, also known as Amami, is the largest island in the Amami archipelago between Kyūshū and Okinawa. It is one of the Satsunan Islands, all of which belong to Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan.

In 2017 the Amami Guntō National Park was established. It absorbed the former Amami Gunto Quasi-national Park and other land and sea areas in adjacent municipalities.

Geography

Amami Ōshima is the seventh-largest island in the Japanese archipelago after the four main islands, Okinawa Island and Sado Island (excluding the disputed Kuril Islands). It is located approximately south of the southern tip of Kyūshū and north of Okinawa. The island is of volcanic origin, with Mount Yuwanda at above sea level at its highest peak. The coast of the island is surrounded by a coral reef, and the island may also have been home to some of the northernmost coral reefs in Japan during the last glacial period. It is surrounded by the East China Sea on the west and the Pacific Ocean on the east.

<gallery widths=180>

File:Amami_beach.jpg|Coastal area of Amami Ōshima

File:View_of_Katetsu_cove_from_nearby_Manen-zaki.jpg|View of Katetsu cove from nearby Manen-zaki (Cape Manen)

File:Mangrove_in_amami.JPG|Mangrove forest of the Amami Guntō National Park in Amami Ōshima

File:Kinsakubaru_wildwood.jpg|Kinsakubaru wildwood in Amami Ōshima

</gallery>

Administration

<div style="width:310px;float:right;margin:0 auto;position:relative">

thumb|250px|5 municipalities of Amami Ōshima

<div style="position:absolute;left:180px;top:108px;font-size:small">Amami</div>

<div style="position:absolute;left:250px;top:050px;font-size:small">(Amami)</div>

<div style="position:absolute;left:225px;top:080px;font-size:small">Tatsugō</div>

<div style="position:absolute;left:160px;top:195px;font-size:small">Setouchi</div>

<div style="position:absolute;left:115px;top:080px;font-size:small">Yamato</div>

<div style="position:absolute;left:070px;top:100px;font-size:small">Uken</div></div>

Amami Ōshima belongs to Kagoshima prefecture. It consists of the following municipalities.

  • Amami
  • Tatsugo
  • Yamatomura
  • Usomura
  • Part of Setouchi-cho

Climate

The climate of Amami Ōshima is classified as a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa) with very warm summers and mild winters. The rainy season lasts from May through September. The island is subject to frequent typhoons.

Fauna

Amami Ōshima is home to several rare or endangered endemic animals, including the Amami rabbit and the Lidth's jay, both of which are now found only in Amami Ōshima and Tokunoshima. The Amami rabbit is sometimes called a living fossil because it represents an ancient Asian lineage that has elsewhere disappeared.

The island is also home to the habu, a venomous snake that can be found throughout the Ryūkyū Islands. Mongooses were introduced to kill the habu, but have become another problem, as an increase in the mongoose population has been linked to the decline of the Amami rabbit and other endemic species.

Whale watching to see humpback whales has become a featured attraction in winter in recent years. It is also notable that North Pacific right whale, the most endangered of all whale species, have repeatedly appeared around the island

Transportation

thumb|[[Naze, Kagoshima|Naze port on Amami Ōshima]]

thumb|View of the Amami Airport runway

The port of Naze, located in the city of Amami is a major regional shipping and ferry hub.

Amami Airport, located at the northern end of the island, is connected to Tokyo, Osaka, Naha, Fukuoka and Kagoshima as well as local flights to the other Amami Islands. There are bus routes and roads on the island.

Language

Two dialects of the Amami language are spoken in Amami Ōshima: the Northern Ōshima dialect and the Southern Ōshima dialect. These dialects are part of the Ryukyuan languages group. According to Ethnologue, there were about 10,000 speakers of the Northern Ōshima

</references>

  • Eldridge, Mark. The Return of the Amami Islands: The Reversion Movement and U.S.–Japan Relations. Levington Books (2004)
  • Hellyer. Robert. Defining Engagement: Japan and Global Contexts, 1640–1868. Harvard University Press (2009)
  • Turnbull, Stephen. The Most Daring Raid of the Samurai. Rosen Publishing Group (2011)
  • Ravina, Mark. The Last Samurai: The Life and Battles of Saigo Takamori.　Whiley (2011)
  • Yeo, Andrew. Activists, Alliances, and Anti-U.S. Base Protests. Cambridge University Press. (2011)
  • Visitors Guide