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To give one example, the scholar-official [[Nakijin Chogi|Nakijin Chôgi]] ([[1702]]-[[1787]]) was ''[[anji]]'' and ''[[jito (Ryukyu)|jitô]]'' of [[Nakijin]] (this was the territory he administered, or held in fief); combined with his Ryukyuan name Chôgi, he is thus known as Nakijin Chôgi 今帰仁朝義 or Nakijin ''anji'' Chôgi. However, he was also head of the [[Gushikawa family]] 具志川家, a branch of the [[Sho Dynasty|royal family]], and bore the Chinese-style name Shô Senbo 向宣謨. His father, [[Nakijin Choki|Nakijin Chôki]] 今帰仁朝季, bore the same title of "''anji'' of Nakijin," the same Chinese-style surname Shô, and the same Ryukyuan family name of Gushikawa, but a different "given name" Chôki, and a different Chinese "given name" as well.
To give one example, the scholar-official [[Nakijin Chogi|Nakijin Chôgi]] ([[1702]]-[[1787]]) was ''[[anji]]'' and ''[[jito (Ryukyu)|jitô]]'' of [[Nakijin]] (this was the territory he administered, or held in fief); combined with his Ryukyuan name Chôgi, he is thus known as Nakijin Chôgi 今帰仁朝義 or Nakijin ''anji'' Chôgi. However, he was also head of the [[Gushikawa family]] 具志川家, a branch of the [[Sho Dynasty|royal family]], and bore the Chinese-style name Shô Senbo 向宣謨. His father, [[Nakijin Choki|Nakijin Chôki]] 今帰仁朝季, bore the same title of "''anji'' of Nakijin," the same Chinese-style surname Shô, and the same Ryukyuan family name of Gushikawa, but a different "given name" Chôki, and a different Chinese "given name" as well.
==Ryukyu-style Names==
==Under the Ryûkyû Kingdom==
===Ryukyu-style Names===
One of the surname-like referents by which many Ryukyuan figures are known today is by the placename of their fief, or of the area they administered. As in the example given above, particular ''anji'' ("lords") of Nakijin were known as Nakijin Chôgi, Nakijin Chôki, and [[Nakijin Choei|Nakijin Chôei]]. The famous figure of [[Jana ueekata|Jana ''ueekata'']], who died in [[1611]] rather than submit to [[Satsuma han]] authority, serves as a good illustration of this mode as well; though he is by far the most famous figure to hold the title of "''ueekata'' of Jana," this is merely a title, not an individual name, and many would have shared that title over history. This particular figure might be more specifically identified by his Ryukyu-style name Jana Rizan 謝名利山, or by his Chinese-style name Tei Dô (C: ''Zhèng Dòng'') 鄭迵.
One of the surname-like referents by which many Ryukyuan figures are known today is by the placename of their fief, or of the area they administered. As in the example given above, particular ''anji'' ("lords") of Nakijin were known as Nakijin Chôgi, Nakijin Chôki, and [[Nakijin Choei|Nakijin Chôei]]. The famous figure of [[Jana ueekata|Jana ''ueekata'']], who died in [[1611]] rather than submit to [[Satsuma han]] authority, serves as a good illustration of this mode as well; though he is by far the most famous figure to hold the title of "''ueekata'' of Jana," this is merely a title, not an individual name, and many would have shared that title over history. This particular figure might be more specifically identified by his Ryukyu-style name Jana Rizan 謝名利山, or by his Chinese-style name Tei Dô (C: ''Zhèng Dòng'') 鄭迵.
These place-based names changed with an individual's appointment or title, and so while we know historical figures by a particular name today, these names would have changed over the course of an individual's career. For example, the Naha scholar-official known on this Wiki as [[Bai Ien]] ([[1813]]-[[1881]]) was the son of [[Bai Iki|Takazato ''peechin'' Iki]] 高里親雲上唯紀 (or Takazato Iki), and so might be referred to as Takazato Ien, as he moved over the course of his career from Takazato ''chikudun'' to Takazato ''chikudun peechin'' to Takazato ''peechin''; however, in [[1858]], his fief was changed to the village of Fukuchi (or Fukuji) in Kyan ''[[magiri]]'', and as Ien's title changed from Takazato ''peechin'' to Fukuji (or Fukuchi) ''peechin'', so would his appellation change to Fukuji Ien. Following the [[Ryukyu shobun|abolition of the kingdom]] in the 1870s, his family, which had only held the title of Fukuji ''peechin'' for a single generation, and which traced its lineage through the Chinese-style name [[Bai family|Bai]] (貝, C: ''Bèi''), was formally entered into the Japanese ''[[koseki]]'' system of family registers as the Fukuji family.
