Kijimuna
A yokai or spirit said to live in old banyan and other great trees in Okinawa. It looks like a red-haired child and loves fish eyes. If you befriend it, it helps you fish and makes your house rich, but if you betray it, it brings a curse.
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Legend & Sighting Locations in Okinawa
We list 3 places in Okinawa where yokai, cryptids and legends are told or sighted, and 3 related encyclopedia entries.
Please note Trespassing on private property or restricted areas is prohibited by law. Please be considerate of local residents.
Positions on the map are a rough guide to the area where a legend or sighting is set. Most pins are placed at representative points of a municipality or prefecture (outside Japan, a city position rounded to about 10 km, or the country), not at the exact place.
Municipality points: Geolonia address data (CC BY 4.0), based on the Address Base Registry (Digital Agency of Japan) / Country points: Natural Earth
Locations in Okinawa
Entries Linked to Okinawa
Shisa
A guardian lion statue placed on roofs and gates and at village entrances in Okinawa to ward off evil. Its name comes from the Okinawan pronunciation of "shishi" (lion). Shisa are often set out in pairs, a male with an open mouth and a female with a closed mouth, and are believed to drive away misfortune.
Yonaguni Monument
A giant underwater rock formation resembling steps and terraces off Yonaguni Island, Okinawa. Discovered by a diver in 1986, it is a popular dive site where debate continues over whether it is a man-made ruin or a natural formation.