Sapporo is the largest city north of Tokyo and the largest city in Hokkaido, the northernmost main island of Japan. It ranks as the fifth most populous city in Japan. It is the capital city of Hokkaido Prefecture and Ishikari Subprefecture. Sapporo lies in the southwest of Hokkaido, within the alluvial fan of the Toyohira River, which is a tributary stream of the Ishikari. It is considered the cultural, economic, and political centre of Hokkaido.
