:Flag of Kagoshima Prefecture
{{Short description|Japanese prefectural flag}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2025}}
{{Infobox flag
| Name = Kagoshima Prefecture
| Image = Flag of Kagoshima Prefecture.svg
| Use = 110000
| Symbol = {{FIAV|110000}}{{FIAV|normal}}{{FIAV|Equal}}
| Proportion = 2:3
| Adoption = {{start date|1967|3|10|df=yes}}
| Design = A white field charged in the center with a stylized black and red silhouette of Kagoshima Prefecture's topography
| Designer =
}}
The {{Nihongo|flag of Kagoshima Prefecture|鹿児島県旗|Kagoshima-ken ki|lead=yes}} is a white field charged in the center with a stylized black and red silhouette of the prefecture's topography. The black portion, which resembles an inverted horseshoe, represents the Satsuma and Ōsumi Peninsulas, with a small dent on the right corresponding to {{ill|Shibushi Bay|ja|志布志湾}}. Within the black shape is a red circle representing Sakurajima, Japan's most active volcano. Some locals have criticised the flag for not depicting Kagoshima Prefecture's islands to the west and southwest of Kyushu.
Emblem
File:県章公告（鹿児島県公報昭和42年3月10日第5587号の3）.pdf
File:Map of Kagoshima Prefecture.png
The flag's charge is the {{Nihongo|emblem of Kagoshima Prefecture|鹿児島県章|Kagoshima-ken shō}}, which was adopted on 10 March 1967 following a public competition.{{cite book |editor=Natural Cultural Association |script-title=ja:事典 シンボルと公式制度 日本篇 |trans-title=Dictionary of Official Symbols and Systems of Japan |year=1968 |location=Tokyo |publisher=National Diet Library |page=253 |language=ja}} Like other prefectural emblems, it was created to foster a sense of prefectural identity.{{cite web |script-title=ja:県章・シンボルマーク |trans-title=Prefectural emblem and logo |url=https://www.pref.kagoshima.jp/aa02/pr/gaiyou/profile/symbol1.html |website=Kagoshima Prefecture Official Website |date=23 March 2023 |publisher=Kagoshima Prefectural Government |access-date=18 January 2025 |language=ja}} Symbolically, it represents the prefecture's growth and "the passion, harmony, and unity of its people."{{cite web |script-title=ja:鹿児島県のシンボル |trans-title=Symbols of Kagoshima Prefecture |url=https://www.nga.gr.jp/pref_info/symbol/kagoshima.html |publisher=National Governors Association of Japan |access-date=18 January 2025 |language=ja}}
The emblem consists of a black inverted horseshoe shape enclosing a smaller red circle. The black shape represents the Satsuma and Ōsumi Peninsulas, while the red circle represents Sakurajima{{snd}}a stratovolcano (Japan's most active volcano), peninsula, and former island.{{cite news |script-title=ja:兵庫と愛媛が「県章」を使わない理由 |trans-title=Why Hyogo and Ehime don't use their prefectural emblems |url=https://withnews.jp/article/f0141008002qqf2140923000qqF0G0010401qq000010918A |date=8 October 2014 |website={{ill|withnews|ja|withnews}} |publisher=The Asahi Shimbun |access-date=18 January 2025 |language=ja}}{{cite web |title=Sakurajima, Japan's Most Active Volcano |url=https://www.nippon.com/en/features/h00194/ |website=Nippon.com |access-date=18 January 2025 |language=en |date=16 May 2018}} The dent on the right side of the black shape represents {{ill|Shibushi Bay|ja|志布志湾}}.{{cite book |last=Shimono |first=Toshimi |script-title=ja:南九州の伝統文化 1: 祭礼と芸能、歴史 |trans-title=Traditional Culture of Southern Kyushu Vol. 1: Festivals, Performing Arts, and History |year=2005 |publisher=Southern News Agency |isbn=978-4-86124-018-8 |page=98 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qLzVHhp838oC |access-date=18 January 2025 |language=ja}} Although the emblem is meant to represent the topography of Kagoshima Prefecture, it does not depict any of the prefecture's islands to the west and southwest of Kyushu. The omission has been criticized by some locals, including folklorist {{ill|Toshimi Shimono|ja|下野敏見}}, who regarded it as an example of historical discrimination and neglect toward the islands.
Prefectural logo and alternate flag
The Kagoshima prefectural government adopted a prefectural {{Nihongo|logo|シンボルマーク|extra={{literally|symbol mark}}}} on 16 March 1994. It is a stylized blue letter "K", with the top and bottom curves symbolizing winds and waves, respectively. The imagery is meant to express the dynamicity and progress of the prefecture.
In the late 1990s, some members of the Kagoshima Prefectural Assembly proposed replacing the prefectural emblem with the logo and updating the prefectural flag accordingly. However, the prefectural government ultimately did not pursue the proposal because some residents of the prefecture had become attached to the emblem.
Japanese astronaut Koichi Wakata carried a flag bearing the logo onto Space Shuttle Discovery in 2009.{{cite news |script-title=ja:鹿児島県のシンボル旗、スペースシャトルで宇宙へ |trans-title=Flag with Kagoshima Prefecture's logo goes into space on a space shuttle |date=16 February 2009 |work=The Asahi Shimbun |language=ja}}
{{Gallery
| mode = packed
| height = 140
| align = center
| Symbol mark of Kagoshima Prefecture.svg | Logo of Kagoshima Prefecture
| Flag of Kagoshima Prefecture (symbol).svg | Flag bearing the logo
| Miyazaki Ebino-Kagoshima Yusui border.JPG | The logo on a sign at the border with Miyazaki Prefecture
}}