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capital city A capital city or capital is the municipality holding primary status in a country, state, province, department, or other subnational entity, usually as its seat of the government. A capital is typically a city that physically encompasses t ...
of
Okinawa Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi). Naha is the capital and largest cit ...
, the southernmost prefecture of
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...
. As of 1 June 2019, the city has an estimated
population Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, whether it be a city or town, region, country, continent, or the world. Governments typically quantify the size of the resident population within their jurisdiction usi ...
of 317,405 and a
population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopu ...
of 7,939 persons per km2 (20,562 persons per sq. mi.). The total area is Naha is located on the
East China Sea The East China Sea is an arm of the Western Pacific Ocean, located directly offshore from East China. It covers an area of roughly . The sea’s northern extension between mainland China and the Korean Peninsula is the Yellow Sea, separated ...
coast of the southern part of
Okinawa Island is the largest of the Okinawa Islands and the Ryukyu (''Nansei'') Islands of Japan in the Kyushu region. It is the smallest and least populated of the five main islands of Japan. The island is approximately long, an average wide, and has an ...
, the largest of Okinawa Prefecture. The modern city was officially founded on May 20, 1921. Before that, Naha had been for centuries one of the most important and populous sites in Okinawa. Naha is the political, economic and education center of Okinawa Prefecture. In the medieval and early modern periods, it was the commercial center of the Ryukyu Kingdom.


Geography


City center

Central Naha consists of the Palette Kumoji shopping mall, the
Okinawa Prefecture Office The is one of the tallest buildings in Naha City, Okinawa, Japan, and is the center for Japanese governmental functions stretching across Okinawa Prefecture. There are 14 floors above ground and two below including a civic hall and government ...
, Naha City Hall, and many banks and corporations, located at the west end of Kokusai-dōri, the city's main street. boasts a 1.6 kilometer (1 mile) long stretch of stores, restaurants and bars. Kokusai-dōri ends at the main bus terminal in Okinawa and is served by several stations along the
Okinawa Urban Monorail The , also known as , is a monorail line serving the cities of Naha and Urasoe, Okinawa, Japan. Operated by , it opened on 10 August 2003, and is the only public rail system in Okinawa Prefecture. Yui Rail is the first rail line on Okinaw ...
, the only train system in the prefecture. Spurring off from Kokusai-dōri is the covered Heiwa-dōri Shopping Arcade and Makishi Public Market, a massive '' shōtengai'' filled with fresh fish, meat, and produce stands, restaurants, tourist goods shops, and liquor shops. Just outside the market area is the neighborhood of , which was once a major center of ceramic production (see Tsuboya-yaki). Northeast of Kokusai-dōri is a relatively new commercial district called . The area, formerly
United States military The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. The president of the United States is ...
housing, was released to Okinawa in 1987, but major development only began in the mid-1990s.
Omoromachi Station is a railway station on the Okinawa Urban Monorail (Yui Rail) located in Naha, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. In the original plans, this station was to be called Makabi Station, after the neighboring district, but opened as Omoromachi Station o ...
is attached directly to an upscale shopping mall; another mall, Naha Main Place, a few hundred meters (yards) down the street, contains many upscale Western-brand fashion boutiques, with restaurants and other shops. Frequented by young people, the area boasts large stores such as Toys R Us and Best Denki (an electronics store), a co-op market, many restaurants and a movie theater. The
Okinawa Prefectural Museum The is a museum in the most southern prefecture of Japan. The museum complex in the Omoro-machi area of Naha, the capital city of Okinawa Prefecture. It opened in November 2007, and includes art, history, and natural history museums focusing ...
, containing sections devoted to the art, history, and natural history of the Ryukyus, opened in the area in November 2007 and sits in front of Shintoshin Park.


