Fortified castles on Okinawa Island during the Gusuku Period, AD 1200-1600

Abstract

Fortified castles on the island of Okinawa, southwestern Japan, date from approximately AD 1200 to 1600. These castles are termed gusuku in Okinawan dialect. The larger of these multi-functional sites usually contained a number of different activity areas (Pearson 1992; 1997; 1999). Katsuren Castle, located on the east coast of Okinawa, is one example (Figure 1). Extensive excavation and restoration of the castle (Asato 1990) suggest that it was approximately 12,000 sq. m in size, and included four enclosures. The smallest, highest and most protected enclosure was the sacred precinct. The second enclosure contained the residential palace, and the third was an area in front of the residential palace used for assemblies. The fourth, lowest enclosure included storage, a work place for artisans and a well. The largest castles ranged from 38,000 to 43,000 sq. m. Asato published a discussion of site groupings and their distribution, and their development into 17th- and 18th-century political divisions (magiri) and cultural subgroups. Based on a non-statistical analysis, he traced the development of prehistoric shell-mound site groups, to subgroups sharing certain kinds of pottery temper, to castle groups and finally to administrative sub units at the time of the Ryukyu Kingdom (AD 1609-1879). Our study parallels and extends his historical interpretation by using a geographical information system to analyse the distribution of fortified castles in relation to each other and the soils of the island.