158-765: Okinawa Island ( 沖縄島 , Okinawa-jima , Okinawan : 沖縄/うちなー , Uchinaa Kunigami : ふちなー , Fuchináa ) , officially Okinawa Main Island ( 沖縄本島 , Okinawa-hontō ) , is the largest of the Okinawa Islands and the Ryukyu ( Nansei ) Islands of Japan in the Kyushu region. It is the smallest and least populated of the five main islands of Japan . The island is approximately 106 kilometres (66 mi) long, an average 11 kilometres (7 mi) wide, and has an area of 1,206.98 square kilometers (466.02 sq mi). It
316-466: A humid subtropical climate bordering on a tropical rainforest climate . The climate supports a dense Subtropical forest in the northern Yanbaru National Park . A rainy season occurs in the late spring. There are many local pubs ( izakaya ) and cafes that serve Okinawan cuisine and dishes, such as gōyā chanpurū (bitter melon stir fry), fu chanpurū (wheat gluten chanpurū ), and tonkatsu (tenderized, breaded, fried pork cutlet). Okinawan soba
474-695: A humid subtropical climate . Okinawa has been a critical strategic location for the United States Armed Forces since the Battle of Okinawa and the end of World War II . The island was formally controlled by the United States Civil Administration of the Ryukyu Islands until 1972, with around 26,000 U.S. military personnel stationed on Okinawa today, comprising about half of the total complement of
632-762: A pacifist country with the 1947 constitution , so America was obligated to protect Japan against foreign threats. During the American military occupation of Japan (1945–1952), which followed the Imperial Japanese surrender on 2 September 1945, in Tokyo Bay, the United States controlled Okinawa Island and the rest of the Ryukyu Islands. The Amami Islands were returned to Japanese control in 1953. The remaining Ryukyu Islands were returned to Japan on 17 June 1971. America kept numerous U.S. military bases on
790-434: A 700-man squad by the spring of 1353 and becoming Guo's most trusted subordinate. Skilled in both military tactics and political maneuvering, he even married Guo's adopted daughter, surnamed Ma. A strong relationship developed between Lady Ma and Zhu, which would later give her great influence at court as empress. Unlike other leaders of his time, Zhu had a small number of relatives who were appointed to important positions. In
948-423: A disciplined army and made efforts to minimize the impact of war on civilians. Although the peak of his political system crumbled in a civil war shortly after his death, other results of his reforms , such as local and regional institutions for Ming state administration and self-government, as well as the financial and examination systems , proved to be resilient. The census, land registration and tax system, and
1106-556: A distinction between the terminal form ( 終止形 ) and the attributive form ( 連体形 ), the genitive function of が ga (lost in the Shuri dialect), the nominative function of ぬ nu (cf. Japanese: の no ), as well as honorific/plain distribution of ga and nu in nominative use. Classical Japanese: 書く kaku One etymology given for the -un and -uru endings is the continuative form suffixed with uri ("to be; to exist", cf. Classical Japanese : 居り wori ): -un developed from
1264-582: A group of military and civilian figures, but the civil officials never attained the same level of prestige and influence as the military. In 1367, he granted the title of duke ( gong ) to three of his closest collaborators—generals Xu Da and Chang Yuchun , and official Li Shanchang . After the establishment of the Ming dynasty, he also bestowed ranks and titles upon a wider circle of loyal generals. These military leaders were chosen based on their abilities, but their positions were often inherited by their sons. As
1422-549: A group of prominent scholars, led by Song Lian and Liu Ji , joined his service. These scholars, known as the Jinhua school, had a clear vision of a unified state governed by a small but efficient bureaucracy. They aimed to eliminate corruption, which was prevalent during the end of the Yuan dynasty. They believed that the state and its laws could be used to improve public morals and customs. While their motives may have differed from
1580-626: A high population density of 1,014.93/km. During the Meiji Period , Okinawan ethnic identity, tradition, culture and language were suppressed by the Meiji government , which sought to assimilate the Okinawans as Japanese ( Yamato ). Many ethnic Japanese have since migrated to Okinawa. The modern inhabitants of Okinawa are mainly ethnic Okinawan , Japanese, half Japanese and mixed. Okinawans are known for their longevity . This particular island
1738-467: A large fire burned down sections of Shuri Castle : "Six castle buildings occupying some 4,200 square metres (45,000 sq ft) in total were gutted." Rebuilding efforts were underway as of 10 February 2020. As of September 2009, the Japanese government estimates the population at 1,384,762, which includes American military personnel and their families. The Okinawan language , called Uchināguchi ,
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#17327654907901896-467: A local Buddhist monastery, which was later closed due to a lack of funds. For the next three years, Zhu wandered as a mendicant monk, becoming familiar with the landscape and people of eastern Henan and northern Anhui. He then returned to the monastery in 1348 and stayed for four years, during which he learned to read, write, and study the basics of Buddhism. In 1352, when the Mongol army burned down
2054-416: A method of dying clothes. And before alveolar and alveolo-palatal consonants, it becomes a syllabic alveolar nasal /n̩/ , as in /kaɴda/ [kan̩da] kanda "vine". In some varieties, it instead becomes a syllabic uvular nasal [ɴ̩] . Elsewhere, its exact realization remains unspecified, and it may vary depending on the first sound of the next word or morpheme. In isolation and at the end of utterances, it
2212-663: A number of people still speak the Okinawan language, most often the elderly. Within Japan, Okinawan is often not seen as a language unto itself but is referred to as the Okinawan dialect ( 沖縄方言 , Okinawa hōgen ) or more specifically the Central and Southern Okinawan dialects ( 沖縄中南部諸方言 , Okinawa Chūnanbu Sho hōgen ) . Okinawan speakers are undergoing language shift as they switch to Japanese, since language use in Okinawa today
2370-561: A peaceful life for the inhabitants of his territory. He achieved this by working closely with local elites and understanding the needs of the villagers, having grown up as the son of a poor peasant himself. Zhu's principles also proved beneficial for the economy of the controlled territory. In 1361, he began minting coins, established a monopoly on the sale of salt and tea, and started collecting traditional customs duties in 1362. These measures resulted in an increase in tax revenues, which were crucial for funding successful military campaigns. In
2528-779: A positive growth of 4.7% from 9,396,200 in the previous year. The U.S. military bases account for 4 to 5% of the island economy. There is also a smaller contingent of Japanese military bases on the island. Several former U.S. military facilities on Okinawa have been re-developed as commercial areas, most notably the American Village in Chatan , which opened in 1998, and the Aeon Mall Okinawa Rycom in Kitanakagusuku , which opened in 2015. The United States maintains American military bases in Japan as part of
2686-603: A process of glottalization of word-initial vowels. Hence, all vowels in Okinawan are predictably glottalized at the beginning of words ( */ame/ → /ʔami/ ami "rain"), save for a few exceptions. High vowel loss or assimilation following this process created a contrast with glottalized approximants and nasal consonants. Compare */uwa/ → /ʔwa/ Q wa "pig" to /wa/ wa "I", or */ine/ → /ʔɴni/ Q nni "rice plant" to */mune/ → /ɴni/ nni "chest". The moraic nasal /N/ has been posited in most descriptions of Okinawan phonology. Like Japanese, /N/ (transcribed using
2844-606: A result, Zhu rejected the Yuan government's offer of the post of governor of Jiangxi province. The ideology of the Red Turbans did not resonate with Zhu. Instead of trying to establish a new intellectual elite based on the Manichean-Buddhist beliefs of the White Lotus , he chose to collaborate with Confucian intellectuals. This shift in approach transformed him from a leader of a popular sectarian uprising to
3002-468: A result, the generals became the dominant ruling class, surpassing the bureaucracy in power and influence. The officials had little political autonomy and simply carried out the emperor's orders and requests. This system mirrored the one established during the Yuan dynasty, with the ruling class of Mongols and Semu being replaced by families of distinguished military commanders. These families were often connected through kinship ties with each other and with
