Okinawa Island has been a critical strategic location for the United States Armed Forces since the Battle of Okinawa Island and the end of World War II.
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13 Facts About Okinawa Island
2.
On Okinawa Island, rice was not cultivated until the Middle Shell Mound period.
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3.
The most important visits to Okinawa were from Captain Basil Chamberlain in 1816 and Commodore Matthew C Perry in 1852.
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4.
Okinawa Island served as a prime staging post for the aforementioned wars.
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5.
Whereas the northern half of Okinawa Island is sparsely populated, the south-central and southern parts of the island are markedly urbanized—particularly the city of Naha and the urban corridor stretching north from there to Okinawa City.
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6.
Okinawa Island has several beaches such as Manza Beach, Emerald Beach, Okuma Beach, Zanpa Beach, Moon Beach and Sunset Beach .
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7.
Northern half of Okinawa Island has one of the largest tracts of subtropical rainforest in Asia called the Yanbaru.
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8.
Okinawa Island has a humid subtropical climate bordering on a tropical rainforest climate.
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9.
In recent years, Okinawa Island has become an increasingly popular destination for tourists from China and Southeast Asia.
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10.
Several former U S military facilities on Okinawa have been re-developed as commercial areas, most notably the American Village in Chatan, which opened in 1998, and the Aeon Mall Okinawa Rycom in Kitanakagusuku, which opened in 2015.
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11.
Okinawa Island has various historical buildings and monuments, such as feudal castles, ruins, UNESCO, and other historical significant sites.
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12.
Okinawa Island is the home of Tsuboya-yaki, pottery in the Ryukyuan tradition.
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13.
Okinawa Island is the home of a form of bullfighting sometimes compared to sumo.
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