Editing Kyushu (section)

==Geography==
[[File:Kyushu-Japan-ISS-Space.png|thumb|250px|Kyushu from the [[International Space Station]]]]
[[File:Geofeatures_map_of_Kyushu_Japan_ja.svg|thumb|315x315px|Geofeatures map of Kyushu]]

The island is mountainous, and Japan's most active volcano, [[Mount Aso]] at {{convert|1591|m}}, is on Kyūshū. There are many other signs of tectonic activity, including numerous areas of [[hot spring]]s. The most famous of these are in [[Beppu, Ōita|Beppu]], on the east shore, and around Mt. Aso in central Kyūshū. The island is separated from [[Honshu]] by the [[Kanmon Straits]]. Being the nearest island to the [[Asia|Asian continent]],<ref>Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric and Käthe Roth (2005). [https://books.google.com/books?id=p2QnPijAEmEC ''Japan Encyclopedia'']. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press. {{ISBN|978-0-674-01753-5}}. {{OCLC|58053128}}.
</ref> historically it is the gateway to Japan.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Kyushu, gateway to Japan : a concise history |first=Andrew |last=Cobbing |date=2009 |publisher=Global Oriental |isbn=9789004213128 |pages=157 |oclc=754792858}}</ref>

The total area is {{convert|36,782.37|km²|sqmi|abbr=on}} which makes it the 37th [[List of islands by area|largest island]] in the world.<ref name="island1">{{Cite web |date=2016-10-01 |url=http://www.gsi.go.jp/KOKUJYOHO/MENCHO/201610/f3_shima.pdf |title=平成28年全国都道府県市区町村別面積調 島面積 |publisher=[[国土地理院]] |accessdate=2017-02-27}}</ref> It is slightly larger than [[Geography of Taiwan|Taiwan]]'s total area of {{convert|35,808|km2|sqmi|abbr=on}}.<ref name="thoughtco">{{Cite news|url=https://www.thoughtco.com/islands-of-japan-1435071|title=Discover the Geography of the 4 Main Islands of Japan |work=ThoughtCo |access-date=2018-09-26}}</ref> The highest elevation is {{convert|1791|m|0|abbr=off|comma=5|sp=us}} on [[Mount Kujū]].<ref name="peaklist">{{cite web |url=http://www.peaklist.org/WWlists/ultras/japan.html |title=Japan Ultra-Prominences |publisher=Peaklist.org |accessdate=2015-01-01}}</ref>

The name ''Kyūshū'' comes from the nine ancient provinces of [[Saikaidō]] situated on the island: [[Chikuzen Province|Chikuzen]], [[Chikugo Province|Chikugo]], [[Hizen Province|Hizen]], [[Higo Province|Higo]], [[Buzen Province|Buzen]], [[Bungo Province|Bungo]], [[Hyūga Province|Hyūga]], [[Osumi Province|Osumi]], and [[Satsuma Province|Satsuma]].<ref>{{Cite book|title=Kyushu, Gateway to Japan: A Concise History |first=Andrew |last=Cobbing |date=2009 |publisher=Global Oriental |isbn=9789004213128 |pages=3 |oclc=754792858}}</ref>

Today's {{nihongo|Kyūshū Region|{{lang|ja|九州地方}}|Kyūshū-chihō}} is a politically defined region that consists of the seven [[Prefectures of Japan|prefecture]]s on the island of Kyūshū (which also includes the former [[Tsushima Province|Tsushima]] and [[Iki Province|Iki]] as part of Nagasaki), plus [[Okinawa Prefecture]] to the south:
* [[Northern Kyūshū]]
** [[Fukuoka Prefecture]]
** [[Kumamoto Prefecture]]
** [[Nagasaki Prefecture]]
** [[Ōita Prefecture]]
** [[Saga Prefecture]]
* [[Southern Kyūshū]]
** [[Kagoshima Prefecture]]
** [[Miyazaki Prefecture]]
*[[Okinawa Prefecture|Okinawa]]
** [[Okinawa Prefecture]]