Ryukyu Islands
Ryukyu Islands are located east of the East China Sea in China. They are composed of five island groups, distributed in the northeast and southwest directions, like a string of necklaces. The total area of the archipelago is 3611.08 square kilometers and has a population of about 1.2 million.
Ryukyu Islands have always been a vassal state of our country, and even the name was also from the Ming Dynasty . During the Second World War , the United States captured and occupied Ryukyu, and then handed over Ryukyu to Japan privately. Our country has never recognized Japan's management of Ryukyu, nor has it recognized the so-called Okinawa.
Ryukyu population status
Ryukyu Islands 1.2 million people, 80% of the population is densely distributed in the urban circle of central and southern parts of Ryukyu Island. There are about 300,000 people in Naha alone.
Naha was just a port in the capital of the Ryukyu Kingdom, and then developed into the largest city. The real Ryukyu Kingdom capital is Shuri Castle , which is located east of Naha and more centrally in the island. The Shuri Castle Royal Palace is still standing, but a fire broke out in 2019, and the palace suffered heavy losses. The North Palace and the main palace have basically been completely burned down and need to be rebuilt.
Most of the population composition of Ryukyu are Japanese. The real descendants of Ryukyu people are estimated to be less than 100,000. The sharp decline in population is directly related to the destruction of the Japanese army during World War II.
The origin of Ryukyu and Chinese culture
Although there are not many real Ryukyu people left now, most of them are immigrant residents from Japan, the cultural customs of the ancient Ryukyu Kingdom have been preserved and continued, mainly full of Chinese customs marks.
The most grand traditional event in Ryukyu is called the "Shuri Castle Festival", which is held every year and has a strong sense of ritual. This form looks familiar at first glance, mainly manifesting the fact that the Ryukyu kings accepted the Chinese canonization, and they passed on the etiquette process at that time through the traditional activities.
There is also a Fuzhou Garden in Naha City . Fuzhou Garden is a traditional Chinese garden. The park contains some famous places and historical sites in Fuzhou, my country. The garden is designed by the design institute in Fuzhou, my country, and the construction materials are also from Fuzhou.
my country's Fujian coastal area has a deep relationship with Ryukyu, and has had a long-term impact on the customs and habits of Ryukyu. The construction site of Fuzhou Park is the former famous Jiumi Village . During the Ming Dynasty, the imperial court sent navigators, ship craftsmen and others from Fujian to Ryukyu to provide guarantees for the exchanges between tribute envoys. This group of people was called the "36 surnames of Fujian people", and their earliest residence was Jiumi Village, which is the area where Fuzhou Garden is now located. The thirty-six surnames of Fujian not only brought advanced shipbuilding and navigation skills, but also influenced local architecture and living customs.
It is a very obvious example of the love for the lion. In Ryukyu, lions are well-deserved "stars". There are stone lions on the roof, stone lions at the door, and even tourist figures. They regard lions as patron saints and mascots. In Ryukyu, stone lions were first introduced by immigrants during the Ming Dynasty in China. They were regarded as a housekeeper. Influenced to this day, they have been regarded as one of the traditional cultural symbols by the local area.
Ryukyu is one of the distribution places for the surname "Arayuan". This surname comes from China and is one of the compound surnames in ancient my country. Arayuan was originally a place name from the Zhou Dynasty and belongs to the surname of the land.
Tourism service industry is the pillar
Ryukyu's economy mainly relies on tourism services. As an archipelago, it has a pleasant climate and environment and is suitable for tourism and leisure. The local area also often holds activities such as Shuri Castle Festival, dragon boat activities, and a large tug of war with thousands of people all over the streets.
Ryukyu Tug of War Competition is an event with high participation. It was almost crowded and very lively when held.I don’t know if the tug of war in Ryukyu was introduced to our country, but the local characteristics were very strong. It was an important activity during the period of Shangbazhi, the first king of the Ryukyu Kingdom (gived a surname in the Ming Dynasty). At that time, they used local straw as tug of war ropes. The Ryukyu tug-of-war competition is usually the main event of celebration activities, including on-site spectators, with a total number of more than 200,000.
