What kind of place is Osaka?
Osaka is located in the center of Honshu.
Osaka City was incorporated as a city in 1889 and currently has a population of approximately 2.72 million and an area of approximately 225.21 square kilometers.
Osaka Prefecture has 43 cities, towns and villages, with the Osaka Prefectural Government and the economic center concentrated in Osaka City.
Osaka Prefecture is home to approximately 8.82 million people and covers an area of approximately 1,905 square kilometers. This means that 7% of Japan's population is concentrated in Osaka Prefecture, but in fact, its area is the second smallest among all prefectures in Japan. With a large population living in a small area, it is the second largest city after Tokyo. Furthermore, approximately 10% of foreigners living in Japan live in Osaka.
*Population figures for Osaka Prefecture are from November 2018, and for Osaka City are from December of the same year. Sources are listed below.
Osaka Prefecture http://www.pref.osaka.lg.jp/toukei/jinkou/index.html
Osaka City http://www.city.osaka.lg.jp/toshikeikaku/page/0000014987.html
Kansai covers an area of approximately 27,350 square kilometers, and would fit almost entirely within a circle with a radius of approximately 100 km. With a population of over 20 million people, it is known as one of the world's largest cities. Approximately 16% of domestic products are manufactured in Kansai*, and its economic power is said to rival that of the entire Indonesia.
*Kansai refers to the two prefectures and four prefectures of Shiga, Kyoto, Osaka, Hyogo, Nara, and Wakayama.