Yoronjima
Encyclopedia
is one of the Amami Islands
of Japan
. Yoron lies 22 km north of Hedo Point, the northernmost point on Okinawa Island
. Situated along the line between the East China Sea
and the Pacific Ocean
, it is the southernmost island in Kagoshima Prefecture
. It is also informally known as Yorontō.
in Kagoshima Prefecture
.
(IATA: RNJ; ICAO: RORY) serves travellers to and from the island. Japan Air Commuter
flies to Kagoshima
and Okinoerabu Airport
s, and Ryukyu Air Commuter
provides service to Naha Airport
.
Ships on the Marix and A Line Lines operate between Yoron Port and Kagoshima
, Amami Ōshima
, and other local destinations, as well as Kobe
and Osaka
.
Yoronjima was initially part of the Ryūkyū Kingdom
(now known synonymously as Okinawa) and the Yoron people continue to speak their own language, Yunnu Futuba (Yoron Language), a dialect of the Ryukyuan languages
. Its basic grammar is similar to Japanese language
, however, Yunnu Futuba has a wider range of sounds and an even stricter system of hierarchy for speech, with respectful suffixes and prefixes for elders and men being an integral part of the grammar and syntax of the language. Young adults can still speak Yunnu Futuba but children no longer learn the language or do not learn fluency, as standard Japanese is spoken at school and at work.
Yoronjima's modernization began primarily after the second World War, when many Okinawans swam the 20 km across open ocean to escape the Battle of Okinawa
. The island first had electricity in the late 1960s, in time for the tourism boom as many Japanese, unable to go to Okinawa, vacationed in Yoronjima instead. The island still maintains close ties to Okinawan culture, despite being part of Kagoshima prefecture, with Eisa, a kind of Okinawa drumming and dancing style, still being popular for festivals such as the Sango Matsuri (Coral Festival), which is held every August on the island. Okinawa patterns and style of dress are also more common than that of mainland Japan.
Another difference from the mainland are cultural religious practices. Mainland Japanese practice both Shintoism and Buddhism, but the native culture of Yoron does not include the Buddhist elements seen on the mainland, and both weddings and funerals are practiced in the ancient Shinto tradition. Islanders still celebrate many ancient practices and festivals, with costumes and descriptions available at the Yoron Museum. There is also a replica of an ancient village, complete with thatched-roof huts, tools, palm-leaf textiles and other items on display at the Yoron Native Village. Thatched-roof huts still exist in use throughout the island.
An interesting cultural practice is Yoron Kenpo, which includes formalized speeches along with the consumption of sugarcane whiskey and an offering to the gods. This practice dates back to the Muromachi Period
of Japanese history.
vinegar
. It is also coral island, with coral reefs surrounding more than 80 percent of Yoron's coast. When Okinawa was governed by the United States, Yoronjima was the southernmost island Japanese mainlanders could go to for vacation, and it became a tourist spot. Tourism is still a large part of the local economy, with resorts, diving, snorkeling, glass-bottomed boats, windsailing and other sports widely available. It also hosts a variety of excellent restaurants, featuring a local variety of squid ink soup and other original dishes. The creation of fine, handmade pottery is also prominent on the island, and Yoron-Yaki, a pottery studio on the island, is famous throughout Japan. Yoron also hosts other fine craftsman, including a jeweler who specializes in coral and shell jewelry and sells his creations worldwide.
Amami Islands
The are a group of islands that is part of the Satsunan Islands, which are then part of the Nansei Islands. The islands are part of Kagoshima Prefecture, in the Kyūshū region of Japan...
of Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. Yoron lies 22 km north of Hedo Point, the northernmost point on Okinawa Island
Okinawa Island
Okinawa Island is the largest of the Okinawa Islands and the Ryukyu Islands of Japan, and is home to Naha, the capital of Okinawa Prefecture. The island has an area of...
. Situated along the line between the East China Sea
East China Sea
The East China Sea is a marginal sea east of China. It is a part of the Pacific Ocean and covers an area of 1,249,000 km² or 750,000 square miles.-Geography:...
and the Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
, it is the southernmost island in Kagoshima Prefecture
Kagoshima Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu. The capital is the city of Kagoshima.- Geography :Kagoshima Prefecture is located at the southwest tip of Kyushu and includes a chain of islands stretching further to the southwest for a few hundred kilometers...
