5 Historic sites in Okinawa worth your time
Japan Gems
5 Historic sites in Okinawa, with what to see and how to get there.
Okinawa has 5 historic sites on Japan Gems. Below are the 5 we can tell you the most about — each one written up in English from Japanese sources, with what to see and how to get there. See all historic sites in Okinawa.
01
Nakabaru Site
OKINAWA · HISTORIC SITE 仲原遺跡
Explore Okinawa's first reconstructed Jomon settlement, offering a glimpse into ancient island life.
What it is
- A late Jomon period settlement site.
- Designated a National Historic Site in 1986.
- Okinawa's first reconstructed settlement site.
What to see
- Twenty-three reconstructed pit dwellings.
- Dwellings range from 2-3 meters to 5-6 meters in diameter.
- Excavated Nakabaru-style pottery.
- Stone tools, including stone axes.
- Human, fish, and animal bones.
- Shell products like cone shell beads.
02
Yamashita First Cave Site Park
OKINAWA · HISTORIC SITE 山下町第一洞穴遺跡
Explore an ancient cave where early humans lived and left tools and bones.
What it is
- A Paleolithic site in Naha City, Okinawa Prefecture.
- Discovered in 1962, it is now a park.
- Designated an Okinawa Prefectural Historic Site in 1969.
What to see
- The cave entrance is 1.2 meters wide, 5.5 meters deep, 3.2 meters high.
- See where human bones and Paleolithic tools were unearthed.
- A charcoal layer is considered a 'living surface' leveled by humans.
03
Nakadomari
OKINAWA · HISTORIC SITE 仲泊遺跡
Nakadomari Site is Okinawa's largest prehistoric site, offering a glimpse into ancient cave dwellings and shell mounds.
What it is
- Okinawan prehistoric site in Onna Village.
- Used around 1500 BC.
- Largest preserved site of its kind in Okinawa.
- Designated a national historic site on April 7, 1975.
What to see
- Cave dwellings and shell mounds.
- Hiyagonbira stone pavement.
- Pavement is 1.5 to 3 meters wide.
- Existing path is approximately 174 meters long.
04
Ireibaru Site
OKINAWA · HISTORIC SITE 伊礼原遺跡
Explore an archaeological site in Okinawa with 7000 years of human history.
What it is
- A complex archaeological site in Chatan Town.
- Designated a National Historic Site in 2010.
- Discovered in 1996, showing 7000 years of habitation.
What to see
- Remains from the Jomon period.
- Traces of tsunamis in soil layers.
- Excavated wooden baskets and stone axe handles.
- Oldest wooden artifacts found in Okinawa.
05
Gushikawa Island
OKINAWA · HISTORIC SITE 具志川島
Gushikawa Island is an uninhabited island with shell mounds and a coral community.
What it is
- An uninhabited island.
- Became uninhabited in 1970.
- Shell mounds discovered in the 1960s.
What to see
- Pine forests cover the island.
- A spring on the northeast coast.
- Large coral community around the island.
- Excavated human bones, pottery, and ornaments.