Yomitan [village] - Yomitan

Japanese: 読谷[村] - よみたん

A village in Nakagami District, Okinawa Prefecture. It is located on the west coast of central Okinawa Island (main island). Population 32,912 (1995). The east is a hilly area that slopes gently southward, with Mt. Yomitanza (236m) at its peak, and the west is a limestone plateau that forms a terraced topography, jutting out into the East China Sea at Cape Zanpa. In the 15th century, Gosamaru, the chief priest of Yomitan, traded with the Nanban people from the port of Nagahama, and formed a large sphere of influence. Before World War II, it was called Yomitan Village, and was a purely agricultural village known for its thriving sugar cane and sweet potato cultivation.

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

沖縄県中頭（なかがみ）郡の村。沖縄島(本島)中部の西海岸に位置する。人口3万2912(1995)。東は読谷山（よみたんざ）岳(236m)を頂点に，南側へ緩やかに傾斜する丘陵地で，西側は石灰岩台地が広がり段丘地形をなし，残波（ざんぱ）岬で東シナ海へ突き出している。15世紀，読谷按司の護佐丸は長浜の港に拠って南蛮貿易を行い，一大勢力圏を形成した。第2次大戦前は読谷山村といい，サトウキビ，サツマイモの栽培の盛んなところとして知られた純農村であった。

出典　株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典第２版について　情報

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