Okinawa
(2001 est. pop. 1.15 million). Okinawa is the largest island of Japan's Ryukyu Islands, which make up the southern half of the Nansei Islands, lying between Kyushu, Japan, and Taiwan. Approximately 50 inhabited islands and 110 uninhabited ones make up the Ryukyu Islands, which are further divided into three groups: the Okinawa Islands, the Miyako Islands to the south, and the Yaeyama Islands in the far south. The main island of Okinawa is 1,286 square kilometers in area and 105 kilometers in length, running north to south, and is subtropical in climate. Okinawa's largest city, Naha, is the capital of Okinawa Prefecture, which has a population of 1.31 million (1.15 million of whom live on the main island).
Historically, the Ryukyu Islands were the domain of the Ryukyu kingdom, created in 1429 when the Sho dynasty was formed after unifying the islands. The second Sho dynasty was founded in 1470 and lasted for four centuries, although it continued the custom (begun in 1372) of sending tributary missions to China to legitimize its rule and to gain trade benefits. In 1609, the Satsuma clan of Kyushu invaded the Ryukyu Islands and took the king hostage. He eventually agreed to sign a treaty that preserved the Ryukyu kingdom's nominal independence but in fact placed the islands under Satsuma's control. This relationship was concealed from China in order for Satsuma to continue to benefit from the kingdom's trade relations with China. This period of "dual subordination" ended officially in 1879, when the islands became an administrative part of modern Japan as Okinawa Prefecture. Toward the end of World War II, on 1 April 1945, the main island of Okinawa was invaded by U.S. forces preparing to attack mainland Japan. Okinawa continued under U.S. military control until 1972, when administrative rights over the Ryukyu Islands were returned to Japan. Representative of the strategic importance of the islands, the agreement allowed for U.S. forces to continue to be stationed on bases in Okinawa after reversion.
The bases have been both a source of friction, due to the disruption in the daily lives of the local residents, and a source of income for the prefecture due to the base-related income, rental fees, and compensation paid by the national government. Currently, U.S. facilities occupy close to 19 percent of the main island, although the U.S. and Japanese governments have been attempting to consolidate and reduce the presence.
The subtropical climate of Okinawa allows it to grow pineapples, sugarcane, sweet potatoes, orchids, and other plants for sale in mainland Japan. Likewise, its rich culture, rhythmic music and dance, and beautiful seas and shorelines make it attractive to tourists, although high domestic airfares have made other destinations, including those abroad, comparatively cheaper.
Robert D. Eldridge
Further Reading
Eldridge, Robert D. (2001) The Origins of the Bilateral Okinawa Problem: Okinawa in Postwar U.S.-Japan Relations, 1945–1952. New York: Routledge-Garland.
Kerr, George H. (2000) Okinawa: The History of an Island People. Rev. ed. Boston: Tuttle Publishing.
Sarantakes, Nicholas E. (2000) Keystone: The American Occupation of Okinawa and U.S.-Japanese Relations. College Station, TX: Texas A&M University Press.
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