is an island of the Japanese archipelago situated in-between the Tsushima Strait and Korea Strait, approximately halfway between Kyushu and the Korean Peninsula. The main island of Tsushima, once a single island, was divided into two in 1671 by the Ōfunakoshiseto canal and into three in 1900 by the Manzekiseto canal. These canals were driven through isthmuses in the center of the island, forming "North Tsushima" (Kamino-shima) and "South Tsushima" (Shimono-shima). Tsushima also incorporates over 100 smaller islands, many tiny. The name Tsushima generally refers to all the islands of the Tsushima archipelago collectively.For example: Administratively, Tsushima is in Nagasaki Prefecture.
The island group measures about and had a population of about 28,000 . The main islands (that is, the "North" and "South" islands, and the thin island that connects them) are the largest coherent satellite island group of Nagasaki Prefecture and the eighth-largest in Japan. The City of Tsushima lies on Tsushima and is divided into six boroughs.
Geography Tsushima is located west of the Kanmon Strait at a latitude between Honshu and Kyushu of the Japanese mainland. The Korea Strait splits at the Tsushima Archipelago into two channels; the wider channel, closer to the mainland of Japan, is the Tsushima Strait. Ōfunakoshi-Seto and Manzeki-Seto, the two canals built in 1671 and 1900 respectively, connect the deep indentation of Asō Bay (浅茅湾) to the east side of the island. The archipelago comprises over 100 smaller islets in addition to the main island.
Tsushima is the closest Japanese territory to the Korean Peninsula, lying approximately 50 km from Busan. On a clear day, the hills and mountains of the Korean peninsula are visible from the higher elevations on the two northern mountains. The nearest Japanese port, Iki, situated on Iki Island within the Tsushima Basin, is also 50 km away. Tsushima and Iki Island are collectively within the borders of the Iki–Tsushima Quasi-National Park, designated as a nature preserve and protected from further development. Much of Tsushima (89%) is covered by natural vegetation and mountains. Tsushima has many mountains such as Mt. Ohira, Mt. Yatate, Mt. Hokogatake, Mt. Koyasan, Mt. Ontake, and Mt. Gogen.
The government of Japan administers Tsushima as a single entity despite the artificial waterways that have separated it into two islands. The northern area is known as Kamino-shima (上島), and the southern island as Shimono-shima (下島). Both sub-islands have a pair of mountains. Shimo-no-Shima has Mount Yatate (矢立山), standing high, 国土交通省国土地理院 九州地方測量部「長崎県山岳標高」 - Kyushu Regional Survey Department, Geographical Survey Institute, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism in Japan and Ariake-yama (有明山), at high. Kami-no-shima has Mi-take (御嶽), . The two main sections of the island are now joined by a combination bridge and causeway.Water level view of the junction between the two islands of Tsushima The island has a total area of .
Climate Tsushima has a marine humid subtropical climate strongly influenced by monsoon winds. The average temperature is ,Meteorologic data in Izuhara (厳原), Tsushima by Japan Meteorological Agency and the average yearly precipitation is 2,132.6 mm. The highest temperature ever recorded on the island is , on 20 August 2013, and the lowest , in 1895.Meteorologic data in Izuhara (厳原), Tsushima by Japan Meteorological Agency - most ~ 10th largest value on record Throughout most of the year, Tsushima is 1–2 °C cooler than the city of Nagasaki.Meteorologic data in Nagasaki (長崎) by Japan Meteorological Agency The island's rainfall is generally higher than that of the main islands of Japan; this is attributed to the difference in their size. Because Tsushima is small and isolated, it is exposed on all sides to moist marine air, which releases precipitation as it ascends the island's steep slopes. Continental monsoon winds carry loess, dust which is a highly fertile mix of clay and sand, from China in the spring and cools the island in the winter.
Demographics Tsushima's population is 28,502, with 49.3% male, and 50.7% female. 28,322 are Japanese people, and 150 are foreigners. 14.2% is in the 0–17 age group. 42.7% of its population is in the 18–64 age group. 38.6% is 65 and older. Its population decreased by 9.4% from 2015 to 2020.
Ecology
Fauna The island's fauna include leopard cat, Japanese marten, Siberian weasel, and rodents. Otters were discovered to be living on Tsushima in February 2017. Migrating birds that stop over on the island include hawks, harriers, eagles, and black-throated loons. Forests, covering 90% of the island, consist of broad-leafed evergreens, conifers, and deciduous trees including cypress. Honey bees are common, with many used to produce commercial honey.Nicol, C.W., "Hark ye to the Donkey's Ears", Japan Times, 7 March 2010, p. 12. The Tsushima pitviper is a venomous snake endemic to the Tsushima. The islands have been recognised as an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International because they support populations of Japanese wood pigeons and Pleske's grasshopper warblers.
Tsushima Reef, located in the bay between Tsushima and Iki Island, is the northernmost coral reef in the world, surpassing the Iki Island reef discovered in 2001. It is dominated by cool-tolerant stony or Scleractinian Favia corals but the observed settling of tropical Acropora coral is expected to provide an ongoing indicator for continuing global warming.Hiroya Yamano et al., in the on-line journal Geology, 12 July 2012, reported by Joost DeVries at Reefbuilders and at Advanced Aquarist
Flora The whole island is covered in forest and there are few plains. There are Yoshino cherry and Chionanthus retusus.
