is a

village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...

located in Kunigami District,

Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan. It consists of three main island groups—the Okinawa Islands, the Sakishima Islands, and the Daitō Islands—spread across a maritime zone approximately 1,000 kilometers east to west an ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. As of March 2022, the village had a

population Population is a set of humans or other organisms in a given region or area. Governments conduct a census to quantify the resident population size within a given jurisdiction. The term is also applied to non-human animals, microorganisms, and pl ...

of 6,227. The total area of Ginoza is , around 50% of the land area of the village is used as the Central Training Area for the United States military.

Etymology

The

kanji are logographic Chinese characters, adapted from Chinese family of scripts, Chinese script, used in the writing of Japanese language, Japanese. They were made a major part of the Japanese writing system during the time of Old Japanese and are ...

for Ginoza (宜野座) mean "suitable field in which to sit".

Geography

Ginoza is located on the eastern coast of the middle of the island of

Okinawa most commonly refers to: * Okinawa Prefecture, Japan's southernmost prefecture * Okinawa Island, the largest island of Okinawa Prefecture * Okinawa Islands, an island group including Okinawa itself * Okinawa (city), the second largest city in th ...

. The village is located on the backbone of mountains that run north to south on Okinawa Island, and slopes gently to a broad coastline along the

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

. The Kanna Dam was completed in 1993.

Neighboring municipalities

Ginoza borders three municipalities in Okinawa Prefecture. * Kin *

Nago is a city located in the northern part of Okinawa Island, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. As of December 2012, the city has an estimated population of 61,659 and a population density of 293 persons per km2. Its total area is 210.30 km2. Geo ...

* Onna

Administrative divisions

Ginoza is divided into six wards. * * * * * *

History

The area of present-day Ginoza was historically agricultural. The area was, however, used as a retreat for members of the Yukatchu artistocratic class of the

Ryukyu Kingdom The Ryukyu Kingdom was a kingdom in the Ryukyu Islands from 1429 to 1879. It was ruled as a Tributary system of China, tributary state of Ming dynasty, imperial Ming China by the King of Ryukyu, Ryukyuan monarchy, who unified Okinawa Island t ...

; consequently, the area was strongly influenced, economically and culturally, by the central Ryukyuan state. In a census of Ginoza in 1903, half the town was registered as nobility, and half as commoners. Ginoza became part of Okinawa Prefecture with its creation in 1879, and part of Kunigami District in 1896. In the administrative reorganization of Okinawa Prefecture in 1908 the Kinmu magiri was divided into two villages; the majority of the former magiri became Ginoza, and a small part was added to the present-day town of Kin. A large part of the population of Ginoza emigrated overseas before World War II. During World War 2 Ginoza village's schools were used as field hospitals. Bodies lie buried around the buildings to this day. Directly after the war Ginoza the south central part of Ginoza was home to a large concentration of refugees. The population of the village reached over 100,000, and the village was temporarily divided into six cities. The population of the village dropped rapidly after this period as Okinawans returned to their home villages. 50% of Ginoza is utilized as the Central Training Area for the US military.

Culture

The Ginoza Village Museum opened in 1994.

Cultural Properties

*Name (Japanese) (Type of registration)

Cultural Properties

*Former Kochiya Village (currently Matsuda) kumi-odori texts (旧古知屋村(現松田区)組踊写本6冊) (Municipal) *Genealogical records of the Tan Clan: branch line (「湛姓家譜」支流一冊) (Municipal) *Genealogical records of the Kyoda Family and related ancient documents (許田家所蔵の家譜及び関連古文書類) (Municipal) *Kanna Uē-nu-atai Site (漢那ウェーヌアタイ遺跡) *Materials from Ginoza Village relating to the Battle of Okinawa (沖縄戦関連宜野座村資料) (Municipal) *Mē-gā Site (メーガー遺跡) *Ginoza Ukkā Gushiku Site (宜野座大川グシク)

Folk Cultural Properties

*Ginoza Nuru Dunchi residence (宜野座ヌル殿内) *Kanna shrine (漢那のお宮) *Kushi-nu-utaki sacred site (クシヌ御嶽) *Sokei-no-ugan sacred site (惣慶のウガン) *Yuuagi-mō meadows (ユウアギモー)

Natural Monuments

*Old tree of Uē-nu-atai (ウェーヌアタイの古木) *Pine tree lane of the former Matsuda Hippodrome (松田の馬場跡の松並木) (Municipal)

Economy

Agricultural production remains high in Ginoza. Like other areas of Okinawa, the village produces

sugarcane Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of 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 stout, jointed, fib ...

. Cut flowers production, which has spread rapidly to other municipalities in Okinawa Prefecture, has also been developed in Ginoza. The village produces of

chrysanthemum Chrysanthemums ( ), sometimes called mums or chrysanths, are flowering plants in the Asteraceae family. They are native to East Asia and northeastern Europe. Most species originate from East Asia, and the center of diversity is in China. Co ...

s and

orchid Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Orchids are cosmopolitan plants that are found in almost every habitat on Eart ...

s. Tropical fruit, specifically

pineapple The pineapple (''Ananas comosus'') is a Tropical vegetation, tropical plant with an edible fruit; it is the most economically significant plant in the family Bromeliaceae. The pineapple is indigenous to South America, where it has been culti ...

s and

mango A mango is an edible stone fruit produced by the tropical tree '' Mangifera indica''. It originated from the region between northwestern Myanmar, Bangladesh, and northeastern India. ''M. indica'' has been cultivated in South and Southeast As ...

es, is also a developing part of the agricultural sector Ginoza. Additionally, strawberries and

potato The potato () is a starchy tuberous vegetable native to the Americas that is consumed as a staple food in many parts of the world. Potatoes are underground stem tubers of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'', a perennial in the nightshade famil ...

es are grown in Ginoza. Rent from land used for military bases by the United States remains a large source of income in the Ginoza. The village government has attempted to diversify the economy of Ginoza, but dependence on rental income remains high.

Government

Under the

Local Autonomy Law The , passed by the House of Representatives and the House of Peers on March 28, 1947 and promulgated as Law No. 67 of 1947 on April 17,Ministry of Justice, Japanese Law Translation Database SystemLocal Autonomy Act/ref> is an Act of devolution t ...

of 1947 the government of Ginoza consists of an elected village council, an elected mayor, and administrative committees and departments under control of the mayor. Ginoza, with a population of under 6,000 residents, has a village council consisting of 12 members. Members of the council and the mayor serve a four-year term. The mayor of Ginoza is Atsushi Tōma.

Education

Ginoza operates three elementary schools (Matsuda (松田小学校), Kanna (漢那小学校), and Ginoza (宜野座小学校) Elementary Schools) and one junior high school (Ginoza Junior High School ( 宜野座中学校)). The Okinawa Prefectural Board of Education operates .

Transportation

Road

Ginoza is crossed by Japan National Route 329, national highway which connects Nago, Okinawa and

Naha, Okinawa is the Cities of Japan, 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 people per km2 (20,562 persons per sq. mi.). ...

, and the Okinawa Expressway. The Ginoza Interchange connects JNR 329 and the Okinawan Expressway.

References

External links

Ginoza official website
{{Authority control Villages in Okinawa Prefecture Populated coastal places in Japan