Chichijima
Native name: Village | Ogasawara | |
---|---|---|
Demographics | ||
Population | 2,120 (2021) | |
Pop. density | 90.4/km2 (234.1/sq mi) | |
Ethnic groups | Japanese, mixed |
Chichijima (父島) is the largest and most populous
Some
Names
The Japanese names of the Bonin Islands are mostly based on family relationships, established by the 1675 expedition under Shimaya Ichizaemon and fully adopted in the 1870s after the onset of Japanese colonization.[2][3] As the largest island in the chain, Chichijima (父島) means "Father Island".[3] It is sometimes written Chichi Jima[4] or Chichi-jima[5] and is also sometimes incorrectly read as Chichishima or Chichitō, based on other pronunciations of the character for "island".
Historically, Chichijima has also been known as Gracht, Graght, or Graft Island (
(and by extension Bonin Island, Bonin Sima, etc.).History
Prehistory
Some
Early history
The first certain sighting of Chichijima was by the failed 1639
A Japanese merchant ship carrying
Western explorers visited the island on at least two occasions in the early 19th century.
The first settlement was established in May 1830, by a group formed in Hawaii (which was officially an independent kingdom at the time). The settlers were initially led by
Commodore Matthew C. Perry's flagship USS Susquehanna anchored for 3 days in Chichijima's harbor on 15 June 1853, on the way to his historic visit to Tokyo Bay to open up the country to western trade. Perry also laid claim to the island for the United States for a coaling station for steamships, appointing Nathaniel Savory as an official agent of the US Navy and formed a governing council with Savory as the leader. On behalf of the US government, Perry "purchased" 50 acres (200,000 m2) from Savory.[16]
In 1854, naturalist
visited.1862 – 1941
On 17 January 1862, at Chichijima, Japanese sovereignty over the Ogasawara Islands was proclaimed, following the arrival of an official party from the
Ethnic Japanese gradually outnumbered descendants of the first wave of settlers, whom they referred to as Oubeikei (or Ōbeikei; literally "Westerners"). A unique mixed language, Bonin English, emerged on Chichijima, combining elements of Japanese with English and Hawaiian.
Following the
A small naval base was established on Chichijima in 1914.
World War II
The island was the primary site of long range Japanese radio stations during World War II, as well as being the central base of supply and communication between Japan and the Ogasawara Islands.[18] It had the heaviest garrison in the Nanpō Shotō. According to one source: "At the time of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, an Army force of about 3,700-3,800 men garrisoned Chichi Jima. In addition, about 1,200 naval personnel manned the Chichi Jima Naval Base, a small seaplane base, the radio and weather station, and various gunboat, subchaser, and minesweeping units."[19][20] The garrison also included a heavy artillery fortress regiment.[21]
During the war, the Oubeikei were viewed with suspicion by the Japanese authorities, which saw them as potential spies.)
Chichijima was a frequent target of US Navy air attacks. The future President George H. W. Bush was shot down while on one of these raids, and rescued from the sea. In the Chichijima incident of February 1945,[14] US aviators who had been captured, were tortured, executed, and in cases, partially eaten. (The air raids became the subject of a book by James Bradley entitled Flyboys: A True Story of Courage.)
Japanese troops and resources from Chichijima were used in reinforcing the strategic point of Iwo Jima before the historic battle that took place there from 19 February to 24 March 1945. The island also served as a major point for Japanese radio relay communication and surveillance operations in the Pacific, with two radio stations atop its two mountains being the primary goal of multiple bombing attempts by the US Navy.[14]
The island was never captured, and at the end of World War II, some 25,000 troops in the island chain surrendered. Thirty Japanese soldiers were court-martialled for class "B" war crimes, primarily in connection with the Chichijima incident and four officers (Major Matoba, General Tachibana, Admiral Mori, and Captain Yoshii) were found guilty and hanged. All enlisted men and Probationary Medical Officer Tadashi Teraki were released within 8 years.[23]
US occupation
The United States maintained the former Japanese naval base and attached seaplane base after the war.[citation needed]
A majority of the pre-war civilian population was initially barred from returning by the
Several occupied islands, including Chichijima, were used by the United States in the 1950s to store
In 1960, the harbor facilities were devastated by
Since 1968
The island was returned to Japanese civilian control in 1968.[27] At that time, the Oubeikei were allowed to choose either US or Japanese citizenship. Many of those who chose to move to the US continued to regularly return to the island, where some ran businesses during the summer tourist season.[22]
By the early 21st century, almost 200 residents identifying as "Americans" and/or Oubeikei remained on the island.[22]
Topography and climate
Chichijima is located at 27°4′0″N 142°12′30″E / 27.06667°N 142.20833°E. Currently, around 2,000 people live on the island, and the island's area is about 24 km2 (9.3 sq mi).
