I think Chiba, Japan should redirect to Chiba, which is a disambiguation page, since "Chiba, Japan" is somewhat ambiguous. Some users might link Chiba, Japan and mean Chiba City while others might link Chiba, Japan and mean Chiba Prefecture. By redirecting "Chiba, Japan" to a disambiguation page, we can in essence "deprecate" the use of Chiba, Japan. —Tokek 3 July 2005 06:48 (UTC)
Just wanted to add one more note: "Chiba, Japan" was changed to a redirect to Chiba City at one point before I reverted it. If I had to choose between a redirect to Chiba City versus Chiba Prefecture, I think Chiba Prefecture would be better because at worse the link would take the reader to a place that is less specific than the person who created the link intended, while on the other hand a redirect to the city could be incorrect if the linker did not specifically mean that. Here are examples of other locations: New York, United States redirects to New York the state and not the city within the state. Okinawa, Japan redirects to the prefecture, not the city within the prefecture. —Tokek 3 July 2005 18:32 (UTC)
Crossing out my above comment as it may be perceived as misleading or going against my current opinion. This article should redirect to whatever Chiba is referring to also for the sake of consistency of decision making. Currently Chiba is a disambiguation article. —Tokek 22:30, 4 May 2007 (UTC)