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Amamikyu
Amamichuu, or , is the creation goddess of the Ryukyu Islands in the Ryukyuan religion. Name Amamikyu's name comes from the reading of the Chinese characters 阿摩美久 or 阿摩彌姑, which were most likely written ad hoc for the Okinawan pronunciation. Readings can vary widely from Amamikyu, Amamikyo, Amamikiyo, Amamiko, Amamiku, Amamigu, Amamichuu, and Amanchuu. "Amamikyu" was used by George H. Kerr in his ''Ryukyu: Kingdom and Province Before 1945'' in 1953. Creation myth The beginning of ''Chūzan Seikan'' details the creation of the Ryukyu Islands. The Heavenly Emperor (天帝), who lived in the Heavenly Gusuku (天城), looked down on the world and saw that there were no islands, so he ordered Amamikyu (阿摩美久) to create the Ryukyu Islands. She asked for materials to build the islands, so the Heavenly Emperor sent Shinerikyu to bring her grasses, trees, and stones. She descended to Earth on Kudaka Island, and then made landfall on Okinawa Island on the spot of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Uruma, Okinawa
is a city located in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. The modern city of Uruma was established on April 1, 2005, when the cities of Gushikawa and Ishikawa were merged with the towns of Katsuren and Yonashiro (both from Nakagami District). As of May 1, 2013, the city has an estimated population of 118,330 and a population density of 1,400 people per km2. The total area is 86.00 km2. The city covers part of the east coast of the south of Okinawa Island, the Katsuren Peninsula, and the eight Yokatsu Islands. The Yokatsu Islands include numerous sites important to the Ryukyuan religion, and the city as a whole has numerous historical sites, including: Katsuren Castle, Agena Castle, and Iha Castle and the Iha Shell Mound. It is home to the largest venue for Okinawan bullfighting. The Mid-Sea Road, which crosses the ocean and connects the Yokatsu Islands to the main island of Okinawa, is now a symbol of Uruma. Uruma is noted for its role in hosting large-scale refugee camps an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ryukyuan Religion
The Ryukyuan religion (琉球信仰), Ryūkyū Shintō (琉球神道), Nirai Kanai Shinkō (ニライカナイ信仰), or Utaki Shinkō (御嶽信仰) is the indigenous belief system of the Ryukyu Islands. While specific legends and traditions may vary slightly from place to place and island to island, the Ryukyuan religion is generally characterized by ancestor worship and the respecting of relationships between the living, the dead, and the gods and spirits of the natural world. Some of its beliefs, such as those concerning '' genius loci'' spirits and many other beings classified between gods and humans, are indicative of its ancient animistic roots, as is its concern with , or life essence. Over time, Ryukyuan religious practice has been influenced by Japanese Shinto and Chinese religions (White Lotus, Manichaeism, Taoism, Confucianism, and folk beliefs) along with Christianity and Buddhism. One of its most ancient features is the belief , the spiritual superiority of women ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Noro (priestess)
(, sometimes or ) ( ryu, ヌール, nuuru) are priestesses of the Ryukyuan religion at Utaki. They have existed since at least the beginning of the Gusuku period (late 12th century) and continue to perform rituals even today. They are distinct from (psychics), but are classified as ("godly people"). History According to the and , the first were the daughters of Tentei-shi, who was a descendant of the creation goddess, Amamikyu. The first daughter became the first (), and the second daughter became the first village priestess (). The god of fire gave a piece of fire from Ryūgū-jō to each to create a village hearth, from which each family in the village would take fire to maintain their own family hearths. The maintained the royal hearth. The were charged with conducting official rituals and ceremonies for their respective village. The was charged with conducting rituals and ceremonies on behalf of the entire kingdom, and traveled with the king to Sefa-utaki to worshi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
List Of Monarchs Of Ryukyu Islands
