Shikoku

The smallest and least populous of the four main islands of Japan. Most of the 3.8 million inhabitants live in the north, and all but one of the island's few larger cites are located there. Unlike the other three major islands of Japan, Shikoku has no volcanoes.

The varieties of Japanse spoken in the Shikoku region are collectively known as the Shikoku dialects, and have many similarities to the Chūgoku dialect in grammar. The largest difference between the Shikoku dialects and the Chūgoku dialects is in pitch accent - much of Shikoku speaks with the Kyoto-Osaka-type accent or its variations, while speakers of Chūgoku dialects use a Tokyo-type accent.

Industry in Shikoku is moderately well developed and includes the processing of ores from the important Besshi copper mine. Land is used intensively, with wide alluvial areas, especially in the eastern part of the zone, being planted with rice and subsequently double cropped with winter wheat and barley. Because of wheat production, Sanuki udon became an important part of the diet in Kagawa Prefecture (former Sanuki Province) in the Edo period, and udon remains today as major food of Shikoku.

The warm climate of Shikoku lends itself to the cultivation of citrus fruits, like persimmons, peaches, and grapes, and fruit is grown throughout the northern area in great variety. As a result, yuzu, mikan and other citrus fruits are plentiful on Shikoku and have become synonymous with the regions they are grown in.