Bizen Province

Bizen Province (備前国, Bizen-no-kuni) was a province of Japan in the area that is eastern Okayama Prefecture in the Chūgoku region of western Japan.^{[1] [2]} Bizen bordered Bitchū, Mimasaka, and Harima Provinces. Its abbreviated form name was Bishū (備州). In terms of the Gokishichidō system, Bizen was one of the provinces of the San'yō circuit. Under the Engishiki classification system, Bizen was ranked as one of the 35 "superior countries" (上国) in terms of importance, and one of the "near countries" (近国) in terms of distance from the capital. The provincial capital was located in what is now the city of Okayama.