1.
Okinawan language
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Central Okinawan distinguishes itself from the speech of Northern Okinawa, which is classified independently as the Kunigami language. Both languages have been designated as endangered by the UNESCO Atlas of the Worlds Languages in Danger since its launch in February 2009. Within Japan, Okinawan is often not seen as a language itself but is referred to as the Okinawan dialect or more specifically the Central. Okinawan speakers are undergoing language shift as they switch to Japanese, Okinawan is still spoken by many older people. It is also alive in popular music, tourist shows, and in theaters featuring a local drama called uchinaa shibai. Pre-Ryukyu Kingdom Okinawan is a Japonic language, derived from Old Japanese, the split between Old Japanese and the Ryukyuan languages has been estimated to have occurred as early as the first century AD to as late as the twelfth century AD. Chinese and Japanese characters were first introduced by a Japanese missionary in 1265, Ryukyu Kingdom Era Pre-Satsuma Hiragana was much more popular than kanji, poems were commonly written solely in hiragana or with little kanji. Post-Satsuma to Annexation After Ryukyu became a vassal of Satsuma Domain, kanji gained more prominence in poetry, Japanese Annexation to End of World War II When Ryukyu was annexed by Japan in 1879, the majority of people on Okinawa Island spoke Okinawan. Within ten years, the Japanese government began a policy of Japanization. The education system was the heart of Japanization, where Okinawan children were taught Japanese and punished for speaking their native language, by 1945, many Okinawans spoke Japanese, and many were bilingual. During the Battle of Okinawa, some Okinawans were killed by Japanese soldiers for speaking Okinawan, American Occupation Under American administration, there was an attempt to revive and standardize Okinawan, however this proved difficult and was shelved in favor of Japanese. There have been attempts to revive Okinawan by notable people such as Byron Fija and Seijin Noborikawa, Okinawan is sometimes grouped with Kunigami as the Okinawan languages, however some linguists dont use this grouping or claim that Kunigami is a dialect of Okinawan. Okinawan is also grouped with Amami as the Northern Ryukyuan languages, dialect of the Japanese language Since the creation of Okinawa Prefecture, Okinawan was labeled a dialect of Japanese as part of a policy of assimilation. Later, Japanese linguists, such as Tōjō Misao, who studied the Ryukyuan languages argued that they are indeed dialects and this is due to the misconception that Japan is a homogeneous state, and classifying the Ryukyuan languages as such would discredit this belief. The policy of assimilation, coupled with increased interaction between Japan and Okinawa through media and economics, has led to the development of Okinawan Japanese, dialect of the Ryukyuan language Okinawan linguist Seizen Nakasone states that the Ryukyuan languages are in fact groupings of similar dialects. As each community has its own dialect, there is no one language. Nakasone attributes this diversity to the isolation caused by immobility, citing the story of his mother who wanted to visit the town of Nago and its own distinct language Outside Japan, Okinawan is considered a separate language from Japanese. This was first proposed by Basil Hall Chamberlain, who compared the relationship between Okinawan and Japanese to that of the Romance languages, UNESCO has marked it as an endangered language
2.
Ryukyuan people
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The Ryukyuan, Lewchewan, Uchinaachu are the indigenous peoples of the Ryukyu Islands between the islands of Kyushu and Taiwan. Politically, they live in either Okinawa Prefecture or Kagoshima Prefecture and their languages make up the Ryukyuan language family, considered to be one of the two branches of the Japonic language family, the other one being Japanese and its dialects. Ryukyuans are not a minority group in Japan as the Japanese authorities consider them just a subgroup of the Japanese people, akin to the Yamato. Although unrecognized, Ryukyuans constitute the largest ethnolinguistic minority group in Japan, another 300,000 are dispersed outside Japan, mostly in Hawaii. The Ryukyuans have a culture with some matriarchal elements, native religion. China renounced its claims to the islands in 1895, during this period, Okinawan ethnic identity, tradition, culture and language were suppressed by the Meiji government, which sought to assimilate the Ryukyuan people as Japanese. After World War II, the Ryūkyū Islands were occupied by the United States between 1945–1950 and 1950–1972, during this time, there were many violations of human rights. Since the end of World War II, there exists strong resentment against the Japanese government and U. S. military facilities stationed in Okinawa and their usual ethnic name derives from the Chinese term for the islands Liuqiu, which in Japanese language are pronounced as Ryukyu. The indigenous term for the archipelago is Uchinaa, people Uchinaachu and these terms are rarely used, and are politicized markers of a distinct culture. Within the Japanese population the Ryukyu make a separate and one of the two genome-wide clusters along the main-island Honshu, the Jomon ancestry is estimated at approximately 28% or 50-60%, depending to various studies. Thus, the Okinawans appear to be the Japanese who are genetically closest to the Ainu from the Ainu viewpoint, however, the analysis contradict the idea of direct genetic continuity and affinity between the Jomon i. e. The genome-wide differentiation was revealed, especially between the Okinawa and Miyako, the Amami Islanders are also slightly more similar to the mainland population than the Okinawa Islanders. The female mtDNA and male Y chromosome markers are used to human migrations. The research on the contemporary Okinawan male Y chromosome showed, in 2006,55. 6% of haplogroup D-P37.1,22. 2% O-P31,15. 6% O-M122,4. 4% C-M8 and it is considered that the Y haplogroups expanded in a demic diffusion. The haplogroup O began its expansion circa 4, 000-3,810 years ago, and thus the haplogroups D1b and C1 belong to the Jomons male lineage, haplogroup M12 is considered as mitochondrial counterpart of Y chromosome D lineage. This rare haplogroup was detected only in mainland Japanese, Koreans, the Ryukyu Islands were inhabited from at least 32, 000-18,000 years ago, but their fate and relation with contemporary Ryukyuan people is uncertain. During the Jōmon period i. e. Kaizuka or so-called shell midden period of the Northern Ryukyus, in the latter part of Jōmon period, archaeological sites moved near the seashore, suggesting the engagement of people in fishery. It is considered that from the half of Jōmon period
3.
