, also known as ''Ishigakijima'', is a Japanese island south-west of Okinawa Hontō and the second-largest island of the Yaeyama Island group, behind

Iriomote Island is the largest of the Yaeyama Islands of Japan, and the second largest in Okinawa Prefecture after Okinawa Island itself. The island has an area of and a 2005 population of 2,347. The island does not have an airstrip, and most visitors — ov ...

. It is located approximately south-west of Okinawa Hontō. It is within the City of Ishigaki in

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 city functions as the business and transport center of the archipelago. The island is served by New Ishigaki Airport, the largest airport in the Yaeyamas. Much of the island and surrounding waters including Mount Omoto and Kabira Bay are protected as part of Iriomote-Ishigaki National Park. Ishigaki Island, like the rest of

Okinawa is a Prefectures of Japan, 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 Square kilometre, km2 (880 sq mi). ...

, is culturally influenced by both

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 ...

and

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the no ...

due to its location, about off the north eastern coast of

History

tsunami A tsunami ( ; from ja, 津波, lit=harbour wave, ) is a series of waves in a water body caused by the displacement of a large volume of water, generally in an ocean or a large lake. Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and other underwater exp ...

of record height hit Ishigaki Island in 1771. One of the perpetrators of

Aum Shinrikyo , formerly , is a Japanese doomsday cult founded by Shoko Asahara in 1987. It carried out the deadly Tokyo subway sarin attack in 1995 and was found to have been responsible for the Matsumoto sarin attack the previous year. The group says ...

's sarin gas attack, Yasuo Hayashi, was arrested on Ishigaki Island 21 months after the attacks and from the scene of the crime.

Ishigaki Port

Located southwest 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 ...

and east of

Keelung Keelung () or Jilong () (; Hokkien Pe̍h-ōe-jī, POJ: '), officially known as Keelung City, is a major port Provincial city (Taiwan), city situated in the northeastern part of Taiwan. The city is a part of the Taipei–Keelung metropolitan a ...

, Ishigaki serves as a gateway to the

Yaeyama Islands The Yaeyama Islands (八重山列島 ''Yaeyama-rettō'', also 八重山諸島 ''Yaeyama-shotō'', Yaeyama: ''Yaima'', Yonaguni: ''Daama'', Okinawan: ''Yeema'', Northern Ryukyuan: ''Yapema'') are an archipelago in the southwest of Okinawa P ...

. Ishigaki Port is the 5th most popular of Japan's cruise ports as of 2017, and 4th for port calls by non-Japanese ships with a weekly call by

Star Cruises Star Cruises was a cruise line headquartered in Hong Kong and operating in the Asia-Pacific market. The company was owned by Genting Hong Kong. It was the eighteenth largest cruise line in the world after Carnival Corporation, Royal Caribb ...

from Taiwan. Several companies offer daily ferry service to

Hateruma Hateruma (波照間島; ''Hateruma-jima''; Yaeyama: ''Patirooma'', Hateruma dialect: ''Besїma'' "our island", Okinawan: ''Hatiruma'', Northern Ryukyuan: ''Patara'') is an island in the Yaeyama District of Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. It is t ...

Iriomote is the largest of the Yaeyama Islands of Japan, and the second largest in Okinawa Prefecture after Okinawa Island itself. The island has an area of and a 2005 population of 2,347. The island does not have an airstrip, and most visitors — ...

, Kohama, and

Taketomi Island is an island in the town of Taketomi, within Yaeyama District of Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. Taketomi is one of the Yaeyama Islands. The population of Taketomi Island was 323 as of January 2012. Geography Taketomi Island is located south of I ...

. Due to Japan's increased focus on grey-zone challenges, Ishigaki Port has been expanded so more than a dozen large (over 1,000 tons)

Japan Coast Guard The is the coast guard of Japan. The Japan Coast Guard consists of about 13,700 personnel and is responsible for the protection of the coastline of Japan under the oversight of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. Th ...

ships can be stationed there. There are currently 11 '' Kunigami-class'' large patrol vessels and 2 '' Hateruma-class'' large patrol vessels, as well as a ''Bizan-class'' small patrol vessel, and a ''Kagayuki-class'' patrol craft have been homeported at Ishigaki along with facilities for housing up to 600 crew, making Ishigaki JCG's largest base, surpassing JCG's facilities in

Yokohama is the second-largest city in Japan by population and the most populous municipality of Japan. It is the capital city and the most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a 2020 population of 3.8 million. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of T ...

. Tokyo has currently earmarked ¥21.2 billion yen (US$205 million) in FY2021 to build new patrol boats and buy helicopters for the region, with plans to assign 22 ships of over 1,000 tons (including the 3 '' Tsugarus'', a ''Kunigami'', and a ''Hateruma'' class patrol vessel based in Naha) in the region by 2024. Tokyo has also bulked up the JCG presence on

Miyako-jima is the largest and the most populous island among the Miyako Islands of Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. Miyako Island is administered as part of the City of Miyakojima, which includes not only Miyako Island, but also five other populated island ...

between Ishigaki and Naha with nine ''Shimoji-class'' small patrol vessels and a ''Tokara-class'' medium patrol vessel The

Japan Self-Defense Forces The Japan Self-Defense Forces ( ja, 自衛隊, Jieitai; abbreviated JSDF), also informally known as the Japanese Armed Forces, are the unified ''de facto''Since Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution outlaws the formation of armed forces, th ...

