I hear Okinawa has some cool castles. What sort of castles are they, and what were they used for?

What features distinguish Okinawan and Japanese?

Wow! What a great topic!

1. What was the process of "colonization" by Japan? Do you think "colonization" is a useful term here? What about something like "Japanification"?

2. One trend I think I have picked up in East Asian studies is a desire to find "Mediterraneans", that is, discrete marginal sea zones with understandable patterns of integration and exchange. I often see the East China Sea being brought up as a sort of "East Asian Mediterranean", so what role did the Okinawans play in this?

3. I feel like I have heard the Ryukyu as tributaries to China. How did this work with the process of their conquest by Japan? This might be part of my first question.

Hi everyone! I'm going to be a little foggy starting up, as it's 6am here, and I'm almost NEVER up this early, haha.

Anyways, I'm looking forward to answering some questions. :)

How often is Okinawan still spoken amongst those who are younger? What's the situation like in the islands? I assume that most grow up with some level of understanding from their elders, but is Okinawan the language of preference in the case of newer native speakers (either in Naha, or more outlying areas)?

Also, does there exist an Okinawan 'accent' or more understandable mix of sorts that Okinawan people will speak in when talking to those from the main islands? Kind of like how the intonation and words that one will use at the end of sentences change according to the dialect. I know that in some places where dialects are fading away, some younger speakers may speak a 'watered-down' version of their dialect. If so, what are some characteristics, and how does differ from Tokyo or Kyushu dialects of Japanese?

What were U.S./Okinawan relations between occupation and revision? Did revision change U.S./Okinawan relations on the island greatly?

What kinds of sources are available for Okinawan history? Was there a strong written tradition? how much of it remains? Also, is there any online resource to get a sense of Okinawan material culture?

I sometimes see Okinawan referred to as a dialect and sometimes as a language of its own. Which one is it, and why is it referred to as both? Or is the Okinawan dialect of Japanese distinct from the independent Okinawan language?

Do you know of any (in English- I can't read Japanese) good papers on the historical phonology and morphosyntax of the Ryukyuan languages?

When I was in Tokyo in May, they had an episode of the Kenmin Show on TV where they talk about different prefectures in Japan and they had a two part episode on Okinawa. The sheer difference in dialect was a pretty big shock! Linguistically, it sounds completely different from Kanto Japanese. My question is: if my family and I were to go on vacation in Okinawa, would we be able to understand Okinawan? Is it a mix of Japanese and Okinawan dialect?

Anyway, it was so interesting that my parents decided to go check out some Okinawan restaurants in our ward (We have a pretty large Okinawan community) and they had a really good time. Thanks for doing this AMA!

When I was younger I practiced Okinawan Karate (Goju-Ryu), but for some reason we were never taught anything about its history. Can you talk at all about Okinawan martial arts? Were they imported by the Japanese, or did they develop in parallel?

My mother is from Okinawa, and the story of that side of the family is a little vague and mysterious. The story goes that my grandfather (an American soldier) was stationed in Okinawa during the 50s. He met my grandmother and they got married (I won't bother speculating on whether it was because they loved each other or because he got her pregnant). Apparently her family was extremely traditional, and, according to my mother, they feared actual violence from my grandmother's family - enough to make them move back to the states.

Now, mind you, my mother was only in Okinawa for the first year of her life. They returned to the states at that point, and her mother died six years later. So my mother's knowledge of the whole event is questionable at best. She didn't know her mother long enough to ever get the full story from her, and she said her father "never talked about it". He has since passed away, too, so I can't ask him. I was wondering if you could shed some light on how plausible her story is. I think maybe when she was young she exaggerated the whole "we fled Japan in fear" element, then just stuck to the story later in life 'cause she doesn't know what else to believe ... but it makes more sense that his time there was up and he simply moved back to America. Were there really traditional families in Okinawa at the time who would turn murderous if their daughter married an American and had his baby?