398 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1947 



elders was emphasized. The etiquette of ostentatious self-abasement, 

 however, never reached the heights seen in modern Japan. "Face" 

 was nevertheless important in Ryukyu society, and the mechanisms 

 of face-saving were learned early in life. 



Ordinarily a child attended school for 6 to 8 years. Emphasis there 

 was placed in the following order upon Japanese-style "ethics," the 

 Japanese language, use of the abacus for working arithmetical prob- 

 lems, and memorization of large numbers of Chinese characters. For 

 the sake of "health" and also to promote national solidarity, group 

 calisthenics were often coordinated by radio with similar activities 

 all over Japan. 



During the school years, boys and girls were taught to be useful at 

 home, and shouldered household burdens as soon as they were able. 

 Girls usually took care of younger brothers or sisters. Boys assisted 

 older men in the family in the more specialized male tasks. Both 

 boys and girls did their stint in the field, especially at harvest time, 

 often dropping out of school to do so. 



At the age of 13 (Japanese) , both went through coming-of-age cere- 

 monies. These involved the first wearing of adult clothes, symbolic of 

 the end of childhood and the assumption of a grown-up role in soci- 

 ety. In recent times these ceremonies were of a more perfunctory na- 

 ture, particularly since schooling might not be completed until the next 

 year, or even later if more advanced education was desired and could 

 be afforded. 



At about the turn of the century, 14 to 17 years was considered the 

 proper time for marriage. Matches were almost always arranged by 

 the parents. In the 1920's and IQSO's, however, marriages began taking 

 place later in life. By 1937 the average ages for first marriages were 

 27 for men and 24 for women. Obviously, as in Japan and the United 

 States, most young Ryukyuans were not well enough fixed financially 

 to marry in the 'teens. In addition, military conscription took many 

 young men out of circulation for a while when they reached 20 years 

 of age. 



The betrothal in an arranged marriage involved visiting ceremonies, 

 led by intermediaries. Details varied locally, and some of the mar- 

 riage customs described in the literature may no longer be practiced. 

 Both the "wife search" in the North, and "bride capture" in the South 

 Ryukyus may now be things of the past. The marriage ceremony it- 

 self was held in the groom's home. It was sometimes customary for 

 the groom's party to leave the bride for a belated and lengthy "bach- 

 elor dinner" but this luxury could not be afforded by the average young 

 farmer. 



Ryukyu marriages were easily broken by common consent with a 

 minimum of family turmoil. The divorce rate in the Central and 

 South Ryukyus was higher in the 1930's than in any other Japanese 



