Ryukyuans in Brazil

The Ryukyuans in Brazil are Brazilian nationals of Ryukyuan descent.

Ryukyuans in Brazil
Total population
170,000
Languages
Brazilian Portuguese, Ryukyuan languages
Religion
Catholicism, Ryukyuan religion
Related ethnic groups
Ryukyuan people

History

Many people were struggling economically in the Ryukyu Islands during the late 1800s and early 1900s. As a result, many Ryukyuans emigrated elsewhere to places such as Brazil, Peru, Hawaii and mainland Japan.[1]

On June 18, 1908, the first migrants from Japan arrived at the port of Santos in São Paulo. Half of these migrants were Okinawans.[2] Immigration from the Ryukyu Islands to Brazil would continue in the following years.

Demographics

Ryukyuans in Brazil make up 9.4% (170,000) of the entire Brazilian Nikkei community (1,600,000), despite Ryukyuans making up only 1% of Japan's total population.[2] The Nikkei communities in neighboring Peru and Argentina are majority Ryukyuan-descended.[2]

The majority of Ryukyuans in South America specifically belong to the Okinawan subgroup.

See also

References
  1. Aug 2015, Mina Otsuka / 18. "Immigration—Missing Link in Japanese History: Why Are There So Many Okinawan Immigrants? – Part 1". Discover Nikkei. Retrieved 2020-04-06.
  2. "A little corner of Brazil that is forever Okinawa". BBC News. 2018-02-04. Retrieved 2020-04-06.


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