Publication of the Spanish and Portuguese Editions of Ryukyu Okoku

Publication of the Spanish and Portuguese Editions of Ryukyu Okoku
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As one of the Center for Territory and History’s achievements at the Japan Institute of International Affairs (JIIA), we have published the Spanish and Portuguese editions of Ryukyu Okoku [The Ryukyu Kingdom] (Iwanami Shoten, 1993), written by Kurayoshi Takara, professor emeritus at the University of the Ryukyus. Professor Takara is a leading authority on Ryukyuan studies and has been involved on two separate occasions in the reconstruction of Shuri Castle.

Details of these editions are available at the link below:

TAKARA, Kurayoshi. The Legacy of the Ryukyu Kingdom: An Okinawan History (Spanish Edition). Japan Publishing Industry Foundation for Culture, 2026. 

TAKARA, Kurayoshi. The Legacy of the Ryukyu Kingdom: An Okinawan History (Portuguese Edition). Japan Publishing Industry Foundation for Culture, 2026. 
https://www.jiia.or.jp/jic/translation.html

This book focuses on the premodern Ryukyu Kingdom, offering an accessible account of its history and illustrating how the kingdom existed within the Japanese cultural sphere while also being influenced by continental Asia. 

Following the publication of the English edition in 2025, JIIA donated copies of the book to major libraries in Japan and abroad, as well as to overseas Okinawan associations, including in Hawaii. The book was met with an overwhelmingly positive response. One recipient noted:

“English-language books related to Okinawa tend to focus on sightseeing and nature. When history is addressed, the emphasis is usually on the Battle of Okinawa and U.S. military bases. A book that vividly depicts the history of the Ryukyu Kingdom through numerous anecdotes is greatly appreciated.”

After the donation of the English edition, Okinawan associations in Central and South America—where large populations of descendants of Okinawan immigrants reside—strongly requested Spanish and Portuguese translations to accommodate readers who found the English edition difficult to use. The publication of these editions is a direct response to those requests.

Donations of the Spanish and Portuguese editions were carried out in cooperation with the Japan Publishing Industry Foundation for Culture and the International Exchange Division of Okinawa Prefecture’s Department of Culture, Tourism and Sports.