On English maps from the early 19th century, the island chain was known as the Bonin Islands. The name Bonin comes from a French cartographer's corruption of the old Japanese word 'munin', which means 'no man', and the English translated it to "No mans land" islands.[14]
The climate of Chichijima is on the boundary between a tropical monsoon climate (Köppen Am), a tropical rainforest climate (Köppen Af), and a humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa). Temperatures are warm to hot and humid all year round, and have certainly remained between 9.2–34.1 °C (48.6–93.4 °F)[28] owing to the warm currents from the North Pacific gyre that surround the island. Rainfall is, however, less heavy than in most parts of mainland Japan, since the island is too far south to be influenced by the Aleutian Low and too far from mainland Asia to receive monsoonal rainfall or orographic precipitation on the equatorward side of the Siberian High. Occasionally, very heavy cyclonic rain falls, as on 7 November 1997, when the island received its record daily rainfall of 348 mm (13.7 in) and monthly rainfall of 603.5 mm (23.8 in).
Climate data for Chichijima (1991−2020 normals, extremes 1968−present) | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °C (°F) | 26.1 (79.0) |
25.4 (77.7) |
26.7 (80.1) |
28.4 (83.1) |
30.1 (86.2) |
33.0 (91.4) |
34.1 (93.4) |
33.7 (92.7) |
33.1 (91.6) |
32.1 (89.8) |
30.2 (86.4) |
27.5 (81.5) |
34.1 (93.4) |
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 20.7 (69.3) |
20.5 (68.9) |
21.7 (71.1) |
23.4 (74.1) |
25.6 (78.1) |
28.5 (83.3) |
30.4 (86.7) |
30.3 (86.5) |
29.9 (85.8) |
28.6 (83.5) |
25.9 (78.6) |
22.7 (72.9) |
25.7 (78.3) |
Daily mean °C (°F) | 18.5 (65.3) |
18.1 (64.6) |
19.3 (66.7) |
21.1 (70.0) |
23.4 (74.1) |
26.2 (79.2) |
27.7 (81.9) |
28.0 (82.4) |
27.7 (81.9) |
26.4 (79.5) |
23.8 (74.8) |
20.6 (69.1) |
23.4 (74.1) |
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 15.8 (60.4) |
15.4 (59.7) |
16.8 (62.2) |
18.8 (65.8) |
21.4 (70.5) |
24.4 (75.9) |
25.6 (78.1) |
26.1 (79.0) |
25.7 (78.3) |
24.4 (75.9) |
21.6 (70.9) |
18.2 (64.8) |
21.2 (70.2) |
Record low °C (°F) | 8.9 (48.0) |
7.8 (46.0) |
9.2 (48.6) |
10.7 (51.3) |
13.9 (57.0) |
17.7 (63.9) |
20.8 (69.4) |
22.2 (72.0) |
19.6 (67.3) |
17.2 (63.0) |
13.2 (55.8) |
10.8 (51.4) |
7.8 (46.0) |
Average precipitation mm (inches) | 63.6 (2.50) |
51.6 (2.03) |
75.8 (2.98) |
113.3 (4.46) |
151.9 (5.98) |
111.8 (4.40) |
79.5 (3.13) |
123.3 (4.85) |
144.2 (5.68) |
141.7 (5.58) |
136.1 (5.36) |
103.3 (4.07) |
1,296.1 (51.03) |
Average snowfall cm (inches) | 0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.5 mm) | 11.0 | 8.5 | 9.8 | 10.0 | 11.8 | 8.8 | 8.6 | 11.3 | 13.4 | 13.7 | 12.0 | 11.2 | 130.2 |
Average relative humidity (%)
|
66 | 68 | 72 | 79 | 84 | 86 | 82 | 82 | 82 | 81 | 76 | 70 | 78 |
Mean monthly sunshine hours | 131.3 | 138.3 | 159.2 | 148.3 | 151.8 | 205.6 | 246.8 | 213.7 | 197.7 | 173.2 | 139.1 | 125.3 | 2,030.6 |
Source: Japan Meteorological Agency[29] |
Island development
Astronomy and telemetry stations
The Japanese
JMSDF facilities
From 1968, the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) has operated the Chichijima Naval Base, along with the associated Chichijima Airfield, the latter including a heliport originally built during the American occupation, as well as seaplane facilities.
Wildlife
Birds
Possibly as a result of the introduction of nonindigenous animals, at least three species of birds became extinct: the
Green turtle consumption and preservation
The inhabitants of the island traditionally have caught and consumed
The Fisheries Agency and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government operate a conservation facility on the edge of Futami Harbor.[38] Eggs are carefully planted in the shore and infant turtles are raised at the facility until they have reached a certain size, at which point they are released into the wild with an identification tag. Today, the number of green turtles has been stabilized and is increasing slowly.[37]
Demographics
The original settlers were of Western and Polynesian origin. Their descendants are now known as Obeikei and have Western and Japanese names; they were required to have the latter since World War II. As of 2012[update], most residents were of Yamato Japanese who came to the island after Japan took back control from the US in the 1970s.[39]
Education
Ogasawara Village operates the island's public elementary and junior high schools.[40]
- Ogasawara Municipal Ogasawara Junior High School (小笠原村立小笠原中学校)[41]
- Ogasawara Elementary School (小笠原小学校)
Tokyo Metropolitan Government Board of Education operates Ogasawara High School on Chichijima.