Ryukyuan religion
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The Ryukyuan religion is the indigenous belief system of the Ryukyu Islands. Over time, Ryukyuan religious practice has influenced by Chinese religions, Buddhism. This differs greatly from Japanese Shinto where men are seen as the embodiment of purity, Ryukyuan religion, with its focus on demonstrating respect of and reverence toward ancestors, is naturally based in the family home. The oldest female relative acts as a celebrant, officiating rituals concerning ancestors, household gods. Daily incense offerings are made and prayer reports are delivered aloud, the oldest female relative is also responsible for cleaning and upkeep of the buchidan, hinukan, and furugan. The Ultimate Ancestors, those from all life springs, are Utin, Jiichi. They originate and exist, along with kami, or the gods of the world, during the Usachi-yu and they are held in highest regard as the originators of all things and are worshiped in the communitys utaki. These ancestors are worshipped as collective spirits called futuchi, whose worship is focused usually in Buddhist temples, other, more immediate ancestors are those who lived between the present day and the twenty-fifth generation into the past, a time period called Ima-ga-yuu, the Present Age. They are those enshrined in the family homes buchidan, and it is these ancestors who visit on special occasions in the home, the buchidan is the primary focus of ancestor worship. It is a space, usually a small closet, dedicated to the family altar, incense and alcohol are offered to ancestors at the butsudan. In the Ryukyus the buchidan or butsudan does not house a statue of Buddha, the butsudan is placed in a room called the ichibanza. The practice of placing ancestral tablets in the butsudan is believed to derive from the influence of Confucianism, the butsudan is passed from generation to generation, first son to first son and only those who have inherited the parental house and carried on the main line possess a butsudan. The butsudan serves as the gathering place on special holidays. Normally the butsudan receives offerings of incense, tea, water, during festivals the butsudan is lavishly adorned with offerings of pineapple, mango, apples, tangerines, exotic tropical fruits, sugar cane, and rice cakes. During these times, families may occasionally offer alcohol in the form of sake or awamori, the hinukan is a hearth god, represented by three small stones and usually located in the kitchen. As his name suggests, he is essentially a fire god, a community hinukan, by extension, is the guardian of sacred communal fire, his worship is officiated by the community priestess. The hinukan, while he inhabits the family home, doesnt call it his own home and he may be compared with Kamui Fuchi, hearth goddess of the Ainu Religion. The fuuru nu kami, or god of the toilet, is the protector of the area of waste
4.
Magic (paranormal)
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Magic or sorcery is the use of rituals, symbols, actions, gestures, and language with the aim of exploiting supernatural forces. The term magic has a variety of meanings, and there is no agreed upon definition of what it is or how it can be used. Religious scholars have defined magic in many different ways, one approach, associated with the anthropologists Edward Tylor and James G. Frazer, has magic and science be opposites. Many scholars of religion have rejected the utility of the term magic, the term magic comes from the Old Persian magu, a word that applied to a form of religious functionary about which little is known. This meaning of the term was adopted by Latin in the first century BCE. The concept was incorporated into Christian theology during the first century CE. This concept was pervasive throughout the Middle Ages, although in the modern period Italian humanists reinterpreted the term in a positive sense to establish the idea of natural magic. Both negative and positive understandings of the term were retained in Western culture over the following centuries, throughout Western history, there have been examples of individuals claiming to be practitioners of magic and referring to themselves as magicians. This trend has proliferated in the period, with a growing number of magicians appearing within the esoteric milieu. Scholars of religion have failed to agree on a definition of magic is. The subject has one of intense dispute, with some scholars criticizing the validity of the term in the first place. Even among those throughout history who have described themselves as magicians, there has been some debate among scholars as to whether to use the term magic at all. The scholar of religion Jonathan Z. Smith for example argued that it had no utility as a term that scholars should use. Religious historian Wouter Hanegraaff agreed, stating that the magic is an important object of historical research. Since the 1990s its usage among scholars has declined, within Western culture, magic has been linked to the idea of the Other. Using the term magic when discussing non-Western cultures or pre-modern forms of Western society raises problems, alternately, this term implies that all categories of magic are ethnocentric and that such Western preconceptions are an unavoidable component of scholarly research. Magic is one of the most heavily theorized concepts in the study of religion, the intellectualist approach to defining magic is associated with two prominent British anthropologists, Edward Tylor and James G. Frazer. This was an approach that viewed magic as being the theoretical opposite of science, in his 1871 book Primitive Culture, Tylor characterized magic as beliefs based on the error of mistaking ideal analogy for real analogy
5.
Gargoyle
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Architects often used multiple gargoyles on buildings to divide the flow of rainwater off the roof to minimize the potential damage from a rainstorm. A trough is cut in the back of the gargoyle and rainwater typically exits through the open mouth, Gargoyles are usually an elongated fantastic animal because the length of the gargoyle determines how far water is thrown from the wall. When Gothic flying buttresses were used, aqueducts were cut into the buttress to divert water over the aisle walls. It is also connected to the French verb gargariser, which shares a Latin root with the verb gargle and is likely imitative in origin, the Italian word for gargoyle is doccione or gronda sporgente, an architecturally precise phrase which means protruding gutter. When not constructed as a waterspout and only serving an ornamental or artistic function, there are also regional variations, such as the hunky punk. Just as with bosses and chimeras, gargoyles are said to frighten off and protect those that it guards, such as a church, however, in common usage, the word gargoyle is generally used to describe any monstrous sculpture, whether intended as a waterspout or not. La Gargouille is said to have been the typical dragon with wings, a long neck. There are multiple versions of the story, either that St. Romanus subdued the creature with a crucifix, or he captured the creature with the help of the only volunteer, a condemned man. In each, the monster is led back to Rouen and burned, the head was then mounted on the walls of the newly built church to scare off evil spirits, and used for protection. In commemoration of St. Romain, the Archbishops of Rouen were granted the right to set a free on the day that the reliquary of the saint was carried in procession. The term gargoyle is most often applied to work, but throughout all ages some means of water diversion. In Ancient Egyptian architecture, gargoyles showed little variation, typically in the form of a lions head, similar lion-mouthed water spouts were also seen on Greek temples, carved or modelled in the marble or terracotta cymatium of the cornice. An excellent example of this are the 39 remaining lion-headed water spouts on the Temple of Zeus, there were originally 102 gargoyles or spouts, but due to the heavy weight, many have snapped off and had to be replaced. Many medieval cathedrals included gargoyles and chimeras, the most famous examples are those of Notre Dame de Paris. Although most have grotesque features, the term gargoyle has come to all types of images. Some gargoyles were depicted as monks, or combinations of animals and people. Unusual animal mixtures, or chimeras, did not act as rainspouts and are properly called grotesques. They serve more as ornamentation, but are now synonymous with gargoyles, both ornamented and unornamented water spouts projecting from roofs at parapet level were a common device used to shed rainwater from buildings until the early eighteenth century
6.