3160-456: A significant advantage over other rivals, but also increased his prestige among his own people. The fighting began when the Han army attacked Nanjing in 1360, but they were quickly defeated by Zhu. In 1361, the war spread to the Han province of Jiangxi, which changed hands multiple times. By the following year, Zhu had gained control of the province. In January 1363, Zhang Shicheng's army launched
3318-405: A small number of endemic Yanbaru kuina (also known as the Okinawa rail), a small flightless bird that is close to extinction. The critically endangered Okinawa woodpecker is also endemic to the island. The Indian mongoose was introduced to the island to prevent the native habu pit viper from attacking the birds. It did not succeed in eliminating the habu but instead preyed on birds, increasing
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#17327654907903476-526: A stone stele at the Tamaudun mausoleum, dating back to 1501. After the invasion of Okinawa by the Shimazu clan of Satsuma in 1609, Okinawan ceased to be used in official affairs. It was replaced by standard Japanese writing and a form of Classical Chinese writing known as kanbun . Despite this change, Okinawan still continued to prosper in local literature up until the nineteenth century. Following
3634-423: A subject of a sentence Pronouns are classified the same as nouns, except that pronouns are more broad. Adverbs are classified as an independent, non-conjugating part of speech that cannot become a subject of a sentence and modifies a declinable word (用言; verbs, adverbs, adjectives) that comes after the adverb. There are two main categories to adverbs and several subcategories within each category, as shown in
3792-468: A surprise attack on Anfeng, the residence of Song emperor Han Lin'er, resulting in the death of Liu Futong , the de facto leader of the regime. Despite being formally under the control of the Song government, Zhu offered his army to assist Han Lin'er, who was still highly respected among the troops. As a result, the powerless Han Lin'er was relocated to Chuzhou , located west of Nanjing on the opposite side of
3950-555: A villager from the right bank of the Huai River . His difficult upbringing never left his mind, and even as emperor, he held onto the ideal of a self-sufficient village life in peace, a dream that was unattainable in his youth. He made every effort to make this dream a reality for his subjects. The ultimate goal of the Hongwu Emperor's reforms was to achieve political stability for the state. All policies, institutions, and
4108-574: Is a Japonic language , derived from Proto-Japonic and is therefore related to Japanese . The split between Old Japanese and the Ryukyuan languages has been estimated to have occurred as early as the 1st century AD to as late as the 12th century AD. Chinese and Japanese characters were first introduced by a Japanese missionary in 1265. Hiragana was a much more popular writing system than kanji ; thus, Okinawan poems were commonly written solely in hiragana or with little kanji. Okinawan became
4266-537: Is a toll road that runs from Naha to Nago , and has a speed limit of 80 km/h (50 mph), the highest on the island. There are many ferries to many of the nearby islands, such as Ie Shima . Tomarin Port in Naha, has ferries to nearby islands such as Aguni , Tokashiki and Zamami . With Kunigami district , it has an area of 764 square kilometers (295 sq mi) and a population of about 120,000. There
4424-415: Is a so-called Blue Zone , an area where the people live longer than most others elsewhere in the world. Five times as many Okinawans reach 100 years old compared to the rest of Japan. As of 2002 there were 34.7 centenarians for every 100,000 inhabitants, which is the highest ratio worldwide. Possible explanations are diet, low-stress lifestyle, caring community, activity, and spirituality of the inhabitants of
4582-479: Is also agriculture with tropical fruit such as Malpighia emarginata . Tourist attractions include Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium (at one time the world's largest aquarium), Century Beach, Pineapple Park, the Orion Beer Factory and Hiji Falls . In recent years, Okinawa has become an increasingly popular destination for tourists from China and Southeast Asia. In 2018, Okinawa attracted 9,842,400 tourists,
4740-477: Is far from stable. Okinawans are assimilating and accenting standard Japanese due to the similarity of the two languages, the standardized and centralized education system, the media, business and social contact with mainlanders and previous attempts from Japan to suppress the native languages. Okinawan is still kept alive in popular music, tourist shows and in theaters featuring a local drama called uchinā shibai , which depict local customs and manners. Okinawan
4898-477: Is in the northeastern end of Okinawa Prefecture . Since 1972 over 1,000 hectares (2,500 acres) of land has been added via reclamation . It is roughly 640 kilometres (400 mi) south of the main island of Kyushu. Okinawa is connected to nearby islands near a land bridge: Katsuren Peninsula is connected via the Mid-Sea Road to Henza Island, Miyagi Island, Ikei Island, and Hamahiga Island. Similarly, from
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5056-403: Is largely due to the shift to Standard Japanese. Throughout history, Okinawan languages have been treated as dialects of Standard Japanese. For instance, in the 20th century, many schools used "dialect tags" to punish the students who spoke in Okinawan. Consequently, many of the remaining speakers today are choosing not to transmit their languages to younger generations due to the stigmatization of
5214-571: Is much nature with subtropical rainforest . With Nakagami district , it has an area of 280 square kilometers (110 sq mi) and a population of about 590,000. Most U.S. military facilities are located here. Urasoe has strong connections with the southern municipalities, including the Southern Wide Area Municipal Area Administrative Association, Nishihara town, Nakagusuku village, and Kitanakagusuku Village. These belong to
5372-501: Is realized as a velar nasal [ŋ̍] . The Okinawan language was historically written using an admixture of kanji and hiragana . The hiragana syllabary is believed to have first been introduced from mainland Japan to the Ryukyu Kingdom some time during the reign of king Shunten in the early thirteenth century. It is likely that Okinawans were already in contact with hanzi (Chinese characters) due to extensive trade between
5530-433: Is roughly 640 kilometres (350 nmi; 400 mi) south of the main island of Kyushu and the rest of Japan. It is 500 km (270 nmi; 310 mi) northeast of Taiwan . The total population of Okinawa Island is 1,384,762. The greater Naha area has roughly 800,000 residents, while the city itself has about 320,000 people. Naha is the seat of Okinawa Prefecture on the southwestern part of Okinawa Island. Okinawa has
5688-496: Is spoken by adults only, but several local groups promote the use of the Okinawan language by younger people. Whereas the northern half of Okinawa Island is sparsely populated, the south-central and southern parts of the island are markedly urbanized —particularly the city of Naha and the urban corridor stretching north from there to Okinawa City . The population distribution is approximately 120,000 in northern Okinawa, 590,000 in central Okinawa and 540,000 in southern Okinawa. It has
5846-427: Is the signature dish and consists of wheat noodles served hot in a soup, usually with pork (rib or pork belly). This contrasts with the mainland soba, which is buckwheat noodles. Rafute , which is braised pork belly, is another popular Okinawan dish. American presence on the island has also led to some creative dishes such as taco rice , which is now a common meal served in bentos , and the common use of spam . Among
6004-527: Is unmotivated. Consequently, the existence of /ɸ/ must be regarded as independent of /h/ , even though the two overlap. Barring a few words that resulted from the former change, the aspirate /h/ also arose from the odd lenition of /k/ and /s/ , as well as words loaned from other dialects. Before the glide /j/ and the high vowel /i/ , it is pronounced closer to [ç] , as in Japanese. The plosive consonants /t/ and /k/ historically palatalized and affricated into /t͡ɕ/ before and occasionally following
6162-509: The Gokoku-ji temple in Naha from 1846 to 1854. In 1879, Japan annexed the entire Ryukyu archipelago. The Meiji government then established Okinawa Prefecture . The monarchy in Shuri was abolished, and the deposed King Shō Tai was forced to relocate to Tokyo . Hostility against Japan increased in the islands immediately after the annexation, in part because of the systematic attempt on
6320-605: The Meiji Restoration , the Japanese government abolished the domain system and formally annexed the Ryukyu Islands to Japan as the Okinawa Prefecture in 1879. To promote national unity, the government then introduced standard education and opened Japanese-language schools based on the Tokyo dialect . Students were discouraged and chastised for speaking or even writing in the local "dialect", notably through
