Okinawa's old kingdom paid tribute to two empires at once
After Satsuma invaders captured its king in 1609, the Ryukyu Kingdom answered to Japan while still sending tribute to China. China traded only with tributary states, so the island realm became a handy loophole through which Japanese goods could reach Chinese markets, a quiet arrangement that lasted until Tokyo annexed the whole archipelago in 1879.
Okinawa is long and thin, about 106 km from end to end and only 11 km wide on average, lying roughly 640 km south of Kyushu and 500 km northeast of Taiwan. Its earliest communities left shell mounds, and rice farming arrived only in the middle of that era. Agriculture took hold around the 12th century, when people moved uphill and built gusuku, distinctive stone enclosures variously interpreted as sanctuaries, walled homes and rulers' castles. Many are now UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The island became a relay point for porcelain trade across eastern Asia, and a Mongol invasion attempt in 1291 failed.
From 1314 three rival kingdoms, Chuzan, Hokuzan and Nanzan, competed for recognition from Ming China. In 1392 the Hongwu Emperor sent migrants, mainly 36 large families from Fujian, to boost the population and help with technology and diplomacy. Sho Hashi finally unified the three in 1429, founding the Ryukyu Kingdom with its capital at Shuri Castle. When King Sho Taikyu died in 1469, the government chose a man named Kanemaru, who took the name Sho En and began the Second Sho dynasty.
Western visitors trickled in: Captain Basil Hall in 1816 and Commodore Matthew Perry in 1852, while the missionary Bernard Jean Bettelheim lived in a Naha temple from 1846 to 1854. After annexation, the monarchy was abolished and the deposed King Sho Tai was moved to Tokyo.
Shuri Castle has proved fragile. Fire destroyed its main courtyard buildings on 31 October 2019, gutting six structures covering some 4,200 square metres, the fifth destruction after 1453, 1660, 1709 and 1945. Today the Okinawan language, Uchinaguchi, is spoken mainly by adults, though local groups encourage the young to learn it.
Source: Okinawa Island