History

According to the , the name of Naha comes from its original name, Naba, which was the name of a large,
mushroom A mushroom or toadstool is the fleshy, spore-bearing fruiting body of a fungus, typically produced above ground, on soil, or on its food source. ''Toadstool'' generally denotes one poisonous to humans. The standard for the name "mushroom" is ...
-shaped stone in the city. (''Naba'' is a
Western Japanese The dialects of the Japanese language fall into two primary clades, Eastern (including Tokyo) and Western (including Kyoto), with the dialects of Kyushu and Hachijō Island often distinguished as additional branches, the latter perhaps the most di ...
and Ryukyuan word for "
mushroom A mushroom or toadstool is the fleshy, spore-bearing fruiting body of a fungus, typically produced above ground, on soil, or on its food source. ''Toadstool'' generally denotes one poisonous to humans. The standard for the name "mushroom" is ...
.") Gradually, the stone wore away and became buried, and the name's pronunciation and its
kanji are the logographic Chinese characters taken from the Chinese script and used in the writing of Japanese. They were made a major part of the Japanese writing system during the time of Old Japanese and are still used, along with the subsequ ...
gradually changed. In Naha, some archeological relics of the
Stone Age The Stone Age was a broad prehistoric period during which stone was widely used to make tools with an edge, a point, or a percussion surface. The period lasted for roughly 3.4 million years, and ended between 4,000 BC and 2,000 BC, with ...
were found. From a
Jōmon period The is the time in Japanese history, traditionally dated between   6,000–300 BCE, during which Japan was inhabited by a diverse hunter-gatherer and early agriculturalist population united through a common Jōmon culture, which reached a c ...
'' kaizuka'' (shell mound), ancient Chinese coins were found. Pottery found by archaeologists indicates that the area was an active site of trade with the Japanese archipelago and Korean peninsula at least as early as the 11th century. Though it is not known just when the area first became organized as a functioning port city, it was active as such by the time of the unification of the Ryūkyū Kingdom in the early 15th century. Though today Naha has grown to incorporate the former royal capital city of Shuri, center of Chinese learning Kumemura, and other towns and villages, in the period of the Ryūkyū Kingdom, it was a smaller city, prominent as a major port, but not as a political center. Medieval Naha was on a tiny island called Ukishima, connected to the mainland of Okinawa Island by a narrow causeway called which led on to Shuri. The main port area for international trade, Naha proper, was divided into the and districts and was on the southwestern portion of Ukishima. A large open-air marketplace was active in front of the royal government trading center, or . A number of Japanese temples and shrines were located here, along with a residence and embassy, known as the , for visiting Chinese officials. A pair of forts (Mie gusuku and Yarazamori gusuku) built atop embankments extending out across the entrance to the harbor defended the port, and a small island within the harbor held a warehouse, , used for storing trade goods. , on the mainland of Okinawa Island to the northeast of Ukishima, served as the chief port for trade within the Ryūkyū Islands. The administrators of Tomari were also responsible for collecting and managing the
tribute A tribute (; from Latin ''tributum'', "contribution") is wealth, often in kind, that a party gives to another as a sign of submission, allegiance or respect. Various ancient states exacted tribute from the rulers of land which the state conq ...
paid to the kingdom by the
Amami Islands The The name ''Amami-guntō'' was standardized on February 15, 2010. Prior to that, another name, ''Amami shotō'' (奄美諸島), was also used. is an archipelago in the Satsunan Islands, which is part of the Ryukyu Islands, and is southwest o ...
, whose tribute ships made port here. ran across Ukishima from southeast to northwest, forming the center of the walled community of Kumemura, the center of classical Chinese learning in Ryūkyū for centuries.Uezato. p62. Kumemura is traditionally believed to have been founded by 36
Min Min or MIN may refer to: Places * Fujian, also called Mǐn, a province of China ** Min Kingdom (909–945), a state in Fujian * Min County, a county of Dingxi, Gansu province, China * Min River (Fujian) * Min River (Sichuan) * Mineola (Amtr ...
families sent to Ryūkyū by the Ming Chinese Imperial Court and to be inhabited primarily or solely by descendants of those settlers; historian Uezato Takashi points out, however, that due to Naha's prominence in international maritime trade networks, it is quite likely that many other Chinese, chiefly from
Fujian Fujian (; alternately romanized as Fukien or Hokkien) is a province on the southeastern coast of China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its ...
and other maritime trading areas along the southern Chinese coast, would have settled here as well. Major sites in the community included the Tensonbyō
