This study examines regional difference of cultivation abandonment,focusing on related factors such as socio-economic status of farmers,natural feature of the region and types of cultivated lands.Since the basic law on food,agriculture and rural areas was enforced in 1999,to promote sustainable development of agriculture has been aimed in Japan,considering multifunctional roles of agriculture.On the other hand,these days,expansion of abandoned cultivated land is one of the most serious problems,and Japanese government has taken measures to deal with it.However,as cultivation abandonment is related to many factors,it seems to be difficult to solve the problem.Therefore,in order to grasp the whole picture of the matter,it is crucial to investigate the regional difference of cultivation abandonment.In this study,ratio of abandoned cultivated land to total cultivated land is used as an indicator to examine an advance of cultivation abandonment.The ratio shows a clear regional difference,and it is related closely to some factors as follow.First,the ratio correlates to farm size.Cultivation abandonment advances in regions where small size farms are dominant.As this trend is common in every prefecture,it can be generalized on a national scale.Secondly,types of land owner also show a certain correlation.Cultivation abandonment advances in regions where non-farmers owning cultivated lands or abandoned cultivated lands are dominant.This trend is exceptional in some regions where lending and borrowing of cultivated lands are conducted successfully.Thirdly,the ratio is related to the natural feature of the region.The ratio in hilly and mountainous areas is high,compared with it in plain areas.This shows a difficulty of sustaining agriculture in hilly and mountainous areas.As Japan contains a large amount of these areas,it is meaningful to take this difference into account.Fourthly,the ratio is related to types of cultivated lands (rice field,upland field,tree-planted field such as grove).The ratio is high in regions where upland fields or tree planted fields are almost dominant.The reason of this feature is supposed that these lands are unsuitable for changing crops and converting to other use.As stated above,cultivation abandonment is related to some factors.We need to consider these factors when we examine the measures to deal with the matter.Furthermore,in order to solve this problem,close field surveys are required to make clear the restructure of agriculture and its influence to cultivation abandonment.