Japanese survey ranks which prefectures people want to move back to the most

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Hint: There’s a lot of Kyushu pride in Japan.

Whether it’s for school, work, or trying to reduce long and packed commuting times, it’s not rare to come across a Japanese person that’s living in an area they’re not originally from. But whether it’s a big city like Tokyo or Osaka or a more rural prefecture like Yamanashi, there are many agree that home is where the heart is.

In a recent survey by Brand Research Institute, roughly 6,200 Japanese people living in prefectures other than the one they born in were asked if they ever wanted to move back to their home prefecture, either immediately or sometime in the future. Out of Japan’s 47 prefectures, here are the top five that people want to move back to.

5. Kyoto: 27.8 percent of natives living in other prefectures want to move back

Despite the number of tourist this treasure trove of traditional Japanese culture attracts, more than one in four Kyoto prefecture natives interviewed said they wanted to move back to their hometown immediately or sometime in the future.

4. Nara: 28 percent

Nara has a prime location flanking Osaka and Kyoto without the bustle of either. Maybe it’s the desire to live closer to nature and wildlife (or just a lot of deer), or maybe it’s their friendly rivalry with Kyoto, but Nara natives are fairly proud to call the lesser-known prefecture their home.

3. Osaka: 28.3 percent

Good food, friendly personalities, and arguably just as much shopping and nightlife activities as Tokyo, Osaka natives have a lot of fondness for their homeland. With its fairly central location in Japan as a whole, though, at least it’s not that difficult to visit home once in a while!

2. Kumamoto: 29.1 percent

This might be a slightly surprising result if you’ve never visited Kumamoto before, but the land of Kumamon has a lot of adoring fans; nearly one in three Kumamoto natives want to move back home soon or eventually. It has awesome historical landmarks like Kumamoto Castle (which is currently being rebuilt), plenty of nature, and beautiful beaches.

1. Fukuoka: 33.5 percent

Topping the list is Fukuoka prefecture, with just over 33 percent of respondents saying they wanted to move back to Fukuoka (over 10 percent want to move back there immediately, apparently)! It’s not all that surprising considering how much great food, shopping, and culture there is in Fukuoka City; and the prefecture as a whole is just a skip and jump away from neighboring countries like South Korea.

On the other end of the spectrum, only 10 percent of Akita natives said they wanted to move back to their hometown, along with 12.1 percent of Yamanashians (yes, we just made that up) and 13 percent of folks hailing from Mie. Tokyo ranked in at 16th place with 22.2 percent of Tokyo natives answering that they want to move back to the metropolis some day.

So if you’re looking for a place to visit or even move to in Japan that may be easier to live in (or at least has a lot of diehard fans), consider Japan’s Kyushu and Kansai regions!

Sources: Otakomu via Yahoo! Japan News/Diamond Online
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Insert images: Pakutaso (1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
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