RITUAL LANGUAGES >>> Nusuku-Onn 

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Nusuku-Onn is a sacred site (Onn) once revered by the people of Nosoko Village, a settlement that disappeared during the Meiji era. Nosoko was established in 1732, following the relocation of around 400 people from Kuroshima and approximately 25 from Aragusuku Island—many of whom were brought against their will. Kuroshima people had long cultivated rice fields in the area, arriving by boat to work the land.

 

By 1771, the village had grown to an estimated 599 inhabitants. But waves of endemic malaria, plague, and famine slowly decimated the population. By 1903, only 24 residents remained (13 men and 11 women). In 1904, the last villagers relocated to Ibaruma, and Nosoko ceased to exist as a living settlement. Still, Nusuku-Onn remains—a place quietly honored by those who trace their roots back to the vanished village.

 

After the war, in 1954, settlers from Tarama Island arrived in the Nosoko district as part of the Ryukyu Government’s Planned Immigration program. They re-enshrined the spirit of Ntabarutuyumya, a guardian deity from Tarama, within the sanctuary of Nusuku-Onn. That transplanted worship, too, has since faded—leaving behind layered memories of displacement, devotion, and the quiet endurance of place.