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The Ryukyu Islands [note 1] (琉球列島, Ryūkyū-rettō), also known as the Nansei Islands (南西諸島, Nansei-shotō, lit."Southwest Islands") or the Ryukyu Arc (琉球弧, Ryūkyū-ko), are a chain of Japanese islands that stretch southwest from Kyushu to Taiwan: the Ryukyu Islands are divided into the Satsunan Islands (Ōsumi, Tokara and Amami) and Okinawa Prefecture (Daitō, Miyako ...
The first history of Ryukyu was written in Chūzan Seikan ("Mirrors of Chūzan"), which was compiled by Shō Shōken (1617–75), also known as Haneji Chōshū. The Ryukyuan creation myth is told, which includes the establishment of Tenson as the first king of the islands and the creation of the Noro , female priestesses of the Ryukyuan religion .
The population closest to Ryukyu islanders is the mainland Japanese, followed by the Korean and Chinese populations. However, Taiwan aborigines were genetically distant from the Ryukyu islanders, even though these populations are geographically very close. [37] The female mtDNA and male Y chromosome markers are used to study human migrations.
The Ryukyu Kingdom [a] was a kingdom in the Ryukyu Islands from 1429 to 1879. It was ruled as a tributary state of imperial Ming China by the Ryukyuan monarchy , who unified Okinawa Island to end the Sanzan period , and extended the kingdom to the Amami Islands and Sakishima Islands .
The Ryukyu Islands are described as queen islands in Japanese records as well. Gradually, however, the noro's role as ritual leader and religious consultant became independent of her role as political leader, perhaps as the result of sharing more and more power with her male relatives in order to deal with an increasing demand for her ritual ...
Its predecessor was the Ryukyu Kingdom, an independent nation until 1879. [3] Japan has de facto control over the disputed Senkaku Islands, claiming them as part of Ishigaki City in Okinawa Prefecture. [4] However, they are not geographically within the Ryukyu Archipelago, being located further westward in the East China Sea.
A significant change in status for the kingdom happened in 1609 [5] with the invasion of Ryukyu by Satsuma Domain of Japan. Satsuma destroyed both Nakijin Castle and Urasoe Castle, as well as capturing Shuri Castle, during the war. Satsuma won the war, vassalized the Ryukyu Kingdom, and annexed the Amami Islands.
The Americans believed that the new flag, which was based on the family crest of the Shō Dynasty which had ruled the Ryukyu Kingdom, would stir a Ryukyuan nationalistic spirit. USCAR displayed the flag at the Ryukyu-American Friendship Centers, but was soon disappointed with the Okinawans' apathy toward the former royal family's symbol.