Nami ni pokkari uku Yonaguni wa Yonaguni, floating up above the waves Shima wa yoi shima, Mujin no H?k? It's a good island, a model society Uta to nasake no, uta to nasake no paradaisu A paradise of song and feeling Sassa yoiyasasa Yonaguni yoi shima, nasake no shima sanosassa Sassa yoiyasasa, Yonaguni's a good island, an island of song and feeling

True to the words of the new folk song 'Yonaguni Kouta' Yonaguni is an island rich in traditional music.

The Westernmost island in Japan, with the designation of 'Yonaguni town, Yaeyama county', Yonaguni has quite a different feeling from both Japan and the other islands in Yaeyama. Looking West from Yonaguni one can see the mountains of Iriomote island, looking East the mountains of Taiwan floating low on the horizon. However with about 100km separating Yonaguni from Iriomote, it has developed a strongly individual character. The local language known as 'dunan kutuba' is said to be the most difficult of the Okinawan language dialects. The local drink, at 60% alcohol, is only recognized as a medicine by the Japanese government. It's a border island, an island of extremes, an island of songs.

So what kind of songs can be found in Yonaguni? The 'yunta, jiraba and ay?' song forms found all over Yaeyama were originally sung as either work songs or ritual songs, and many have been passed down to the present day. The song 'Asadoya yunta', known all over Japan is an example of this kind of song. In Yonaguni 'yunta' are known as 'dunta'. The most commonly sung example is 'Kiyu ga hi dunta', which is sung as the finale to all island ritual events.

For example 'machiri', the biggest festival in Yonaguni takes place around new year (the 10th month of the lunar calendar) lasting 25 days. During this time each village and many private households pray for such things as safety from foreign invaders, successful rearing of livestock, and good crops. The event which ties all these prayers together is the singing of 'kiyu ga hi yunta' while dancing round in a circle at the end of each day of ritual.

I first heard this song in London when a friend from Yonaguni sang it to me. At first I was surprised that a young person knew the traditional music of her home town. I found out later that everyone from Yonaguni knows this song. Yonaguni really is an island of song.

Finally there's one more song from Yonaguni which I can't overlook - Yonaguni shonkan?. Yunaguni nu nasagi, Ikutuba nu nasagi The heart of Yonaguni, Nuti nu aru ai ya, toyai shabira As long as we live, let's stay together I hope to have a long association with Yonaguni in the future