Nakahara Zenchu
- Born: 1890/7/15
- Died: 1964/11/25
- Japanese: 仲原善忠 (Nakahara Zenchuu)
Nakahara Zenchû was an Okinawan scholar, known particularly for his work on the Omoro sôshi, a written collection of songs and poems which constitute an oral history of Okinawa and the Kingdom of Ryûkyû.
Nakahara was born in Nakazato magiri, on Kumejima. He attended the Okinawa Normal School, and Hiroshima Normal High School, before going on to teach at various schools in Tokyo, Shizuoka prefecture, and elsewhere[1].
He first began research into Okinawan history around the age of 50. After the end of World War II, he researched the native Ryukyuan religion, and produced a paper which drew great praise from Yanagita Kunio, widely regarded today as the father of Japanese ethnology (minzokugaku). He would go on to produce a number more papers on topics relating to Okinawan history, omoro, and ethnology, as well as a middle school textbook entitled "History of Ryukyu" (琉球の歴史, ryûkyû no rekishi)[1].
Selected Works
- "On the seji faith" (霊力の信仰について, Seji no shinkô ni tsuite)
- "Omoro: A New Interpretation" (おもろ新釈, Omoro shinshaku)
- History of Ryukyu (琉球の歴史, ryûkyû no rekishi)
- Schoolbook Omoro Sôshi (校本おもろさうし, kôhon omoro sôshi)
- General Index and Encyclopedia of the Omoro Sôshi (おもろさうし辞典・総索引, Omoro sôshi jiten / sôsakuin)
References
- "Nakahara Zenchū." Okinawa konpakuto jiten (沖縄コンパクト事典, "Okinawa Compact Encyclopedia"). Ryukyu Shimpo (琉球新報). 1 March 2003. Accessed 12 October 2009.