Taoist Taoism (, ) or Daoism () refers to either a school of philosophical thought (道家; ''daojia'') or to a religion (道教; ''daojiao''), both of which share ideas and concepts of Chinese origin and emphasize living in harmony with the '' Tao ...
temple near the northern end of Kume-Ōdōri and two shrines called Upper and Lower Tenpigū, dedicated to the Taoist goddess of the sea Tenpi, also known as Matsu. A Confucian temple, the gift of the
Kangxi Emperor The Kangxi Emperor (4 May 1654– 20 December 1722), also known by his temple name Emperor Shengzu of Qing, born Xuanye, was the third emperor of the Qing dynasty, and the second Qing emperor to rule over China proper, reigning from 1661 to ...
, was built in Kumemura in the 1670s; the Meirindō, a school of classic Confucian Chinese learning, was established in 1718. Following their destruction in
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
, the Meirindō, Confucian temple, and Tenpigū shrines were rebuilt on the site of the Tensonbyō in northern Kume, where they stand today as the Confucian temple
Shiseibyō The is a Confucian temple in the Wakasa district of Naha, Okinawa. It served for centuries as a major center of Chinese learning for the Ryūkyū Kingdom, and contains within its precincts the Meirindō, first public school in Okinawa.Informa ...
. On the northwest side of Ukishima lay , a community traditionally said to have been founded by Japanese settlers. It was organized around Wakasamachi-Ōdōri, an avenue which intersected with Kume-Ōdōri and ran across tidal mudflats to the east of Ukishima, connecting the community to the port of Tomari on the Okinawan mainland. A number of Japanese shrines and temples were located in Wakasamachi, including the
Naminoue Shrine is a Shinto shrine in Naha, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan, the ''ichinomiya'' (primary shrine) of the prefecture. It sits atop a high bluff, overlooking Naminoue Beach and the ocean. Originally a sacred space of the native Ryukyuan religion, d ...
, the Zen temple Kōganji, and temples devoted to Ebisu and Jizō. The community had lodgings specifically set aside for traders and travelers from the
Tokara Islands The is an archipelago in the Nansei Islands, and are part of the Satsunan Islands, which is in turn part of the Ryukyu Archipelago. The chain consists of twelve small islands located between Yakushima and Amami-Oshima. The islands have a total ...
. Another settlement, known as Izumizaki, lay on the mainland of Okinawa Island, just across the Kumoji River from Ukishima. Izumizaki had no notable or major port facilities and is believed to have been simply an extension of the residential community of Naha proper, which thus spread onto the mainland as the population and according demand for land grew. At some point, the tidal mudflats and Kumoji River separating Ukishima, that is, Naha, from Okinawa Island were filled in. The neighborhoods of Kume, Wakasa, and Tomari can still be found in Naha today. Commodore Matthew C. Perry's expeditionary squadron stopped in Naha en route to Tokyo in 1853; and the American ships visited several more times. The lithographs prepared from drawings made by the expedition's official artist would be widely circulated. These images would provide the basis for 19th century impressions of the geography and people of the Ryūkyū islands. After the replacement of the Ryūkyū Kingdom with the Ryūkyū
Domain Domain may refer to: Mathematics *Domain of a function, the set of input values for which the (total) function is defined ** Domain of definition of a partial function ** Natural domain of a partial function **Domain of holomorphy of a function * ...
in 1872, Naha became the capital city. The Ryūkyū Domain was abolished in 1879 and the former Ryūkyū Kingdom came to an end, fully annexed by Japan as
Okinawa Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi). Naha is the capital and largest cit ...
, with Naha remaining as the capital city. Shuri and other neighboring municipalities were absorbed into the city. An Imperial decree in July 1899 established Naha as an open port for trading with the United States and the United Kingdom. During the
battle of Okinawa The , codenamed Operation Iceberg, was a major battle of the Pacific War fought on the island of Okinawa by United States Army (USA) and United States Marine Corps (USMC) forces against the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA). The initial invasion of ...
in
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
, Naha suffered extensive damage from the fighting. The entire centre of the city had to be rebuilt. On 1 September 1954, the village of Oroku was merged into the city. On April 1, 2013, Naha became a core city, a category of
cities of Japan A is a local administrative unit in Japan. Cities are ranked on the same level as and , with the difference that they are not a component of . Like other contemporary administrative units, they are defined by the Local Autonomy Law of 1947. ...
under the Local Autonomy Law of Japan. Naha now carries out many of the functions, notably for public health care, normally delegated to the prefectural government. Naha is the first core city in Okinawa Prefecture.


