Okay, first of all, don't get me wrong, I speak from the diaspora, so I use being Okinawan and Japanese in a sense of identity, not really nationality.
I know about the history of Okinawa as a hafu myself, but I don't feel like being Okinawan automatically negates being Japanese. Either are super valid in their respective modern sense. Fair to say I'm against imperialism myself, but neither me nor my cousins who were actually born in Japan have ever said we don't feel Japanese (especially because most were born and raised in the Kansai region).
Growing up with internet and living among mainlanders, I think I've built my identity in a very mixed way, which is pretty natural given my age and the current context of the world. I think it can be positive, but I see a lot of foreigners commenting on how Ryukyu should be independent and all that…
Guys, once again, don't get me wrong, I feel like our notion of identity is pretty personal and each person feels a different way about this. I see all the time people on Reddit saying that Okinawans speak Uchinaaguchi instead of Japanese, which is pretty rare nowadays. Also, don't forget that there's also Miyako, Amami… They have their own languages and identities. I wouldn't call someone from Miyako an Okinawan in the same sense my dad is, it's a different island.
We often navigate between both cultures, I've seen polls where a lot of Okinawans identify as both. It's not that polarising, I see people discussing my identity and basically telling me how I should feel. I don't think that's very nice.
It's okay to feel 100% Okinawan, it's okay to feel 100% Japanese, it's okay to feel both at the same time, it's personal, but guys, please, don't put people in a box.
I don't know if others feel the same way, maybe it's just me, but I thought I'd share it.
by Copy_Cat_
8 comments
Nope! Someone on here who isn’t from either knows best and will tell you how you should feel. It’s the way of the internet.
Sarcasm aside, I think this was a really well thought out message and I thank you for sharing your persective.
I remember seeing something about china utilizing bots and so on to sway public opinion and achieve something like the brexit in europe. Just with okinawa and japan – because history.
As far as I know, most of my friends and anyone around does not care about “okinawan independence”. People get too worked up about things that must not concern them. Locals can sort their feelings and thoughts out themselves.
To my knowledge, it’s always been to live and let people live so I dont fully understand why a bunch of outsiders/weebs/randoms and what not feel justified to comment on such matters. It would be nice if everyone would just agree to ignore those messages, regardless of who it says online. Unless there has been a direct poll from the local government, everyone can and should safely ignore whatever nonsense “the internet/Social media” claims. As always. People call AI on pictures and edits, but so far I havent seen anyone call an account or post an ai or bot. Sounds fair to have that be the approache towards the media.
> I see all the time people on Reddit saying that Okinawans speak Uchinaaguchi instead of Japanese…
“All the time?” Really? People say this? Obviously, if they do then they have never been to Okinawa and have misunderstood a book or video.
I have seen plenty of people here enquire about Uchinaaguchi learning materials, including myself, but I can’t recall one person saying “Okinawans speak Uchinaaguchi instead of Japanese”.
> which [is] pretty rare nowadays.
True
I am Uchinanchu hafu too! I don’t think anyone but mixed race and mixed culture people get the dynamic youre describing . I always see it as a hierarchy of identity personally. I am Okinawan, then American (derogatory?) and then Japanese.
I think my being Okinawan is because Okinawa accepts all types, my being American is simply by virtue of spending so much time in the US and my being Japanese is just a passport and nationality thing.
Generally though the idea that you are Okinawa OR Japanese is silly. I see so many people describe us as such, yet no one in the in group thinks this way in my experience.
Glad you pointed out Miyako-jima and Yaeyama are culturally different and had a different language, even their Japanese is different from Okinawa Island. My wife considers herself a Myaakunchuu ( Miyako-jima native ) vs Okinawan although she refers to herself as an Okinawan for expediency.
Yes! I think sometimes people like to blanket all the islands as one Okinawa, one culture, one language, but living on a rural island people are deeply passionate about their own culture to the islands. Perhaps if you’re not familiar with Oki than it’s just an assumption that it’s all the same. I know some Miyako dialect because it was taught to me and the same with my coworker who is from Ishigaki she tells me words from her island. We appreciated mainland Okinawa but people forget about us down here. Thank you!
I think this is a fair take. A lot of people online like to frame things in very simple boxes when identity is usually way more layered than that. It makes sense that someone can feel Okinawan and Japanese at the same time without it being some political statement. Outsiders projecting their own narratives onto it probably does not help much.
I agree with your overall take. There is an interesting phenomena for those of us with older relatives who left Okinawa, though. I was born and raised in the US, but constantly heard from my grandmother about how we aren’t really Japanese and all the terrible things the Japanese did to Okinawa– both true and exaggerated stories. (Outlawed her language, kidnapped the king, etc etc)
It’s fairly common for people who left their home country to actually hold on to these beliefs more strongly than people who stayed. It might be that foreigners are more likely to know the sort of people who have more extreme beliefs on the topic.
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