, also known as King of Lew Chew, , or more officially , was a title held by several lineages from Okinawa Island until 1879. It effectively started in 1372 when Satto greeted a Chinese envoy from the newly established Ming dynasty although his son Bunei was the first to be officially recognized as the King of Chūzan. However, the official Okinawan narrative traces the line of succession further back to the legendary ruler Shunten, who supposedly ascended to the throne in 1187. Another peculiar feature of the official Okinawan narrative is the notion of the single line of succession, instead of Chinese-style dynastic changes, even though they clearly recognized that several unrelated lineages had taken over the position. Early forms of the narrative The earliest known form of the narrative dates to the reign of King Shō Shin of the Second Shō dynasty. A stone monument dated 1522 makes reference to "three dynasties of Shunten's, Eiso's and Satto's". His son King Shō Sei expr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ryukyuan Culture
Ryukyuan culture (琉球の文化, ''Ryūkyū no bunka'') are the cultural elements of the indigenous Ryukyuan people, an ethnic group native to Okinawa Prefecture and parts of Kagoshima Prefecture in southwestern Japan. The cultural elements of the Ryukyuans are far from a unified entity, with different islands having their own distinct subculture and practices. Furthermore, the inhabitants of the Tokara and Ōsumi Islands are of Yamato Japanese descent, akin to the inhabitants of mainland Japan. Music There are many styles of music exclusive to the Ryukyu Islands. The most popular one is arguably the genre of eisa from the Okinawa Islands. It typically incorporates dancing, taiko drums and the three-stringed sanshin (Okinawan shamisen). In the Amami Islands of Kagoshima, a musical style known as shima-uta has gained recent popularity in mainland Japan as a result of its usage by contemporary singers. Besides eisa and shima-uta, there are many more traditional styles of Ryu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hamahiga Island
Hamahiga Island (浜比嘉島, Japanese language, Japanese: ''Hamahiga-jima'', Okinawan language, Okinawan: ''Bamahija-shima'') is an island located in the Yokatsu Islands of Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. Its administered by the city of Uruma and is located near the Katsuren Peninsula. Hamahiga has a total population of 600 people. There are two villages on the island, ''Hama'' (浜) to the north and ''Higa'' (比嘉) to the south. History During the Sanzan period, Hamahiga and the rest of the Yokatsu Islands were under the control of Chūzan. By the 15th century, Chūzan had united the Okinawa Islands, forming the Ryukyu Kingdom. In 1879, Japan annexed the Ryukyu Kingdom, turning it into Okinawa Prefecture. Hamahiga was a part of this prefecture until the end of World War II, when Okinawa in its entirety were placed under the United States Civil Administration of the Ryukyu Islands from 1950 to 1972. After the 1971 Okinawa Reversion Agreement, Okinawa Reversion Agreement, Hama ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kudaka Island
Kudaka Island (久高島, Japanese: くだかじま, Ryukyuan: ''Kudaka-shima'') is an island in Ryukyu Islands, located in Nanjō, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan and 5.3 kilometers away from Cape Chinen, Nanjō. From Nanjō, Kudaka Island can be reached by high-speed boat in 15 minutes and by ferry in 20 minutes. It is only about three miles off the southeast coast of Okinawa. Kudaka Island is a slender island running from the northeast to the southwest, with an area of 1.38 square kilometers and a coastline of 7.8 kilometers. The terrain is flat and the highest point is 17.4 meters. The soil of Kudaka Island is terracotta, with poor water retention. In addition, coral reefs are constantly being formed along the coast, resulting in lagoons. According to the ''Chūzan Seikan'', the Emperor of Heaven ordered Amamikyu, the god of Ryukyu development, to descend on Cape Kapur on Kudaka Island and founded the Ryukyu Islands. Therefore, Kudaka Island is worshipped as a holy place by the R ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tamagusuku Castle
