, is one of 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 ...

, a subgroup of the

Satsunan Islands The is a geopolitical name for a group of islands that forms the northern part of the Ryukyu Islands. The whole island group belongs to Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. Major islands * Satsunan Islands ** Ōsumi Islands with: *** Tanegashima, Yak ...

belonging to

Kagoshima Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu and the Ryukyu Islands. Kagoshima Prefecture has a population of 1,527,019 (1 February 2025) and has a geographic area of 9,187 Square kilometre, km2 (3,547 Square m ...

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 island, 7.42 km² in area, has a population of 59 persons. The island can only be reached by boat, as it has no airport; there is a ferry service twice per week to the city of Kagoshima on the mainland. Travel time is about 11 hours. The islanders are dependent mainly on fishing and seasonal tourism.

Geography

Akusekijima is located southwest of

Nakanoshima is a 3 km long and 50 hectares narrow sandbank in Kita-ku, Osaka city, Japan, that divides the Kyū-Yodo into the Tosabori and Dōjima rivers. Many governmental and commercial offices (including the city hall of Osaka), museums and oth ...

. The island has an area of approximately with a length of about and a width of . Most of the island is surrounded by steep cliffs. The island is an

andesite Andesite () is a volcanic rock of intermediate composition. In a general sense, it is the intermediate type between silica-poor basalt and silica-rich rhyolite. It is fine-grained (aphanitic) to porphyritic in texture, and is composed predomina ...

–

dacite Dacite () is a volcanic rock formed by rapid solidification of lava that is high in silica and low in alkali metal oxides. It has a fine-grained (aphanitic) to porphyritic texture and is intermediate in composition between andesite and rhyolite. ...

stratovolcano A stratovolcano, also known as a composite volcano, is a typically conical volcano built up by many alternating layers (strata) of hardened lava and tephra. Unlike shield volcanoes, stratovolcanoes are characterized by a steep profile with ...

formed by two summit craters, and . . , the highest elevation on the island, is a

lava dome In volcanology, a lava dome is a circular, mound-shaped protrusion resulting from the slow extrusion of viscous lava from a volcano. Dome-building eruptions are common, particularly in convergent plate boundary settings. Around 6% of eruptions ...

. Lava flows in the northern portion of the island have been dated to 80,000 years ago. There has been no volcanic activity in historic times. Its climate is classified as subtropical, with a rainy season from May through September.

History

Until 1624, the island was part 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 ...

. During the

Edo period The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...

, Takarajima was part of

Satsuma Domain The , briefly known as the , was a Han system, domain (''han'') of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan during the Edo period from 1600 to 1871. The Satsuma Domain was based at Kagoshima Castle in Satsuma Province, the core of the modern city of ...

and was administered as part of Kawabe District. In 1896, the island was transferred to the administrative control of

Ōshima District, Kagoshima is a district located in Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. As of the March 20, 2006 merger but with 2003 population statistics, the district has an estimated population of 78,882 and a density of 84.4 persons per km2. The total area is 934.10 ...

, and from 1911 was part of the village of

Toshima, Kagoshima is a village consisting of the islands of the Tokara Islands located in the Satsunan Islands of Kagoshima District, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. The village office is located in the city of Kagoshima, outside the village. As of 1 October 2020 ...

. From 1946-1952, the island was administered by the United States as part of the Provisional Government of Northern Ryukyu Islands. 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 ...

, on 22 August 1944, ''

Tsushima Maru ''Tsushima Maru'' () was a Japanese passenger/cargo ship that was sunk by the submarine USS ''Bowfin'' during World War II, while carrying hundreds of schoolchildren from Okinawa to Nagasaki. Events ''Tsushima Maru'' was carrying a large numb ...

,'' a Japanese passenger/cargo ship, was sunk just outside Akusekijima’s northwest coast by

torpedo A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, such ...

es launched by the

submarine A submarine (often shortened to sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. (It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability.) The term "submarine" is also sometimes used historically or infor ...

off this island, killing 1,484 civilians including 767 schoolchildren. Annual commemorations are held on the island and there is also a memorial museum. Akusekijima drew attention during the

Solar eclipse of July 22, 2009 A total solar eclipse occurred at the Moon's descending node of orbit on Wednesday, July 22, 2009, with a magnitude of 1.07991. A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, thereby totally or partly obscuring the image of ...

, which was the longest total solar eclipse of the twenty-first century, as the island was one of the closest inhabited areas to the location of maximum eclipse duration. Touted as was one of the best observation spots for the event, village officials and island residents were concerned about paying host to hundreds of people coming to view the solar eclipse. Akusekijima only has five small minshuku

guesthouse A guest house (or guesthouse, also rest house) is a kind of lodging. In some parts of the world (such as the Caribbean), a guest house is a type of inexpensive hotel-like lodging. In others, it is a private home that has been converted for the e ...

s, which can only accommodate up to 66 people, and water resources are limited as rainfall is the primary source of water.

Culture

Akusekijima is also famous for the masked god , the island deity. Islanders donning Boze masks come out during the annual lunar

O-Bon or just is a fusion of the ancient Japanese belief in ancestral spirits and a Japanese Buddhist custom to honor the spirits of one's ancestors. This Buddhist custom has evolved into a family reunion holiday during which people return to ance ...

matsuri Japanese festivals, or , are traditional festive occasions often celebrated with dance and music in Japan. The origin of the word ''matsuri'' is related to the ; there are theories that the word ''matsuri'' is derived from meaning "to wait (for ...

.'' Protectors of the island and its natural assets, the Boze frighten small children to ensure their safety for the coming year. Masked God Boze

References

*National Geospatial Intelligence Agency (NGIA). ''Prostar Sailing Directions 2005 Japan Enroute''. Prostar Publications (2005).

External links

Akusekijima
- Toshima Village Official Website

- Geological Survey of Japan * {{Tokara Islands Tokara Islands Stratovolcanoes of Japan Islands of Kagoshima Prefecture Volcanoes of Kagoshima Prefecture

Geography

History

Culture

See also

References

External links