Culture


Religion

There are numerous shrines throughout the city, ranging from small huts to temples consisting of several houses. The religion is a mix of Shintoism, Buddhism and Taoism. The most visible part of the local beliefs though is by far the shisa, the Okinawan
shiisaa is a traditional Ryukyuan cultural artifact and decoration derived from Chinese guardian lions, often seen in similar pairs, resembling a cross between a lion and a dog, from Okinawan mythology. Shisa are wards, believed to protect from some ...
("lion dogs") that are considered protectors of the island and are found everywhere - walls, roofs, windows, street corners and parks. The Cathedral of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (Kainan Church) is the episcopal see of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Naha.


Festivals

* Naha Hari in May * Naha Festival in October * Naha Tug-of-war Naha Tsunahiki002.jpg, Naha Festival in October 2008 Naha Hari.jpg, Naha Hari, dragon style boat event


Sights

The restored and rebuilt Shuri Castle, the former royal palace of the Ryūkyū Kingdom, is one of the finest ''
gusuku often refers to castles or fortresses in the Ryukyu Islands that feature stone walls. However, the origin and essence of ''gusuku'' remain controversial. In the archaeology of Okinawa Prefecture, the '' Gusuku period'' refers to an archaeological ...
'' (Okinawan castle) and among the most important historical sites in Naha. The palace, and a series of tunnels underneath it, were used as a major command post by the Imperial Japanese military during World War II, and the castle was subsequently almost destroyed in 1945 by the US Marines, Army and Navy. After the war, the University of the Ryūkyūs was constructed on the site. Today Shuri Castle has been reconstructed, including the famous Shureimon, its main gate, and is registered, along with a number of other ''gusuku'' and other Okinawan historical and sacred sites, as a
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international coope ...
World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...
. Lake Man, covered with mangrove woods on the boundary of the city of
Tomigusuku 滝原康盛 ''Takihara Yasumori''. 沖縄語会話集 日本語・沖縄語・ローマ字付き ''Okinawago Kaiwashū: Nihongo, Okinawago, Rōmaji-tsuki.'' (''Okinawan Conversation Collection: Japanese, Okinawan, Romaji.'') 那覇:沖縄芸能� ...
, is listed on the
Ramsar Ramsar may refer to: * Places so named: ** Ramsar, Mazandaran, city in Iran ** Ramsar, Rajasthan, village in India * Eponyms of the Iranian city: ** Ramsar Convention concerning wetlands, signed in Ramsar, Iran ** Ramsar site, wetland listed i ...
list of
wetland A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (Anoxic waters, anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in t ...
s. Naha_Okinawa_Japan_Shuri-Castle-01.jpg, Shuri Castle, Seiden - front facade Naha_Shuri_Castle32bs5s4592.jpg, Shureimon gate ShuriCastle4.jpg, Walls of Shuri Castle in Naha


Education

Four universities are in the Naha area. Two are run by Okinawa Prefecture; two are private. The University of the Ryukyus, the sole national university in Okinawa Prefecture, was also in Naha, on the site of Shuri Castle. Before the restoration of the castle, the university moved to the town of Nishihara to the northeast of Naha. Naha's public elementary and junior high schools are operated by the Naha City Board of Education. Naha's public high schools are operated by the Okinawa Prefectural Board of Education. Private schools include the Okinawa Actors' School.