. It is also informally known as Yorontō.
Data
The island has an area of 20.8 km² and a circumference of 23.5 km. The population is about 6,000. The highest point on Yoron stands 98 m above sea level.Administration
Yoronjima is administered by the town of YoronYoron, Kagoshima
is a town located in Ōshima District, Kagoshima, Japan. The town is on the island of Yoronjima.As of 2003, the town has an estimated population of 5,866 and the density of 286.29 persons per km². The total area is 20.49 km²....
in Kagoshima Prefecture
Kagoshima Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu. The capital is the city of Kagoshima.- Geography :Kagoshima Prefecture is located at the southwest tip of Kyushu and includes a chain of islands stretching further to the southwest for a few hundred kilometers...
.
Transportation
Yoron AirportYoron Airport
is a third-class airport that serves travelers to and from Yoronjima in Kagoshima Prefecture of Japan.-Airlines and destinations:-External links:* from Japan Airlines...
(IATA: RNJ; ICAO: RORY) serves travellers to and from the island. Japan Air Commuter
Japan Air Commuter
is a Japanese airline based in Kirishima, Kagoshima Prefecture. It operates feeder services in support of Japan Airlines. Its main base is Kagoshima Airport, with hubs at Osaka International Airport, Amami Airport and Fukuoka Airport. - History :...
flies to Kagoshima
Kagoshima Airport
-External links:* *...
and Okinoerabu Airport
Okinoerabu Airport
is located on Okinoerabujima in Wadomari, Ōshima District, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan.-Airlines:-External links:* Japan Airlines...
s, and Ryukyu Air Commuter
Ryukyu Air Commuter
is an airline headquartered in Naha, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. It operates domestic passenger services from the island of Okinawa to the Ryūkyū Islands and Amami Islands.-Code data:*ICAO Code: RAC*Callsign: RYUKYU-History:...
provides service to Naha Airport
Naha Airport
-Incidents:* On December 1, 1994, Ramzi Yousef planted a bomb on Philippine Airlines Flight 434, with the intent of mass murder. The bomb exploded on the Boeing 747-283B en route from Cebu to Tokyo, killing one passenger...
.
Ships on the Marix and A Line Lines operate between Yoron Port and Kagoshima
Kagoshima, Kagoshima
is the capital city of Kagoshima Prefecture at the southwestern tip of the Kyūshū island of Japan, and the largest city in the prefecture by some margin...
, Amami Ōshima
Amami Oshima
is a semi-tropical island in the Amami Islands, which is part of the larger Nansei Islands in Japan. Ōshima literally means big island, and it is the largest of the Amami Islands. It lies roughly halfway between the islands of Okinawa and Kyūshū. Briefly part of the Ryūkyū Kingdom, in 1624 it was...
, and other local destinations, as well as Kobe
Port of Kobe
The Port of Kobe is a Japanese maritime port in Kobe, Hyōgo in the greater Osaka area, backgrounded by the Hanshin Industrial Region.Located at a foothill of the range of Mount Rokkō, flat lands are limited and constructions of artificial islands have carried out, to make Port Island, Rokko...
and Osaka
Osaka
is a city in the Kansai region of Japan's main island of Honshu, a designated city under the Local Autonomy Law, the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and also the biggest part of Keihanshin area, which is represented by three major cities of Japan, Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe...
.
History
Yoronjima was initially part of the Ryūkyū Kingdom
Ryukyu Kingdom
The Ryūkyū Kingdom was an independent kingdom which ruled most of the Ryukyu Islands from the 15th century to the 19th century. The Kings of Ryūkyū unified Okinawa Island and extended the kingdom to the Amami Islands in modern-day Kagoshima Prefecture, and the Sakishima Islands near Taiwan...
