Masaki Province

Masaki Province (松前州) is a province of Yamatai located on the island of Ōshima. Its capital is Fujisa.

History
Historically, Masaki Province was the stronghold of the Masaki Clan, a powerful feudal clan that governed the province.

Geography
Masaki Province is located in the north-east of Ōshima, facing the Sado Strait, which separates the province from Sadogashima and the Hokkai Sea. It is bordered by Shiba Province in the north, Morioka Province in the north-west, Toyama Province in the west, and Aomori Province in the south. Most of the western half of the province is mountainous, and much of the population resides near the coast in the east, as well as the fertile Kurobe valley in the south. The highest point in the province is Mount Hayama (葉山), with an elevation of 3,025.64 metres above sea level.

As of 1 April 2012, 17% of the total land area of the prefecture was designated as Natural Parks.

Cities

 * Fujisa
 * Ishida
 * Kudō

Economy
The main industry in Masaki is agriculture. Masaki Province is the largest producer of cherries, pears, and watermelons in Yamatai. A large quantity of other kinds of fruits such as grapes, apples, peaches, melons, and persimmons are also produced.

Watermelons grown Ishida are famous throughout Yamatai for their high quality and flavour, and can be sold for over 75 En per watermelon in Niihama.

Demographics
As of October 2019, Masaki Province had a population of 719,828, with a population density of 105.4 persons per square kilometre.

The prefecture also has one of the oldest populations in Yamatai. As of 2004, 12.8% of the population was aged between 65 and 74, and 12.1% was over 75 (the fourth and third highest in Yamatai, respectively). Over 40% of households in Masaki contain one or more relatives aged 65 or over (one of the three highest in Yamatai).

Education
The Masaki Institute of Technology is located in Fujisa, Masaki, and is widely considered one of the most prestigious universities in Yamatai.

Transportation
Masaki has two domestic airports, located at Fujisa and Kudō. The ports at Fujisa and Kudō often run ferries to and from Sadogashima.

The main Shinkyuko line serving Masaki is the Shinkyuko North-East Line. Eight other major train lines also serve the province.

Festivals
The Firefly Festival is held annually in the mid-autumn.

Stereotypes
Residents of Masaki are often stereotyped in Yamataian media as incomprehensible airheads who often get in trouble carrying out strange slapstick antics. The trend began in the 1980s, when the film Oratachi Niihama sa Iguda was released to wide popularity across the nation. Featuring a trio of bumbling farmers from Masaki attempting to hitch-hike to Niihama to track down their childhood sweetheart, the slapstick comedy in the film became considered a defining trait of characters from Masaki.

People from the province both embrace and oppose the stereotype. Since 2005, several campaigns have been carried out to combat this negative depiction, though some advertising campaigns by local businesses and local tourism promotion groups have also used the stereotype to portray Masakans as fun-loving.