is a

village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...

located in

Shimajiri District is a district located in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. Etymology Modern translation of Shimajiri means "Butt of the island" which may refer to its southerly position on the island of Okinawa. Compare this to Kunigami District, Okinawa. Howev ...

Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan. It consists of three main island groups—the Okinawa Islands, the Sakishima Islands, and the Daitō Islands—spread across a maritime zone approximately 1,000 kilometers east to west an ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. The village occupies the entirety of

Aguni Island is an island in Japan, which is part of the Okinawa Islands and administered as Aguni Village in Shimajiri District, Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan. It consists of three main island groups—the ...

. As of 2022, the village had an estimated

population Population is a set of humans or other organisms in a given region or area. Governments conduct a census to quantify the resident population size within a given jurisdiction. The term is also applied to non-human animals, microorganisms, and pl ...

of 672 and a

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), 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 geog ...

of 87.8 persons per km². The total area is .

Geography

Aguni is located in the

East China Sea The East China Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean, located directly offshore from East China. China names the body of water along its eastern coast as "East Sea" (, ) due to direction, the name of "East China Sea" is otherwise ...

. The village sits northwest of

Naha, Okinawa is the Cities of Japan, capital city of Okinawa Prefecture, the southernmost prefecture of Japan. As of 1 June 2019, the city has an estimated population of 317,405 and a population density of 7,939 people per km2 (20,562 persons per sq. mi.). ...

, the prefectural capital of Okinawa on

Okinawa Island , officially , is the largest of the Okinawa Islands and the Ryukyu Islands, Ryukyu (''Nansei'') Islands of Japan in the Kyushu region. It is the smallest and least populated of the five Japanese archipelago, main islands of Japan. The island is ...

. Aguni Island spans from north to south and from east to west. Aguni is a low-lying island with its highest point only reaching . Aguni faces

Tonaki is a village located in Shimajiri District, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. The village consists of Tonaki Island and the uninhabited Irisuna Island. As of 2020, the village has an estimated population of 334 and a density of 89 persons per km2. Th ...

and the

Kerama Islands The are a subtropical island group southwest of Okinawa Island in Japan. Geography Four islands are inhabited: Tokashiki Island, Zamami Island, Aka Island, and Geruma Island. The islands are administered as Tokashiki Village and Zamami Vi ...

to the south and

Kume Island is an island, part of the Okinawa Islands and administratively part of the town of Kumejima, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. It has an area of . The island had a population of 8,713 (2010). Kume Island is a volcanic island. Its principal economic a ...

to the southwest.

Administrative divisions

The village includes three divisions. *Hama (浜) *Higashi (東) *Nishi (西)

Climate

History

Aguni was settled early in the

history of the Ryukyu Islands This article is about the history of the Ryukyu Islands, located southwest of the main islands of Japan. Etymology The name "Ryūkyū" originates from Chinese writings. The earliest references to "Ryūkyū" write the name as and (, Middle C ...

. The island has remains of both shell

midden A midden is an old dump for domestic waste. It may consist of animal bones, human excrement, botanical material, mollusc shells, potsherds, lithics (especially debitage), and other artifacts and ecofacts associated with past human oc ...

s and ''

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 ...

'' castle remains. Aguni appears in the earliest written record as ''Awaguni'', and was placed under the administration of Kume Island. Aguni was home to merchants and mariners in the sailing period of the

Ryukyu Kingdom The Ryukyu Kingdom was a kingdom in the Ryukyu Islands from 1429 to 1879. It was ruled as a Tributary system of China, tributary state of Ming dynasty, imperial Ming China by the King of Ryukyu, Ryukyuan monarchy, who unified Okinawa Island t ...

. After the end of the Ryukyu Kingdom, and the

abolition of the han system The in the Empire of Japan and its replacement by a system of prefectures in 1871 was the culmination of the Meiji Restoration begun in 1868, the starting year of the Meiji period. Under the reform, all daimyos (, ''daimyō'', feudal lords) ...

in Japan in 1879, Aguni became part of Okinawa Prefecture. In 1880 the population of Aguni stood at 3,099 residents, and reached 4,966 by 1903. The island saw discontent and violent protest by peasants between 1880 and 1881, which were ultimately suppressed by the authorities on Kume Island. The Village of Aguni was formally established in 1908 Aguni was invaded by the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

as part of the

Battle of Okinawa The , codenamed Operation Iceberg, was a major battle of the Pacific War fought on the island of Okinawa Island, Okinawa by United States Army and United States Marine Corps forces against the Imperial Japanese Army during the Pacific War, Impe ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. The island, along with the Kerama Islands, was overtaken by Allied forces after aerial and naval bombardment on March 23, 1945. Civil administration of the village ended after the American invasion. 30 leaders from the village were appointed to keep order on the island. The mayor of Aguni was reappointed in 1946 by the American administration, and mayoral and village council elections resumed in 1948. The population of Aguni decreased rapidly after World War II, due to both an aging population and the emigration of residents from the island. The village had 960 residents in 2000, and at present has fallen to 672.

Government

Aguni is administered from the village hall in Higashi Ward. The municipality of Aguni is administered by a mayor, a vice-mayor and five administrative divisions: *General Affairs Section *Citizens' Livelihood Section *Economic Section *Accounting Section *Maritime Affairs Section The current mayor is Kazuhiro Uehara (上原一宏) (elected July 2024), the current vice-mayor is Yoshiyuki Yamashiro (山城義之) (designated September 2024). The Aguni Village Council consists of seven members elected for four years in 2022. They are currently led by chairperson Yoshiyuki Yonashiro (与那城義幸) and vice-chairperson Satoshi Kohashigawa (小橋川聡).

Transportation

Air

Aguni is connected to Okinawa Island via Aguni Airport. The airport was constructed in 1978 after the reversion of Okinawa Prefecture to Japan. Aguni can be reached from Naha in only 20 minutes.

Ferry

Aguni is connected to the main island of Okinawa by ferry between the Port of Aguni and the Port of Tomari in Naha. The Port of Aguni came under the administration of Okinawa Prefecture in 1972 after the reversion of the prefecture to Japan. Ferry service between Aguni and Naha takes approximately two hours.

Education

Cultural and natural assets

Aguni Village hosts five designated or registered tangible cultural properties and monuments, at the prefectural or municipal level. *Name (Japanese) (Type of registration)

Places of scenic beauty is a collective term used by the Japanese government's Law for the Protection of Cultural Properties to denote Cultural Properties of JapanIn this article, capitals indicate an official designation as opposed to a simple definition, e.g "Cultural ...

*Scenic Spot of Ban'yabaru (番屋原の広場の景勝地) (Municipal) *Scenic Spot of Sakakinabaru Coast (坂木那原海岸景勝地) (Municipal)

Natural Monuments Nature is an inherent character or constitution, particularly of the ecosphere or the universe as a whole. In this general sense nature refers to the laws, elements and phenomena of the physical world, including life. Although humans are part ...

*Ugan Praying Site Plant Community of Nishi (粟国村字西の御願の植物群落) (Prefectural) *Tree heliotrope (''

Heliotropium arboreum ''Heliotropium arboreum'' is a species of flowering plant in the borage family, Boraginaceae. It is native to tropical Asia including southern China, Madagascar, northern Australia, and most of the atolls and high islands of Micronesia and Polyn ...

'') Plant Community of Terukinabaru (照喜名原のモンパの木の群落) (Municipal) * Itajii tree of Matsuo Utaki Sacred Site (松尾御獄のイタジイの木) (Municipal)

References

External links

Aguni official website
{{Authority control Villages in Okinawa Prefecture Populated coastal places in Japan