Komainu
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The first type, born during the Edo period, is called sandō komainu, the second and much older type jinnai komainu. They can sometimes be found also at Buddhist temples, nobility residences or even private homes, meant to ward off evil spirits, modern komainu statues are almost identical, but one has the mouth open, the other closed. This is a common characteristic in religious statue pairs at both temples and shrines. This pattern is however Buddhist in origin and has a symbolic meaning, together they form the sound Aum, a syllable sacred in several religions like Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism. There are however exceptions to the rule in which both komainu have their mouth either open or closed, the two forms are called collectively a-un and individually as a-gyō and un-gyō. Komainu strongly resemble Chinese guardian lions and in fact originate from Tang dynasty China, during its transportation along the Silkroad, however, the symbol changed, acquiring a distinctive look. The first lion statue in India appears around the 3rd century BC on top of a column erected by King Ashoka, the tradition later arrived in China where it developed into the guardian lion that was later exported to Korea, Japan, and Okinawa. During the Nara period, as in the rest of Asia, used only indoors until the 14th century, they were made mainly of wood. During the Heian period, for example, wooden or metal pairs were employed as weights and door-stops, during the early Heian period, the tradition changed and the two statues started to be different and be called differently. One had its mouth open and was called shishi because, as before, the other had its mouth closed, looked rather like a dog, was called komainu, or Goguryeo dog, and sometimes had a single horn on its head. Gradually the animals returned to be identical, but for their mouths, ubiquitous as they are now at shrines, Komainu have been used outdoors only since the 14th century. In Asia, the lion was popularly believed to have the power to repel evil, in Japan, too it ended up being installed at the entrance of shrines and temples next to the lion-dog. As a protection against exposure to Japans rainy weather, the komainu started being carved in stone. The shīsā, the animals that in Okinawa guard the gates or the roofs of houses, are close relatives of the shishi. Their name itself is centuries old regional variant of shishi-san, starting from the Edo period other animals have been used instead of lions or dogs, among others wild boars, tigers, dragons and foxes. The most frequent variant of the theme is the fox. There are about 30 thousand Inari shrines in Japan, and the entrance of each is guarded by a pair of fox statues, often one, and sometimes both, has a sūtra roll, a key or a jewel in its mouth. The statues do not stand for the malice the animals are proverbial for, sometimes the guardians are painted, and in that case they are always white
7.
Chinese guardian lions
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Chinese guardian lions or Imperial guardian lions, traditionally known in Chinese simply as Shi, and often called Foo Dogs in the West, are a common representation of the lion in imperial China. The concept which originated in China, subsequently spread to parts of Asia including, Japan, Korea, Tibet, Thailand, Burma, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Cambodia. They are also used in artistic contexts, for example on door-knockers. The lions are depicted in pairs. When used as statuary the pair would consist of a male leaning his paw upon an embroidered ball, guardian lions are referred to in various ways depending on language and context. In Chinese they are called simply shi meaning lion — the word shi itself is thought to be derived from the Persian word šer. Lions were first presented to the Han court by emissaries from Central Asia and Persia, the term Fo or Fu may be transliterations to the words 佛 or 福, which means Buddha or prosperity in Chinese, respectively. However, Chinese reference to the lion are seldom prefixed with 佛 or 福. Reference to guardian lions as dogs in Western cultures may be due to the Japanese reference to them as Korean dogs due to their transmission from China through Korea into Japan. It may also be due to the misidentification of the guardian lion figures as representing certain Chinese dog breeds such as the Chow Chow or Shih Tzu, the lions are traditionally carved from decorative stone, such as marble and granite or cast in bronze or iron. Because of the high cost of materials and the labor required to produce them. Indeed, a symbol of a familys wealth or social status was the placement of guardian lions in front of the family home. However, in modern times less expensive lions, mass-produced in concrete and resin, have become available, the lions are always presented in pairs, a manifestation of yin and yang, the female representing yin and the male yang. The male lion has its right front paw on a type of cloth ball simply called an embroidered ball, the female is essentially identical, but has a cub under the closer paw to the male, representing the cycle of life. Symbolically, the female fu lion protects those dwelling inside, while the guards the structure. Sometimes the female has her mouth closed, and the male open and this symbolizes the enunciation of the sacred word om. However, Japanese adaptations state that the male is inhaling, representing life, while the female exhales, other styles have both lions with a single large pearl in each of their partially opened mouths. The pearl is carved so that it can roll about in the lions mouth, according to feng shui, correct placement of the lions is important to ensure their beneficial effect
8.
China
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China, officially the Peoples Republic of China, is a unitary sovereign state in East Asia and the worlds most populous country, with a population of over 1.381 billion. The state is governed by the Communist Party of China and its capital is Beijing, the countrys major urban areas include Shanghai, Guangzhou, Beijing, Chongqing, Shenzhen, Tianjin and Hong Kong. China is a power and a major regional power within Asia. Chinas landscape is vast and diverse, ranging from forest steppes, the Himalaya, Karakoram, Pamir and Tian Shan mountain ranges separate China from much of South and Central Asia. The Yangtze and Yellow Rivers, the third and sixth longest in the world, respectively, Chinas coastline along the Pacific Ocean is 14,500 kilometers long and is bounded by the Bohai, Yellow, East China and South China seas. China emerged as one of the worlds earliest civilizations in the basin of the Yellow River in the North China Plain. For millennia, Chinas political system was based on hereditary monarchies known as dynasties, in 1912, the Republic of China replaced the last dynasty and ruled the Chinese mainland until 1949, when it was defeated by the communist Peoples Liberation Army in the Chinese Civil War. The Communist Party established the Peoples Republic of China in Beijing on 1 October 1949, both the ROC and PRC continue to claim to be the legitimate government of all China, though the latter has more recognition in the world and controls more territory. China had the largest economy in the world for much of the last two years, during which it has seen cycles of prosperity and decline. Since the introduction of reforms in 1978, China has become one of the worlds fastest-growing major economies. As of 2016, it is the worlds second-largest economy by nominal GDP, China is also the worlds largest exporter and second-largest importer of goods. China is a nuclear weapons state and has the worlds largest standing army. The PRC is a member of the United Nations, as it replaced the ROC as a permanent member of the U. N. Security Council in 1971. China is also a member of numerous formal and informal multilateral organizations, including the WTO, APEC, BRICS, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, the BCIM, the English name China is first attested in Richard Edens 1555 translation of the 1516 journal of the Portuguese explorer Duarte Barbosa. The demonym, that is, the name for the people, Portuguese China is thought to derive from Persian Chīn, and perhaps ultimately from Sanskrit Cīna. Cīna was first used in early Hindu scripture, including the Mahābhārata, there are, however, other suggestions for the derivation of China. The official name of the state is the Peoples Republic of China. The shorter form is China Zhōngguó, from zhōng and guó and it was then applied to the area around Luoyi during the Eastern Zhou and then to Chinas Central Plain before being used as an occasional synonym for the state under the Qing
9.
