Miyakojima, Okinawa

the City partially located on the island of Miyako jima

Miyakojima (宮古島市) is a city in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan, located on the Miyako Islands. As of 2012, it had a population of 54,908. The current mayor is Kazuyuki Zakimi, who took office on January 25, 2021.

The modern city of Miyakojima was established on October 1, 2005, from the merger of the old city of Hirara, the towns of Gusukube, Irabu and Shimoji, and the village of Ueno (all from Miyako District). As a result of the merger, Miyako District only has one remaining village.

As of December 2012 the city has an estimated population of 54,908 and a population density of 268.45 per km2. The total area is 204.54 km2. The city had 24,728 households. The entire prefecture of Okinawa elects two representatives (one each three years) to the House of Councillors (upper house). The current representatives are:

Yōichi Iha (member of the Okinawa Whirlwind Party). First elected in 2016, term ends in 2022. Tetsumi Takara (member of the Okinawa Whirlwind Party). First elected in 2019, term ends in 2025.

The city forms most of the "Miyakojima constituency" (along with Tarama island) and elects two members to the Okinawa Prefectural Assembly. Representatives are elected for a term of 4 years.

There are a total of 3 high schools in the city, including one technical high school and one business high school. There are 13 middle schools, including one that has been recently closed, and one special school for the intellectually disabled. There are two schools that are both elementary and middle schools. There are 15 elementary schools.

There are two hospitals: one public, and one private.

There is one museum, the Miyakojima City Museum.

There are five community centers, one municipal theater, a City Hall, three "Remote Island Promotion Centers" (one each for Ikemajima, Irabujima, and Kurimajima), and three "Rural Environment Improvement Centers".

There are two gymnasiums, three baseball fields, three other athletic fields, and two "physical education centers".

There are two airports: Miyako Airport and Shimojishima Airport.

Part of Japanese National Highway 390 runs across the island. The highway consists of two sections: a section that transverses Ishigaki Island, and the section that transverses Miyako Island. The two sections used to be connected by boat, but boat service was discontinued and now the two sections of the highway are disconnected. Numerous prefectural roads traverse the islands.

SInce 2018, FM Okinawa can be received in the city. Miyako TV (Cable TV): Opened as Miyakojima Cable TV in 1978. There are FM relay stations of Ryukyu Broadcasting (RBCi Radio) and Radio Okinawa (ROK). Until 1992, commercial TV could not be broadcast live in the city because there was no relay station (broadcast had to be recorded and then broadcast with a delay). After the relay station opened, Miyako TV began broadcasting commercial TV. Miyako Television has the Nippon Television Network and the transmission equipment of TV Asahi.

Mail collection and delivery is handled by the Miyako Post Office. There are several other smaller post offices that people use to drop off mail.

The entire city has the same area code: 0980 (since 2002).

The climate of Miyakojima is on the boundary between a tropical rainforest climate (Köppen climate classification Af) and a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa) with very warm summers and mild winters. Precipitation is abundant throughout the year; August is the wettest month, and January and July are the driest.

In 2008, the city announced the first "Declaration of Eco Island Miyakojima" with a goal to encourage industrial development and environmental conservation, notably of ground water sources and coral reefs. This initiative was also focused on creating a self sustaining energy supply primarily through low cost solar energy. As of 2009, the city has been certified as an Eco Model City. A second version of the Declaration of Eco Island Miyakojima was introduced under the slogan "Toward the Future 1,000 Years From Now" in 2018, with an action plan released in 2019. This updated version maintains similar goals with some added initiatives such as the eradication of foreign animal species, namely peacocks, and the reduction of household waste discharge. Under this second declaration, a greater emphasis has been placed on the promotion of these environmental initiatives through actions such as the establishment of an Eco Island Miyakojima brand, the creation of a contests, and the integration of environmental sustainability education into local public schools.

In 1873, the German ship Robertson was shipwrecked on Miyako Island. The crew were saved and cared for by the local islanders. As a gift for the islanders' kindness, and as an excuse for German warships to enter Ryūkyūan waters, Kaiser Wilhelm I erected a monument on the island in 1876, known locally as the German Emperor's Tributary Monument or the Friendship Monument. Internet websites under the name Ueno German Cultural Village can be easily found, however Ueno Village, Miyako Island, no longer exists as a jurisdiction since, as mentioned above, all of the separate cities, towns and villages on the island were merged into Miyakojima city in 2005.