NAGANO

formerly Zenkoji, city, Nagano ken (prefecture), central Honshu, Japan. It is the capital of the prefecture and is situated in the Nagano Basin. The city dates from the 12th13th century and grew up around the Zenko Temple, which was founded in the 7th century. Nagano later developed as a market town and post station along the Hokkoku Road. It is now an important commercial centre with food-processing, electrical machinery, and printing and publishing industries. It is also a cultural and educational centre that is the site of Shinshu University. The surrounding area produces apples and Chinese yams. A bronze Buddha, believed to have been a gift from Korea in the 6th century AD, is enshrined at the Zenko Temple, which is one of the most popular Buddhist temples in Japan. Pop. (1990) 347,036. landlocked ken (prefecture), central Honshu, Japan. Most of the prefecture is more than 2,600 feet (790 m) in elevation, and 15 peaks, mostly volcanic, rise to more than 9,800 feet (3,000 m). Such large rivers as the Tenryu, Kiso, Chikuma, and Shinano have been harnessed for hydroelectricity. Most of the population occupies small mountain basins (Suwa, Matsumoto, Ina, Hida, Zenkoji), in which sericulture and apple raising are specialties. Forest land is a rich resource. Projects for antipollution measures in forests and lakes began in 1974. The capital of the prefecture is Nagano city. Area 5,245 square miles (13,585 square km). Pop. (1990) 2,156,656.