These place-based names changed with an individual's appointment or title, and so while we know historical figures by a particular name today, these names would have changed over the course of an individual's career. For example, the Naha scholar-official known on this Wiki as [[Bai Ien]] ([[1813]]-[[1881]]) was the son of [[Bai Iki|Takazato ''peechin'' Iki]] 高里親雲上唯紀 (or Takazato Iki), and so might be referred to as Takazato Ien, as he moved over the course of his career from Takazato ''chikudun'' to Takazato ''chikudun peechin'' to Takazato ''peechin''; however, in [[1858]], his fief was changed to the village of Fukuchi (or Fukuji) in Kyan ''[[magiri]]'', and as Ien's title changed from Takazato ''peechin'' to Fukuji (or Fukuchi) ''peechin'', so would his appellation change to Fukuji Ien. Following the [[Ryukyu shobun|abolition of the kingdom]] in the 1870s, his family, which had only held the title of Fukuji ''peechin'' for a single generation, and which traced its lineage through the Chinese-style name [[Bai family|Bai]] (貝, C: ''Bèi''), was formally entered into the Japanese ''[[koseki]]'' system of family registers as the Fukuji family. Though these title names typically derived from a placename with which the individual was associated, in some cases, other names were used. Two examples of this are seen in the titles of the Princes of Tamagawa and Matsuyama, neither of which were the proper names of designated fiefs. These invented place-names are known as ''nashima'' 名島.
These names, based on title/post, would have changed. Note, however, that the core lineage name did not. If Nakijin Chôei were to become Takazato Chôei or Fukuchi Chôei, he would remain head of the Gushikawa family, and could still be referred to as Gushikawa Chôei.
Most of these names were originally written in ''hiragana'', and when they came to be written more regularly in ''kanji'' towards the end of the 16th century, the choice of ''kanji'' for a given name remained variable for a time. Thus, Iha (or Ifa) might have been written either 伊波 or 伊覇. This became more settled following the land surveys conducted by Satsuma han in [[1610]]; however, around that same time, beginning in [[1625]], many family names which seemed too similar to regular Japanese usage of name-characters were ordered changed, resulting in the distinctive names which remain in Okinawa today. To give just a few examples, names employing the characters ''mae'' 前, ''fuku'' 福, and ''tomi'' 富 were changed to ''mae'' 真栄, ''fuku'' 譜久, and ''tomi'' 豊見, as in the names Maehira 真栄平, Maezato 真栄里, Fukuyama 譜久山, and Tomiyama 豊見山. Names became further standardized following the [[1689]] implementation by the kingdom government of formal family registers known as ''[[kafu]]'' or ''keizu'', and the [[1721]] compilation of a list of ''magiri'' and village place-names in [[Xu Baoguang|Xu Baoguang's]] ''[[Chuzan denshin roku|Zhōngshān chuán xìn lù]]'', which became the standard renderings of the place-names from then on.
Names were still sometimes forced to change, however, when someone of higher rank held a similar name, or used similar characters in their name. For example, the Ryukyuan Crown Prince came to be known as the Prince of Nakagusuku (''Nakagusuku ôji'', 中城王子) beginning in the 18th century or so, much as the heir apparent to the British throne is regularly titled the Prince of Wales. Once this custom was put into place, the character ''Naka'' 中 came to be reserved exclusively for royal use, and so those with names incorporating that character had to change it to either ''Naka'' 仲, as in Nakada 仲田 or Nakasone 仲宗根, or to ''Naka'' 名嘉 as in the surname Nakachi 名嘉地. Another famous example is the case of [[Giwan Choho|Ginowan ''ueekata'' Chôhô]] who had to change his title name to Giwan in [[1875]], when one of the royal princes was named Prince of Ginowan.
As for the given-name portion of the Ryukyuan name, is clear from these examples, it was common among the scholar-aristocracy to maintain the same first character across the generations. Members of the Gushikawa family mentioned above included Nakijin Chôki 今帰仁朝季, Nakijin Chôgi 今帰仁朝義, Nakijin Chôei 今帰仁朝英, and [[Nakijin Chofu|Nakijin Chôfu]] 今帰仁朝敷, all sharing the character 朝 (''chô''). The forefathers and sons of [[Bai Ien]], including Bai Iki, [[Bai Izen]], and Bai Igen all shared the character 唯 (''i'').
As for the given-name portion of the Ryukyuan name, is clear from these examples, it was common among the scholar-aristocracy to maintain the same first character across the generations. Members of the Gushikawa family mentioned above included Nakijin Chôki 今帰仁朝季, Nakijin Chôgi 今帰仁朝義, Nakijin Chôei 今帰仁朝英, and [[Nakijin Chofu|Nakijin Chôfu]] 今帰仁朝敷, all sharing the character 朝 (''chô''). The forefathers and sons of [[Bai Ien]], including Bai Iki, [[Bai Izen]], and Bai Igen all shared the character 唯 (''i'').
Women's names among the scholar-aristocracy seem to have been repeated among a small group of options. Through eight generations of the Bai family of Naha, every daughter was named either Umitu 思戸, Majirû 真鶴, Magami 真亀, Makadû 真嘉戸, Makamadû 真蒲戸, Môshii 真牛, or Magushii 真呉勢, with only a very few exceptions (and even then, they had very similar names, such as Umitama 思玉 and Kamadû 蒲戸).