(JSDF) are also considering deploying short range anti-ship missiles (possibly the

Type 96 Multi-Purpose Missile System The is an Anti-tank/Landing craft missile used by the JGSDF. It is the first Japanese missile system that uses a complete digitally controlled interface. History Development of the Type 96 system began in 1986 by JGSDF Ground Research and Dev ...

) on the island. These reinforcements are mostly in relation to the

ese uninhabited

Senkaku Islands The are a group of uninhabited islands in the East China Sea, administered by Japan. They are located northeast of Taiwan, east of China, west of Okinawa Island, and north of the southwestern end of the Ryukyu Islands. They are known in main ...

, which lie north of Ishigaki and are under the control of the mayor of Ishigaki, which has been given civic authority over the territory since the

reverted from the US to the Japanese government control in 1972.

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...

(

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...

), and to lesser extent

(

Republic Of China Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northeas ...

), have challenged Japan's sovereignty over these islands since 1972, with more intensity since 2012. File:Ishigaki port - 1 (1).jpg, Ishigaki port File:JCG-KunigamiClass-Ishigaki.jpg, left, Japan Coast Guard vessels at Port of Ishigaki

Culture

Miyaradunchi The old residence of is located on the island of Ishigaki Island, Ishigaki, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. Erected around 1819 by the local governor, it has been designated an Important Cultural Properties of Japan, Important Cultural Property as rep ...

is a residence erected around 1819 by the local governor, it has been designated an Important Cultural Property as representative of the architecture of the

Food

Ishigaki has different cuisine from mainland Japan. Due to the relative warmth of the surrounding sea and various cultural influences, the food of Ishigaki and

is more meat-centered than the rest of Japan. The

Ryukyu Kingdom The Ryukyu Kingdom, Middle Chinese: , , Classical Chinese: (), Historical English names: ''Lew Chew'', ''Lewchew'', ''Luchu'', and ''Loochoo'', Historical French name: ''Liou-tchou'', Historical Dutch name: ''Lioe-kioe'' was a kingdom in the ...

served as an important trading post between Japan and the rest of the world despite various trading bans between

and

. Located only from

, Okinawan cuisine is best defined by the Okinawan word '' Chanpurū'' (チャンプルー) or "something mixed", incorporating aspects of Chinese, Japanese, Southeast Asian, and American cultures. Although Okinawa is best known for its love of pig, Ishigaki is famous for its

Japanese Black The Japanese Black ( ja, 黒毛和種, Kuroge Washu) is a breed of Japanese beef cattle. It is one of six native Japanese cattle breeds, and one of the four Japanese breeds known as wagyū, the others being the Japanese Brown, the Japanese Pol ...

cattle, both which are thought to have originally been brought from China as far back as the

Yayoi period The started at the beginning of the Neolithic in Japan, continued through the Bronze Age, and towards its end crossed into the Iron Age. Since the 1980s, scholars have argued that a period previously classified as a transition from the Jōm ...

. Ishigaki is also unique in its use of spice and tropical fruits mainland Japanese palates tend to be unaccustomed with.

Flora

Satakentia liukiuensis ''Satakentia liukiuensis'' (satake palm, yaeyama-yashi apanese ヤエヤマヤシ satakentia palm, yaeyama palm), is a species of palm tree. They are endemic to Ishigaki Island and Iriomote Island in the Yaeyama Islands, the south-westernmost of ...

'', the only species in the genus ''

Satakentia ''Satakentia liukiuensis'' (satake palm, yaeyama-yashi apanese ヤエヤマヤシ satakentia palm, yaeyama palm), is a species of palm tree. They are endemic to Ishigaki Island and Iriomote Island in the Yaeyama Islands, the south-westernmost of ...

'', is a palm tree that is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

to the two islands of Ishigaki and

in the

Gallery

File:Aerial_view_of_Ishigaki_island_Taketomi_and_Kohama_2014.jpg, Aerial view of Ishigaki island, Taketomi and Kohama island, 2014 File:Kabira Bay Ishigaki Island41s3s4500.jpg, Kabira Bay File:Kabira Bay Ishigaki Island30s3s4592.jpg, Kabira Bay File:Ishigaki_torinji_gongendo.jpg, Torinji Gongendo- Buddhist temple File:2018-01-13_Shirahoreef_＆_New_Ishigaki_Airport_by_Peach_Airbus_A320-214_白保海岸珊瑚礁と新石垣空港_DSCF9566a.jpg, Shiraho coral reef File:Ishigaki_hirakubo_hanto.jpg, Hirakubo Peninsula File:Ishigaki_hirakubo_toumidai.jpg, Hirakubo File:Mount Omoto on Ishigaki 201912.jpg, Mount Omoto File:HirakuboTodai.jpg, Hirakubosaki lighthouse File:Ishigaki Island ISS038.jpg, Ishigaki Island from space File:Kabira-Bay-Kabira-park-2019.jpg, Kabira Bay

References

External links

Guide for Ishigaki island

Ishigaki island vacation activities

English language guide to Ishigaki island

Ishigaki City official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ishigaki Islands of Okinawa Prefecture Japan Self-Defense Forces Populated coastal places in Japan Port settlements in Japan Yaeyama Islands