) or Rikushū (陸州). In the Meiji era, the province was cut down to cover only present-day Aomori and given the new name Rikuō Province, which retained the original kanji.[2]

History

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On December 7, 1868 (January 19, 1869 in the Gregorian calendar), four additional provinces (Rikuchū, Rikuzen, Iwaki, and Iwashiro) were separated from Mutsu, leaving only a rump corresponding to today's Aomori Prefecture (with Ninohe District of Iwate Prefecture). At the same time, while the characters of the name were unchanged, the official reading was changed to the on'yomi version "Rikuō".[2]

Historical districts

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Mutsu (Rikuō) Province consisted of nine districts:

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Mutsu" in Japan Encyclopedia, p. 676, p. 676, at Google Books.
  2. ^ a b "地名「三陸地方」の起源に関する地理学的ならびに社会学的問題" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-18.(岩手大学教育学部)

References

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Other websites

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  Media related to Mutsu Province (1868) at Wikimedia Commons