Edo period
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The Edo period or Tokugawa period is the period between 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when Japanese society was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the countrys 300 regional daimyō. The period was characterized by growth, strict social order, isolationist foreign policies. The shogunate was established in Edo on March 24,1603. The period came to an end with the Meiji Restoration on May 3,1868, instrumental in the rise of the new bakufu was Tokugawa Ieyasu, the main beneficiary of the achievements of Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Already powerful, Ieyasu profited by his transfer to the rich Kantō area, after Hideyoshis death, Ieyasu moved quickly to seize control from the Toyotomi family. Ieyasus victory over the western daimyōs at the Battle of Sekigahara gave him control of all Japan. He rapidly abolished numerous enemy daimyō houses, reduced others, such as that of the Toyotomi, Ieyasu still failed to achieve complete control of the western daimyōs, but his assumption of the title of shogun helped consolidate the alliance system. After further strengthening his base, Ieyasu installed his son Hidetada as shogun. The Toyotomi were still a significant threat, and Ieyasu devoted the next decade to their eradication, in 1615, the Tokugawa army destroyed the Toyotomi stronghold at Osaka. The Tokugawa period brought 250 years of stability to Japan, the political system evolved into what historians call bakuhan, a combination of the terms bakufu and han to describe the government and society of the period. In the bakuhan, the shogun had national authority and the daimyōs had regional authority and this represented a new unity in the feudal structure, which featured an increasingly large bureaucracy to administer the mixture of centralized and decentralized authorities. The feudal hierarchy was completed by the classes of daimyō. Closest to the Tokugawa house were the shinpan, or related houses and they were twenty-three daimyōs on the borders of Tokugawa lands, all directly related to Ieyasu. The shinpan held mostly honorary titles and advisory posts in the bakufu, the second class of the hierarchy were the fudai, or house daimyōs, rewarded with lands close to the Tokugawa holdings for their faithful service. By the 18th century,145 fudai controlled such smaller han, members of the fudai class staffed most of the major bakufu offices. Ninety-seven han formed the group, the tozama, former opponents or new allies. The tozama were located mostly on the peripheries of the archipelago, because the tozama were least trusted of the daimyō, they were the most cautiously managed and generously treated, although they were excluded from central government positions. The Tokugawa not only consolidated their control over a reunified Japan, they also had unprecedented power over the emperor, the court, all daimyōs and the religious orders
10.
Shuri Castle
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Shuri Castle is a Ryukyuan gusuku in Shuri, Okinawa. Between 1429 and 1879, it was the palace of the Ryukyu Kingdom, in 1945, during the Battle of Okinawa, it was almost completely destroyed, but was later re-purposed as a university campus. Beginning in 1992, the citadel and walls were largerly reconstructed on the original site based on historical records, photographs. The date of construction is uncertain, but it was clearly in use as a castle during the Sanzan period and it is thought that it was probably built during the Gusuku period, like many other castles of Okinawa. When King Shō Hashi unified the three principalities of Okinawa and established the Ryukyu Kingdom, he used Shuri Castle as a residence, at the same time, Shuri flourished as the capital and continued to do so during the Second Shō Dynasty. For 450 years from 1429, it was the royal court and it was the focal point of foreign trade, as well as the political, economic, and cultural heart of the Ryukyu Islands. According to records, Shuri Castle was burned several times. During the reign of Shō Nei, samurai forces from the Japanese feudal domain of Satsuma seized Shuri Castle on 6 May 1609. The American Commodore Perry, when he came to Okinawa in the 1850s, later, the Kingdom was annexed by Japan in 1879, and the king was removed and the castle was used as a barracks by the Imperial Japanese Army. The Japanese garrison withdrew in 1896, but not before having created a series of tunnels, in 1908, Shuri City bought the castle from the Japanese government, however they did not have funding to renovate it. In 1923, thanks to Japanese architect Ito Chuta, the Seiden survived demolition after being re-designated a prefectural Shinto shrine known as Okinawa Shrine, in 1925, it became a national treasure. Despite its decline, historian George H, beginning on May 25,1945, and as the final part of the Okinawa campaign, the American battleship USS Mississippi shelled it for three days. Due to this, the 32nd Japanese Army withdrew to the south, after the war, the University of the Ryukyus was established in 1950 on the castle site, where it remained until 1975. In 1958, Shureimon was reconstructed and, starting from 1992, the 20th anniversary of reversion, at present, the entire area around the castle has been established as Shuri Castle Park. In 2000, along with other gusuku and related sites, it was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, unlike Japanese castles, Shuri Castle was greatly influenced by Chinese architecture, with functional and decorative elements similar to that seen primarily in the Forbidden City. However, given that Nanden and Bandokoro were both used for reception and entertainment of the Satsuma clan, a Japanese style design was used here only. Similarly, Okushoin-en is the only surviving garden in a gusuku in the Ryukyu Islands, the current renovation is designed with a focus on the castles role as a cultural or administrative/political center, rather than one for military purposes. The buildings that have been restored as original wooden buildings are only in the main citadel, Seiden was rebuilt using wood from Taiwan and elsewhere after rituals blessing the removal of large trees from mountains in the Yanbaru region of Okinawa took place
11.
Naha
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Naha is the capital city of Okinawa Prefecture, the most southern prefecture of Japan. As of December 2012, the city has an population of 321,467. The total area is 38.99 km², Naha is a city on the East China Sea coast of the southern part of Okinawa Island, the largest of Okinawa Prefecture. The modern city was founded on May 20,1921. Before that Naha had been for one of the most important. Naha is the political, economic and education center of Okinawa Prefecture, in the medieval and early modern periods, it was the commercial center of the Ryūkyū Kingdom. Kokusai-dōri boasts a 1.6 kilometre long stretch of stores, restaurants, Kokusai-dōri ends at the main bus terminal in Okinawa and is served by several stations along the Okinawa Monorail, the only train system in the prefecture. Just outside the area is the neighborhood of Tsuboya, which was once a major center of ceramic production. Northeast of Kokusai-dōri is a new commercial district called Shintoshin. The area, formerly United States military housing, was released to Okinawa in 1987, frequented by young people, the area boasts large stores such as Toys R Us and Best Denki, a co-op market, many restaurants and a movie theater. The Okinawa Prefectural Museum, containing sections devoted to the art, history, according to the Irosetsuden, the name of Naha comes from its original name, Naba, which was the name of a large, mushroom-shaped stone in the city. Gradually, the stone away and became buried, and the names pronunciation. In Naha, some relics of the Stone Age were found. From a Jōmon period kaizuka, ancient Chinese coins were found, pottery found by archaeologists indicates that the area was an active site of trade with the Japanese archipelago and Korean peninsula at least as early as the 11th century. Though it is not known just when the area first became organized as a port city. Medieval Naha was on an island called Ukishima, connected to the mainland of Okinawa Island by a narrow causeway called Chōkōtei which led on to Shuri. The main port area for trade, Naha proper, was divided into the East and West districts and was on the southwestern portion of Ukishima. A large open-air marketplace was active in front of the government trading center
12.
