Nagano Prefecture (長野県, Nagano-ken) is a landlocked prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Nagano Prefecture has a population of 2,007,682 (as of 1 July 2023) and has a geographic area of 13,561.56 square kilometres (5,236.15 sq mi). Nagano Prefecture borders Niigata Prefecture to the north, Gunma Prefecture to the northeast, Saitama Prefecture to the east, Yamanashi Prefecture to the southeast, Shizuoka Prefecture and Aichi Prefecture to the south, and Gifu Prefecture and Toyama Prefecture to the west.

Nagano is the capital and largest city of Nagano Prefecture, with other major cities including Matsumoto, Ueda, and Iida. Nagano Prefecture has impressive highland areas of the Japanese Alps, including most of the Hida Mountains, Kiso Mountains, and Akaishi Mountains which extend into the neighbouring prefectures. The area's mountain ranges, natural scenery, and history has gained Nagano Prefecture international recognition as a winter sports tourist destination, and hosted the 1998 Winter Olympics. It is served by the Hokuriku Shinkansen line, with direct services to Tokyo, Toyama, and Kanazawa.

Nagano is an inland prefecture and it borders more prefectures than any other in Japan, bordering Gunma Prefecture, Saitama Prefecture, Yamanashi Prefecture, and Shizuoka Prefecture to the east, Niigata Prefecture to the north, Toyama Prefecture and Gifu Prefecture to the west, and Aichi Prefecture to the south. Nagano contains the point furthest from the sea in the whole of Japan—this point lies within the city of Saku. The province's mountains have made it relatively isolated, and many visitors come to Nagano for its mountain resorts and hot springs. Nine of the twelve highest mountains in Japan can be found in Nagano and one of its lakes, Lake Kizaki, is a beach resort popular for its water attractions and games. The climate is predominantly alpine with warm summers, cold snowy winters and less intense humidity than the lower lying coastal areas.

As of 1 April 2014, 21% of the total land area of the prefecture was designated as Natural Parks; namely the Chichibu Tama Kai, Chūbu-Sangaku, Jōshin'etsu-kōgen, and Minami Alps National Parks; Myōgi-Arafune-Saku Kōgen, Tenryū-Okumikawa, and Yatsugatake-Chūshin Kōgen Quasi-National Parks; and Chūō Alps, Enrei Ōjō, Hijiriyama Kōgen, Mibugawa Suikei, Ontake, and Tenryū Koshibu Suikei Prefectural Natural Parks.

Nineteen cities are located in Nagano Prefecture:

These are the towns and villages in each district:

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1880	1,000,414	—
1890	1,146,071	+1.37%
1903	1,348,556	+1.26%
1913	1,484,205	+0.96%
1920	1,562,722	+0.74%
1925	1,629,217	+0.84%
1930	1,717,118	+1.06%
1935	1,714,000	−0.04%
1940	1,710,729	−0.04%
1945	2,121,050	+4.39%
1950	2,060,831	−0.57%
1955	2,021,292	−0.39%
1960	1,981,433	−0.40%
1965	1,958,007	−0.24%
1970	1,956,917	−0.01%
1975	2,017,564	+0.61%
1980	2,083,934	+0.65%
1985	2,136,927	+0.50%
1990	2,156,627	+0.18%
1995	2,193,984	+0.34%
2000	2,215,168	+0.19%
2005	2,196,114	−0.17%
2010	2,152,449	−0.40%
2015	2,099,759	−0.49%
2020	2,052,493	−0.45%
source:

The life expectancy in Nagano prefecture is the longest nationwide with the average life expectancy of 87.18 years for women and 80.88 years for men.

• Central Japan Railway Company
  • Chūō Main Line (west line)
  • Iida Line
• East Japan Railway Company
  • Chūō Main Line (east line)
  • Hokuriku Shinkansen
  • Koumi Line
  • Ōito Line (from Matsumoto to Minami-Otari)
  • Shin'etsu Main Line
  • Shinonoi Line
• Matsumoto Electric Railway
  • Kamikōchi Line
• Nagano Electric Railway
  • Nagano Line
• Shinano Railway
  • Shinano Railway Line
• Ueda Dentetsu
  • Bessho Line
• West Japan Railway Company
  • Ōito Line (from Minami-Otari to Itoigawa)

• Matsumoto Airport

• Shinshu University (National)
• Nagano College of Nursing (Prefectural)
• The University of Nagano (Prefectural)
• Nagano University [Municipal (Ueda City)]
• Suwa Tokyo University of Science [Municipal (Chino City)]

• Matsumoto University (Private)
• Matsumoto Dental University (Private)
• Saku University (Private)
• Seisen Jogakuin College (Private)

Nagano Prefecture has a large and diversified economy, with a strong focus on electronics, information technology, precision machinery, agriculture and food products, and tourism, with a total GDP of about ¥8.5 trillion (2017).

Several large Japanese groups have production facilities in Nagano Prefecture, such as Citizen Watch (Citizen Group), MinebeaMitsumi, Seiko Epson and Vaio.

• Five Mountains of Northern Shinshu
• Kamikōchi
• Lake Kizaki
• Lake Suwa
• Mount Kirigamine
• Suwa-taisha, one of the oldest shrines in Japan
• Matsumoto Castle, one of Japan's national treasures
• One of the world's highest geysers (about 40 to 50 meters) in Suwa
• Zenkō-ji temple in Nagano city

There are two local J.League clubs: AC Nagano Parceiro and Matsumoto Yamaga FC.

• Gentian
• Japanese serow
• Ptarmigan
• Siberian Silver Birch
• Shinano no Kuni (prefecture song)

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• Changhua County, Taiwan, since 2008
• Colorado, United States
• Hebei, China

• Yuto Adachi, of Korean boy group Pentagon is from Nagano Prefecture
• Glim Spanky, the members of the rock band are from Nagano Prefecture
• Yasuyuki Kazama, a professional drift driver, is from Shimosuwa in Nagano Prefecture.
• Tadamichi Kuribayashi, a general in the Imperial Japanese Army who commanded troops during the Battle of Iwo Jima in the Second World War was born in Matsushiro a town in the Hanishina District.
• Jun'ya Ota (aka ZUN), video game developer best known for the Touhou Project series is from Nagano Prefecture.
• Nagano's former governor, Yasuo Tanaka, is an independent who has made a reputation internationally for attacking Japan's status quo. Among other issues, he has refused national government money for construction projects that he deems unnecessary, such as dams, and has overhauled (locally) the press club system that is blamed for limiting government access to journalists who give favorable coverage. Tanaka was voted out from office on August 6, 2006 and was replaced by Jin Murai.* Keiichi Tsuchiya, a professional racing driver, is from Tōmi in Nagano Prefecture.
• Bumpei Usui, a professional artist, came from Tōmi in Horikin Village, Minami Azumino County, Nagano Prefecture.
• Takashi Yamazaki, a filmmaker, is from Matsumoto in Nagano Prefecture.
• Tatsumi Yoda (aka Tom Yoda), former chairman of Avex, is from Chikuma-shi.

• Chūō Shinkansen
• Matsushiro Underground Imperial Headquarters

• Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric and Käthe Roth. (2005). Japan encyclopedia. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. ISBN 978-0-674-01753-5; OCLC 58053128

• Media related to Nagano Prefecture at Wikimedia Commons
• Nagano Prefecture Official Website (in Japanese)
• Nagano Prefecture Official Website (in English)
• Nagano Prefecture Tourism Website (in English)

36°15′N 138°6′E / 36.250°N 138.100°E / 36.250; 138.100