6478-495: The Motobu Peninsula on the northwestern side, all of Sesoko-jima plus Yagaji Island and Kōri-jima are connected by bridges. Okinawa Island has several beaches such as Manza Beach, Emerald Beach, Okuma Beach, Zanpa Beach, Moon Beach and Sunset Beach (Chatan-cho). Mount Omoto , at 525.5 m (1,724 ft), is the highest mountain in Okinawa, with Mount Yonaha being the second highest. The Motobu Peninsula in
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6636-548: The Shuri – Naha variant is generally recognized as the de facto standard, as it had been used as the official language of the Ryukyu Kingdom since the reign of King Shō Shin (1477–1526). Moreover, as the former capital of Shuri was built around the royal palace, the language used by the royal court became the regional and literary standard, which thus flourished in songs and poems written during that era. Today, most Okinawans speak Okinawan Japanese , although
6794-494: The United States Forces Japan , spread among 31 areas, across 13 bases and 48 training sites. United States military installations cover approximately 25% of the island. Early Okinawan history is defined by midden or shell heap culture and is divided into Early, Middle, and Late Shell Mound periods. The Early Shell Mound period was a hunter-gatherer society, with the wave-like opening Jōmon pottery . In
6952-456: The island of Okinawa , as well as in the surrounding islands of Kerama , Kumejima , Tonaki , Aguni and a number of smaller peripheral islands. Central Okinawan distinguishes itself from the speech of Northern Okinawa, which is classified independently as the Kunigami language . Both languages are listed by UNESCO as endangered . Though Okinawan encompasses a number of local dialects,
7110-547: The phonemic and allophonic level. Namely, Okinawan retains the labialized consonants /kʷ/ and /ɡʷ/ which were lost in Late Middle Japanese , possesses a glottal stop /ʔ/ , features a voiceless bilabial fricative /ɸ/ distinct from the aspirate /h/ , and has two distinctive affricates which arose from a number of different sound processes . Additionally, Okinawan lacks the major allophones [t͡s] and [d͡z] found in Japanese, having historically fronted
7268-403: The prefectures of Japan , Okinawa has the youngest and fastest-growing population but has the lowest employment rate and average income. The island economy is primarily driven by tourism and the U.S. military presence, with efforts in recent years to diversify into other sectors. The Motobu Peninsula has a large-scale quarry and cement factory, taking advantage of the limestone in the area. There
7426-538: The Chief Military Commission was in charge of the army. However, under later emperors, the civil administration, which was the core of the government, became primarily focused on supporting the army financially and logistically. Initially, the provinces were under the control of the general, with the civil authorities also reporting to them. However, in the 1370s, the military's influence decreased as ministers were appointed to leadership positions in
7584-515: The Duke of Wu ( Wu Guogong ) and recognized his rule in all the territories he conquered. However, Zhu feared the advance of the Yuan troops in the southern direction, all the way to Nanjing. As a result, he proposed cooperation with Chaghan Temur. After Chaghan Temur's army was unable to make progress in Shandong and he was murdered in the summer of 1362, the threat from the Yuan side disappeared. As
7742-579: The Dutch, Nagasaki , Tsushima , and Kagoshima became the only Japanese trading ports offering connections with the outside world. At some time, karate came into existence as a type of systematized martial arts . Several Europeans visited Ryukyu starting in the late 18th century. The most important visits to Okinawa were from Captain Basil Hall in 1816 and Commodore Matthew C. Perry in 1852. A Christian missionary, Bernard Jean Bettelheim , lived in
7900-417: The Han's territories. Numerous Han prefectural and county commanders surrendered without resistance, and Huguang was pacified by General Xu Da by April 1365. By February 1365, Generals Chang Yuchun and Deng Yu had gained control over central and southern Jiangxi. This annexation of territories provided Zhu with a significant population advantage over its adversaries. The main threats to Zhu at this time were
8058-654: The Japanese Satsuma Domain launched the invasion of Ryukyu , ultimately capturing the king and his capital after a long struggle. Ryukyu was forced to cede the Amami Islands and become a vassal of Satsuma. The kingdom became both a tributary of China and a tributary of Japan. Because China would not make a formal trade agreement unless a country was a tributary state, the kingdom was a convenient loophole for Japanese trade with China. When Japan officially closed off trade with European nations except for
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#17327654907908216-601: The Japanese government annexed Ryukyu and established Okinawa Prefecture. The prefectural office mainly consisted of people from Kagoshima Prefecture where the Satsuma Domain used to be. This caused the modernization of Okinawa as well as language shift to Japanese. As a result, Japanese became the standard language for administration, education, media, and literature. In 1902, the National Language Research Council ( 国語調査委員会 ) began
8374-573: The Ming, the local regime refused to submit. In response, General Fu Youde was ordered to lead an attack from the north in 1371. Simultaneously, Tang He and Liao Yongzhong advanced with a fleet up the Yangtze River. Although they initially faced resistance, they were able to push forward with the help of artillery and the enemy's decision to send part of their defenders north against the second army's successful advance. By September 1371, Sichuan had been conquered. This victory ensured stability in
8532-577: The Mongol warlord Köke Temür in northern China and Zhang Shicheng, who was based in Suzhou. Expansion of the army with former Han troops required a reorganization of the military. Therefore, in 1364, Zhu implemented the Weisuo system, which involved the formation of guards ( wei ) comprising 5,600 soldiers. These guards were further divided into 5 battalions ( qianhusuo ) of 1,120 soldiers each, with 10 companies ( baihusuo ) in each battalion. After 1364,
8690-461: The Nanchang garrison , led by Deng Yu ( 鄧兪 ), held out until early June 1363. In mid-August, Zhu's army and fleet finally set out from Nanjing with approximately 100,000 soldiers. The two fleets clashed on Lake Poyang on 29 August 1363, engaging in a four-day battle that resulted in the defeat of the Han fleet and the death of Chen Youliang. In 1364–1365, Zhu focused on conquering and absorbing
8848-474: The Northern Ryukyuan languages. Since the creation of Okinawa Prefecture, Okinawan has been labeled a dialect of Japanese as part of a policy of assimilation. Later, Japanese linguists, such as Tōjō Misao , who studied the Ryukyuan languages argued that they are indeed dialects. This is due to the misconception that Japan is a homogeneous state (one people, one language, one nation), and classifying
9006-613: The Ryukyu Kingdom was colonized by the Satsuma Domain in the south of Japan. However, Satsuma did not fully invade the Ryukyu in fear of colliding with China, which had a stronger trading relationship with the Ryukyu at the time. When Ryukyu was annexed by Japan in 1879, the majority of people on Okinawa Island spoke Okinawan. Within 10 years, the Japanese government began an assimilation policy of Japanization , where Ryukyuan languages were gradually suppressed. The education system
9164-439: The Ryukyu Kingdom and China, Japan and Korea. However, hiragana gained more widespread acceptance throughout the Ryukyu Islands, and most documents and letters were exclusively transcribed using this script, in contrast to in Japan where writing solely in hiragana was considered "women's script". The Omoro Sōshi ( おもろさうし ), a sixteenth-century compilation of songs and poetry, and a few preserved writs of appointments dating from
9322-662: The Ryukyuan group linguistically. The Yonaguni dialect is very different in phonetics from the other groups but it comes closest to the Yaeyama dialect lexically. Outside Japan, Okinawan is considered a separate language from Japanese. This was first proposed by Basil Hall Chamberlain , who compared the relationship between Okinawan and Japanese to that of the Romance languages . UNESCO has marked it as an endangered language. UNESCO listed six Okinawan language varieties as endangered languages in 2009. The endangerment of Okinawan
9480-458: The Ryukyuan languages as such would discredit this assumption. The present-day official stance of the Japanese government remains that Okinawan is a dialect, and it is common within the Japanese population for it to be called 沖縄方言 ( okinawa hōgen ) or 沖縄弁 ( okinawa-ben ) , which means "Okinawa dialect (of Japanese )". The policy of assimilation, coupled with increased interaction between Japan and Okinawa through media and economics, has led to