Martial arts

'' Naha-te'', (Naha-hand), called ''Nawate'' by
Gichin Funakoshi was a japanese martial artist who is regarded as the founder of Karate, Shotakan karate, perhaps the most widely known style of karate, and is known as a "father of modern karate". Following the teachings of Anko Itosu and Anko Asato,Funakoshi, ...
, is a type of martial art developed in Naha. The successor styles to Naha-te include
Gōjū-ryū , Japanese for "hard-soft style", is one of the main traditional Okinawan styles of karate, featuring a combination of hard and soft techniques. Both principles, hard and soft, come from the famous martial arts book used by Okinawan masters d ...
, Uechi-ryū,
Ryūei-ryū is an Okinawan style of karate. It was originally a family style of the Nakaima family of Naha and is now one of the internationally recognized Okinawan Karate styles. It is practiced in the United States, Argentina, Chile, Venezuela, Europe, ...
, and Tōon-ryū.


Climate

Naha has a
humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...
(
Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, nota ...
''Cfa'')—bordering on
tropical rainforest climate A tropical rainforest climate, humid tropical climate or equatorial climate is a tropical climate sub-type usually found within 10 to 15 degrees latitude of the equator. There are some other areas at higher latitudes, such as the coast of southe ...
(
Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, nota ...
''Af'')—with hot summers and mild winters. Precipitation is abundant throughout the year; September is the wettest month and December is the driest. Naha has hot and humid summers with July and August being the city's warmest months, exceeding an average high of 31 degrees Celsius (88 °F). Naha has warm winters, with average high temperatures in the coolest months of January and February, hovering around 19-20 degrees Celsius (66 to 68 °F) and average lows around 14-15 degrees Celsius (57 to 59 °F). The city sees a substantial amount of rainfall, averaging in excess of of rain per year.


Economy

Naha is an economic center of Okinawa dominated by tourism, retail and service industries. Okinawa's largest banks, Bank of the Ryukyus, Bank of Okinawa and Okinawa Kaiho Bank, are headquartered in Naha. The
Bank of Japan The is the central bank of Japan. Nussbaum, Louis Frédéric. (2005). "Nihon Ginkō" in The bank is often called for short. It has its headquarters in Chūō, Tokyo. History Like most modern Japanese institutions, the Bank of Japan was foun ...
,
Mizuho Bank is the integrated retail and corporate banking unit of Mizuho Financial Group (; ), the third largest financial services company in Japan, with total assets of approximately $1.8 trillion in 2017. Mizuho is one of the three so-called Japane ...
, Shoko Chukin Bank and Japan Post Bank also have branches in Naha. Major international insurance companies also have call centers based in the city.
Naha Airport is a second class airport located west of the city hallAIS Japan
in
Japan Transocean Air and Ryukyu Air Commuter, subsidiaries of Japan Airlines, are headquartered in Naha.


Transportation

Naha Airport is a second class airport located west of the city hallAIS Japan
in
Okinawa Urban Monorail The , also known as , is a monorail line serving the cities of Naha and Urasoe, Okinawa, Japan. Operated by , it opened on 10 August 2003, and is the only public rail system in Okinawa Prefecture. Yui Rail is the first rail line on Okinaw ...
, also known as the carries passengers from Naha Airport Station to the center of Naha, Kokusai-dōri, Shintoshin, Shuri, and to the terminal at Tedako-Uranishi Station in Urasoe.


Crime and safety

Two designated yakuza groups, the Kyokuryu-kai and the Okinawa Kyokuryu-kai, are based in Naha."2010 Police White Paper Chapter 2 : Furtherance of Organized Crime Countermeasures"
2010, '' National Police Agency''
The Okinawa Kyokuryu-kai is the largest yakuza group in Okinawa Prefecture, followed by the Kyokuryu-kai."Boryokudan condition in the prefecture"
, October 2007, ''Okinawa Prefectural Conference for the Expulsion of the Boryokudan''


