sentences:  The "-ken" suffix was never added to its name, so the "-dō" suffix came to be understood to mean "prefecture".When Hokkaido was incorporated, transportation on the island was still underdeveloped, so the prefecture was split into several that could fulfill administrative duties of the prefectural government and keep tight control over the developing island.These subprefectures still exist today, although they have much less power than they possessed before and during World War II.