, meaning "purified place of

Utaki Utaki (御嶽) is an Okinawan language, Okinawan term for a sacred place, often a Grove (nature), grove, cave, or mountain. They are central to the Ryukyuan religion and the former Noro (priestess), noro priestess system. Although the term ''utak ...

," is a historical sacred space, overlooking

Kudaka Island Kudaka Island (久高島, Japanese: くだかじま, Ryukyuan: ''Kudaka-shima'') is an island in Ryukyu Islands, located in Nanjō, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan and 5.3 kilometers away from Cape Chinen, Nanjō. From Nanjō, Kudaka Island can be re ...

, that served as one of the key locations of worship in the

native religion In religious studies, an ethnic religion or ethnoreligion is a religion or belief associated with notions of heredity and a particular ethnicity. Ethnic religions are often distinguished from universal religions, such as Christianity or Islam ...

of the

Ryukyuan people The are a Japonic-speaking East Asian ethnic group indigenous to the Ryukyu Islands, which stretch from the island of Kyushu to the island of Taiwan. With Japan, most Ryukyuans live in the Okinawa Prefecture or Kagoshima Prefecture. They sp ...

for millennia. Later as a part of assimilation of Okinawa by Japan, it was shifted to serve as a

Shinto , also called Shintoism, is a religion originating in Japan. Classified as an East Asian religions, East Asian religion by Religious studies, scholars of religion, it is often regarded by its practitioners as Japan's indigenous religion and as ...

shrine A shrine ( "case or chest for books or papers"; Old French: ''escrin'' "box or case") is a sacred space">-4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of French, that is, when it wa ...: ''escri ...

. It is part of the

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

Gusuku Sites and Related Properties of the Kingdom of Ryukyu The is an UNESCO World Heritage Site which consists of nine sites all located in the Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. The heritage sites include two '' utaki'' (or sacred sites, one a gate and the other a grove), the Tamaudun mausoleum, one garden, and ...

'' in

Nanjō is a city located in the southern part of Okinawa Island in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. Translated literally, the name Nanjō means "southern castle". Many castle ruins, called gusuku in the Okinawan language, can be found throughout the city. ...

Okinawa most commonly refers to: * Okinawa Prefecture, Japan's southernmost prefecture * Okinawa Island, the largest island of Okinawa Prefecture * Okinawa Islands, an island group including Okinawa itself * Okinawa (city), the second largest city in th ...

. Sefa Utaki is on the Chinen Peninsula, and has been recognized as a sacred place since the earliest period of Ryukyuan history. According to ''Chūzan Seikan'', this was the spot where

Amamikyu , or , is the creation goddess of the Ryukyu Islands in the Ryukyuan religion. Name Amamikyu's name comes from the reading of the Chinese characters 阿摩美久 or 阿摩彌姑, which were most likely written ad hoc for the Okinawan pronunciati ...

, goddess of creation, made landfall on Okinawa. The shrine area itself comprises a number of caves and overhanging ledges opening to the east and south among towering rock formations of a high promontory over the sea. All buildings have been destroyed, but the outer and inner precincts can still be traced.Kerr, George H. (1953)
''Ryukyu Kingdom and Province before 1945,'' p. 10.
/ref>

References

Kerr Kerr may refer to: People *Kerr (surname) *Kerr (given name) Places ;United States *Kerr Township, Champaign County, Illinois *Kerr, Montana, A US census-designated place *Kerr, Ohio, an unincorporated community *Kerr County, Texas Kerr Co ...

, George H. (1953)
''Ryukyu Kingdom and Province before 1945.''
Washington, D.C.: Pacific Science Board, National Academy of Sciences, National Research Council. * Yamakage, Motohisa, Paul de Leeuw and Aidan Rankin. (2006)
''The essence of Shinto.''
Tokyo: Kodansha International. Ryukyu Islands World Heritage Sites in Japan Historic Sites of Japan Prefecturally designated scenic spots Religious places {{Religious-struct-stub