9638-663: The Ryūkyū Kingdom with its capital at Shuri Castle . His descendants conquered the Amami Islands . In 1469, King Shō Taikyū died, so the royal government chose a man named Kanemaru as the new king, who chose the name Shō En and established the Second Shō Dynasty. His son Shō Shin conquered the Sakishima Islands and centralized the royal government, the military, and the noro priestesses. In 1609,
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#17327654907909796-519: The Southern Wide Area Administrative Association. With Kunigami district or Yamabaru, it has an area of 764 km (295 sq mi) and a population of about 120,000. Rich nature remains. Okinawan language The Okinawan language ( 沖縄口 , ウチナーグチ , Uchināguchi , [ʔut͡ɕinaːɡut͡ɕi] ) or Central Okinawan is a Northern Ryukyuan language spoken primarily in the southern half of
9954-819: The U.S.-Japan alliance since 1951. Most U.S. military is in Okinawa Prefecture. In 2013, there were approximately 50,000 U.S. military personnel stationed in Japan with 40,000 dependents and 5,500 American civilians employed by the United States Department of Defense . About 26,000 U.S. military personnel are on Okinawa Island. There are 13 United States military bases on Okinawa Island. Approximately 62% of all United States bases in Japan are on Okinawa. They cover 25% of Okinawa island. The major bases are Futenma , Kadena , Hansen , Torii , Schwab , Foster , and Kinser . There are 28 U.S. military facilities on Okinawa. They are mainly concentrated in
10112-598: The Weisuo military system all endured until the end of the dynasty. His descendants continued to rule over all of China until 1644, and the southern region for an additional seventeen years. Zhu Yuanzhang was born in 1328 in Zhongli ( 鍾離 ) village, located in Haozhou (present-day Fengyang , Anhui ). He was the youngest of four sons in a poor peasant family. He was given the name Zhu Chongba ( 朱重八 ) at birth, but later used
10270-464: The Yangtze River. However, the army remained stationed in the north until August 1363. The departure of Zhu's main forces to the north presented Chen with an opportunity to turn the tide of the war. He quickly raised an army of 300,000, outnumbering Zhu's remaining forces. Chen's plan was to capture Nanchang and then rally the local leaders in Jiangxi to join his cause and attack Nanjing. However,
10428-464: The Yuan dynasty's power fell in the spring of 1352. Guo Zixing , Sun Deyai, and three other leaders, with the support of the local elite, organized the army and took control in order to establish order in the city and its surrounding areas. The arrival of Peng and Zhao was seen as a clear connection to the rebels in the eyes of the Yuan dynasty. Guo submitted to Peng, while his four colleagues submitted to Zhao. On 15 April 1352, Zhu Yuanzhang arrived in
10586-511: The army was made up of 17 guards consisting of veterans who had previously served before 1363. The older veterans were demobilized, while the others were assigned to the garrison in Nanjing where they worked as military peasants, using their production to provide food for the army. Additional soldiers, who were reliable but had shorter periods of service, were acquired during the conquest of southern Anhui and central Zhejiang. They were stationed in
10744-502: The attacking troops, and the plan was executed with ease due to the attacking army's superiority. The ten-month siege of Suzhou began in December 1366. In January 1367, Han Lin'er drowned in the Yangtze River. As a result, Zhu's state of Wu officially declared its independence. A year later, in 1368, Zhu Yuanzhang proclaimed himself emperor and changed the name of the state. He followed the Mongol tradition of elevating titles and named
10902-411: The bases out of core areas following incidents involving military personnel and resultant protests (including the 1995 Okinawa rape incident ). In 2012, an agreement was struck between the United States and Japan to reduce the number of U.S. military personnel on the island, moving 9,000 personnel to other locations and moving bases out of heavily populated Greater Naha, but 10,000 Marines will remain on
11060-520: The beginning of 1360, Zhu controlled the southwestern part of Jiangsu, all of Anhui south of the Yangtze River, and the inland of Zhejiang. By 1393, these territories had a population of 7.8 million. The domain (known as the Kingdom of Wu since 1363), led by Zhang Shicheng, had comparable power with a larger population but worse organization. Chen Youlang's state of Han had a similar situation. The state of Han , located west of Zhu's territory, included
11218-463: The captured prince Maidilibala to Mongolia. A favorite passage of the Hongwu Emperor from Daode jing ( The Way and Its Power ): Let the state be small and the people few: So that the people... So that the people... Though adjoining states be within sight of one another The Hongwu Emperor's public statements were filled with sympathy for the peasants and a deep distrust of the wealthy landowners and scholars. He often referred to himself as
11376-621: The central and eastern armies were ultimately defeated by the Mongols. These failures in 1372 shattered the Hongwu Emperor's dream of becoming the heir to the entire Yuan Empire, both in China and on the steppe. Furthermore, Japanese piracy increased and rebellions broke out in the provinces of Guangxi , Huguang , Sichuan, and Shaanxi. As a result, the Chinese forces in the north shifted their focus to defense, and two years later, they returned
11534-421: The central area. At one point, Okinawa hosted approximately 1,200 nuclear warheads. There were several nuclear weapons incidents on Okinawa and in the sea near the islands. In 1997, the peculiar inhabitant population of this island [both Americans and Japanese living together since 1945] was used to prove a curious conjecture. By that time nine subtypes of JC virus had been found, each from a different segment of
11692-407: The chart below, with major allophones presented in parentheses. The only consonant that can occur as a syllable coda is the archiphoneme |n| . Many analyses treat it as an additional phoneme /N/ , the moraic nasal , though it never contrasts with /n/ or /m/ . The consonant system of the Okinawan language is fairly similar to that of standard Japanese, but it does present a few differences on
11850-500: The city. Despite starting as a rank-and-file fighter, his exceptional leadership, decisiveness, warrior skills, and intelligence quickly gained him significant authority. Not only was Zhu known for his intelligence, but also for his unattractive appearance. He swiftly recruited 24 companions, who would eventually become generals in the Ming army, from his acquaintances who had already joined the rebels, and became their leader. Thanks to his abilities, he rose to prominence quickly, leading
12008-549: The civilian population – were either killed or committed suicide during the Battle of Okinawa and the Pacific War. Very few Japanese ended up in POW camps . This may have been because of Japanese soldiers' reluctance to surrender. The total number of casualties shocked American military strategists. This made them apprehensive to invade the other main islands of Japan, because it would result in very high casualties. Japan became
12166-449: The development of Okinawan Japanese , which is a dialect of Japanese influenced by the Okinawan and Kunigami languages. Japanese and Okinawan only share 60% of the same vocabulary, despite both being Japonic languages. Okinawan linguist Seizen Nakasone states that the Ryukyuan languages are in fact groupings of similar dialects. As each community has its own distinct dialect, there is no "one language". Nakasone attributes this diversity to
12324-662: The early 1970s, according to a U.S. government report, Okinawa was a key conduit for smuggling drugs such as heroin from Thailand via Okinawa to the United States. It was called "The Okinawa System" in the global drug trade. A testimony by a head of the Department of Defense said that drug abuse was "quite extensive." It began in the second half of 1968; marijuana was smuggled from Thailand to Okinawa and grown near an unidentified U.S. Marine Corps training area in northern Okinawa. A 100 kg (220 lb) package of marijuana fell from an aircraft, and another 90 kg (200 lb)
12482-403: The east and Zhu with a small detachment to the south, hoping to divide them and be able to destroy them. However, contrary to Zhao's expectations, Zhu successfully occupied several counties and bolstered his army to 20,000 soldiers. Guo moved with Zhao's ten thousand men to join him. In the beginning of 1355, Zhu, Guo, and Zhang Shicheng , who was located further east, made the decision to leave
