Japanese Language Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for students, teachers, and linguists wanting to discuss the finer points of the Japanese language. It only takes a minute to sign up.
Sign up to join this community
I have learnt that the 関西【かんさい】 area of Japan is also called 近畿【きんき】. According to my findings (see this entry on another stackexchange site), 関西 is a more popular term than 近畿. I would like to know:
1) Do they refer exactly to the same geographical place in Japan or there is any difference between their boundaries?
2) Are both considered 地方【ちほう】 or this is appropriate only for one of them?
よろしくお願いします！
近畿 is more specific. Being "near-capital" literally, it refers to an area including 大阪府, 京都府, 兵庫県, 奈良県, 滋賀県, 和歌山県, plus usually 三重県*1, seldom 福井県 (especially its southern part).
関西, on the other hand, has more variation in its meaning. In the narrowest sense, it is roughly the same area as 近畿. In its broadest sense, it can refer to the 'western' part of Japan including the 九州 area. Still, its centre is always considered to be 京阪神 area, and as such, it seems to be interchangeable to 近畿 most of the time (i.e. the broadest sense isn't very often seen). Dictionaries at my hand agrees that 関西, in recent usage, can refer to 京阪神 area, which is narrower than 近畿.
I also feel that 関西 has more connotation regarding culture, which may explain why the former is more frequently encountered. I don't think neither is more popular/common than the other.
Both are considered as 地方.
This Q&A from NDL can be an interesting reading.
*1: 三重 is tricky in this regard. It is also commonly included in 東海 area, and has possibly more connection to the 名古屋 city culture-wise.
Answer from knsmr at hinative (https://hinative.com/ja/questions/19488)
They are basically the same.
According to Wikipedia, 近畿 includes seven prefectures while 関西 includes eight. I'm originally from Osaka, the very center of 関西地方. So, we always make this joke about 三重県, like "Hey, where do you guys come from? Oh, are you guys also from 関西? 三重県? No way. You guys belong to 中部地方. You don't even speak like us. What!? 中部地方 people say 三重県 isn't in 中部? Oh, well. Sorry you guys are somewhere in between".
While 関西 has this feeling that it makes a contrast with 関東, 近畿 just reminds one of a region with a strong center, it's neutral. That said, I prefer to use 関西, and hear people use 関西 more and more lately for some reason. Probably because I moved to 関東 20 years ago from 関西.
