Inheritance of Folk Heritage and Activation of Tourism in Okinawa

2015 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 25501016
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Tourism Studies
• Research Institution: Senshu University
• Principal Investigator: HIGUCHI Atsushi 専修大学, 文学部, 教授 (70095983)
• Project Period (FY): 2013-04-01 – 2016-03-31
• Keywords: 沖縄 / 観光 / 食文化 / ファーマーズマーケット / 民俗遺産 / エコロジー / 地域活性化 / ブランド戦略

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Focusing on traditional vegetables, distilled liquor "awamori" and salt in Okinawa, we have tried to activate Okinawa Tourism. In Okinawa there are a lot of tasty vegetables even in winter. Using black malt "kuro-koji", 47 distilleries produce high quality awamori all over the Okinawa Islands. And many salt factories produce tasty and healthy salt using the famous Okinawa blue sea water. In Okinawa there exist excellent traditions of cultivating vegetables , distilling awamori and producing salt. We can call them "Okinawa Folk Heritage", but these traditions must be always innovated and re-recognized as new brand in order to captivate tourists. Fortunately we can find excellent models of innovation in Okinawa. Using internet, we have presented their innovation trials and branding strategies not only to Japanese tourists, but also Korean, Chinese, Taiwanese tourists.

Free Research Field

観光民俗学