12640-580: The eastern coast of the province. In the summer of 1359, the Mongol warlord Chaghan Temur expelled Han Lin'er from Kaifeng . Han was left with only a few hundred soldiers, but as Chaghan Temur focused on conquering Shandong , Han's group was able to survive in Anfeng, a prefectural city in the west of Anhui. After the retreat from Kaifeng, the Song government's power weakened rapidly. Apart from Zhu Yuanzhang's effectively independent Jiangnan, no Song province survived 1362. In 1361, Han Lin'er appointed Zhu as
12798-498: The effects of prolonged wars. The emperor had a strong understanding of the structure of society and believed in implementing reforms to improve institutions. This approach differed from the Confucian belief that the ruler's moral example was the most important factor. The Hongwu Emperor also prioritized the safety of his people and the loyalty of his subordinates, demonstrating pragmatism and caution in military affairs. He maintained
12956-663: The effort to consolidate the American troop presence on the island, though away from urban Naha. In December 2016 the U.S. returned 10,000 acres (40 km; 16 sq mi) of the Northern Training Area on Okinawa to Japan. This reduced the footprint of the U.S. forces by 20% on the island. It was the biggest land return since 1972. Okinawa has various historical buildings and monuments, such as feudal castles, ruins, UNESCO, and other historical significant sites. There are multiple festivals on Okinawa throughout
13114-481: The emperor met with his generals in the captured city of Kaifeng to confirm plans for the campaign. In mid-August, the Ming army resumed its march and reached Dadu (present-day Beijing ) in early September. They defeated the Mongol army outside the city and then occupied it, while the Yuan emperor Toghon Temür fled north to Shangdu . The city was renamed Beiping (Pacified North) by the Chinese. The campaign then continued with an attack on Shanxi . In January 1369,
13272-471: The emperor's, they shared a desire to bring about change through a strong state and an active monarch. As an independent ruler, Zhu advocated for moderation in tax collection. However, other rebel leaders and his own generals prioritized military needs and often confiscated grain from peasants to feed their soldiers or prevent it from falling into the hands of their enemies. In contrast, Zhu placed great importance on maintaining orderly government and promoting
13430-695: The empire "Great Ming" ( Da Ming ; 大明 ; 'Great Radiance'). He also renamed the upcoming "second year of the Wu era" as the "first year of the Hongwu era" ( 洪武 ; 'vastly martial'). In the autumn of 1367, Zhu's troops launched an attack against Fang Guozhen. By December of that year, they had successfully taken control of the entire coast. In November 1367, Hu Mei 's army, along with the fleets of Tang He and Liao Yongzhong, began their journey south. By February 1368, they had easily conquered Fujian, and by April 1368, they had also taken control of Guangdong. In July 1368, with
13588-471: The empire was Nanjing (Southern Capital), which was known as Yingtian until 1368. In the 1360s and 1370s, the capital underwent extensive construction. A workforce of 200,000 individuals surrounded the city with walls that were almost 26 km long, making them the longest in the world at the time. Additionally, an imperial palace and government quarter were built. In 1368, the emperor resided in Kaifeng during
13746-456: The enemy could exploit the potential of the newly conquered territories. However, their offensive was repulsed in the spring of 1365. Before launching a final attack on the enemy's heartland, the Suzhou region, Zhu and his generals decided to first "cut off the wings" of Wu by occupying the territory north of the Yangtze and the Wu part of Zhejiang. Xu Da was appointed as the supreme commander of
13904-635: The enemy. He was now in command of an army of 100,000 soldiers, which was divided into divisions or wings ( 翼 ; yi ). In Nanjing itself, there were eight divisions and one per prefecture. From 1355 to 1357, he launched attacks against Zhang Shicheng in the direction of Suzhou and successfully occupied southern Jiangxi ; after this, the border with Zhang's state was fortified on both sides and remained stable until 1366. In Zhejiang , from 1358 to 1359, he controlled four impoverished inland prefectures, while Zhang Shicheng held control over four prosperous northern coastal prefectures, and Fang Guozhen occupied
14062-438: The ensuing battles, Guo Tianxu, Zhang Tianyu and Chen Esen himself were killed. In March 1356, Zhu once again marched on Jiqing. The new Mongol commander, Chen Zhaoxian ( 陳兆先 ), who was the nephew and successor of Chen Esen, surrendered with 36,000 men. In April 1356, Zhu successfully entered the city. After conquering it, he renamed the city Yingtian, which means "In response to Heaven". In May 1356, Han Lin'er appointed Zhu as
14220-602: The entire country. He gradually defeated rival rebel leaders, with the decisive moment being his victory over Chen Youliang in the Battle of Lake Poyang in 1363. In 1364, he declared himself King of Wu. In 1367, however, he still acknowledged his formal subordination to the main Red Turban leader, Han Lin'er , who claimed to be the successor of the Song dynasty . In early 1368, after successfully dominating southern and central China, he chose to rename his state. He decided on
14378-454: The first becoming a flap in word-medial position, and the second sometimes becoming a plosive in word-initial position. For example, /ɾuː/ rū "dragon" may be strengthened into /duː/ dū , and /hasidu/ hashidu "door" conversely flaps into /hasiɾu/ hashiru . The two sounds do, however, still remain distinct in a number of words and verbal constructions. Okinawan also features a distinctive glottal stop /ʔ/ that historically arose from
14536-425: The former Han territory, with field armies concentrated in Nanchang and Wuchang, and garrisons scattered across Jiangxi and Huguang. The remaining soldiers, mostly former Han soldiers, were joined by some veterans in the field armies sent to fight against the state of Wu under the leadership of Generals Xu Da and Chang Yuchun. After Chen Youliang's defeat, Zhu took on the title of King of Wu ( Wu wang ) starting from
14694-544: The future capital, named Zhongdu ( 中都 ; 'Central Capital'), began with grand plans. The area had been largely abandoned since the famine of the 1340s, so landless families from the south were resettled in Fengyang. However, in 1375, the emperor ultimately abandoned the idea of relocating the capital and the construction was halted. Upon ascending to the throne, the Hongwu Emperor appointed his wife as empress and his eldest son, Zhu Biao, as his heir. He surrounded himself with
14852-517: The future, as well as any changes to his laws. The compilation of the new code, known as the Great Ming Code , began in 1364. This code, which was heavily influenced by Confucian principles, was largely based on the old Tang Code of 653. The initial wording was agreed upon in 1367, and the final version was adopted in 1397. It remained unchanged until the fall of the empire, although additional provisions were later added. The capital of
15010-611: The glide /j/ and the high vowel /i/ : */kiri/ → /t͡ɕiɾi/ chiri "fog", and */k(i)jora/ → /t͡ɕuɾa/ chura- "beautiful". This change preceded vowel raising, so that instances where /i/ arose from */e/ did not trigger palatalization: */ke/ → /kiː/ kī "hair". Their voiced counterparts /d/ and /ɡ/ underwent the same effect, becoming /d͡ʑ/ under such conditions: */unaɡi/ → /ʔɴnad͡ʑi/ Q nnaji "eel", and */nokoɡiri/ → /nukud͡ʑiɾi/ nukujiri "saw"; but */kaɡeɴ/ → /kaɡiɴ/ kagin "seasoning". Both /t/ and /d/ may or may not also allophonically affricate before
15168-462: The head of Jiangnan Province, one of the five provinces of the Song state. Guo's remaining son was chosen as his deputy. However, Zhu soon accused Guo's son of plotting against him and had him executed. This allowed Zhu to establish clear leadership and he immediately began to build his administration. However, he could not fully trust the loyalty of his generals. Until the victory at Lake Poyang in 1363, there were instances of betrayal and defection to
15326-448: The high vowel /u/ , and /ɸ/ does not occur before the rounded vowel /o/ . This suggests that an overlap between /ɸ/ and /h/ exists, and so the contrast in front of other vowels can be denoted through labialization. However, this analysis fails to take account of the fact that Okinawan has not fully undergone the diachronic change */p/ → /ɸ/ → */h/ as in Japanese, and that the suggested clusterization and labialization into */hw/
15484-490: The imperial family. The administrative structure of the Ming dynasty was modeled after the Yuan model. The civil administration was led by the Central Secretariat , headed by two Grand Councilors who were informally known as Prime Ministers. This Secretariat was responsible for six ministries: Personnel , Revenue , Rites , War , Justice , and (Public) Works . The Censorate oversaw the administration, while
