Kamikawa (上川総合振興局, Kamikawa-sōgō-shinkō-kyoku) is a subprefecture of Hokkaido Prefecture, Japan. The name is derived from Kamikawa no hitobito no Shūraku (Village of the Upstream People), a translation of the Ainu Peni Unguri Kotan.[citation needed] Settlement began in 1867. The sub-prefecture was established in 1897.