Ryukyuan Languages - History

History

Japonic speakers are believed to have migrated to the Ryukyu Islands at some point between the 2nd and 9th centuries CE. However, Ryukyuan may have already begun to diverge from early Japanese before this migration, while its speakers still dwelt in Mainland Japan After this initial settlement, there was little contact between the Mainland and the Ryukyu Islands for centuries, allowing Ryukyuan to diverge as a separate linguistic entity. This situation lasted until the Kyushu-based Satsuma Domain conquered the Ryukyu Islands in the 17th century.

The Ryukyu Kingdom retained autonomy until 1879, when it was invaded and annexed by Japan. The Japanese government adopted a policy of forcible assimilation, appointing mainland Japanese to political posts and suppressing native culture and language. Students caught speaking Ryukyuan were made to wear a dialect card (方言札 hougen fuda), a method of public humiliation. Students who regularly wore the card would receive corporal punishment. In the World War II era, speaking Ryukyuan was officially illegal, although in practice the older generation was still monolingual. This policy of linguicide lasted into the post-war US administration of the Ryukyu Islands.

Nowadays, in favor of multiculturalism, preserving Ryukyuan languages has become the policy of Okinawa Prefectural government. However, the situation is not very optimistic, since the vast majority of Okinawan children are now monolingual in Japanese.