15642-550: The imperial title. In June, Li conquered Yingchang and Ajushiridara fled. However, his empress and son Maidilibala were captured along with more than 50,000 soldiers. The Mongolian ruler continued to flee until reaching Karakorum, where the remnants of Köke's army had also retreated. After successfully defeating the Mongols, the Ming government shifted its focus to the Xia state in Sichuan. Despite maintaining positive relations with
15800-611: The influence of a southeastern-Pacific culture. After the Late Shell Mound period, agriculture started about the 12th century, and the population center moved from the seashore to higher places. This period is called the Gusuku period. Gusuku is a term used for the distinctive Ryukyuan form of castles or fortresses. Many gusukus and related cultural remains in the Ryukyu Islands have been listed by UNESCO as World Heritage Sites . There are three perspectives regarding
15958-469: The island (who demand no U.S. troops at all anywhere on the island). Tokyo says the U.S. bases are important for national security. Locals complain that despite being home to less than 1% of Japan's population and area, Okinawa hosts the majority of the U.S. military presence in Japan. In late December 2013, Governor Hirokazu Nakaima gave permission for land reclamation to begin for a new U.S. military base at Henoko, reneging on previous promises and furthering
16116-422: The island, along with other U.S. military units. Attempts to completely close bases on the southern third of the island, where 90% of the population lives (all but about 120,000 people) have been impeded by both the American desire that alternative locations be found where bases subject to closure could move to (e.g. Henoko Peninsula , mid-island), as well as by local Okinawan opposition to any suggested locations on
16274-409: The island. The Okinawan diet consists of low-fat, low-salt foods, such as whole fruits and vegetables, legumes, tofu, and seaweed. Okinawa is the fifth largest island of Japan. The island has an area of 1,206.99 square kilometers (466.02 sq mi). The coastline is 476 kilometers (296 mi) long. The straight-line distance is about 106.6 kilometers (66.2 mi) from north to south. Okinawa
16432-554: The islands. There are 32 United States military bases on Okinawa Island by the U.S.-Japan alliance since 1951. U.S. bases on Okinawa played critical roles in the Korean War , Vietnam War , Laotian Civil War , Cambodian campaign , War in Afghanistan , and Iraq War . Okinawa served as a prime staging post for the aforementioned wars. Its ports and airports were used to transport supplies. The base at Camp Chinen, Nanjo City
16590-550: The isolation caused by immobility, citing the story of his mother who wanted to visit the town of Nago but never made the 25 km trip before she died of old age. The contemporary dialects in Ryukyuan language are divided into three large groups: Amami-Okinawa dialects, Miyako-Yaeyama dialects, and the Yonaguni dialect. All of them are mutually unintelligible. Amami is located in the Kagoshima prefecture but it belongs to
16748-400: The language using hiragana with kanji. In any case, no standard or consensus concerning spelling issues has ever been formalized, so discrepancies between modern literary works are common. Technically, they are not syllables, but rather morae . Each mora in Okinawan will consist of one or two kana characters. If two, then a smaller version of kana follows the normal sized kana. In each cell of
16906-572: The language. The Okinawan language is still spoken by communities of Okinawan immigrants in Brazil . The first immigrants from the island of Okinawa to Brazil landed in the Port of Santos in 1908 drawn by the hint of work and farmable land. Once in a new country and far from their homeland, they found themselves in a place where there was no prohibition of their language, allowing them to willingly speak, celebrate and preserve their speech and culture, up to
17064-674: The languages in the past. There have been several revitalization efforts made to reverse this language shift. However, Okinawan is still poorly taught in formal institutions due to the lack of support from the Okinawan Education Council: education in Okinawa is conducted exclusively in Japanese, and children do not study Okinawan as their second language at school. As a result, at least two generations of Okinawans have grown up without any proficiency in their local languages both at home and school. The Okinawan language has five vowels, all of which may be long or short, though
17222-551: The latter part of this period, archaeological sites moved near the seashore, suggesting the engagement of people in fishing. On Okinawa, rice was not cultivated until the Middle Shell Mound period. Shell rings for arms made of shells obtained in the Sakishima Islands , namely Miyakojima and Yaeyama islands , were imported by Japan. In these islands, the presence of shell axes from 2,500 years ago suggests
17380-557: The leader of a political movement seeking traditional legitimacy. Nevertheless, he still relied on the support of his officers who shared his devotion to the teachings of the White Lotus. In 1354, he began working with Li Shanchang , a landowner from Dingyuan County, the first county conquered by Zhu. Li Shanchang was responsible for running the civil administration, and as Zhu conquered more cities, he recruited more scholars to join his cause. After repeated requests from Zhu in 1360,
17538-461: The linguistic unification of Japan to Standard Japanese. This caused the linguistic stigmatization of many local varieties in Japan including Okinawan. As the discrimination accelerated, Okinawans themselves started to abandon their languages and shifted to Standard Japanese. Okinawan dialect card , similar to Welsh Not in Wales, were adopted in Okinawa, Japan. Under American administration, there
17696-415: The main army, led by Xu Da, captured Taiyuan , while Köke Temür retreated to Gansu . In the spring of 1369, Ming troops also began to occupy Shaanxi . The province was fully taken by September 1369, but border skirmishes with Köke Temür's troops persisted until 1370. In 1370, the Ming government launched a two-pronged attack on Mongolia. Generals Li Wenzhong and Feng Sheng led an attack from Beijing to
17854-469: The mid vowel /e/ , though this pronunciation is increasingly rare. Similarly, the fricative consonant /s/ palatalizes into [ɕ] before the glide /j/ and the vowel /i/ , including when /i/ historically derives from /e/ : */sekai/ → [ɕikeː] shikē "world". It may also palatalize before the vowel /e/ , especially so in the context of topicalization : [duɕi] dushi → [duɕeː] dusē or dushē "( topic ) friend". In general, sequences containing
18012-603: The monks' dwellings during the Red Turban Rebellion , Zhu joined one of the rebel divisions. The harsh taxation policies, famine, and catastrophic flooding in the Yellow River basin, caused by inadequate flood control measures, led to widespread opposition to the rule of the Mongol Yuan dynasty. This discontent was further fueled by the presence of Taoist and Buddhist secret societies and sects, with
18170-488: The months of June–August and October–November, leading to the city being known as Beijing (Northern Capital). In 1369, the Hongwu Emperor proposed a debate on the relocation of the capital. In August, his suggestion to move the capital to Fengyang (then known as Linhuai), the emperor's hometown in northern Anhui , on the south bank of the Huai River, approximately 100 km north of Nanjing, was approved. Construction of
18328-510: The most prominent being the White Lotus society. In 1351, a rebellion known as the Red Turban Rebellion erupted and quickly spread throughout northern China. Despite the initial disorganization of the Mongol troops, they were able to launch a counteroffensive and advance along the Grand Canal . In October 1352, the Mongols captured Xuzhou , causing the rebel commanders Peng Da and Zhao Yunyong to flee south to Haozhou. In Haozhou,
18486-528: The name Da Ming , which translates to "Great Radiance", for his empire. Additionally, he designated Hongwu , meaning "Vastly Martial", as the name of the era and the motto of his reign. In the following four-year war, he drove out the Mongol armies loyal to the Yuan dynasty and unified the country. However, his attempt to conquer Mongolia ended in failure. During the thirty-year reign of the Hongwu Emperor, Ming China experienced significant growth and recovered from
18644-418: The name Zhu Xingzong ( 朱興宗 ) in adulthood. After joining the rebels, he went by the name Zhu Yuanzhang. His father, Zhu Wusi , lived in Nanjing but fled to the countryside to avoid tax collectors. His paternal grandfather was a gold miner, and his maternal grandfather was a fortune-teller and seer. In 1344, during a plague epidemic, Zhu Yuanzhang's parents and two brothers died. He managed to survive by entering
