, native_name_link = , image_caption = , image_size = , map_image = Tokara-eilanden.png , map_caption = , location =

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 ...

, coordinates = , archipelago =

Tokara Islands The is an archipelago in the Nansei Islands, and are part of the Satsunan Islands, which is in turn part of the Ryukyu Archipelago. The chain consists of twelve small islands located between Yakushima and Amami-Oshima. The islands have a total ...

, total_islands = , major_islands = , area_km2 = 34.47 , length_km = 9 , width_km = 5 , coastline_km = 31.8 , highest_mount = Otake , elevation_m = 979 , country = Japan , country_admin_divisions_title = , country_admin_divisions = Kagoshima Prefecture , population = 167 , population_as_of = 2004 , density_km2 =4.84 , ethnic_groups =

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

, additional_info = , is a volcanic island located in the

, part of the

Kagoshima Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu and the Ryukyu Islands. Kagoshima Prefecture has a population of 1,599,779 (1 January 2020) and has a geographic area of 9,187 km2 (3,547 sq mi). Kagoshima Prefecture borders Kumamoto P ...

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 n ...

. It is the largest and most populous island of the islands in

Toshima is a special ward in Tokyo, Japan. It is one of the eight central wards of the Tokyo Metropolitan area. Located in the northern area of Tokyo, Toshima is bordered by the wards of Nerima, Itabashi, and Kita in the north and Nakano, Shinjuku, ...

village. The island, 34.47 km² in area, had 167 inhabitants . The island has no airport, and access is normally by ferry to the city of Kagoshima on the mainland, seven hours away. The islanders are dependent mainly on agriculture, fishing and seasonal tourism. The island's attractions include hot springs, a lighthouse, an observatory and a museum of local history and folklore.

Geography

Nakanoshima is the largest island in the Tokara archipelago, with dimensions of by . It is located south from

Kyushu 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 ...

. The northern end of the island is dominated by , an active volcano which last erupted in 1914. The mountain was mined for sulphur until 1944. With a height of above sea level, the mountain is the exposed cone of an active

stratovolcano A stratovolcano, also known as a composite volcano, is a conical volcano built up by many layers (strata) of hardened lava and tephra. Unlike shield volcanoes, stratovolcanoes are characterized by a steep profile with a summit crater and peri ...

arising from the ocean floor. A small plateau separates Otake from eroded remains of another volcano. The local climate is classified as subtropical, with a rainy season from May through September.

Climate

History

Nakanoshima has been populated for several thousand years. The island was once part of the

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 ...

. During the

Edo period The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional '' daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was character ...

, Nakanoshima was part of

Satsuma Domain The , briefly known as the , was a domain (''han'') of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan during the Edo period from 1602 to 1871. The Satsuma Domain was based at Kagoshima Castle in Satsuma Province, the core of the modern city of Kagoshima, l ...

and was administered as part of Kawabe District. In 1896, the island was transferred to the administrative control of

Ōshima District, Kagoshima is a district located in Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. As of the March 20, 2006 merger but with 2003 population statistics, the district has an estimated population of 78,882 and a density of 84.4 persons per km2. The total area is 934.10 k ...

, and from 1911 was administered as part of the village of

Toshima, Kagoshima is a village consisting of the islands of the Tokara Islands located in the Satsunan Islands of Kagoshima District, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. The village office is located in the city of Kagoshima, outside the village. As of 2013, the vill ...

. From 1946-1952, the island was administered 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 Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

as part of the Provisional Government of Northern Ryukyu Islands. Until 1956, the village hall for Toshima Village was located on Nakanoshima. It was then relocated to within the city of

Kagoshima , abbreviated to , is the capital city of Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. Located at the southwestern tip of the island of Kyushu, Kagoshima is the largest city in the prefecture by some margin. It has been nicknamed the "Naples of the Eastern wor ...

. In early 1950, a small herd of wild horses in the south of the island were identified as a distinct breed, named the

Tokara pony The (also known as the Kagoshima horse) is a Japanese horse native to the Tokara Islands, a group of islands in Kagoshima Prefecture at the southwestern tip of the island of Kyushu. Its height is about . Its coat color is predominantly seal bro ...

. This species only occurs on Nakanoshima and is believed to have been brought to the island around 1890 from

Kikaijima is one of the Satsunan Islands, classed with the Amami archipelago between Kyūshū and Okinawa. The island, in area, has a population of approximately 7,657 persons. Administratively the island forms the town of Kikai, Kagoshima Prefecture ...

, an island near

Amami Ōshima , also known as Amami, is the largest island in the Amami archipelago between Kyūshū and Okinawa. It is one of the Satsunan Islands. The island, 712.35 km2 in area, has a population of approximately 73,000 people. Administratively it is ...

. After

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 World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, the species almost became extinct, and survivors were removed to a ranch operated by Kagoshima University on mainland Kagoshima for protection . Today, some have been reintroduced to Nakanoshima.Oklahoma State University - Breeds of Livestock - Tokara Horse

Notes

References

*National Geospatial Intelligence Agency (NGIA). ''Prostar Sailing Directions 2005 Japan Enroute''. Prostar Publications (2005).

External links

Tokara Village Official Website

- Japan Meteorological Agency
Nakanoshima: National catalogue of the active volcanoes in Japan
PDF) - Japan Meteorological Agency

- Geological Survey of Japan {{Tokara Islands Tokara Islands Volcanoes of Kagoshima Prefecture Active volcanoes Stratovolcanoes of Japan Islands of Kagoshima Prefecture Holocene stratovolcanoes