CULTURE
Pick Up Stories
All Okinawa Eisa Festival 2026 [CULTURE Festival]
The Zento Eisa Matsuri, the All Okinawa Eisa Festival, takes place every year on the first weekend after Obon. This tradition began in 1956 ...Read More
Obon is time for family gathering to rem… [CULTURE CURRENT ISSUE]
For three days starting on Tuesday, August 25th through Thursday, August 27th, many privately owned businesses on Okinawa will close their ...Read More
Remembering Reversion and Driving on th… [History]
When Okinawa was returned to Japan on May 15th, 1972, part of the package was an entirely new set of challenges that needed to be met. For O...Read More
2017.06.06
Japanese Lesson by Global Village Vol.127 [Japanese Lesson]
http://gvokinawa.com/ Facebook Page...
Cosmos festival planned for Fureai Garden in Urasoe [Community]
The Urasoe Green Heights Residents’ Association is organizing a cosmos festival in Fureai Garden next to Maeda sewer pump station in Urasoe City. The festival will take place from ...
2017.06.01
Teru Teru Bouzu beckons good weather [CULTURE]
In Japan, kids often string little white dolls called Teru Teru Bouzu (shine, shine monk) in a window as a charm hoping fine weather for the next day, usually before a picnic, spor...
2017.05.26
Dragon Boat bell rings in Okinawa summer [CULTURE]
The most exciting events taking place in Okinawan fishing ports throughout the prefecture during the early summer are the dragon boat races called “Haarii” using traditional fishin...
2017.05.19
Japanese Lesson by Global Village Vol.116 [Japanese Lesson]
http://gvokinawa.com/ Facebook Page...
2017.04.26
Golden Week, Japan’s Mega Holiday [CULTURE]
Spring is here. And in Japan that means warmer weather, cherry blossoms, and rainy season. But, before the rainy season takes hold and shrouds Japan in a blanket of gray clouds and...
2017.04.14
Kijimuna, Folktales of Island Spirits [Community]
by Ricky Hough In Japan, as elsewhere in the world, folktales filled with supernatural phenomena and mysterious creatures have been part of the cultural imagination for as long as ...
2017.04.04
Welcome the Spring Season with Traditional Okinawan Sweets [CULTURE]
Spring is here! And on Okinawa, spring brings increased temperatures and humidity. There are a number of ways to find respite from the muggy heat of Okinawa, yet one of the most sa...
2017.03.31
The Origins of Okinawan Tombs [CULTURE]
One of my earliest memories of Okinawa after arriving over 20 years ago was the awe-inspiring sight of large, concrete tombs that dot the island landscape. Many of them built centu...
Chatan starts 5-year entertainment project [Community]
Chatan Town has started a 5-year project called “Chatan Entertainment Park City Promotion Project” to develop human resources for entertainment events in the town. About 30 graduat...
2017.02.13
Pacific Okinawa Players present Willy Wonka [Community]
“Come with me and you’ll be in a world of pure imagination” are the opening lines to Roald Dahl’s Willy Wonka JR. presented by Pacific Okinawa Players (POPs), the only community th...
2017.02.11
This is the peak season of “tankan” mandarins [Community]
Ten organizations, including Motobu Town and JA Okinawa Motobu Branch declared Wednesday that now is the peak season for harvesting “tankan” mandarins. Motobu Town is the productio...
Chatan starts 5-year entertainment project [Community]
Chatan Town has started a 5-year project called “Chatan Entertainment Park City Promotion Project” to develop human resources for entertainment events in the town. About 30 graduat...
2016.12.27
Hatsumode, first visit to shrine is proper way to begin New Year [Community]
The first visit of the year to a shrine or temple is an important Japanese tradition. About three quarters of the Japanese are said to be following the tradition with the first vis...
2016.11.28
Okinawan religion centers on family, based on mix of beliefs [History]
Hoshin Nakamura NPO Okinawa Language Center Religion talks about the “relationship between humans and the Maker of all existence.” The Maker has different name in different culture...
2016.11.14
Nanjo homeowners show their green thumb skills [Community]
Every spring and fall since 2010, private homeowners in Nanjo City have opened the gates to their private gardens to show the public the results of their labors and skills of their...
2016.11.14
National Theater holds kumiodori appreciation class [CULTURE]
Kumiodori is a classical Ryukyu musical that was originally created to provide entertainment and diversion to Chinese envoys, who traveled to the Ryukyu Kingdom to manage the tribu...
RYUKYU PRESS