Changes

*''Japanese'': 旧慣温存 ''(kyuukan onzon)''

*''Japanese'': 旧慣温存 ''(kyuukan onzon)''

''Kyûkan onzon'', or the "preserving of old customs," was a policy philosophy employed in [[Okinawa prefecture]] from [[1879]] to [[1903]].

''Kyûkan onzon'', or the "preserving of old customs," was a policy philosophy employed in [[Okinawa prefecture]] from [[1879]] to [[1903]]. Following the [[ryukyu shobun|abolition]] of the [[Ryukyu Kingdom|Ryûkyû Kingdom]] and establishment of the prefecture in 1879, it was believed that elements of the kingdom's administrative structure, and certain other traditions or customs, should be kept in place for a time, in order to guard against widespread dissatisfaction within Ryukyu, and to avoid angering [[Qing Dynasty|China]].

 

Following the [[ryukyu shobun|abolition]] of the [[Ryukyu Kingdom|Ryûkyû Kingdom]] and establishment of the prefecture in 1879, it was believed that elements of the kingdom's administrative structure, and certain other traditions or customs, should be kept in place for a time, in order to guard against widespread dissatisfaction within Ryukyu, and to avoid angering [[Qing Dynasty|China]].

The "preserving of old customs" policies covered, largely, four spheres: land tenure, taxes, local administration, and education. The ''[[yukatchu]]'' (low-ranking aristocrats) and other local officials were allowed to keep their positions, and some their government stipends, and the ''[[magiri]]'' and ''[[jiwari]]'' systems of land division was kept in place for a time. Under this system, agricultural production was assessed by village, and within each village, land was occasionally redistributed among the villagers, albeit unequally. The taxation structure and local laws, similarly, were left in place initially, and only later abandoned and reformed. Stipends were paid out of the prefecture's budget, and not out of any additional funds from Tokyo; no Ryukyuan aristocrats were incorporated into the ''[[kazoku]]'' or ''[[shizoku]]'' nobilities under which former ''daimyô'', other samurai, and the king of Ryûkyû had been able to retain much of their prestige.<ref>Gregory Smits, "Jahana Noboru: Okinawan Activist and Scholar," in [[Anne Walthall]] (ed.) ''The Human Tradition in Modern Japan'', Scholarly Resources, Inc. (2002), 102.</ref>

The "preserving of old customs" policies covered, largely, four spheres: land tenure, taxes, local administration, and education. The ''[[yukatchu]]'' (low-ranking aristocrats) and other local officials were allowed to keep their positions, and some their government stipends, and the ''[[magiri]]'' and ''[[jiwari]]'' systems of land division was kept in place for a time. Under this system, agricultural production was assessed by village, and within each village, land was occasionally redistributed among the villagers, albeit unequally. The taxation structure and local laws, similarly, were left in place initially, and only later abandoned and reformed. Stipends were paid out of the prefecture's budget, and not out of any additional funds from Tokyo; no Ryukyuan aristocrats were incorporated into the ''[[kazoku]]'' or ''[[shizoku]]'' nobilities under which former ''daimyô'', other samurai, and the king of Ryûkyû had been able to retain much of their prestige.<ref>Gregory Smits, "Jahana Noboru: Okinawan Activist and Scholar," in [[Anne Walthall]] (ed.) ''The Human Tradition in Modern Japan'', Scholarly Resources, Inc. (2002), 102.</ref>

Education in Ryukyuan languages and customs was permitted to continue through the end of the 19th century, alongside the [[education in the Meiji period|public school]] system that was being put into place nationwide.

Education in Ryukyuan languages and customs was permitted to continue through the end of the 19th century, alongside the [[education in the Meiji period|public school]] system that was being put into place nationwide.

The ''kyûkan onzon'' policy was ended, and widespread reforms and changes in the prefecture's administration imposed in the early years of the 20th century. Land reform was undertaken in [[1903]], and ''yukatchu'' stipends ended in [[1909]].

Following the Japanese victory in the [[Sino-Japanese War]] in [[1895]], Tokyo was less concerned about offending or angering China, and so the ''kyûkan onzon'' policy began to gradually be rolled back.<ref>Tessa Morris-Suzuki, "The Frontiers of Japanese Identity," in Stein Tønnesson and Hans Antlöv (eds.), ''Asian Forms of the Nation'', Psychology Press (1996), 59.</ref> Land reform was undertaken in [[1903]], and ''yukatchu'' stipends ended in [[1909]]. Various other administrative and policy changes simultaneously began to be imposed in the early years of the 20th century.  

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