International relations


Twin towns and sister cities

Naha is twinned with the following locations. *
Fuzhou Fuzhou (; , Fuzhounese: Hokchew, ''Hók-ciŭ''), alternately romanized as Foochow, is the capital and one of the largest cities in Fujian province, China. Along with the many counties of Ningde, those of Fuzhou are considered to constitute ...
, China since 1981 *
Honolulu Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the isla ...
, United States since 1961 *
Kawasaki, Kanagawa is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, one of the main cities of Greater Tokyo Area and Keihin Industrial Area. It is the second most populated city in Kanagawa Prefecture after Yokohama, and the eighth most populated city in Japan (includin ...
since 1996 *
Nichinan, Miyazaki is a city in Miyazaki Prefecture, Japan. The city was founded on January 1, 1950. As of June 1, 2019, the city has an estimated population of 51,241 and a population density of 95.6 persons per km2. The total area is 536.11 km2. History ...
since 1969 * São Vicente, Brazil since 1978 *
São Paulo São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for ' Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the GaW ...
, BrazilLei Municipal de São Paulo 14471 de 2007
WikiSource


Notable people

Famous people with links to the city of Naha include: * Namie Amuro, pop singer * Cocco, singer *
Gichin Funakoshi was a japanese martial artist who is regarded as the founder of Karate, Shotakan karate, perhaps the most widely known style of karate, and is known as a "father of modern karate". Following the teachings of Anko Itosu and Anko Asato,Funakoshi, ...
, karate practitioner *
Eriko Imai is a Japanese pop singer, actress and politician. She made her debut in the early 1990s as part of the group Speed, which disbanded in March 2000. Eriko began her work away from Speed during 1998, performing "Tsumetaku Shinai de", under the st ...
, pop singer, actor and politician; member of
Speed In everyday use and in kinematics, the speed (commonly referred to as ''v'') of an object is the magnitude of the change of its position over time or the magnitude of the change of its position per unit of time; it is thus a scalar quant ...
*
Satoko Ishimine is a Japanese female singer-songwriter. She rose to fame in 1992 when she won the grand prix of the 16th annual ''Nagasaki Singing Festival'' at the age of 16, which resulted in her receiving a recording contract with Toshiba EMI. After she gra ...
, pop singer * Kazuki Ganaha, football (soccer) player * Ankō Itosu, karate practitioner * Chōjun Miyagi, martial artist who founded the Gōjū-ryū school of karate *
Fumi Nikaidō is a Japanese actress and fashion model. Career Starting as a model in Naha, Okinawa, Nikaidō made her film debut in 2009 in ''Toad's Oil'', directed by Kōji Yakusho. She and Shota Sometani received the Marcello Mastroianni Award for Best Yo ...
, actor and model * Kanryō Higaonna, martial artist *
Morio Higaonna is a prominent Okinawan karate practitioner who is the founder and former Chief Instructor of the International Okinawan Goju-ryu Karate-do Federation (IOGKF).Okinawa Goju-ryu Karate-do Israel: Founders – Sensei Morio Higaonna
Retrieved on February 20, 2010.
karate practitioner * Sōkon Matsumura, karate practitioner * Yui Aragaki, singer, actor, model * Orange Range, alternative rock band. All members are from Okinawa * Dave Roberts (outfielder), major league baseball player and manager *
Mitsutoshi Shimabukuro is a Japanese manga artist. He first gained success with his comedy series ''Seikimatsu Leader den Takeshi!'' (1997–2002), but is better known for '' Toriko'' which was serialized from 2008 to 2016 and has over 25 million copies in circulation ...
, manga artist and author of '' Toriko'' * Norihiro Yagi, manga artist and author of '' Claymore'' * Mikiko Shiroma, politician, mayor of Naha 2014 – 2022 *
Kurara Chibana is a Japanese humanitarian, actress, model and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss Universe Japan 2006 and competed at Miss Universe 2006 where she finished as the first runner-up. Miss Universe 2006 Chibana is known for her pa ...
, model and beauty queen,
Miss Japan Miss Japan ( ja, ミスジャパン) is a national beauty pageant in Japan. The pageant first ran from 1952-1995 and was led by Yoshinaga (Japanese-American Press). In 2019, the Miss Japan pageant returned with Akihiro Yoshida, Takako Hashimura, ...
2006 and first runner-up to Miss Universe 2006


