#tokara

The island chain is best understood when broken up into parts, as they are spread apart and have thus developed different histories and cultures.

Osumi Islands (大隅諸島)

The Osumi Islands, along with the Tokara Islands are very close in proximity to Japan and belong to the present-day Kagoshima Prefecture, causing it to be placed with mainland Japan in most cases.

The island Tanegashima (種子島) is credited with being the place where the first Portuguese traders in Japan landed, thus being the birthplace of western goods, namely guns, in Japan.

The Osumi Islands share a namesake with the Osumi Province of the Edo Period (江戸時代), which the Osumi Islands themselves were a part of.

Tokara Islands (吐噶喇列島)

At a population of just under 650, the Tokara Islands are the smallest of the Ryukyu chain. They are first supposedly referenced in the Shoku Nihongi as “Tokan” (度感), although the real location of Tokan is debated. The islands, due to their small size, are administrated as one village, known as Toshima ( 十島村), or in English, “Ten-Island Village.”

Amami Islands (奄美大島、ウーシマ)

The Amami Islands, like the Osumi, are very close in proximity to Japan; however, they retain much more geographic and cultural similarity to the more southern reaches of the Ryukyu. It has been an important stop for ships and ferries since the Nara Period (奈良時代), and its coasts play a dominant role in local traditions, as well as its modern economy.

The Amami Islands are also an important stop for biologists and divers. The waters are the northernmost habitat for dugongs, and its forests are the northernmost habitat for the infamous habu (ハブ), a viper native to the Ryukyuan Islands. It is home to many species that are found nowhere else, most famously the Amami hare.

Okinawa Islands (沖縄諸島、ウチナー）

Okinawa is the most populous group of islands of the Ryukyu chain and is home to many of the most widely known aspects of the chain. It’s largest historical city, Shuri, was the capital of the once mighty Ryukyu Kingdom, and its largest modern city, Naha, is the capital of present-day Okinawa Prefecture, which covers the southern part of the Ryukyuan Islands. While the name Okinawa is used in Japan to refer to the whole prefecture, within the islands, it refers only to the Okinawa Islands, which are in the middle of the archipelago.

Okinawa first appears in history as a shell heap culture, shown by large mounds of fossilized shell remains found on the island. These mounds provide nearly all record of pre-historic human life in Okinawa, and they show a striking similarity to mainland Japan’s Jomon people, causing theories as to the end of the Jomon Period to lead to Okinawa.

Okinawa’s most notable historical period is its gusuku (城) period. The term gusuku refers to Okinawan castles, and this period is the result of Okinawa’s people learning agriculture, thus moving away from the shores and forming a feudal society, causing a need to build castles. Unfortunately, the majority of these castles were partially or fully destroyed in the Second World War; however, many, such as the famous Shuri Castle, have been rebuilt.

Okinawa has been a major port stop for all of recorded history in both Chinese and Japanese accounts. During Japanese sakoku policy in the Edo Period, Okinawa, a tributary of both Japan and China, was a convenient loophole for Japan to trade with China, as China did not trade outside of Chinese tributaries at the time, and Japan did not allow even merchants to leave or reenter Japan. Okinawa was also the site of the bloodiest battle of World War II’s pacific theater, decimating the islands and killed over a third of the population. It was then occupied by American forces as a result of Japan’s surrender and became a hub for American military bases in Japan, which has become a subject of hot debate.

The Okinawan language was also once the official language of the Ryukyu Kingdom and was widely spoken across the archipelago; however, with Japan’s annexation of Okinawa, the use of the language was punished, most notable with the use of dialect cards in Okinawan schools. In order to discourage the use of Okinawan, it was named a dialect of Japanese and children were encouraged to speak Tokyo Japanese. While it is now known that Okinawan is in fact its own language, many Japanese people will still call it a dialect (although this is partially due to the dominance of Okinawan Japanese, a dialect of Japanese with roots in the Okinawan language.)

Okinawa is home to many endemic animals, such as the endangered Okinawan rail and the habu. Much of Okinawa’s economy is supported by sugarcane and pineapple farming, as its subtropical environment gives it a long growing season and plenty of rain. It is also home to one famous mythological animal: the shisa. This lion-dog is the protector of the Okinawan Islands and is gifted with the ability to keep bad spirits at bay in households. They are beloved by Okinawa’s inhabitants and are decorated in many different ways.

Miyako Islands (宮古列島)

The Miyako Islands, due to their location, show much more cultural influence from China than from Japan. Nevertheless, the language of the Miyako Islands is placed in the Ryukyu family of the Proto-Japonic branch, and likely descends from Old Japanese, much like Okinawan.

The Miyako people unfortunately have a bad reputation among the Ryukyuans: due to the belief that behavior follows one’s bloodline, along with the fact that Miyako was an ancient prison island gives the inhabitants the bad reputation of being criminially inclined. However, in modern times, this assumption is becoming more archaic and young people are inclined to ignore it.

The language of the Miyako Islands, along with Okinawan, Amami, Yonaguni, and Yaeyama, are the most widely spoken Ryukyuan languages, and the diversity of the Ryukyu Islands is often shown by comparing words from each.

Yaeyama Islands (八重山列島、エーマ)