18802-480: The nature of gusukus : that they were holy places, dwellings encircled by stones, and castles of the rulers. In this period, porcelain trade between Okinawa and other countries became commonplace, and Okinawa was an important relay point in eastern-Asian trade. Ryukyuan kings, such as Shunten and Eiso , were important rulers. An attempted Mongolian invasion in 1291 during the Eiso Dynasty failed. Hiragana
18960-481: The new year (4 February) of 1364, which was the same title used by Zhang Shicheng since October 1363. Despite this, he still acknowledged his subordinate status to emperor Han Lin'er and used the Song era of Longfeng as long as Han was alive. However, he ran his own administration, following the model of the Yuan dynasty. In 1365–67, Zhu conquered the Zhang's state of Wu. Zhang attempted to attack in late 1364, before
19118-471: The north has limestone layers and karst development. In the center and south is mainly a Ryukyu limestone layer and mudstone. The topography is flat, there are few hills over 100 m (328 ft) with very few rivers. The subtropical rains accelerate erosion so there are many drainages and uvala . The southern end of the island consists of uplifted coral reef , whereas the northern half has proportionally more igneous rock . The easily eroded limestone of
19276-560: The north, while Xu Da attacked from Xi'an against Köke Temür. In early May 1370, Köke Temür was defeated and fled to Karakorum . The Ming forces captured over 84,000 of his troops and continued to advance westward along the Yellow River. At the same time, Li's forces advanced to Shangdu, where the Yuan emperor Toghon Temür retreated further north to Yingchang and died in May 1370. His twenty-three-year-old son Ayushiridara then assumed
19434-484: The official language under King Shō Shin . The Omoro Sōshi , a compilation of ancient Ryukyuan poems, was written in an early form of Okinawan, known as Old Okinawan. After Ryukyu became a vassal of Satsuma Domain , kanji gained more prominence in poetry; however, official Ryukyuan documents were written in Classical Chinese . During this time, the language gradually evolved into Modern Okinawan. In 1609,
19592-437: The old world. Virtually every individual of this world is infected with one or the other JCV subtype, by the time he/she reaches 10 years of age. This virus is isolated from urine, and another conjecture is that most children are infected from parents, and that too, through living at close quarters for years together. According to this conjecture, even if two different populations, say Americans and Japanese, were living together in
19750-421: The palatal consonant /j/ are relatively rare and tend to exhibit depalatalization. For example, /mj/ tends to merge with /n/ ( [mjaːku] myāku → [naːku] nāku " Miyako "); */rj/ has merged into /ɾ/ and /d/ ( */rjuː/ → /ɾuː/ rū ~ /duː/ dū "dragon"); and /sj/ has mostly become /s/ ( /sjui/ shui → /sui/ sui " Shuri "). The voiced plosive /d/ and the flap /ɾ/ tend to merge, with
19908-631: The part of Japan to eliminate Ryukyuan culture, including the language, religion, and cultural practices. Okinawa Island had the bloodiest ground battle of the Pacific War from 1 April to 22 June 1945. During this 82-day-long battle, about 95,000 Imperial Japanese Army troops and 20,195 Americans were killed. The Cornerstone of Peace at the Peace Memorial Park in Itoman lists 149,193 persons from Okinawa – approximately one quarter of
20066-578: The present day. Currently the Okinawan-Japanese centers and communities in the State of São Paulo are a world reference to this language helping it to stay alive. Okinawan is sometimes grouped with Kunigami as the Okinawan languages; however, not all linguists accept this grouping, some claiming that Kunigami is a dialect of Okinawan. Okinawan is also grouped with Amami (or the Amami languages) as
20224-593: The provinces of Jiangxi and Hubei . Zhang, based in Suzhou , controlled the lower reaches of the Yangtze, from the eastern borders of Zhu's dominions to the sea. While Zhu, Zhang, and Chen divided up the Yangtze River Basin, the rest of southern and central China was largely under the control of "one-province" regimes. Fang Guozhen controlled the eastern Chinese coast, Ming Yuzhen ruled in Sichuan , and
20382-421: The rebel divisions. He quickly distinguished himself among the rebels and rose to lead his own army. In 1356, he conquered Nanjing and established it as his capital. He formed his own government, consisting of both generals and Confucian scholars, rejecting Mongol rule over China. He adopted the concept of country administration from them and implemented it in the territory he controlled, eventually expanding it to
20540-468: The reinforcement of Yang Jing 's army from Huguang, Guangxi province was also occupied. At the same time as the southern campaign, Zhu sent a 250,000-strong army, led by Xu Da and Chang Yuchun, to conquer the North China Plain. By March 1368, both land and naval forces had successfully captured Shandong. In May, Henan was also occupied. A pause was taken for agricultural work, during which
20698-456: The request of the Ryukyuan king. Their job was to manage maritime dealings in the kingdom. They assisted the Ryukyuans in developing their technology and diplomatic relations. In 1407, however, a man named Hashi overthrew Satto's descendant, King Bunei , and installed his father, Shishō , as king of Chūzan. In 1429, King Shō Hashi completed the unification of the three kingdoms and founded
20856-479: The rule of the Mongol Yuan dynasty . Zhu Yuanzhang, who lost his parents during this tumultuous time, was forced to survive by begging as an itinerant monk . This difficult upbringing had a profound impact on the future emperor's life. He developed a deep understanding of the struggles faced by ordinary people, while harboring disdain for scholars who only gained knowledge from books. In 1352, he joined one of
21014-575: The same area, but not within the same family, the individuals would not cross-infect one another. Okinawa island proved an ideal place to test this conjecture. No evidence was found that Japanese children were infected with American type JCV, although they had been living at the same island as the Americans. Since it is assumed now that JCV subtypes are virtually unique to each world area, it is now used to determine human migration patterns. In 2020, tests around Kadena Air Base showed severe contamination of
21172-459: The same century were written solely in Hiragana. Kanji were gradually adopted due to the growing influence of mainland Japan and to the linguistic affinity between the Okinawan and Japanese languages. However, it was mainly limited to affairs of high importance and to documents sent towards the mainland. The oldest inscription of Okinawan exemplifying its use along with Hiragana can be found on
21330-417: The short vowels /e/ and /o/ are quite rare, as they occur only in a few native Okinawan words with heavy syllables with the pattern /Ceɴ/ or /Coɴ/ , such as /m e ɴsoːɾeː/ m e nsōrē "welcome" or /t o ɴɸaː/ t o nfā . The close back vowels /u/ and /uː/ are truly rounded, rather than the compressed vowels of standard Japanese. The Okinawan language counts some 20 distinctive segments shown in
21488-422: The small capital /ɴ/ ) occupies a full mora and its precise place of articulation will vary depending on the following consonant. Before other labial consonants, it will be pronounced closer to a syllabic bilabial nasal [m̩] , as in /ʔɴma/ [ʔm̩ma] Q nma "horse". Before velar and labiovelar consonants, it will be pronounced as a syllabic velar nasal [ŋ̍] , as in /biɴɡata/ [biŋ̍ɡata] bingata ,
21646-575: The social and economic structure of society were designed to serve this purpose. The chaos and foreign rule that led to the establishment of a new dynasty only reinforced his determination to maintain order. The emperor was meticulous in his efforts to establish a new society after the fall of the Yuan dynasty. He was a dynamic and innovative legislator, constantly issuing, revising, and modifying laws throughout his reign. However, these frequent changes sometimes sparked protests from officials. The emperor's legislation focused on four main themes. The first
21804-608: The south has many caves, the most famous of which is Gyokusendō in Nanjō . The northernmost Cape Hedo is only 22 km (14 mi) away from Yoronjima . Cape Arasaki is the southernmost location of Okinawa island. It is sometimes confused with Cape Kiyanmisaki. The northern half of Okinawa has one of the largest tracts of subtropical rainforest in Asia called the Yanbaru . There are many endemic species of flora and fauna. There are
21962-661: The southwestern border for the next ten years, until the pro-Mongol Yunnan was conquered in 1381-1382. In 1372, the emperor launched a massive attack on Mongolia, with Xu Da leading a 150,000-strong army from Shanxi through the Gobi to Karakorum. In the west, Feng Sheng was assigned to conquer the western part of the Gansu Corridor with 50,000 cavalrymen, while Li Wenzhong was tasked with attacking eastern Mongolia and Manchuria with another 50,000 soldiers. Although Feng Sheng's forces were able to successfully complete their mission,
