Okinawa

Japanese: 沖縄 - おきなわ

The Ryukyu Islands stretch 1,200 km across the ocean from the southern tip of Kyushu to the northeastern tip of Taiwan. They form Okinawa Prefecture. The history of Okinawa is thought to have begun when some Japanese people who shared the same language and culture settled on the islands. Legend has it that Minamoto no Tametomo traveled from Hachijo Island to Okinawa Island, married the sister of a local lord, had a son, and became the first king, but this is of course not historical fact. Around the 11th century, tribal nations ruled by chiefs called Anji split up, and eventually Yononushi emerged over them and established their territorial rule in various regions. In the 14th century, they were united into three powers, the Hokuzan, the Chuzan, and the Nanzan, each of which paid tribute to the Ming Dynasty. The Chuzan Dynasty in particular developed Southeast Asian trade with Annam, Java, Siam, and other areas, and its merchant ships arrived in Hakata and Botsu to relay trade with the South Seas. At the beginning of the 15th century, the Sho dynasty rose to power, and by the end of the century, they had politically unified the main island, reaching their heyday in the history of the Ryukyu Islands until the beginning of the 16th century. This Sho dynasty continued until the Meiji Restoration. The invasion of the Shimazu clan in 1609 (Keicho 14) dealt a major blow to the Ryukyu Kingdom. After that, the kingdom was forced to submit to both the Shimazu clan and the Ming and Qing dynasties of China. Furthermore, the Shimazu clan's policy of prohibiting the Ryukyuans from using mainland customs and language hindered the ethnic integration of the mainlanders and the Ryukyuans. After the Meiji Restoration, the new government dispatched troops to Taiwan in 1874, and forced other countries to tacitly accept the Ryukyu Islands' affiliation to Japan (the Ryukyu Islands affiliation issue), and in 1879, Okinawa Prefecture was established. After the establishment of Okinawa Prefecture, all the leaders, including the governor and prefectural government officials, were dispatched from the mainland, and Japanization was rapidly promoted, but it was not until 1920 that the same self-government system as the mainland was adopted, and discriminatory special circumstances different from those on the mainland continued to exist. Economically, Okinawa was also unstable due to the advance of capital and merchants from the mainland. Towards the end of the Pacific War, Okinawa became a battlefield of fierce fighting, and the local residents suffered greatly. In 1945, it was occupied by the US military, and thereafter came under military rule. Even after the signing of the San Francisco Peace Treaty in 1951, the island remained under American power as stipulated in Article 3, so the local residents' autonomy was limited and their lives were dependent on the military bases. The long-awaited movement to return Okinawa to Japan bore fruit in 1972, setting Okinawa on a new path, and the Ocean Expo was held in 1975.

Source: Obunsha Japanese History Dictionary, Third Edition About Obunsha Japanese History Dictionary, Third Edition

Japanese:

九州の南端から台湾東北端に至る1200㎞の海上に連なる琉球列島。沖縄県を構成
沖縄史の初めは言語・文化を同じくする日本人の一部がこの列島に住みついたことに始まると思われる。伝説としては，源為朝が八丈島から沖縄島に渡り，土豪の妹を妻として一子を得，これが第１代の王となったとされるが，もとより史実とはいえない。11世紀ごろから按司 (あんじ) と呼ばれる族長が支配する部族国家が分立し，やがてそれらの上に世主 (よのぬし) が出現し，各地に割拠した。14世紀には，北山・中山・南山の３勢力にまとまり，明にそれぞれ朝貢し，特に中山朝は，アンナン・ジャワ・シャムなどを対象とする東南アジア貿易を発展させ，またその商船は博多や坊津に来航して南洋方面との貿易を中継するなどの動きをみせていた。15世紀の初め，尚氏が台頭，同世紀の末には本島を政治的に統一し，16世紀の初めまで琉球史上の全盛期を現出した。この尚王朝が明治維新まで続く。1609（慶長14）年の島津氏の侵攻は琉球王国に大きな打撃を与えた。その後は，島津氏と，中国の明・清への両属を余儀なくされた。しかも島津氏の琉球人に対する本土の風俗・言語の使用を禁じる政策は，本土人と琉球人の民族的一体化を妨げた。明治維新後，新政府は1874年台湾出兵を行い，琉球の日本帰属を諸国に黙認させ（琉球帰属問題），'79年沖縄県とした。沖縄県となってからは知事や県庁の首脳部をはじめ指導者層はすべて本土から派遣され，急速に日本化が推進されたが，本土と同じ自治制度となったのは1920年であり，本土と異なる差別的な特殊事情が存続した。また経済的にも本土の資本や商人の進出で不安定であった。太平洋戦争末期，沖縄は激しい攻防の戦場となり，住民は大きな被害をうけた。'45年アメリカ軍に占領され，以後その軍政下に置かれた。'51年サンフランシスコ平和条約締結以後も，第３条の規定によってアメリカの権力下に置かれたので，住民の自治権は限られ，生活は基地に左右された。悲願の日本復帰運動は '72年に実を結び，沖縄は新しい道を進むことになり，'75年には海洋博覧会が開催された。

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