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Hokkaido: from the “Road to the Northern Sea” to “Japan's gateway to the Arctic”

Hokkaido: from the “Road to the Northern Sea” to “Japan's gateway to the Arctic” Despite the recent global interest in the Arctic, the concepts of the North, Northernness, and Arcticness are rarely discussed in the context of East Asia. Yet, the North has significantly affected the developmental paths of East Asia both as a geographical direction, and as an (imaginary) object associated with changing fears, hopes, and uncertainties. This research adds to the relatively scant literature on this topic by elaborating on Hokkaido's exceptional role in Japan's relationship with and understanding of the North. This study analyzes Hokkaido's path from a domestic colony and the northern frontier of the expanding and eventually collapsing Japanese empire, to an actor advancing initiatives in international forums and gaining the central government's recognition as Japan's gateway to the North and the Arctic. During this process, Hokkaido's representation of its northern location and cold climate have evolved, at least partially, from a focus on the perceived causes of underdevelopment to a concentration on the assets contributing to economic possibilities and a better quality of life. Rather than focusing on geophysical, climatological, or environmental conditions, this research approaches regions as constantly evolving sociocultural and political constructions. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Asian Geographer Taylor & Francis

Hokkaido: from the “Road to the Northern Sea” to “Japan's gateway to the Arctic”

Babin, Julie; Juha, Saunavaara
Asian Geographer , Volume 40 (1): 18 – Jan 2, 2023
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Hokkaido: from the “Road to the Northern Sea” to “Japan's gateway to the Arctic”

Abstract

Despite the recent global interest in the Arctic, the concepts of the North, Northernness, and Arcticness are rarely discussed in the context of East Asia. Yet, the North has significantly affected the developmental paths of East Asia both as a geographical direction, and as an (imaginary) object associated with changing fears, hopes, and uncertainties. This research adds to the relatively scant literature on this topic by elaborating on Hokkaido's exceptional role in Japan's...
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Publisher
Taylor & Francis
Copyright
© 2021 Hong Kong Geographical Association
ISSN
2158-1762
eISSN
1022-5706
DOI
10.1080/10225706.2021.1910525
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

Despite the recent global interest in the Arctic, the concepts of the North, Northernness, and Arcticness are rarely discussed in the context of East Asia. Yet, the North has significantly affected the developmental paths of East Asia both as a geographical direction, and as an (imaginary) object associated with changing fears, hopes, and uncertainties. This research adds to the relatively scant literature on this topic by elaborating on Hokkaido's exceptional role in Japan's relationship with and understanding of the North. This study analyzes Hokkaido's path from a domestic colony and the northern frontier of the expanding and eventually collapsing Japanese empire, to an actor advancing initiatives in international forums and gaining the central government's recognition as Japan's gateway to the North and the Arctic. During this process, Hokkaido's representation of its northern location and cold climate have evolved, at least partially, from a focus on the perceived causes of underdevelopment to a concentration on the assets contributing to economic possibilities and a better quality of life. Rather than focusing on geophysical, climatological, or environmental conditions, this research approaches regions as constantly evolving sociocultural and political constructions.

Journal

Asian Geographer – Taylor & Francis

Published: Jan 2, 2023

Keywords: Hokkaido; Japan; Nordicity; region; northern regional cooperation; Arctic; interregional cooperation

References

  • Despite the Northern Territories: Hokkaido's Courting of the Russian Far East
  • Towards a Grammar of the Idea of North: Nordicity, Winterity
  • Qu’est-ce que l’imaginaire du Nord?
  • The Geoeconomics of the Russian–Japanese Territorial Dispute
  • Arcticness: Power and Voice from the North
  • Imageries and Historical Change in the European Russian Arctic
  • A Very British Phenomenon? Industrial Politics and the Decline of the Japanese Coal Mining Industry Since the 1950s
  • Le Nord et l’hiver dans l’hémisphère boréal
  • Constructing the Northern Sea (Hokuyo): Rhetoric of Fishery Problems in Japan of the 1920s and 1930s
  • East Asian Subnational Government Involvement in the Arctic: A Case for Paradiplomacy?
  • Transformation of the Identity of a Region: Theory and the Empirical Case of the Perceptual Regions of Bohemia and Moravia, Czech Republic
  • Nichibei gyogyō masatsu no kigen to sono haikei – iwayuru (purisutoru wan jiken) ni kansuru sobyō to ikkō satsu
  • The Institutionalization of Regions: A Theoretical Framework for Understanding the Emergence of Regions and the Constitution of Regional Identity
  • The Resurgence of the ‘Region’ and ‘Regional Identity’: Theoretical Perspectives and Empirical Observations on Regional Dynamics in Europe
  • The Changing Arctic & the Development of Hokkaido
  • Reconstructing and Redefining Hokkaido during the Post-War Period
  • ‘Northern Cultures’ What Could This Mean? About the North as a Cultural Concept
  • Territory–Network Interplay in the Co-Constitution of the Arctic and ‘to-Be’ Arctic States