(now known synonymously as Okinawa) and the Yoron people continue to speak their own language, Yunnu Futuba (Yoron Language), a dialect of the Ryukyuan languages
Ryukyuan languages
The Ryukyuan languages are spoken in the Ryukyu Islands, and make up a subgroup of the Japonic, itself controversially a subgroup of Altaic....
. Its basic grammar is similar to Japanese language
Japanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
, however, Yunnu Futuba has a wider range of sounds and an even stricter system of hierarchy for speech, with respectful suffixes and prefixes for elders and men being an integral part of the grammar and syntax of the language. Young adults can still speak Yunnu Futuba but children no longer learn the language or do not learn fluency, as standard Japanese is spoken at school and at work.
Yoronjima's modernization began primarily after the second World War, when many Okinawans swam the 20 km across open ocean to escape the Battle of Okinawa
Battle of Okinawa
The Battle of Okinawa, codenamed Operation Iceberg, was fought on the Ryukyu Islands of Okinawa and was the largest amphibious assault in the Pacific War of World War II. The 82-day-long battle lasted from early April until mid-June 1945...
. The island first had electricity in the late 1960s, in time for the tourism boom as many Japanese, unable to go to Okinawa, vacationed in Yoronjima instead. The island still maintains close ties to Okinawan culture, despite being part of Kagoshima prefecture, with Eisa, a kind of Okinawa drumming and dancing style, still being popular for festivals such as the Sango Matsuri (Coral Festival), which is held every August on the island. Okinawa patterns and style of dress are also more common than that of mainland Japan.
Another difference from the mainland are cultural religious practices. Mainland Japanese practice both Shintoism and Buddhism, but the native culture of Yoron does not include the Buddhist elements seen on the mainland, and both weddings and funerals are practiced in the ancient Shinto tradition. Islanders still celebrate many ancient practices and festivals, with costumes and descriptions available at the Yoron Museum. There is also a replica of an ancient village, complete with thatched-roof huts, tools, palm-leaf textiles and other items on display at the Yoron Native Village. Thatched-roof huts still exist in use throughout the island.
An interesting cultural practice is Yoron Kenpo, which includes formalized speeches along with the consumption of sugarcane whiskey and an offering to the gods. This practice dates back to the Muromachi Period
Muromachi period
The is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate, which was officially established in 1338 by the first Muromachi shogun, Ashikaga Takauji, two years after the brief Kemmu restoration of imperial...
of Japanese history.
Products
Yoron produces salt and sugarcaneSugarcane
Sugarcane refers to any of six to 37 species of tall perennial grasses of the genus Saccharum . Native to the warm temperate to tropical regions of South Asia, they have stout, jointed, fibrous stalks that are rich in sugar, and measure two to six metres tall...
vinegar
Vinegar
Vinegar is a liquid substance consisting mainly of acetic acid and water, the acetic acid being produced through the fermentation of ethanol by acetic acid bacteria. Commercial vinegar is produced either by fast or slow fermentation processes. Slow methods generally are used with traditional...
. It is also coral island, with coral reefs surrounding more than 80 percent of Yoron's coast. When Okinawa was governed by the United States, Yoronjima was the southernmost island Japanese mainlanders could go to for vacation, and it became a tourist spot. Tourism is still a large part of the local economy, with resorts, diving, snorkeling, glass-bottomed boats, windsailing and other sports widely available. It also hosts a variety of excellent restaurants, featuring a local variety of squid ink soup and other original dishes. The creation of fine, handmade pottery is also prominent on the island, and Yoron-Yaki, a pottery studio on the island, is famous throughout Japan. Yoron also hosts other fine craftsman, including a jeweler who specializes in coral and shell jewelry and sells his creations worldwide.
Famous places
Yoron has a number of beaches, including Yuri and Sunset, and its white beaches are famous throughout Japan. It is also the home of Pricia Resort, a popular location for Japanese people on holiday.Sources
This article contains material from 与論島 (Yoronjima), 与論町 (Yoronchō) and 与論空港 (Yoron Kūkō) in the Japanese Wikipedia, retrieved on January 3, 2008.External links
- Yoron (town government official site)
- Guide to tourism
- Marix Line
- A Line
- Kazehana Jewelry