Nagasaki

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Industrial port (coal, iron, shipbuilding) on Nagasaki Bay, Kyushu Island, Japan, capital of Nagasaki prefecture; population (2000 est) 438,600. Industries include the manufacture of steel and electrical equipment. Nagasaki was the only Japanese port open to European trade from the 16th century until 1859. The first modern Japanese shipyard opened here 1855–61. On 9 August 1945, an atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki by the USA.

The port was opened to Western trade in 1571. Western trade was confined to the artificial island Dejima (Deshima) from its construction 1634–36 to 1859. Three days after Hiroshima had been bombed, the second atom bomb was dropped on Nagasaki at the end of World War II. Of Nagasaki's population of 212,000, an estimated 40,000 were killed and thousands more injured, not counting the long-term victims of radiation.

Initially the sun and moon had human faces, but they were removed when the flag was updated in 1962. The flag is said to express the hope that Nepal will endure as long as the sun and the moon. The blue border symbolizes peace. Effective date: 16 December 1962. >>