RYUKYU ISLANDS

also called Nansei Islands, Japanese Ryukyu-Shoto, or Nansei-Shoto, Ryukyuan Okinawa archipelago, extending almost 400 miles (650 km) southwest from Kyushu, southern Japan, to the northern tip of Taiwan bordering the Philippine Sea (east) and the East China Sea (west). Since 1972 the islands have comprised Okinawa ken (prefecture), Japan. With a total land area of 870 square miles (2,254 square km), they consist of 55 islands and islets divided into three major groups: the Amami island chain (north), the central Okinawa islands (484 square miles; Okinawa Island is the largest), and the Sakishima islands (south). The larger islands are generally volcanic in origin and have mountainous terrain, while most of the smaller islands are coralline and relatively flat. With a semitropical climate, the Ryukyus are subject to annual typhoons. The people of the islands seem to be descendants of Japanese and Southeast Asians who migrated to the Ryukyus in prehistoric times. They most closely resemble the Japanese in physical type. Similarly, the Ryukyuan language is classified with Japanese, although there is no mutual intelligibility. Japanese is most frequently spoken by the majority of the Ryukyuans. Culturally, the Ryukyuans have been subjected to both Japanese and Chinese influence. In ancient times the islands formed an independent kingdom. Chinese and Japanese sovereignty were successively forced on the archipelago from the 14th to the 19th century, and in 1879 the Ryukyus became an integral part of Japan. After the defeat of Japan in World War II, the United States took control of the islands. The military government was replaced in 1951 by a civil administration based in Naha (on Okinawa), the islands' capital and largest city. The chief executive, who originally was appointed by the U.S. high commissioner, was elected by the legislature in 1966. His election was made popular two years later. By terms of the treaty ending World War II (1952), the United States recognized Japan's residual sovereignty over the Ryukyus, and the Amami island chain was returned in 1953. Following a second treaty signed in 1971, the remaining islands were returned in 1972. The United States continues to maintain 88 military installations and thousands of troops on Okinawa Island. The Ryukyus are primarily rural. Agriculture is the dominant occupation, with sweet potatoes and rice the staple crops. Sugar and canned pineapples are among the leading exports. Tuna fishing is increasingly important. Traditional industries include lacquer and pottery manufacture; newer enterprises produce industrial compounds. Okinawa University, Kokusai University, and the University of the Ryukyus are all located on Okinawa. Pop. (1990) 1,222,458.