is an island in the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

Uruma 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 M ...

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 ...

. The island is southernmost of the

Yokatsu Islands The Yokatsu Islands (与勝諸島, ''Yokatsu-shotō'') are a group of Island, islands located near the Katsuren Peninsula of Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. It consists of both inhabited and uninhabited islets. Islands The Yokatsu Islands consist of ...

, and is located south south-east of the

Katsuren Peninsula The is a peninsula on Okinawa Island. It is bordered by Nakagusuku Bay to the south, Kin Bay to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the east.South China Morning PostThe stunning fortresses of Okinawa have endured centuries of conflict , Post Ma ...

off

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 ...

at the entrance of

Nakagusuku Bay is a bay on the southern coast of Okinawa Island on the Pacific Ocean in Japan. The bay covers and ranges between to deep. The bay is surrounded by the municipalities of Uruma, Kitanakagusuku, Nakagusuku, Nishihara, Yonabaru, Nanjō, all in ...

. Tsuken covers and has a population of 487 residents. The only settlement on Tsuken is located in the southwest of the island. The settlement includes the Port of Tsuken, a post office, and a medical clinic attached to the Okinawa Prefectural Chubu Hospital in Uruma. The island is home to Tsuken Elementary School (19 students) and Tsuken Junior High School (11 students). The island has no high school; students must leave the island after junior high school to continue their education. While residents of Tsuken speak standard Japanese, usage of the

Okinawan language The Okinawan language (, , , ) or Central Okinawan, is a Northern Ryukyuan languages, Ryukyuan language spoken primarily in the southern half of the Okinawa Island, island of Okinawa, as well as in the surrounding islands of Kerama Islands, Ker ...

remains strong on the island, specifically the South-Central dialect of the language.

Geography

Tsuken runs from north to south and to east to west. Its highest point is in the southwest of the island at . Tsuken was once covered with a dense forest of fountain palms, but the middle portion of Tsuken was entirely burned during World War II, and palm groves remain only at the north of the island. Thick belts of vegetation that now exist around coastal areas of the island protect the settlement and agricultural land from

sea breeze A sea breeze or onshore breeze is any wind that blows from a large body of water toward or onto a landmass; it develops due to differences in air pressure created by the differing heat capacities of water and dry land. As such, sea breezes ar ...

. The central and northern parts of Tsuken are used for the production of carrots, a noted agricultural product of the island.

History

Tsuken is historically linked to

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 re ...

to the south. Safe passage between the islands was possible at low tide via small boats, and there was considerable cultural exchange between the islands. Tsuken was settled early in the history of the

Ryukyu Islands The , also known as the or the , are a chain of Japanese islands that stretch southwest from Kyushu to Taiwan: the Ōsumi, Tokara, Amami, Okinawa, and Sakishima Islands (further divided into the Miyako and Yaeyama Islands), with Yonaguni ...

, as evidenced by its numerous shell mounds, of which three have been excavated. Tsuken was home to the ruins of a small castle, the Kubō Gusuku. Commodore

Matthew Calbraith Perry Matthew Calbraith Perry (April 10, 1794 – March 4, 1858) was a commodore of the United States Navy who commanded ships in several wars, including the War of 1812 and the Mexican–American War (1846–1848). He played a leading role in the op ...

recorded the island as "Taking Island" in his narrative on travel to the Ryukyu Islands. The areas of present-day

were affected in

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 ...

during the initial part of the

Battle of Okinawa The , codenamed Operation Iceberg, was a major battle of the Pacific War fought on the island of Okinawa by United States Army (USA) and United States Marine Corps (USMC) forces against the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA). The initial invasion of ...

. L-Day, the initial land invasion of

, occurred on April 1, 1945. American forces swept across the island quickly, and by April 5 had secured the entirety of the Katsuren Peninsula. A smaller invasion force invaded the Yokatsu Islands on L-Day, and encountered stiff resistance from the Japanese military. Tsuken Island was completely devastated by fire in the battle. Casualties for Japanese troops were 234 killed; for the US battalion of the 27th infantry division:11 killed and 3 MIA; 80 wounded. After the capture of Tsuken, American forces swept north and reached Ikei Island on April 11, thus securing all the Yokatsu Islands. Tsuken is in a period of population decline. In 1970 the island had 1,172 residents and 245 households; by 2005 the population was at 485 residents and 210 households.

Economy

Tsuken is noted for its production of carrots, and is known by the nickname "Carrot Island". With white sandy beaches and a broad coral reef, tourism is an important part of the economy. The island has three small hotels and a campground, and also sees numerous day visitors from Okinawa Island. In contrast to its population decline, tourism is growing on Tsuken: in 1975, shortly after the reversion of Okinawa Prefecture to Japan, only 3,000 tourists visited the island. In 2007 the number had grown to 48,887.

Transportation

Tsuken is accessible only by ferry. The Kamiya Tourism Company operates a ferry service fives times a day between the pier at Heshikiya on the Katsuren Peninsula in Uruma City. Tsuken is reached by high-speed ferry in 12 minutes, and regular ferry in 30 minutes. The island has no bus, taxi, or rental car service; all locations on the island are reached by foot.

Military training area

The Tsukenjima Training Area (FAC6082 Tsuken Jima Training Area) is used by the

United States Marines The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through com ...

and is located off the western coast of Tsuken. The training area was established in 1959 and covers .

References