Chinese dragon
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Chinese dragons are legendary creatures in Chinese mythology and Chinese folklore. The dragons have many forms such as turtles, fish, and imaginary. Chinese dragons traditionally symbolize potent and auspicious powers, particularly control over water, rainfall, typhoons, the dragon is also a symbol of power, strength, and good luck for people who are worthy of it. With this, the Emperor of China usually used the dragon as a symbol of his imperial power and strength. In Chinese daily language, excellent and outstanding people are compared to a dragon, while people with no achievements are compared with other, disesteemed creatures. A number of Chinese proverbs and idioms feature references to a dragon, historically, the dragon was associated with the Emperor of China and used a symbol to represent imperial power. The founder of Han dynasty Liu Bang claimed that he was conceived after his mother dreamt of a dragon, during the Tang dynasty, Emperors wore robes with dragon motif as an imperial symbol, and high officials might also be presented with dragon robes. In the Yuan dynasty, the two-horned five-clawed dragon was designated for use by the Son of Heaven or Emperor only, similarly during the Ming and Qin dynasty, the five-clawed dragon was strictly reserved for use by the Emperor only. The dragon in the Qing dynasty appeared on the first Chinese national flag, the dragon is sometimes used in the West as a national emblem of China. However, this usage within either the Peoples Republic of China or the Republic of China on Taiwan as the symbol of nation is not common, instead, it is generally used as the symbol of culture. In Hong Kong, the dragon was on the Coat of arms of Hong Kong during colonial time, now it is part of the design of Brand Hong Kong, a symbol used to promote Hong Kong as an international brand name. The dragon is the symbol of Chinese emperor in many dynasties, during the Qing dynasty, the Azure Dragon was featured on the first Chinese national flag, until Qing collapsed. It featured shortly again on the Twelve Symbols national emblem, which was used during the Republic of China, the ancient Chinese self-identified as the descendants of the dragon because the Chinese dragon is an imagined reptile that represents evolution from the ancestors and qi energy. Some of the earliest Dragon artifacts are the pig dragon carvings from the Hongshan culture, the coiled dragon or snake form played an important role in early Chinese culture. The character for dragon in the earliest Chinese writing has a coiled form. Ancient Chinese referred to unearthed dinosaur bones as dragon bones and documented them as such, for example, Chang Qu in 300 BC documents the discovery of dragon bones in Sichuan. The modern Chinese word for dinosaur is konglong, and villagers in central China have long unearthed fossilized dragon bones for use in traditional medicines, the binomial name for a variety of dinosaurs discovered in China, Mei long, in Chinese means sleeping dragon. From its origins as totems or the depiction of natural creatures
13.
Feng shui
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Feng Shui is a Chinese philosophical system of harmonizing everyone with the surrounding environment. It is closely linked to Taoism, the term feng shui literally translates as wind-water in English. The feng shui practice discusses architecture in terms of invisible forces that bind the universe, earth. There is no scientific evidence that feng shuis mystical claims are real. Historically, feng shui was widely used to orient buildings—often spiritually significant structures such as tombs, depending on the particular style of feng shui being used, an auspicious site could be determined by reference to local features such as bodies of water, stars, or a compass. Qi rides the wind and scatters, but is retained when encountering water, Feng shui was suppressed in mainland China during the state-imposed Cultural Revolution of the 1960s but has since then regained popularity. The Skeptic Encyclopedia of Pseudoscience briefly summarizes the history and practice of feng shui and it states that the principles of feng shui related to living harmoniously with nature are quite rational, but does not otherwise lend credibility to the nonscientific claims. Its also a matter to dismiss the mystical energies said to be at its core. As of 2013 the Yangshao and Hongshan cultures provide the earliest known evidence for the use of feng shui, until the invention of the magnetic compass, feng shui apparently relied on astronomy to find correlations between humans and the universe. In 4000 BC, the doors of Banpo dwellings aligned with the asterism Yingshi just after the winter solstice—this sited the homes for solar gain. During the Zhou era, Yingshi was known as Ding and used to indicate the time to build a capital city. The late Yangshao site at Dadiwan includes a building at the center. The building faces south and borders a large plaza and it stands on a north-south axis with another building that apparently housed communal activities. Regional communities may have used the complex, a grave at Puyang that contains mosaics— actually a Chinese star map of the Dragon and Tiger asterisms and Beidou — is oriented along a north-south axis. Cosmography that bears a resemblance to modern feng shui devices and formulas appears on a piece of jade unearthed at Hanshan. Archaeologist Li Xueqin links the design to the astrolabe, zhinan zhen. Beginning with palatial structures at Erlitou, all cities of China followed rules of feng shui for their design. During the Zhou era, the Kaogong ji codified these rules, the carpenters manual Lu ban jing codified rules for builders
14.
Okinawa Prefecture
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The larger are mostly high islands and the smaller ones are mostly coral islands. The largest of the islands is Okinawa, the climate of the islands ranges from humid subtropical climate in the north to tropical rainforest climate in the south. Precipitation is very high, and is affected by the rainy season, the islands beyond the Tokara Strait are characterized by their coral reefs. The Amami, Okinawa, Miyako, and Yaeyama Islands have a native population collectively called the Ryukyuan people, the varied Ryukyuan languages are traditionally spoken on these islands, and the major islands have their own distinct languages. In modern times, the Japanese language is the language of the islands. The northern islands are called the Satsunan Islands, while the southern part of the chain are called the Ryukyu Islands in Japanese. Following are the grouping and names used by the Hydrographic and Oceanographic Department of the Japan Coast Guard, the islands are listed from north to south where possible. Nansei Islands Satsunan Islands Ōsumi Islands with, Tanegashima, Yaku, Kuchinoerabu, Mageshima in the North-Eastern Group and they agreed on February 15,2010, to use Amami-guntō for the Amami Islands, prior to that, Amami-shotō had also been used. The English and Japanese uses of the term Ryukyu differ, in English, the term Ryukyu may apply to the entire chain of islands, while in Japanese Ryukyu usually refers only to the islands that were previously part of the Ryūkyū Kingdom after 1624. Nansei-shotō is the name for the whole island chain in Japanese. Japan has used the name on nautical charts since 1907, based on the Japanese charts, the international chart series uses Nansei Shoto. Nansei literally means southwest, the direction of the chain from mainland Japan. Some humanities scholars prefer the uncommon term Ryūkyū-ko for the island chain. In geology, however, the Ryukyu Arc includes subsurface structures such as the Okinawa Trough, the name of Ryūkyū is strongly associated with the Ryūkyū Kingdom, a kingdom that originated from the Okinawa Islands and subjected the Sakishima and Amami Islands. The name is considered outdated in Japanese although some entities of Okinawa still bear the name. In Japanese, the Ryukyu Islands cover only the Okinawa, Miyako, the northern half of the island chain is referred to as the Satsunan Islands in Japanese, as opposed to Northern Ryukyu Islands in English. Humanities scholars generally agree that the Amami, Okinawa, Miyako, there is, however, no good name for the group. The native population do not have their own name, since they do not recognize themselves as a group this size, Ryukyu is the principal candidate because it roughly corresponds to the maximum extent of the Ryūkyū Kingdom
15.
