Last modified: 2024-01-05 by 
zachary harden
Keywords: okinawa | japan | ryu-kyu | disc (red) | letter: o | neyagawa | urasoe |
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![[Okinawa]](../images/j/jp-47.gif)
image by Zachary Harden, 8 September 2009
Until early in the 19th century, the ships sailing between China and Okinawa
(Ryukyu/LooChu Islands) was a gold or dark yellow triangle with a red sphere in
the center, and bordered with red small triangles. The shape : Staff = 1, Base =
2. Seen in Chinese movies and in Okinawan prints seen both there and in Miyako
Island.
The governments of the Ryukyu's paid tribute to China, and even tried to
placate "Satsuma" from Kyushu in Japan. But they were truly
independent, and sailed from the coasts of India and Indonesia and to Korea
also. These were not the flags flown by Chinese ships in the period. Although there
is a similarity, the Ryukyu Islands enjoyed a favourable relation with all
Chinese governments, and much of their culture was borrowed from them. Japanese
influence did not begin to take hold until the kidnapping of the last Okinawan
king by the Japanese in 1871. I will point out, however, that as an ensign, it
would have been civil. The Islands maintained independence for over 7 centuries
without a standing naval or military force.
Bruce Ward, 13 June 2000 to 16 June 2000
Post-War Okinawa flag 1945-1967
![[Japanese ensign, 1945]](../images/j/jp~ww47-2.gif)
image by Nozomi Kariyasu, 03 September 2014
The prefecture of Okinawa was established on 16 May 1972 when Okinawa and the
Ryukyu islands, which had been administered by the United States since 1945,
were restored to Japan. Immediately after the Second World War the islands'
ships wore a flag of yellow over blue over yellow with the blue of double width
and a triangle cut of the fly. On 1 July 1967 the Japanese flag was restored,
but with a white triangular pennant above it with the name "Ryukyus"
in Japanese and English in red lettering. When the islands were once more part
of Japan, the present flag, which is like that of Japan, i.e. white with a red
sun disc in the centre, was established. In this case, however, the Mon is
composed of another disc in white superimposed on the red one, and a third red
one superimposed on that. The discs are not concentric, but the two latter are
'stepped up' towards the top. [bar]
Mark Sensen, 3 May 1996
The yellow-blue-yellow flag was certainly the signal flag "delta",
here in a usage similar to that of post World War II Germany (Charlie
flag) and Japan itself.
Antonio Martins, 11 June 2000
The signal flag delta was used June 1950-July 1st 1967. According to Flags of
Paradise the flag was in the proportions 76:91. The flag chart also shows US
Administration High Commissioner's yellow bordered blue flag with yellow eagle
and letters of the high commissioner ot the Ryukyu Islands in light blue disc
with 26:33 proportion which was used from 1959-1976.
Nozomi Kariyasu, 12 June 2000
The swallow tail signal D flag was in use during
1945-1967 for U.S. Territory Ryukyu Islands (now Okinawa Prefecture in Japan) civil vessels.
Nozomi Kariyasu, 03 September 2014
There International Code of Signals uses
swallow-tailed flags A and B, and then swallow-tailed C was for Germany,
swallow-tailed D was for the Ryu-Kyus, and swallow-tailed E was for Japan. Is
that the whole of it, or was there e.g. a swallow-tailed F for Austrian ships on
the Danube?
Or the other way around, as that would seem like the logical starting point:
Were there rectangular A and B flags?
Peter Hans van den Muijzenberg, 03 October 2014
Post-War Ryukyu Flag 1967-1972
![[Okinawa flag, 1967-1972]](../images/j/jp-47-1967.gif)
image by
Chrystian Kretowicz, 8 June 2008
That "D" (delta) ensign created a lot of problems, being hardly recognizable and leading to
frequent stoppages of ships carrying it.
In 1967, the United States transferred the administration of the smaller Ryukyu
Islands to Japan (but not Okinawa) and changed the Ryukyus' ensign to the Japanese flag
surmounted by the white pennant with the name "Ruykyus" written on it in Japanese and
English.
Chrystian Kretowicz, 8 June 2008
