is a

village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to ...

located entirely on

Minamidaitōjima , also spelt as Minami Daitō or Minami-Daitō, is the largest island in the Daitō Islands group southeast of Okinawa, Japan. It is administered as part of the village of Minamidaitō, Okinawa. Shimajiri District, Okinawa, Shimajiri District, O ...

Shimajiri District is a district located in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. Modern translation of Shimajiri means "Butt of the island" which may refer to its southerly position on the island of Okinawa. Compare this to Kunigami District, Okinawa. However, there are ...

Okinawa Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi). Naha is the capital and largest city o ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. Minamidaitōjima is located approximately east of

Okinawa Island 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 long, an average wide, and has an ...

. Minamidaitō covers . As of June 2013, the city had a

population Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, whether it be a city or town, region, country, continent, or the world. Governments typically quantify the size of the resident population within their jurisdiction using a ...

of 1,418 and a

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...

of 46.4 people per km².

Geography

The island is in the subtropical zone and was formed out of coral reef. With the exception of neighboring Kitadaitō, there is no inhabited land within 400 km of Minamidaitō.

Climate

Minamidaitō has a

tropical rainforest climate A tropical rainforest climate, humid tropical climate or equatorial climate is a tropical climate sub-type usually found within 10 to 15 degrees latitude of the equator. There are some other areas at higher latitudes, such as the coast of southea ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

''Af'') with very warm summers and mild winters. Precipitation is significant throughout the year; the wettest month is June and the driest month is February. The island is subject to frequent

typhoon A typhoon is a mature tropical cyclone that develops between 180° and 100°E in the Northern Hemisphere. This region is referred to as the Northwestern Pacific Basin, and is the most active tropical cyclone basin on Earth, accounting for a ...

History

Minamidaitōjima remained uninhabited until formally claimed by the

Empire of Japan The also known as the Japanese Empire or Imperial Japan, was a historical nation-state and great power that existed from the Meiji Restoration in 1868 until the enactment of the post-World War II 1947 constitution and subsequent fo ...

in 1885. In 1900, a team of pioneers from Hachijōjima, became the first human inhabitants of the island, and started the cultivation of

sugar cane Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of (often hybrid) tall, perennial grass (in the genus ''Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with stout, jointed, fibrous stalks t ...

from 1903. Until

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Kitadaitōjima was owned in its entirety by Dai Nippon Sugar (now Dai Nippon Meiji Sugar). After World War II, the island was occupied by the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. The village of Minamidaitō was established in 1946.

Land reform Land reform is a form of agrarian reform involving the changing of laws, regulations, or customs regarding land ownership. Land reform may consist of a government-initiated or government-backed property redistribution, generally of agricultural ...

was carried out in favor of the residents of Minamidaitō in 1964. A freight train system was established and later dismantled in favor of contemporary transportation. The island was returned to Japan in 1972.

Economy

Sugarcane Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of (often hybrid) tall, Perennial plant, perennial grass (in the genus ''Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar Sugar industry, production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with ...

is the chief product of the village, and is cultivated in the central lowlands of the island. There is also seasonal tourism and commercial fishing. Rum is produced here. Grace Rum distillery, founded in 2004 is producing there two kinds of rum, Cor Cor red label and Cor Cor Green label, made from molasses and sugar juice respectively.Kakzu, ''Island Sustainability''

Transportation

Minami-Daito Airport is an airport in Minamidaitō, Shimajiri District, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. The prefecture operates the airport, which is classified as a third class airport. Only a round flight from Naha, to Minami-Daito and Kitadaitō, back to Naha i ...

, located at the east of the island, connects Minamidaitō with the nearby island of Kitadaitō and

Naha is the capital city of Okinawa Prefecture, the southernmost prefecture of Japan. As of 1 June 2019, the city has an estimated population of 317,405 and a population density of 7,939 persons per km2 (20,562 persons per sq. mi.). The total area i ...

, Okinawa. Okinawa Prefecture operates the airport, and classifies it as a third class airport. There is no port on the island and ships must be loaded/offloaded by crane.

Education

The village of Minamidaitō maintains a single school: Minamidaitō Elementary and Junior High School (南大東村立南大東小中学校). As of 2010 the school had 95 elementary students and 49 junior high students. The village has no high school; students leave the island to complete their secondary education.

Minamidaitō in popular culture

In 2013, a motion picture called was released. Themes include the relationship between inhabitants of Minamidaitō and Kitadaitō and families being torn apart because of the lack of a senior high school on the island.

References

External links

*
Minamidaitō official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Minamidaito, Okinawa Villages in Okinawa Prefecture Daitō Islands Populated coastal places in Japan