Miyako-jima
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Miyako-jima is the largest and the most populous island among the Miyako Islands of Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. Miyako-jima is administered as part of the City of Miyakojima, which not only Miyako-jima. Miyako-jima lies approximately 300 kilometres southwest of Okinawa Island and 400 kilometres east of Taipei, with an area of 158.70 square kilometres, Miyako is the fourth-largest island in Okinawa Prefecture. The island is triangular in shape and is composed of Ryukyuan limestone, Miyako-jima is subject to drought and is frequently struck by typhoons. Miyako-jima is well known for its beauty, particularly the Eastern Cape, other notable locations include Maehama beach, the German Cultural Center, Painagama Beach, and the sights on Irabu-jima. There are three islands close by which are connected by bridges to Miyako-jima, Irabujima, Ikemajima, the Miyako language, one of several Ryukyuan languages, is spoken here. Miyako is home to a festival called Paantu, which occurs in the ninth month of the old calendar. Three men dressed in grass, leaves and mud go walk around town smearing the mud on houses, cars and they carry sticks in one hand and an expressionless mask in the other. Legend holds that those who have been muddied by the Pantu will have a year of protection, owners of new homes will also invite Pantu to give a muddy blessing to their homes. Miyako has its own version of soba, Otori is a custom of drinking Awamori, a distilled beverage native to Okinawa Japan. It is performed by people sitting, one offers a toast, drinks from a small glass, and then offers some to each person at the table making a round, and usually going to the right. When the toaster makes his way back to his spot the person who passed the Otori before pours him another glass and he then announces TSUNAGIMASU and drinks his second glass. After a brief interval, it is then the turn of the person to pass the Otori. Miyako-jima is home to sugarcane cultivation, and produces brown sugar, Miyako jōfu is a locally produced hand-woven textile made from ramie fiber. It was formerly known as Satsuma jōfu, the textile traces its production to the Tensho period, 1573-92. This is part of ongoing efforts to improve the defenses of the Nansei Islands, consideration is also currently being given to deploying GSDF units equipped with anti-aircraft and anti-ship missiles to the island. Miyakojima City Tropical Plant Garden Japan Airlines maintains an office on Miyako Island. It is only for domestic flights
16.
Kinmen
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It is one of two counties under the streamlined Fujian Province of the Republic of China. Due to the issue of the political status of Taiwan. Kinmen was given its name in 1387 when the Hongwu Emperor of Chinas Ming dynasty appointed an officer to administer the island. The name is pronounced Jīnmén in the official Standard Chinese but some of the names used in English for the islands derive from other Chinese varieties. Quemoy is the name for the island in English and in many European languages and it likely began as a Portuguese transcription of the Zhangzhou Hokkien pronunciation of the name, Kim-mûi. This form of the name was used almost exclusively in English until the late 20th century and is still used widely in current English-language contexts that involve historical coverage. For example, current works that deal with the First and Second Taiwan Strait Crises when the islands received prominent worldwide news coverage as Quemoy still use this form, in addition, the former National Kinmen Institute of Technology was renamed National Quemoy University in 2010. Kinmen scholar Wei Jian-feng advocates the use of Quemoy to better connect the island to international society or achieve more recognition in the world, Kinmen is a more recent transcription based on the general rules of the postal romanization system. With some exceptions, this form is used in most current English-language contexts on Kinmen, entities such as the county government, the islands airport, and the national park use this spelling. Chin-men is the Wade–Giles romanization form of the name and appears on some maps using that as their standard. Jinmen is the Hanyu Pinyin form of the name used especially in sources from the Peoples Republic of China. People began settling down in Kinmen during the Tang Dynasty, changing the name from Wuzhou to Kinmen. During the Ming Dynasty, more came to settle down in Kinmen. Koxinga used Kinmen as a base to liberate Kinmen and Penghu from the Dutch and he cut down trees to build his navy, resulting in massive deforestation that made Kinmen vulnerable to soil erosion. The Prince of Lu, a member of the Southern Ming Dynasty, in 1651, he fled to Kinmen, which the Qing dynasty took in 1663. Although Taiwan and Penghu had been ceded to Japan in 1895 via the Treaty of Shimonoseki, after the establishment of the Republic of China in 1912, Kinmen became part of Fukien Province. Japan did however occupy Kinmen during the Second Sino-Japanese War from 1937 to 1945, after the establishment of the Peoples Republic of China in October 1949, it was later claimed by both the ROC and PRC. The Peoples Liberation Army extensively shelled the island during the First, in 1954, the United States considered responding by using nuclear weapons against the PRC
17.