See also
References
Citations
- ^ "支庁の案内: 管内概要 (Japanese)". 1 April 2021. Retrieved 16 June 2022.
- ^ a b c Kublin (1953), p. 31.
- ^ a b Eldridge (2008), p. 3.
- ^ a b Eldridge (2008), p. ix.
- ^ Kublin (1953), p. 27.
- ^ a b c d Eldridge (2008), p. 13.
- ^ Eldridge (2008), pp. 3 & 17.
- ^ a b 小笠原・火山(硫黄)列島の歴史
- ^ Kublin (1953), pp. 29–30.
- ^ Eldridge (2008), p. 11.
- ^ Welsch (2004).
- ^ Eldridge (2008), pp. 13–14.
- ^ a b c d Eldridge (2008), p. 14.
- ^ ISBN 0-316-10584-8. Note: Google review
- ^ a b c d Mike Coppock, 2021, "American Outpost at Japan’s Front Door", HistoryNet (January 21). (Access : 25 September 2023.)
- ^ New York Herald Tribune "..first piece of land bought by Americans in the Pacific"
- Hachijōjimaunder the direction of the Tokugawa Shogunate.
- ^ Japanese Defense Plan for Chichi Jima Peleliu: USMC WWII Combat website
- ^ Western Pacific Operations; History of U.S. Marine Corps in World War II - Part VI Iwo Jima Historical Branch, G3 Division, Headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps
- ^ CoastDefense (Yahoo Groups)
- ^ Chichi Jima The Pacific War Online Encyclopedia
- ^ a b c Fackler, Martin (9 June 2012). "Fewer Westerners Remain on Remote Japanese Island". The New York Times. Retrieved 8 August 2019.
- ^ Welch, JM (April 2002). "Without a Hangman, Without a Rope: Navy War Crimes Trials After World War II" (PDF). International Journal of Naval History. 1 (1). §Cannibalism. Retrieved 3 December 2007.
- ^ Robert S. Norris, William M. Arkin and William Burr, "Where they were: How much did Japan know?" Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, January/February 2000
- ^ Robert S. Norris, William M. Arkin and William Burr, "Appendix B: Deployments by country, 1951-1977", Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, November/December 1999
- ^ Constitution of Japan - Chapter II, Renunciation of War
- ^ Bowermaster, David (5 December 2009). "Dolphin dances, WWII relics in blissful, remote Japanese islands". Seattle Times. Retrieved 31 July 2009.
- ^ 観測史上1~10位の値(年間を通じての値)
- ^ 気象庁 / 平年値(年・月ごとの値). Japan Meteorological Agency. Retrieved 19 May 2021.
- ^ "Ogasawa, VERA astronomy station". Archived from the original on 11 October 2006. Retrieved 9 March 2008.
- ^ "NAOJ folded into NINS (2004)" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 June 2005. Retrieved 9 March 2008.
- ^ "VERA stations and the array". Archived from the original on 12 June 2008. Retrieved 9 March 2008.
- ^ VERA system, radio astronomy
- ^ "JAXA, about the agency". Archived from the original on 6 September 2006. Retrieved 9 March 2008.
- ^ JAXA, Kuwanokiyama facility.
- ^ "Chichijima Islands". BirdLife Data Zone. BirdLife International. 2021. Retrieved 25 January 2021.
- ^ a b c 2006年度 活動報告書 Archived 8 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine, NGO group Everlasting Nature
- ^ "Ogasawara Marine Center". Archived from the original on 17 April 2010. Retrieved 19 June 2009.
- ^ Fackler, Martin (10 June 2012). "A Western Outpost Shrinks on a Remote Island Now in Japanese Hands". The New York Times. Retrieved 8 March 2018.
- ^ "学校教育 Archived 2018-03-09 at the Wayback Machine." Ogasawara, Tokyo. Retrieved on 8 March 2018.
- ^ "小笠原村立小笠原中学校". www.ogachu.que.ne.jp (in Japanese).
Bibliography
- Eldridge, Robert D. (2008), Iwo Jima and the Bonin Islands in U.S.–Japan Relations: American Strategy, Japanese Territory, and the Islanders In-Between (PDF), Quantico: Marine Corps University Press.
- Kublin, Hyman (March 1953), "The Discovery of the Bonin Islands: A Reexamination" (PDF), Annals of the Association of American Geographers, vol. 43, Milton Park: Taylor & Francis, pp. 27–46, JSTOR 2561081.
- Welsch, Bernhard (June 2004), "Was Marcus Island Discovered by Bernardo de la Torre in 1543?", Journal of Pacific History, vol. 39, Milton Park: Taylor & Francis, pp. 109–122, S2CID 219627973.