The are

Japanese islands The Japanese archipelago (Japanese: 日本列島, ''Nihon rettō'') is a group of 6,852 islands that form the country of Japan, as well as the Russian island of Sakhalin. It extends over from the Sea of Okhotsk in the northeast to the East Chin ...

in the

East China Sea The East China Sea is an arm of the Western Pacific Ocean, located directly offshore from East China. It covers an area of roughly . The sea’s northern extension between mainland China and the Korean Peninsula is the Yellow Sea, separated ...

, off the western coast of

Kyūshū is the third-largest island of Japan's five main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands ( i.e. excluding Okinawa). In the past, it has been known as , and . The historical regional name referred to Kyushu and its surround ...

. They are part of

Nagasaki Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Nagasaki Prefecture has a population of 1,314,078 (1 June 2020) and has a geographic area of 4,130 km2 (1,594 sq mi). Nagasaki Prefecture borders Saga Prefecture to the northeast. N ...

Geography

There are 140 islands, including five main ones: , , , , and . The group of islands runs approximately from Osezaki Lighthouse, Fukue Island to Tsuwazaki Lighthouse,

Nakadōri Island is an island in the Gotō Islands, Japanese islands in the East China Sea, off the western coast of Kyūshū. The islands are a part of Nagasaki Prefecture in Japan. History Evidence of human settlement in the on Nakadōri Island trace back to ...

. Its center is near Naru Island at about . To the north is

Tsushima Island is an island of the Japanese archipelago situated in-between the Tsushima Strait and Korea Strait, approximately halfway between Kyushu and the Korean Peninsula. The main island of Tsushima, once a single island, was divided into two in 167 ...

in the Tsushima Strait and to the east is Kyūshū and the rest of Nagasaki Prefecture. It is about from the port of

Nagasaki is the capital and the largest city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan. It became the sole port used for trade with the Portuguese and Dutch during the 16th through 19th centuries. The Hidden Christian Sites in the ...

. The Tsushima Current (a branch of the

Kuroshio The , also known as the Black or or the is a north-flowing, warm ocean current on the west side of the North Pacific Ocean basin. It was named for the deep blue appearance of its waters. Similar to the Gulf Stream in the North Atlantic, the Ku ...

) passes around the islands. The southern of the two principal islands, Fukue, measures approximately north-to-south by east-to-west; the northern, Nakadōri Island, measures approximately north-to-south by east-to-west at its widest point. Most of Nakadōri Island, however, is quite narrow, measuring less than wide for much of its length. Some dome-shaped hills command the old castle town of Fukue. The islands are highly cultivated; deer and other game abound, and trout are plentiful in the mountain streams. As a result of a merger on August 1, 2004, the city of Gotō was established. It occupies Fukue, Hisaka, and Naru islands, and seven inhabited ones. The town of

Shin-Kamigotō is a town located in Minami-Matsuura District, Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan. The town was established on August 1, 2004 after the merger of the towns of Arikawa, Kamigotō, Narao, Shin-Uonome and Wakamatsu, all from Minami-Matsuura District. It ...

, itself the product of a simultaneous, separate merger in 2004, occupies Nakadōri and Wakamatsu islands, two of the five main islands of the Gotō archipelago, in addition to the small inhabited islands of Arifuku, Kashiragashima, Hinoshima, Ryōzegaura, and Kirinoko and a great number of uninhabited islets. The small island of Kabajima is east of Hisaka Island and northeast of Fukue Island. It belongs to Gotō City.

Demographics

In 2005, there were 76,311 inhabitants on the islands. An important historical element is the roots of Christianity in Japan within the islands. Some of the inhabitants are descended from Christians of the Catholic Church ("

Kakure Kirishitan ''Kakure kirishitan'' () is a modern term for a member of the Catholic Church in Japan that went underground at the start of the Edo period in the early 17th century due to Christianity's repression by the Tokugawa shogunate. History Origin ...

"), who came to their faith upon the introduction of Christianity to Japan via Portuguese missionaries in the late 16th century. These Japanese were many times persecuted and tortured by the Japanese

shogunate , officially , was the title of the military dictators of Japan during most of the period spanning from 1185 to 1868. Nominally appointed by the Emperor, shoguns were usually the de facto rulers of the country, though during part of the Kamakura ...

s for their beliefs, all the way into the early

Meiji period The is an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868 to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonization ...

. Until recently Hanare Kirishitans still lived there; the majority either returned to Catholicism after it was legalized in the 19th century or reverted to earlier practices. The islands have numerous Catholic churches, the oldest and most famous of which is Dōzaki church, built in 1868 and located about north of Fukue port. The islands are part of the Archdiocese of Nagasaki.

Products

Marine products, such as

oyster Oyster is the common name for a number of different families of salt-water bivalve molluscs that live in marine or brackish habitats. In some species, the valves are highly calcified, and many are somewhat irregular in shape. Many, but not ...

s and

sea urchin Sea urchins () are spiny, globular echinoderms in the class Echinoidea. About 950 species of sea urchin live on the seabed of every ocean and inhabit every depth zone from the intertidal seashore down to . The spherical, hard shells (tests) o ...

s, are the main products of the island. The natural camellia oil of Fukuejima is famous in Japan for cosmetic use. Cankoro-mochi, simple and traditional confections made from mochi and sliced and dried sweet potato is a kind of "soul food" for Goto natives. Cancoro-mochi is a good, inexpensive souvenir. It becomes sweeter when sliced (5 mm – 1 cm thick) and toasted in a toaster oven.

Tourism

Fukue city is a typical jokamachi in Japan, but the most interesting point is that the old castle in Fukue (called Ishida Castle) was built last in Japanese history. The year after the castle was completed, Japan opened their nation because of the

Meiji Restoration The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored practical imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Although there were ...

. Today, the castle is used as the Goto high school and is contributing to the education of young Goto natives. Most of the castle area inside the stone walls are opened for public, you'll be able to see even the school grounds (which is also old castle heritage) if you ask for permission from the school administration office.

Transportation

The Gotō-Fukue Airport (FUJ/RJFE)Airport
/ref> is on Fukue Island. Ferry services from Nagasaki and Sasebo are offered by Kyusyu Shosen Co. Ltd. Both standard ferry and hydrofoil services operate. There are also regular bus services on Fukue island.

Citations

General references

External links

Goto city tourism association
{{DEFAULTSORT:Goto Islands Archipelagoes of Japan Archipelagoes of the Pacific Ocean Islands of Nagasaki Prefecture Islands of the East China Sea Japanese archipelago