Economy
Industry According to a 2000 census, 23.9% of the local population is employed in primary industries while 19.7% and 56.4% of the population are employed in secondary and tertiary industries, respectively. Of these economic activities, fishing amounts to 82.6% of the primary industry, with much of it dedicated to catching squid on the eastern coast of the island. The number of employees in the primary industries has been decreasing, while employee growth in the secondary and tertiary industries has been increasing.
Tourism Tourism, targeting mainly Koreans, has recently made a great contribution to the islands' economy. The number of Korean tourists to the island increased greatly after the launching of a high-speed ferry service from Busan to the island in 1999. In 2008, 72,349 Koreans visited the island. Due to a drop in the value of the won, the number fell to 45,266 in 2009. Korean tourists generate an estimated ¥2.1 billion in revenue for the local economy and generate about 260 jobs on the island.
The island expected around 200,000 visitors from Korea in 2013, surpassing the number of visitors from within Japan for the first time. However, a summer pageant focused on a historical event involving Korean emissaries was cancelled that same year. In 2018, 90% of visitors to Tsushima were from South Korea; however, there was an 88% decrease (1.7 million fewer visitors) in the number of Korean visitors in 2019. This occurred because of a trade war between Korea and Japan that started in July 2019 when Japan restricted the export of chemical materials relied upon by Korea's large consumer electronics industry. This export restriction was seen to have been a retaliatory act by Japan for a Korean court order that Nippon Steel (Japan's largest steelmaker) pay reparations to the families of Koreans forced into slave labour for the company during World War II. Additionally, the COVID-19 pandemic further reduced and limited tourism.
Tsushima has been gaining popularity as a tourist destination due in large part to the samurai action-adventure stealth game Ghost of Tsushima that was released in 2020, with visitors keen to see some of the locations featured in-game. This includes trying local culinary specialties such as rokube noodles, ishiyaki, tonchan and anago conger eel.Wallin, Lisa, "What to Eat When You're on Tsushima", Japanese Food Guide
Tsushima City
Tsushima City was established on 1 March 2004, from the merger of six towns on Tsushima: Izuhara, Mitsushima, and Toyotama (all from Shimoagata District), and Mine, Kamiagata, and Kamitsushima (all from Kamiagata District). It is the only city of Tsushima Subprefecture and encompasses the whole island.
Transportation Tsushima Airport has flights to Fukuoka Airport (on All Nippon Airways and Oriental Air Bridge) and Nagasaki Airport (Oriental Air Bridge only).
There are ferries to Izuhara port, such as Iki via Hakata port in Fukuoka.
Public buses are utilized by residents as a means of transportation. However, the number of services is limited, and there are no bus stops at tourist destinations, making it unsuitable for sightseeing purposes. Additionally, there is no sightseeing tour bus service available.
History
Ancient and classical period
In Japanese mythology, Tsushima was one of the eight original islands created by the Shinto deities Izanagi and Izanami. Archaeological evidence suggests that Tsushima was already inhabited by settlers from the Japanese archipelago and Korean Peninsula from the Jōmon period to the Kofun period. The Records of the Three Kingdoms, a Chinese historical text, describes a country called Duì hǎi guó () with a population of more than one thousand households, which is commonly identified with Tsushima. It was one of the about 30 that composed the Yamatai union countries.zhulang.com These families exerted control over Iki Island, and established trading links with Yayoi Japan. Since Tsushima had almost no land to cultivate, islanders earned their living by fishing and trading.
Since the beginning of the early sixth century, Tsushima has been an official province of Japan, known as Tsushima Province (today Tsushima, Nagasaki.)
Under the Ritsuryō system, Tsushima became a province of Japan. This province was linked with Dazaifu, the political and economic center of Kyūshū, as well as the central government of Japan. Due to its strategic location, Tsushima played a major role in defending Japan against invasions from the Asian continent and developing trade lines with Baekje and Silla of the Three Kingdoms of Korea. After Baekje, which had been aided by Yamato Japan, was defeated in 663 by Sillan and Tang Chinese forces at the Battle of Baekgang, Japanese border guards were sent to Tsushima and Kaneda Castle was constructed on the island.
Tsushima Province was controlled by officials called Tsushima no kuni no miyatsuko () until the Nara period, and then by the Abiru clan until the middle of the 13th century. The role and title of "Governor of Tsushima" were exclusively held by the Shōni clan for generations. However, since the Shōni actually resided in Kyūshū, it was the Sō clan, known subjects of the Shōni, who actually exerted control over these islands. The Sō clan governed Tsushima until the late 19th century.
Feudal period
Tsushima was an important trade center during this period. After the Toi invasion, private trade started between Goryeo (modern day Korea), Tsushima, Iki Island, and Kyūshū, but halted during the Mongol invasions of Japan between 1274 and 1281. The Goryeosa, a history of the Goryeo dynasty, mentions that in 1274, Korean troops of the Mongol army led by killed a great number of people on the islands.
Tsushima became one of the major bases of the Wokou, Japanese pirates, also called wakō, along with Iki and Matsuura. Due to repeated pirate raids, Korea's Goryeo and Joseon at times placated the pirates by establishing trade agreements as well as negotiating with the Ashikaga shogunate and its deputy in Kyūshū and at other times used force to neutralize the pirates. In 1389, General Pak Wi of Goryeo wiped out Wokou on the island of Tsushima.