Okinawan Studies: Genealogy/Family Crests

(1) Helpful Services for Family Genealogy Research for Individuals

Okinawa Genealogical Society of Hawaii (OGSH) in Hawai‘i and Okinawa Prefectural Library launched a service to help individuals to find the roots of their ancestors.

• Inquiries in English

Okinawa Genealogical Society of Hawaii (OGSH)

Address:

C/O Hawaii United Okinawa Association
94-587 Ukee Street
Waipahu, HI 96797 USA

Phone: 808-676-5400 (country code +1)

• Inquiries in Japanese (or English)

Okinawa Prefectural Library's First Generation Immigration Genealogical Reference Service

(2) General genealogy resources for Okinawans in Hawai'i 

The Hawai'i Collection in Hamilton Library has a list of useful directories for those who conduct general genealogy research.

"GENEALOGY: Ethnic Hawaii Genealogy Resources: Okinawan": https://guides.library.manoa.hawaii.edu/c.php?g=105229&p=684160

The page above is created and maintained by the Hawai'i Collection Librarians. The list includes the important published directories related to Okinawans in Hawai'i. 

• Okinawan Family Crests / 沖縄の家紋  (JPN version; the linked page is a cache; crests are visible, but the site itself is no longer maintained as of November 2016.)
  • This database is provided by Okinawa Joho Kyoku / Okinawa 情報局 and contains total 267 Okinawan family crests with explanation.

• Library Resources
  • 宮里朝光監修、『沖縄家紋集』、Asia/East Reference (Library Use Only) Call number: CS3000.Z9 O583 1998 suppl
  • 神山克明、『沖縄の氏と姓の由来』 Call Number East CS3000 .Z905 1989
  • Okinawa-ken seishi kakei daijiten / 沖縄県姓氏家系大辞典 Call Number East CS3000 .K33 1989 v. 47
  • 田口二州、『稿本琉球紋章譜 』Call Number Hamilton East CR2557.O35 T34 1978

• Hawaii Genealogy LibGuides by the Hawaiian Collection Department
• Ethnic Hawaii Genealogy Resources: Okinawan by the Hawaiian Collection Department at UH Mānoa
• Japanese Cultural Center of Hawaii offers a workshop periodically. Check JCCH Event Calendar
• Naha City Museum of History / 那覇市歴史博物館's 家譜文書検索Database: The Museum holds the most extensive 家譜文書 Family lineage documents.
• The routes by Sappōshi (冊封使) and Ryukyuan mission to Edo (Edo nobori / 江戸のぼり) by The Japanese Arts Council. Adobe Flash is required to see the site. Adobe Flash is available here.

• Ryukyu Genealogy / 琉球家譜  (JPN version)
  • This database is a part of Okinawa rekishi bunken database / 沖縄歴史文献データベース, created by the University of Tsukuba Library. The base of this database is Okinawa no rekishi joho / 沖縄の歴史情報 was created by Prof. Hiroyuki Iwasaki （岩崎宏之教授）.
  • It contains Shuri / 首里系, Naha, Tomari / 那覇・泊系, and Kumemura kafu / 久米村系家譜.

• Ryukyu Genealogy Database / 琉球家譜目録データベース  (JPN version)
  • This database is created by Takashi Uezato (上里 隆史), a researcher of Ryukyu history, and developed by Miki Watanabe (渡辺美李), a professor of the University of Tokyo. *If the page shows gibberish, please change the encoding to Shift_JIS.
  • It contains Uji shū gai kafu / [氏集]外家譜.
• (Okinawa) Kennai Shi-Cho-Son-Aza shi kyōdō shōzō mokuroku / （沖縄）県内市町字史（誌）共同所蔵目録 (JPN only)
  • A list of local history books housed in city, town, village offices in Okinawa. The linked page has a 61-page long PDF, compiled by Okinawa Prefectural Library. 
• Naha shishi. Shiryōhen. / 那覇市史資料編 (JPN only) 
  • v. 1:pt. 5. Kafu shiryō, sōgō -- v.1:pt. 6. Kafu shiryō, Kumemura-kei (2 v.) -- v.1:pt. 7. Kafu shiryō, Shuri-kei -- v.1:pt. 8. Kafu shiryō, Naha Tomari-kei --, Hamilton East 3rd floor, Call Number: DS897.N345 N32 

• Okinawan Genealogical Society of Hawaii (OGSH)
  • Active group in Hawaii, which has developed a genealogical database on their own. A study group meets once a month.
  • Ryukyuan Names by Robert Kishaba.
• Ethnic Hawaii Genealogy Resources: Okinawa (created by Hawaii & Pacific Collections in Hamilton Library)
• Library Resources
  • Okinawa monchū daijiten /沖縄門中大事典 
  • Monchū ganso benran / 門中元祖便覧 
  • Monchū fudoki / 門中風土記
  • Ryūkyū kamon keizu hōkan / 琉球家紋系図宝鑑 
  • Amami Ōshima shoka keifu shū / 奄美大島諸家系譜集
  • Nihon shi shoka keizu jinmei jiten / 日本史諸家系図人名辞典 (On p. 352, about "尚氏")
  • Nihon shi sōran / 日本史総覧 Vol. 4 about the Ryukyu Kingdom
  • Ryukyuan names: monographs on and lists of personal and place names in the Ryukyus
  • Okinawa-ken seishi kakei daijiten / 沖縄県姓氏家系大辞典 (2011)

2017 Ryukyu kafu public lecture by Professor Masayuki Dana

On August 31, 2017, Professor Masayuki Dana (田名真之), Director of Okinawa Prefectural Museum & Art Museum, delivered a public lecture on Ryukyuan genealogy in Hamilton Library. The lecture was delivered in Japanese. A simultaneous interpretation accompanied the lecture.  Hamilton Library and the Center for Okinawan Studies at the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa (COS) co-sponsored the event.

More information on the event is available at https://guides.library.manoa.hawaii.edu/ryukyu_kafu

The page above includes the video-recording of the lecture and transcripts (both in original Japanese and English interpretation)