Toyama Matasuke

• Japanese: 当山又助 (Touyama Matasuke)

Tôyama Matasuke was a pioneer of Okinawan immigration to the United States.

Matasuke was a passenger on the first ship of Okinawan immigrants to Hawaii, along with his older brother Tôyama Kyûzô, who is often called the grandfather of the Okinawan diaspora. The two brothers, along with tens of others, departed Okinawa in December 1899 and arrived in Honolulu the following month. A year later, Matasuke journeyed to San Francisco, becoming one of the first Okinawans (if not the very first) to travel to the United States.

References

• Earth Exhibit of Ryukyu Kingdom. Ryûfûan Hawaii. 2010.