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21-467: Izena's primary claim to fame is that it was the birthplace of King Shō En , the first king of the Second Shō Dynasty . It is also the birthplace of the contemporary artist Naka Bokunen and musician Shunichi Irei  [ ja ] (伊禮 俊一 Irei Shun'ichi ). As of 1 October 2020, the island has an estimated population of 1,322 and a density of 86 persons per square kilometer. The total area

42-432: A difference of opinion between Kanamaru, and Shō Toku , who succeeded Shō Taikyū as king in 1461, possibly over the king's costly military efforts on the island of Kikai , leading Kanamaru to leave Shuri and retire to Uchima. Shō Toku died shortly afterwards, however, and it is said that in the ensuing discussions among the elder bureaucrats to choose a successor, Kanamaru was selected by popular demand, and thus came to

63-405: A formal tomb was constructed for Shō En's parents on Izena Island. Shō En also named his sister high priestess, or " noro ", of Izena; the lineage of high priestesses descended from her continued until the 20th century. His reign marked the beginning of an institutional shift in the royal government, away from rule by a charismatic or otherwise gifted individual leader, i.e. the king, and towards

84-408: A more bureaucratic system, with the king at its center. Shō En's childhood wife is believed to have died, or otherwise separated from Kanamaru, before he rose to prominence at Shuri. He had his first son with his second wife, Yosoidon . Shō En died in 1476, after ruling for only a few years, and was succeeded by his brother Shō Sen'i , to Yosoidon's chagrin. Presently, the high priestess, daughter of

105-478: A particularly severe drought, the rice paddies of Kanamaru's family were found to be full of water; accused of having stolen the water, Kanamaru was forced to flee his home, and ended up in Ginama, in the northern region ( Kunigami ) of Okinawa Island. After several years living in Ginama, there too some type of dispute or disagreement between Kanamaru and his neighbors emerged. Leaving Ginama, he traveled to Shuri ,

126-468: Is 15.42 km (5.95 sq mi). The island's topography features a row of mountains spanning from the northwest to the southeast of the island, with generally flat, arable land covering the remainder. The island has several sandy beaches and designated camping areas with bathroom facilities. The view of Izena's rocky southern coastline is well known as one of Japan's best, with the rock formations 'Umi Gitara' and 'Agi Gitara' dramatically rising from

147-457: Is accessible by a ferry that makes two daily round trips between Nakada Port and Unten Port in Nakijin Village, which is located North of Nago on Okinawa's main island. The ferry trip takes approximately one hour. Izena also has an airfield, though daily service to the island by airplane was halted in 2007. There are a kindergarten, junior high school and elementary school, all located near

168-699: Is now Kunigami; the forest is also mentioned in Omoro Sōshi . Ceramics from the Jōmon-period Uzahama Site ( 宇佐浜遺跡 ) resemble those found in the Amami Islands . Chūzan Seikan records the prayers of the Kunigami council for the recovery of Shō Sei after an abortive attempt to occupy Amami Ōshima in 1537, while Kyūyō recounts the appointment of the son of the Kunigami Oyakata as aji after

189-455: The Second Shō dynasty . Kanamaru was born into a family of peasant farmers on Izena Island , a tiny island which lies off the northwestern coast of Okinawa Island . It is said that his parents died when he was around twenty and undertook to provide for his aunt and uncle, brother and sister, and his wife, whom he married at a very young age. In one year in which the island had suffered from

210-554: The Izena 88 (2 km swim + 66 km bike + 20 km run) in the Autumn, participation of which (in 2007) was numbered at around 830. There is also a kids' triathlon for island residents on the day preceding the main race. Sh%C5%8D En Shō En ( 尚圓 , 1415–1476, r. 1470–1476) , previously known as Uchima Kanemaru ( 内間金丸 ) , was a king of the Ryukyu Kingdom and the founder of

231-493: The beverage. Commerce on the island is limited to a small grocery store, gas station, farmer's market, and building supply store that are operated by Japan's Central Union of Agricultural Cooperatives , several other independently owned convenience stores, restaurants, and bars in each of the island's 5 villages, and several hotels along the beach and in the island's center. There is a scuba diving shop in Nakada Village open in