===Chinese-style Names===
The scholar-aristocracy of the Ryûkyû Kingdom was divided into four groups of lineages: those of the capital city of [[Shuri]], the port town of [[Naha]], the port town of [[Tomari]], and the Confucian center of [[Kumemura]]. Within each of these towns, there were only a handful of prominent lineages, as defined by Chinese-style surnames. A Chinese-style "given name" would be attached to the Chinese-style surname, different from one's Ryukyuan-style given name. For example, Nakijin Chôei, mentioned above, went by the Chinese-style name Shô Kokki 向邦輝, and should not be called Shô Chôei or Nakijin Kokki, mixing up the two.<ref>This Wiki may be committing that error for members of the [[Bai family]]. I am hoping to find fuller information on these families so as to rectify this problem; however, in the meantime, I lack sufficient information on the various names of these individuals to be able to represent them properly.</ref>
'''Royal family''': Members of the royal family bore one of two surnames. The surname Shô 尚 (C: ''Shàng'') was used largely only by those of particularly close relation to the royal house, while the surname Shô 向 (same pronunciation, different [[kanji|character]]) was used by those of collateral houses, outside of the line of succession. Some examples of the former include the kings [[Sho Shin|Shô Shin]] 尚真, [[Sho Nei|Shô Nei]] 尚寧, and [[Sho Tai|Shô Tai]] 尚泰, the Crown Princes [[Prince Sho Ko|Shô Kô]] 尚宏 and [[Sho Ten|Shô Ten]] 尚典, and royal prince [[Sho Shoi|Shô Shôi]] 尚韶威, third son of King Shô Shin. Despite being only a distant relation to the royal house, the prominent official [[Urasoe Choki|Urasoe Chôki]] seems to have also used the royal character 尚 in his Chinese-style name, Shô Genro 尚元魯. Some examples of the latter surname include Nakijin Chôei mentioned above, also known as Shô Kokki 向邦輝; the prominent royal advisor [[Sho Shoken|Shô Shôken]] 向象賢 also known as Haneji Chôshû; and [[Yakabi Choki|Yakabi Chôki]], also known as Shô Zenmo 向全謨.
'''Kumemura''': By the beginning of the 17th century, only six lineages remained prominent within the scholar-aristocracy of Kumemura. However, a great many of the most prominent figures in the kingdom's history over the 17th-19th centuries would come from these six lineages: the [[Sai family|Sai (蔡)]], [[Tei family (鄭)|Tei (鄭)]], [[Tei family (程)|Tei (程)]], [[Rin family|Rin (林)]], [[Kin family|Kin (金)]], and [[Ryo family|Ryô (梁)]] families.
'''Naha''': The scholar-aristocracy of Naha included families such as the Bai 貝, mentioned above.
==Modern Era==
Family registers (''[[koseki]]'') of the Japanese type were compiled for the people of [[Okinawa prefecture]] in concert with censuses taken in [[1880]]; at that time, many family names became fixed in new forms, as the multiple names and aristocratic titles of the past were abolished. In addition, as the [[Okinawan language]] became suppressed by the [[Meiji government]], Japanese-style readings of names became standard. To give some examples, Ufugushiku 大城, Nachijin 今帰仁, and Miyagusuku or Miyagushiku 宮城 became Ôshiro, Nakijin, and Miyagi or Miyashiro. This transformation was even more pronounced for many who moved from Okinawa to mainland Japan, or emigrated overseas. Some of these names changed to a more Japanized form while the placenames themselves remained somewhat unchanged - examples of this can be seen in the many names which end in "-hara" while the place they derive from remains "-baru," such as in the name Yonahara 与那原, while the town continues to be called Yonabaru.
In the Taishô era (1912-1925), there was considerable pressure from both Okinawan and Japanese leaders for Okinawan names to be assimilated into more standard Japanese forms, both in pronunciation and in the characters used to write them. Some names changed in the 1620s under the Shimazu were changed back to their previous forms; for example, certain families by the name of Tokuyama changed from 渡久山 back to 徳山, which they had used prior to the 1620s. Other names, such as Nakandari 仲村渠 and Nakankari 仲村柄, were changed to the related but far more "standard" (to Japanese conceptions) Nakamura 中村. The name Gushimiyagusuku 𤘩宮城, similarly, used a character (𤘩) not found at all in mainland Japanese use, and in the cases of many families, this was changed simply to Miyagi or Miyashiro 宮城.
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==References==
*''Naha shizoku no isshô'' 那覇士族の一生 (Naha: Naha City Museum of History, 2010).
*Shunzo Sakamaki, "On Early Ryukyuan Names," in Sakamaki (ed.), ''Ryukyuan Names'' (Honolulu: East-West Center, 1964), 11-19.
*Higa Shunchô, "On Okinawan Surnames," in Sakamaki (ed.), 31-38.
<references/>
==See Also==
*Shunzo Sakamaki (ed.), ''Ryukyuan Names'' (Honolulu: East-West Center, 1964), contains lengthy lists of Okinawan names by characters and several alternative pronunciations, including indications of from when or where a given pronunciation derives.
[[Category:Ryukyu]]
[[Category:Resource Articles]]