7,273 more islands
The Geospatial Information Authority of Japan (GSI) has carried out a new mapping of the total area of the country and the Government of Japan has been surprised to find that the number of islands in its territory is now 14,125, 7,273 islands more than they had counted.
125.7 million inhabitants
Japan is a mountainous nation with a land mass of about 146,000 square kilometers and a population of 125.7 million. It is surrounded by the Pacific Ocean, the Sea of Okhotsk, the Sea of Japan and the East China Sea.
Last mapping, 1987
The last mapping had been done in 1987 and 6,852 islands had been registered throughout its official territory. Paper maps were used to count the islands. The work was done by the Coast Guard who did not have the mapping technology that was used this time. Many island groups were counted as a single unit.
Determine what an island is
The criteria for determining what is an island has not changed. All land areas with a minimum circumference of 100 meters have been counted. Nothing that is not natural, such as artificially reclaimed land, is included.
Technology evolution
The evolution of digital mapping technologies 36 years later has enabled Japan’s Geospatial Information Authority (GSI) to discover about 7,000 more islands that rightfully belong to their nation.
Aerial photography and mapping
In addition, aerial photographs were used and references were cross-referenced between existing and modern mapping to ensure that the measurements were correct and that no artificial formations were included.
There are also new islands
But it is not only the new islands that are due to previous miscounting. Volcanic activity in this part of the world has caused new land formations to emerge. In August 2021, the Japan Coast Guard discovered a new island with a diameter of about 0.6 miles and in the shape of a C, after an underwater volcano erupted near Iwo Jima.
The area of the country does not change
However, the authorities have confirmed that the total area of the country will not change (377,975 square kilometers), although the more detailed maps will change to accommodate the new islands. The general maps will remain the same, as almost all of the new islands are very small.
Disputed territories are not added
In this new count, no disputed territory has been added to the result, such as the South Kuril Islands, which Japan claims and which have officially belonged to Russia since it claimed them after World War II.
Neither Senkaku, nor Takeshima Islands
Also in dispute are the Senkaku Islands, in the East China Sea, which are uninhabited and belong to China and over which Japan claims to have a historical claim. And the so-called Dokdo Islands in South Korea and Takeshima Islands in Japan, which face these two countries and lie in the Sea of Japan, which Korea calls the East Sea.