Naha in popular media

* Naha City was prominently featured in the plot of the 1986 film ''
The Karate Kid Part II ''The Karate Kid Part II'' is a 1986 American martial arts drama film written by Robert Mark Kamen and directed by John G. Avildsen. It is the second installment in the ''Karate Kid'' franchise and the sequel to the 1984 film '' The Karate Kid'' ...
''. However, the film was actually shot in Hawaii. * The opening scene of David Mitchell's 1999 novel ''
Ghostwritten ''Ghostwritten'' is the first novel published by English author David Mitchell. Published in 1999, it won the John Llewellyn Rhys Prize and was widely acclaimed. The story takes place mainly around East Asia, but also moves through Russia, B ...
'' is set in Naha. * The name Naha was used in Microsoft's 2003 space simulation game ''
Freelancer ''Freelance'' (sometimes spelled ''free-lance'' or ''free lance''), ''freelancer'', or ''freelance worker'', are terms commonly used for a person who is self-employed and not necessarily committed to a particular employer long-term. Freelance ...
''. The Gas Miner "Naha" is a station owned by the Gas Miners Guild (GMG) in the Sigma-13 system. * Shuri Castle during the American invasion was recreated in '' Call of Duty: World at War'' (2008) during the final stages of the game. The player must help capture the castle and it is the final level for the American portion of the story. * Portions of Naha have been faithfully recreated in 3D for
Sega is a Japanese multinational video game and entertainment company headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo. Its international branches, Sega of America and Sega Europe, are headquartered in Irvine, California and London, respectively. Its division ...
'' Ryu ga Gotoku 3'', or ''Yakuza 3'' in its North American localization, in a 2009 video game on
PlayStation 3 The PlayStation 3 (PS3) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment, Sony Computer Entertainment. The successor to the PlayStation 2, it is part of the PlayStation brand of consoles. It was first released on Novemb ...
. This virtual version includes Kokusai-dōri, the covered Heiwa-dōri Shopping Arcade, Makishi Public Market and the Monorail's
Prefectural Office Station "Station names in English, Chinese and Korean"
is a railway station on the
. It also features many of the district's real-life eateries and businesses as tie-ins. * The 2014 American
television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed be ...
''
The Yokai King ''The Yokai King'' is an action fantasy Japanese feature film starring Shin Koyamada. The film is based on the supernatural beings called yōkai from Japanese folklore. It was mainly filmed in English in various locations of Okinawa, Japan. Pl ...
'', starring
Shin Koyamada is a Japanese-American actor, producer, entrepreneur, martial artist, and philanthropist. He is best known for his starring roles in ''The Last Samurai'' and the Disney's movie '' Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior'' on Disney+. He has produced numero ...
was filmed in Naha, Okinawa in late 2013. * '' Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown'' visits Okinawa in season 6, episode 3, to sample the unique Okinawan chanpurū cuisine and learn about the history of Karate. * PBS series ''Family Ingredients'' filmed two episodes in Naha and Okinawa at Shuri Castle and Makishi Market in 2016. * Karate Kid spin-off '' Cobra Kai'', filmed Season 3, Episodes 4 & 5, "The Right Path" & "Miyagi-Do", in Naha and on
Okinawa Island is the largest of the Okinawa Islands and the Ryukyu (''Nansei'') Islands of Japan in the Kyushu region. It is the smallest and least populated of the five main islands of Japan. The island is approximately long, an average wide, and has an ...
, filming at
Naha Airport is a second class airport located west of the city hallAIS Japan
in
Yanbaru National Park, and the Mutabaru Observatory at the abandoned Shah Bay resort in Ogimi.


See also

* 2006 Naha local election * Okinawa University Junior College (1958–2000)


References

* Ooshiro, Sally. ''Irosetsuden'', thesis translation of ancient Ryūkyū record compilation. Submitted to University of Hawaii, 1964.


External links


Naha City official website

Naha City official website

Naha-te
- explains origin of Naha-te, the martial art from Naha * {{Authority control Cities in Okinawa Prefecture Port settlements in Japan Populated coastal places in Japan