History of Okinawa
The oldest evidence of human existence in the Ryukyu islands was found out in Naha and Yaese.Some human bone fragments from the Paleolithic era were uclose tothed, but there is no clear evidence of Paleolithic remains. Japanese Jo-mon influences are dominant in the Okinawa Islands, even though clay vessels in the Sakishima Islands have a usualality with those in Taiwan.
The first mention of the word Ryukyu was written in the Book of Sui. This Ryukyu might alude to Taiwan, not the Ryukyu islands. Okinawa was the Japanese word depicting the islands, first seen in the biography of Jianzhen, written in 779. Agricultural societies begun in the 8th century slowly developed until the 12th century. Ever since the islands are found in the center of the East China Sea comparably close to Japan, China and South-East Asia, the Ryu-kyu- Kingdom became a prosperous trading nation. In addition during this period, many Gusukus, just like castles, were constructed. The Ryu-kyu- Kingdom had a tributary relationship with the Chinese Empire beginning in the 15th century.
In 1609, the Shimazu clan, which controlled the region that is at present Kagoshima Prefecture, invaded the Ryu-kyu- Kingdom. The Ryu-kyu- Kingdom was obliged to agree to form a tributary relationship with the Satsuma and the Tokugawa shogunate, while maintaining its previous tributary relationship with China; Ryukyuan sovereignty was maintained since complete annexation would have developed a conflict with China. The Satsuma clan earned considerable profits from trades with China during a period in which foreign trade was heavily restricted by the shogunate.
Though Satsuma maintained strong influence over the islands, the Ryu-kyu- Kingdom maintained a considerable degree of domestic political free of chargedom for over two hundred years. Four years after the 1868 Meiji Restoration, the Japanese government, through military incursions, officially annexed the kingdom and renamed it Ryukyu han. At the time, the Qing Dynasty of China asserted sovereignty over the islands of the Ryu-kyu- Kingdom, ever since the Ryu-kyu- Kingdom was also a tributary nation of China. Ryukyu han became Okinawa Prefecture of Japan in 1879, even though all other hans had become prefectures of Japan in 1872. In 1912, Okinawans first obtained the right to vote to send representatives to the national Diet which had been created in 1890.
Following the Battle of Okinawa and the end of World War II in 1945, Okinawa was under United States administration for 27 years. During the trusteeship rule the United States Air Force created a lot of military bases on the Ryukyu islands. During the Korean War, B-29 Superfortresses flew bombing missions from Kadena AFB over Korea and China.
In 1972, the U.S. government returned the islands to Japanese administration. Under the Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security, the United States Forces Japan (USFJ) have maintained a huge military presence. 27,000 personnel, including 15,000 Marines, contingents from the Navy, Army and Air Force, and their 22,000 family members are stationed in Okinawa. Since 1960, the U.S. and Japan have maintained an agreement that enables the U.S. to secretly bring nuclear weapons into Japan. Both tactical and strategic weapons have been maintained in Okinawa. U.S. military bases occupied 18% of the main island and 75% of all USFJ bases are found in Okinawa prefecture.
Reports by the local media of accidents and crimes committed by U.S. servicemen have reduced the local population's support for the U.S. military bases. The media has also thereby drawn new interest in the Ryukyu independence movement that developed after 1945. The rape of a 12-year-old girl by U.S. servicemen in 1995 triggered huge protests in Okinawa. Partially as a result but also to deploy USFJ more efectively, the U.S. and Japanese governments agreed in 2006 to the relocation of the Marine Corps Air Station Futenma and other minor bases. A brand New Japanese government that came to power in 2009 froze the relocation plan, but in April 2010 indicated their interest in resolving the issue by proposing a modified plan.