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252-507: The capital of the Ryukyu Kingdom, in 1441, and became a servant or retainer to the prince, Shō Taikyū . After Shō Taikyū became king in 1454, Kanamaru was made royal treasurer, and was in 1459 granted the post of Omonogusuku osasu no soba ( 御物城御鎖側 ) , a position involving responsibility for matters regarding foreign relations and trade. He was also granted territory, and made Lord of Uchima ( 内間 御殿 , Uchima-udun ) . There emerged

273-498: The center of the island and serving all five villages. As of 2010, the average size of each grade is 20 students. Okinawa Prefectural Board of Education operates senior high schools elsewhere in the prefecture. After graduating from junior high school, students must move to mainland Okinawa if they wish to attend high school. In the sense that they no longer live together, the island's youth become independent from their parents at 15 years old. Izena Island hosts an annual triathlon,

294-465: The land and sea. The village includes five wards. Izena's main crops are sugar and the edible seaweed mozuku , but there are also several rice paddies, livestock farms, and a cattle breeding facility. From December through April, sugar is harvested and processed at a refinery on the island before being exported. There is an awamori distillery in Izena Village that produces several varieties of

315-460: The late king and Yosoidon, received a divine message indicating that Shō Sen'i should abdicate in favor of his nephew, son of Shō En, who then took the throne as Shō Shin . Kunigami Kunigami ( 国頭村 , Kunigami-son , Kunigami : Kunzan , Okinawan : Kunjan , Northern Ryukyuan : くにがみ Kunigami ) is a village in Kunigami District , Okinawa Prefecture , Japan . It occupies

336-449: The new city of Hentona ( 辺土名市 ) ; the merger was reversed the following year. Kunigami is mountainous, with over 80% of the land area covered by subtropical evergreen forest . Endemic species include the Okinawa woodpecker and Okinawa rail . The village includes twenty-one wards. There is one municipal junior high school, Kunigami Junior High School ( 国頭中学校 ). Kunigami has

357-528: The north tip of Okinawa Island , with the East China Sea to the west, Pacific Ocean to the east, and villages of Higashi and Ōgimi to the south. As of 2015, the village has a population of 4,908 and a population density of 25.20 persons per km . The total area is 194.80 km . According to Chūzan Seikan , the goddess Amamikyu consecrated the first utaki in Asa Forest at Hedo, in what

378-479: The side of the late king. Shō En thus established the Second Shō dynasty , taking on the honorary surname granted the kings of Ryukyu by the Ming dynasty (and later, Qing dynasty ) of China . He also banned members of the former Shō dynasty from high government office, and from marrying into the new royal family, and took steps to elevate the prestige of his own family. His father came to be honored as King of Izena, and

399-522: The successful takeover of the Amami Islands by Shō Gen in 1571. Kunigami District was established in 1896 and, upon the abolition of Kunigami magiri , Kunigami Village was founded in 1908. During the Battle of Okinawa , the area saw an influx of refugees fleeing the heavy fighting in the south. In September 1945, the occupying government merged the three villages of Kunigami, Higashi , and Ōgimi into

420-562: The summer that provides equipment and tours. Izena is one of only a handful of places in Okinawa that was not ravaged by American and Japanese military forces during World War II , although American bombing on the nearby island of Iheya resulted in approximately 50 civilian deaths. When American Marines landed on Izena during the night of June 23, 1945, they encountered no hostile defenses or enemy combatants and left shortly thereafter. Izena Village includes many cultural properties. The island

441-509: The throne, taking the royal name Shō En. Historian George H. Kerr , however, points out that official histories produced in the following centuries were written with the patronage of Shō En's successors; also that the circumstances surrounding Shō Toku's death remain something of a mystery, and the traditional account may simply indicate that there was a shift in allegiances among the aristocrats and bureaucrats towards Kanamaru, or that those parties in support of Kanamaru simply outnumbered those on

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