is an

island An island or isle is a piece of land, distinct from a continent, completely surrounded by water. There are continental islands, which were formed by being split from a continent by plate tectonics, and oceanic islands, which have never been ...

in the town of Taketomi, within Yaeyama District of

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 ...

. 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 Ishigaki Island. The island has a village in the center. The island covers , and runs east to west and north to south. Taketomi is a raised coral atoll. The island is circular in shape, and is surrounded by coral reefs. Taketomi Island is part of

Iriomote-Ishigaki National Park is a national park in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. It is located on and around the Yaeyama Islands of the East China Sea. The park was established in 1972 as and included the islands of Iriomote, Kohama, Kuro, and Taketomi. In August 2007 ...

, established in 1972. Taketomi is known for its "traditional Okinawan" houses, stone walls, and sandy streets, making it popular with tourists. Various rules are in place to prevent the more aesthetically displeasing aspects of modern construction from ruining the beauty of the island, such as replacing hand-packed stone with concrete walls. Popular tourist activities include relaxing at the beach, snorkeling, taking an ox-cart ride through the village, and simply walking or biking around the island while enjoying the quaintness of the village and the natural scenery. It is recognized by academics that Taketomi's "traditional" landscape is a modern product. Today Taketomi's houses are known for visually appealing red-tiled roofs. However, commoners were prohibited from building houses with roof tiles by

Ryūkyū The , also known as the or the , are a chain of Japanese islands that stretch southwest from Kyushu to Taiwan: the Ryukyu Islands are divided into the Satsunan Islands ( Ōsumi, Tokara and Amami) and Okinawa Prefecture ( Daitō, Miyako, Y ...

on Okinawa until its abolishment. The red-roofed house first appeared on Taketomi Island in 1905 and remained a symbol of wealth for decades. As late as in 1964, truly traditional thatched houses accounted for 40% of Taketomi's houses. Red-tiled roofs spread in parallel with the conservation movement. The island is also famous for its beautiful beaches and ''hoshizuna'' or ''hoshisuna'', meaning "star-sand", which is composed of the remains of

Foraminifera Foraminifera ( ; Latin for "hole bearers"; informally called "forams") are unicellular organism, single-celled organisms, members of a phylum or class (biology), class of Rhizarian protists characterized by streaming granular Ectoplasm (cell bio ...

Economy

The principal industries of Taketomi Island are tourism and the production of

sugarcane Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of tall, Perennial plant, perennial grass (in the genus ''Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar Sugar industry, production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with stout, jointed, fib ...

Transportation

Taketomi Island is accessible by a ten-minute boat ride from Ishigaki Island. All areas of the island are within walking distance. There are also various places to rent bicycles in the village.

Education

The Taketomi town authorities maintain a single combined elementary and junior high school on the island: Taketomi Elementary and Junior High School (竹富町立竹富小中学校). For public senior high school students may attend schools of the Okinawa Prefectural Board of Education.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Taketomi Islands of Okinawa Prefecture Yaeyama Islands Cat islands in Japan

Geography

Economy

Transportation

Education

See also

References