Location

Japan is a long, narrow chain of islands stretching 3,300 kilometers north to south. Its northernmost point (in the Russian-occupied Northern Territories) is located at 45°33' north latitude, and its southernmost point is at 20°25' north latitude. The four islands that constitute the main part of Japan lie almost at the latitudinal center of the Northern Hemisphere. Japan's capital, Tokyo, lies at 35°41' north latitude and 139°46' east longitude, almost the same latitude as Tehran, Athens, and Los Angeles.

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Size and Regional Divisions

Japan comprises four major islands-Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu-and 6,848 adjacent smaller islands. Their combined area is 377,880 square kilometers-slightly more than that of Germany (357,022 square kilometers) or Malaysia (329,758), and slightly less than that of Morocco (446,550) or Sweden (449,964). Administratively, the country is divided into 47 prefectures.

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Courtesy of Foreign Press Center Japan
http://www.fpcj.jp/