Vending machine
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The first modern vending machines were developed in England in the early 19th century and dispensed postcards. The earliest known reference to a machine is in the work of Hero of Alexandria. His machine accepted a coin and then dispensed holy water, when the coin was deposited, it fell upon a pan attached to a lever. The lever opened a valve which let some water flow out, the pan continued to tilt with the weight of the coin until it fell off, at which point a counterweight snapped the lever up and turned off the valve. Coin-operated machines that dispensed tobacco were being operated as early as 1615 in the taverns of England, the machines were portable and made of brass. An English bookseller, Richard Carlile, devised a newspaper dispensing machine for the dissemination of banned works in 1822, simeon Denham was awarded British Patent no.706 for his stamp dispensing machine in 1867, the first fully automatic vending machine. The first modern coin-operated vending machines were introduced in London, England in the early 1880s, the machine was invented by Percival Everitt in 1883 and soon became a widespread feature at railway stations and post offices, dispensing envelopes, postcards, and notepaper. The Sweetmeat Automatic Delivery Company was founded in 1887 in England as the first company to deal primarily with the installation, the first vending machine in the U. S. was built in 1888 by the Thomas Adams Gum Company, selling gum on New York City train platforms. This idea spawned a new type of mechanical device known as the trade stimulators. Some products need to be prepared to become available, for example, tickets are printed or magnetized on the spot, and coffee is freshly concocted. One of the most common form of vending machine, the snack machine, the main example of a vending machine giving access to all merchandise after paying for one item is a newspaper vending machine found mainly in the U. S. and Canada. It contains a pile of identical newspapers, after a sale the door automatically returns to a locked position. The success of such machines is predicated on the assumption that the customer will be honest, and need only one copy. The profit margins in the candy business can be quite high – gumballs, for instance, can be purchased in bulk for 2 cents a piece. Gumballs and candy have a long shelf life, enabling vending machine operators to manage many machines without too much time or cost involved. In addition, the machines are inexpensive compared to soft drink or snack machines. Many operators donate a percentage of the profits to charity so that locations will allow them to place the machines for free, in the past, cigarettes were commonly sold in the United States through these machines, but this is increasingly rare due to concerns about underage buyers. Sometimes a pass has to be inserted in the machine to prove ones age before a purchase can be made, in the United Kingdom, legislation banning them outright came into effect on October 1,2011
18.
Carranca
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A carranca is a type of figurehead attached to river craft which is attributed with power to protect the boatmen from the rivers evil spirits. They were once found on the lower Rio São Francisco in Brazils Northeast Region. The carranca is most commonly a figure of a human or an animal and they were used to identify traders operating on the São Francisco and, as with ancient figureheads, serve the superstitious as guardians on the river. Today most authentic carrancas and early folk art revivals are only found in museums with some being subject of a Rio exhibition in 2002, four historic examples are featured on the front of the home of Roberto Burle Marx, now the National Monument, Sítio Roberto Burle Marx. These range from key chain figures up to large ones a meter or more in height. Many, if not most of those are in the style rather than the classic boat figurehead styles of the past. The difference may be seen by comparing the photos of classic styles compared to the tourist versions pictured on this page. Classic figurehead versions, dating from the early 19th or even late 18th centuries, were painted, frequently chalk white with hair, gaping red mouths. The most common tourist versions follow similar schemes, a more modern, decorative unpainted version is often in natural wood and even polished. A very few of these are museum quality folk art displayed in art museums of Brazil. A comic book history about the carrancas
19.
Chinese art
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Chinese art is visual art that, whether ancient or modern, originated in or is practiced in China or by Chinese artists. The Chinese art in the Republic of China and that of overseas Chinese can also be considered part of Chinese art where it is based in or draws on Chinese heritage, early stone age art dates back to 10,000 BC, mostly consisting of simple pottery and sculptures. After this early period Chinese art, like Chinese history, is classified by the succession of ruling dynasties of Chinese emperors. After contacts with Western art became increasingly important from the 19th century onwards, traditional Chinese painting involves essentially the same techniques as Chinese calligraphy and is done with a brush dipped in black or colored ink, oils are not used. As with calligraphy, the most popular materials on which paintings are made of paper, the finished work can be mounted on scrolls, such as hanging scrolls or handscrolls. Traditional painting can also be done on album sheets, walls, lacquerware, folding screens, the two main techniques in Chinese painting are, Gong-bi, meaning meticulous, uses highly detailed brushstrokes that delimits details very precisely. It is often coloured and usually depicts figural or narrative subjects. It is often practised by artists working for the court or in independent workshops. Bird-and-flower paintings were often in this style and this style is also referred to as xie yi or freehand style. Artists from the Han to the Tang dynasties mainly painted the human figure, much of what is known of early Chinese figure painting comes from burial sites, where paintings were preserved on silk banners, lacquered objects, and tomb walls. Many early tomb paintings were meant to protect the dead or help their souls get to paradise, others illustrated the teachings of the Chinese philosopher Confucius, or showed scenes of daily life. Most Chinese portraits showed a formal full-length frontal view, and were used in the family in ancestor veneration, Imperial portraits were more flexible, but were generally not seen outside the court, and portraiture formed no part of Imperial propaganda, as in other cultures. Many critics consider landscape to be the highest form of Chinese painting, the time from the Five Dynasties period to the Northern Song period is known as the Great age of Chinese landscape. In the south, Dong Yuan, Juran, and other artists painted the rolling hills and rivers of their native countryside in peaceful scenes done with softer and these two kinds of scenes and techniques became the classical styles of Chinese landscape painting. Chinese ritual bronzes from the Shang and Western Zhou Dynasties come from a period of over a thousand years from c,1500, and have exerted a continuing influence over Chinese art. They are cast with complex patterned and zoomorphic decoration, but avoid the human figure, smaller figures in pottery or wood were placed in tombs for many centuries afterwards, reaching a peak of quality in the Tang Dynasty. Buddhism is also the context of all large portrait sculpture, in total contrast to other areas in medieval China even painted images of the emperor were regarded as private. Imperial tombs have spectacular avenues of approach lined with real and mythological animals on a scale matching Egypt, and smaller versions decorate temples and palaces
20.
Japanese sculpture
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The sculpture of Japan started from the clay figure. Japanese sculpture received the influence of the Silk Road culture in the 5th century, the influence of the Western world was received since the Meiji era. The sculptures were made at local shops, used for sculpting and painting, most sculptures were found at areas in front of houses and along walls of important buildings. Most of the Japanese sculptures derived from the worship in Buddhism or animistic rites of Shinto deity. In particular, sculpture among all the arts came to be most firmly centered on Buddhism, materials traditionally used were metal—especially bronze—and, more commonly, wood, often lacquered, gilded, or brightly painted. Interest in primitive arts is seeing a wide ascendancy and spontaneity, no scholar has been able to determine absolutely just when human life moved over into the Japanese archipelago. Some may have used in fertility rites, and some in exorcism or other forms of primitive ritual. Later these plain cylindrical haniwa came to be decorated and to various forms, including the shapes of houses. They have been arranged in a circle around the mound. However, the haniwa figures no doubt came to take on some sort of religious symbolism later, Japanese emergence from her period of native primitive arts was instigated mainly by the introduction of Buddhism from the mainland Asian continent about the middle of the 6th century. Together with the new religion, skilled artists and craftsman from China came to Japan to build its temples and sculptic idols, Nara and its vicinity contain the vast majority of the nations treasures of the early period of Buddhist art, known in art history as the Asuka period. The sculpture of this shows, as do most all subsequent sculpture. Noted Asuka sculptor Tori Busshi followed the style of North Wei sculpture, some of the most important Buddhist sculptures belong to the ensuing Hakuho art period when the sculpture came to show predominantly Tang influence. The aloofness of the earlier Asuka sculpture is softened into a native form. Emperor Shōmu ordered the colossal gilt bronze Virocana Buddha in Tōdai-ji temple, although the statue has been destroyed twice and repaired, the minor original part has survived. Among many original works, the Asura in Kōfukuji temple is attractive, the four guardians in Kaidanin, a division of Tōdai-ji temple are masterpiece, which are clay statues. A national official factory Zō Tōdai-ji shi produced many Buddhism sculptures by division of the work for Tōdai-ji, gilt bronze, dry lacquer, clay, terracotta, repousee, stone, and silver sculptures were made in the factory. Generally the sculptors are secular and got official status and salary, some private ateliers offered Buddhist icons to people, and some monks made it themselves
21.
