Hōki Province

Hōki Province (伯耆国, Hōki-no kuni) was a former province in the area that is today the western half of Tottori Prefecture in the San'in region of Japan. Hōki was bordered by Inaba, Mimasaka, Izumo, Bitchū, and Bingo Provinces. Its abbreviated form name was Hakushū (伯州). In terms of the Gokishichidō system, Hōki was one of the provinces of the San'indo circuit. Under the Engishiki classification system, Hōki was ranked as one of the 35 "superior countries" (上国) in terms of importance, and one of the "middle countries" (中国) in terms of distance from the capital. The provincial capital was located in what is now the city of Kurayoshi, Tottori. The ichinomiya of the province is the Shitori Shrine also located in the town of Yurihama. As there are many cultural and historic similarities between Hōki and neighboring Izumo Provinces, the two provinces are sometimes informally grouped together as the Unpaku region (雲伯地方). Conversely, Mount Daisen forms a geographic divide, which separates Hōki culturally and historically into eastern Tōhaku (東伯) and Saihaku (西伯) regions.