22120-601: The table below, the top row is the kana (hiragana to the left, katakana to the right of the dot), the middle row in rōmaji ( Hepburn romanization ), and the bottom row in IPA. Okinawan follows a subject–object–verb word order and makes large use of particles as in Japanese. Okinawan retains a number of Japonic grammatical features also found in Old Japanese but lost (or highly restricted) in Modern Japanese , such as
22278-556: The table below. あぬ Anu 夫婦 （ ふぃとぅんだー ） Hongwu Emperor The Hongwu Emperor (21 October 1328 – 24 June 1398), also known by his temple name as the Emperor Taizu of Ming , personal name Zhu Yuanzhang , courtesy name Guorui , was the founding emperor of the Ming dynasty , reigning from 1368 to 1398. In the mid-14th century, China was plagued by epidemics, famines, and peasant uprisings during
22436-457: The terminal form uri ; -uru developed from the attributive form uru , i.e.: A similar etymology is given for the terminal -san and attributive -saru endings for adjectives: the stem suffixed with さ sa (nominalises adjectives, i.e. high → height, hot → heat), suffixed with ari ("to be; to exist; to have", cf. Classical Japanese: 有り ari ), i.e.: Nouns are classified as independent, non-conjugating part of speech that can become
22594-517: The threat to the Okinawa rail. The coconut crab is the largest terrestrial hermit crab of Okinawa and the Ryukyu Islands. It is an endangered species due to over-hunting, which has made them scarce on Okinawa island. In 2021, coconut crabs were found to live in a small cave system on the islet Nagashima off the Henoko district. A small population of endangered dugongs lives around Okinawa. The estimates are between 3 and 50 survivors. The island has
22752-406: The trio of Yuan loyalists ( Chen Youding , He Zhen , and Basalawarmi ) controlled Fujian , Guangdong , and Yunnan . These provincial regimes were unable to threaten the "big three", but were strong in defense. The war between Zhu's Jiangnan and Chen Youliang's Han state from 1360 to 1363 had a devastating impact on the balance of power in the Yangtze River Basin. This conflict not only gave Zhu
22910-467: The uninhabited Senkaku Islands , the People's Republic of China began questioning Japan's sovereignty to the island of Okinawa, citing its past as the independent tributary state of Ryukyu. On 31 October 2019, the main courtyard structures of Shurijo were destroyed in a fire. It marked the fifth time that Shurijo was destroyed following previous incidents in 1453, 1660, 1709 and 1945. On 31 October 2019,
23068-408: The unstable political climate, family ties were crucial for ensuring loyalty and reliability. The rivalry between Peng and Zhao escalated into a full-blown conflict. Guo was initially captured, but was later freed by his sons and Zhu, which only increased his reliance on Zhu. After Peng's death in 1353, Zhao emerged as the dominant leader in the region, leaving Guo and Zhu isolated. Zhao sent Guo to
23226-437: The use of " dialect cards " ( 方言札 ). As a result, Okinawan gradually ceased to be written entirely until the American takeover in 1945. Since then, Japanese and American scholars have variously transcribed the regional language using a number of ad hoc romanization schemes or the katakana syllabary to demarcate its foreign nature with standard Japanese. Proponents of Okinawan tend to be more traditionalist and continue to write
23384-439: The vowel /u/ to /i/ after the alveolars /t d s z/ , consequently merging [t͡su] tsu into [t͡ɕi] chi , [su] su into [ɕi] shi , and both [d͡zu] dzu and [zu] zu into [d͡ʑi] ji . It also lacks /z/ as a distinctive phoneme, having merged it into /d͡ʑ/ . The bilabial fricative /ɸ/ has sometimes been transcribed as the cluster /hw/ , since, like Japanese, /h/ allophonically labializes into [ɸ] before
23542-564: The war-torn territories and cross the Yangtze River to the prosperous southern regions that had not yet been affected by the war. However, a dispute arose between Guo and Zhu over the city of Hezhou, situated on the banks of the Yangtze River. Zhu even formed an alliance with Sun Deyai, Guo's old enemy. Before the conflict could escalate, Guo died. Following this, the rebel Song emperor Han Lin'er appointed Guo's eldest son, Guo Tianxu, as his successor. Guo's brother-in-law, Zhang Tianyu,
23700-448: The wells and waterways of Dakujaku River and Hija river with toxic chemicals PFAS . This affects the drinking water of 450,000 residents. PFAS was used in foam at fire fighting training sites on U.S. facilities during the 1970s and 1980s. The 1971 Okinawa Reversion Agreement officially ended the U.S. military occupation on Okinawa. The bases primarily exist to serve Japanese and American strategic interests, despite recent efforts to move
23858-633: The year. Naha Airport is the main transportation hub for the Ryukyu Islands and has an increasingly large role in regional logistics. All Nippon Airways opened a cargo hub at the airport in 2009, providing overnight freight service between Japan and other Asian countries. The Okinawa Urban Monorail (Yui Rail) runs from Naha Airport to Japan's south-easternmost monorail station, Akamine Station , before heading to its final destination of Tedako-Uranishi Station ( Urasoe ) and back. There are multiple bus companies, such as Toyo Bus , Ryukyu Bus Kotsu , Naha Bus , and Okinawa Bus . The Okinawa Expressway
24016-412: Was a broad desire to restore order and morality in society. The second was the regulation of the bureaucracy, including disciplining followers and managing the government. The third was the removal of corrupt and unreliable officials. Finally, the emperor also sought to resist the natural decline that comes with time. As the patriarch of the family, he aimed to prevent the decay of society and the dynasty in
24174-634: Was an attempt to revive and standardize Okinawan, but this proved difficult and was shelved in favor of Japanese. General Douglas MacArthur attempted to promote Okinawan languages and culture through education. Multiple English words were introduced. After Okinawa's reversion to Japanese sovereignty, Japanese continued to be the dominant language used, and the majority of the youngest generations only speak Okinawan Japanese . There have been attempts to revive Okinawan by notable people such as Byron Fija and Seijin Noborikawa , but few native Okinawans know
24332-664: Was chosen as the first deputy of the new commander, with Zhu as the second deputy. In order to cross the Yangtze River, the Hezhou rebels required a fleet, which they acquired in July 1355 when a group of rebels from Chao Lake arrived. They successfully crossed the river that same month. Zhu immediately defeated the local Yuan commander, Chen Esen, who then surrendered to him. However, in September 1355, during an attempt to conquer Jiqing (present-day Nanjing), Chen Esen betrayed Guo Tianxu. In
24490-447: Was discovered at a military post office. From the mid-1970s onwards, LSD and heroin became more prevalent. Deserters worked as "passport civilians" and smuggled the drugs into Okinawa. A lack of customs inspections made smuggling easy. There were well organized Ryukyuan smuggling rings who brought heroin, LSD, and marijuana to Okinawa, and produced LSD on the island. In 2013, following escalating tensions following competing claims to
24648-559: Was imported from Japan by Ganjin in 1265. Noro , village priestesses of the Ryukyuan religion , appeared. The Sanzan period began in 1314 when the kingdoms of Hokuzan and Nanzan declared independence from Chūzan . The three kingdoms competed with one another for recognition and trade with Ming China . King Satto , leading Chūzan, was very successful, establishing relations with Korea and Southeast Asia as well as China. The Hongwu Emperor sent 36 families from Fujian in 1392 at
24806-476: Was the heart of Japanization, where Okinawan children were taught Japanese and punished for speaking their native language, being told that their language was just a "dialect". By 1945, many Okinawans spoke Japanese, and many were bilingual. During the Battle of Okinawa , some Okinawans were killed by Japanese soldiers for speaking Okinawan. Language shift to Japanese in Ryukyu/Okinawa began in 1879 when
24964-902: Was used by the CIA for covert operations. In 1965, Admiral Ulysses S. Grant Sharp stated that "Without Okinawa, we couldn't continue fighting the Vietnam war." Intense use of the island by the U.S. military caused damage to the environment and residents. There were oil and fuel spills. Exposure to toxic substances caused illness of service members such as a nerve agent leak in 1969. Aircraft crashes, hit-and runs and murders killed residents. The perpetrators were often unpunished, since they could not be prosecuted in Okinawa Courts. The 1970s and 1980s also had severe pollution of waterways and wells with PFAS : toxic chemicals in foam used by fire fighting training at U.S. facilities such as Kadena Air Base . In
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