King Caesar
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King Caesar is a kaiju who first appeared in Tohos 1974 film Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla. King Caesars name and appearance are based on Shisa, which are artistically embellished stone lion statues common in Okinawa and they are an Okinawan variation on the Chinese guardian lion, which in turn originates from Buddhist tradition in India, where lions are native. Shisa only loosely resemble actual lions on account of being based on descriptions by people whod never seen one in person. In the 1970s, general East Asian folklore were relatively unknown to Western audiences, toho has since trademarked it, making King Caesar the characters official English name. King Caesars character concept was inspired by a traditional Okinawan folk tale in which a Shisa protects a village from a rampaging dragon and this myth is referenced in the characters introductory film, Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla, in which the titular Mechagodzilla plays the role of the evil dragon. It is portrayed as a loyal and powerful protector of mankind, character profiles in supporting media describe the monster as standing 50 meters -100 meters tall and weighing 30,000 metric tons -50,000 metric tons. King Caesar is shown to be swift and athletic and it can also draw an enemys energy weapons into its right eye and reflect them back from its left eye with ten times the force, and empower itself with solar energy. Along with fellow 1970s Showa era monster Gigan, King Caesar is the monster of director Ryuhei Kitamura. WatchMojo. com listed King Ceaser as #6 on their Top 10 Godzilla Villains list
22.
Digimon
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Digimon, short for Digital Monsters, is a Japanese media franchise encompassing virtual pet toys, anime, manga, video games, films and a trading card game. The franchise focuses on Digimon creatures, which are living in a Digital World. In many incarnations, Digimon are raised by humans called Digidestined or Tamers, the franchise was first created in 1997 as a series of virtual pets, akin to—and influenced in style by—the contemporary Tamagotchi or nano Giga Pet toys. The creatures were first designed to look cute and iconic even on the small screens. The franchise gained momentum with its first anime incarnation, Digimon Adventure, several seasons of the anime and films based on them have aired, and the video game series has expanded into genres such as role-playing, racing, fighting, and MMORPGs. Other media forms have also been released, Digimon was conceived as a male counterpart to Tamagotchi. The small areas of the screens meant that character designers had to create monsters whose forms would be easily recognizable, as such, many of the early Digimon—including Tyrannomon, the first one ever created—were based on dinosaurs. Many further designs were created by Kenji Watanabe, who was brought in to help with the X-Antibody creatures, Watanabe was influenced by American comics, which were beginning to gain popularity in Japan, and as such began to make his characters look stronger and cool. The character creation process, however, has for most of the franchises history been collaborative and reliant on conversation, contrary to popular belief, Digimon had the -mon suffix before Pokémon did. While Digimon was the first to use the suffix, Pokémon has still managed to surpass Digimon in ratings, Digimon hatch from types of eggs which are called Digi-Eggs. In the English iterations of the franchise there is type of Digi-Egg that can be used to digivolve, or transform. This second type of Digi-Egg is called a Digimental in Japanese and they age via a process called Digivolution which changes their appearance and increases their powers. Most, however, are capable of intelligence and human speech and they are able to digivolve by the use of Digivices that their human partners have. Any Digimon that receives a fatal wound will dissolve into infinitesimal bits of data, the data then recomposes itself as a Digi-Egg, which will hatch when rubbed gently, and the Digimon goes through its life cycle again. Digimon who are reincarnated in this way will sometimes retain some or all their memories of their previous life, however, if a Digimons data is completely destroyed, they will die. Digimon started out as digital pets called Digital Monsters, similar in style and it was planned by WiZ and released by Bandai on June 26,1997. The toy began as the concept of a Tamagotchi mainly for boys. The V-Pet is similar to its predecessors, with the exceptions of being more difficult, every owner would start with a Baby Digimon, train it, evolve it, take care of it, and then have battles with other Digimon owners to see who was stronger
23.
Tutelary deity
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A tutelary is a deity or spirit who is a guardian, patron or protector of a particular place, geographic feature, person, lineage, nation, culture or occupation. One type of deity is the genius, the personal deity or daimon of an individual from birth to death. Another form of personal tutelary spirit is the spirit of European folklore. Socrates spoke of hearing the voice of his spirit or daimonion. This sign I have had ever since I was a child, the Greeks also thought deities guarded specific places, for instance, Athena was the patron goddess of the city of Athens. Tutelary deities who guard and preserve a place or a person are fundamental to ancient Roman religion, the tutelary deity of a man was his Genius, or that of a woman her Juno. In the Imperial era, the Genius of the Emperor was a focus of Imperial cult, an emperor might also adopt a major deity as his personal patron or tutelary, as Augustus did Apollo. Each town or city had one or more deities, whose protection was considered particularly vital in time of war. Rome itself was protected by a goddess whose name was to be kept secret on pain of death. The Capitoline Triad of Juno, Jupiter, and Minerva were also tutelaries of Rome, the Italic towns had their own tutelary deities. Juno often had this function, as at the Latin town of Lanuvium and the Etruscan city of Veii, the tutelary deity of Praeneste was Fortuna, whose oracle was renowned. The depiction of some such as the Magna Mater as tower-crowned represents their capacity to preserve the city. Tutelary deities were also attached to sites of a smaller scale, such as storerooms, crossroads. The poet Martial lists the tutelary deities who watch over various aspects of his farm, the Lares Compitales were the tutelary gods of a neighborhood, each of which had a compitum devoted to these. During the Republic, the cult of local or neighborhood tutelaries sometimes became rallying points for political and social unrest, chinese folk religion, both past and present, includes a myriad of tutelary deities. Exceptional individuals may become deified after death, guan Yu is a well-known tutelary. In Korean shamanism, jangseung and sotdae were placed at the edge of villages to frighten off demons and they were also worshiped as deities. In Shinto, the spirits, or kami, which life to human bodies come from nature
