They were each appointed by the shogun to oversee one or more of the provinces of Japan.
Some names form series, as in those ships named after flowers, stars, star constellations, and provinces of pre-Meiji Japan.
Suruga was established as a province of Japan in the early Nara period.
The former provinces of Japan were converted into prefectures between 1879 and 1876.
The former provinces of Japan were converted into prefectures in the 1870s.
Suruga was one of the original provinces of Japan.
Though recognized as an independent kingdom, the islands were occasionally also referred to as being a province of Japan.
In the Meiji period, the provinces of Japan were converted into prefectures.
Under the Ritsuryō system, Tsushima became a province of Japan.
This article is about the historical province of Japan.