Uji Islands

An archipelago in the East China Sea, about 80 km west of Makurazaki City, Kagoshima Prefecture. Administratively, it belongs to Minamisatsuma City. It consists of two islands, Uji Mukaijima and Ujijima (Iejima), as well as numerous reefs. The islands are surrounded by high sea cliffs, with Mukaijima's highest point at 319 meters. During the Edo period, it became a fishing base, but from the mid-Meiji period onwards, the population rapidly decreased due to the need for permanent settlement as fishing boats became motorized and larger, and the inconvenience of daily life made it difficult to live there, mainly resulting in the island becoming uninhabited. Currently, anglers visit the island on charter boats, and it is used as a refuge port.

[Kimihiko Tsukada]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

鹿児島県枕崎(まくらざき)市の西約80キロメートルの東シナ海上にある島嶼(とうしょ)。行政上は南さつま市に属す。宇治向島(うじむかいじま)と宇治島（家島）の2島のほか、多数の岩礁からなる。島の周囲は高い海食崖(がい)で囲まれ、最高点は向島の319メートル。江戸時代に漁業基地となったが、明治中期以後、漁船の動力化・大型化により定住の必要性が薄らいだこと、生活上の不便さがおもな理由で急速に人口は減り、無人島と化した。現在は釣り客がチャーター船で訪れるほか、避難港として利用される。

［塚田公彦］

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