is a Ryukyuan ''gusuku'' in Nanjō, Okinawa. It is the oldest castle on Okinawa; ''Chūzan Seikan'' says it was built by Amamikyu, the creation goddess of the Ryukyuan religion. It was the home of the Aji of Tamagusuku Magiri The administrative divisions of the Ryukyu Kingdom were a hierarchy composed of districts, ''magiri'', cities, villages, and islands established by the Ryukyu Kingdom throughout the Ryukyu Islands. Divisions There were three or ''hō'': , , and .... It is located about 700 meters north of Tamagusuku village. The castle is almost a complete ruin and is visited as a sacred grove References External linksA youtube video Castles in Okinawa Prefecture {{castle-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sefa-utaki
''Seefa-utaki'', meaning "purified place of Utaki," is a historical sacred space, overlooking Kudaka Island, that served as one of the key locations of worship in the native religion of the Ryukyuan people for millennia. Later as a part of assimilation of Okinawa by Japan, it was shifted to serve as a Shinto Shrine. It is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site ''Gusuku Sites and Related Properties of the Kingdom of Ryukyu'' in Nanjō, Okinawa. Sefa Utaki is on the Chinen Peninsula, and has been recognized as a sacred place since the earliest period of Ryukyuan history. According to ''Chūzan Seikan'', this was the spot where Amamikyu, goddess of creation, made landfall on Okinawa. The shrine area itself comprises a number of caves and overhanging ledges opening to the east and south among towering rock formations of a high promontory over the sea. All buildings have been destroyed, but the outer and inner precincts can still be traced.Kerr, George H. (1953) ''Ryukyu Kingdom and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Utaki
Utaki (御嶽) is an Okinawan term for a sacred place, often a grove, cave, or mountain. They are central to the Ryukyuan religion and the former noro priestess system. Although the term ''utaki'' is used throughout the Ryukyu Islands, the terms ''suku'' and ''on'' are heard in the Miyako and Yaeyama regions respectively. Utaki are usually located on the outskirts of villages and are places for the veneration of gods and ancestors. Most gusuku have places of worship, and it is theorized that the origins of both ''gusuku'' and ''utaki'' are closely related. Important Utaki * Biinudaki (弁ヶ嶽), Naha * Misaki-on (美崎御嶽), Ishigaki * Miyatori-on (宮鳥御嶽), Nago * Pyarumizu-utaki (漲水御嶽), Miyako * Sefa-utaki (斎場御嶽), Nanjō * Sunuhyan-utaki ''Sunufan-utaki'' is a sacred grove of trees and plants (''utaki'') of the traditional indigenous Ryukyuan religion. It is located on the grounds of Shuri Castle in Naha, Okinawa, a few paces away from t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kikoe-ōgimi
首里・那覇方言データベース was the highest ranking priestess of the Ryukyuan religion during the period of the . The position of was formally established during the reign of King () in order to centralize the religious order. Only a royal woman could be appointed to the position of . After Ryukyu's annexation by Japan in 1879, this position was formally abolished, but the last continued her role until her death in 1944. List of ...
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Ryukyu Kingdom
The Ryukyu Kingdom, Middle Chinese: , , Classical Chinese: (), Historical English names: ''Lew Chew'', ''Lewchew'', ''Luchu'', and ''Loochoo'', Historical French name: ''Liou-tchou'', Historical Dutch name: ''Lioe-kioe'' 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 Kingdom played a central role in the maritime trade networks of medieval East Asia and Southeast Asia despite its small size. The Ryukyu Kingdom became a vassal state of the Satsuma Domain of Japan after the invasion of Ryukyu in 1609 but retained ''de jure'' independence until it was transformed into the Ryukyu Domain by the Empire of Japan in 1872. The Ryukyu Kingdom was formally annexed and dissolved by Japan in 1879 to form Okinawa Prefecture, and the Ryukyuan monarchy was integrated ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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_of_Sefa-Utaki.jpg "Click for more on -> Sefa-utaki")
