Japanese Bolivian
Encyclopedia
Japanese Bolivian is a Bolivia
n-born person of Japanese ancestry
.
where their contracts ended prior to the 1950s. Most Japanese settlers had origins from Okinawa, while the rest from Gifu
, Hiroshima
, Kanagawa
, and Osaka
prefectures. In 1899, Mapiri River
Region in La Paz experienced the first entrance of 91 Japanese workers assigned for rubber plantations. Since then, Andes Mountains continued to attract few more hundreds of Japanese laborers, who luckily caught work in mining and railroad construction. The inland Amazon River
region appeared as the second main destination for the workers, who also came through Peru to work on rubber plantations in northwestern Bolivia. The end of World War I
and Great Depression
shifted Japanese workers in the rubber and mining industries respectively. The only places in Bolivia that survived changes were the town of Riberalta
and La Paz, which served as the Japanese commercial activities. In 1930s, most Japanese remained as settlers and many brought wives from their home country while most married local women; these made difference that divided the community.
When World War II
began, only 29 Japanese Bolivians were deported to United States
. But because more than that, the war had not much effect on the lives of residents of Japanese descent in Bolivia, since the local government did not make anti-Japanese measures. Since the end of the war, the government warmly permitted Japanese refugees. Treaties after 1954 guided in a new chapter of Japanese Bolivian history and the massive influx of agricultural settlers from U.S.-controlled Okinawa and mainland Japan. The need of relocating surplus populations from war-torn Japan met the Bolivian government's wish to develop the eastern lower lands in Santa Cruz Department
. With the financial help of the Japanese government, the Colonia Okinawa and Colonia San Juan de Yapacaní were established; the two settlements formed the distinctive communities with separate identities—one Okinawan and the other mainland Japanese—that are also currently in transition from the immigrant to the Bolivian-born generation.
Bolivia
Bolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
n-born person of Japanese ancestry
Ethnic Japanese
Ethnic Japanese may mean:* Japanese people, when referring to people of Japanese descent** May also be used as a term to refer to the Yamato people as opposed to the minority peoples of Japan: the Ainu, Ryukyuans, Burakumin and immigrant groups such as the Han Chinese and Koreans.* Japanese...
.
History
Since Bolivia has no coast, the first Japanese settlers came from neighboring PeruPeru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
where their contracts ended prior to the 1950s. Most Japanese settlers had origins from Okinawa, while the rest from Gifu
Gifu Prefecture
is a prefecture located in the Chūbu region of central Japan. Its capital is the city of Gifu.Located in the center of Japan, it has long played an important part as the crossroads of Japan, connecting the east to the west through such routes as the Nakasendō...
, Hiroshima
Hiroshima Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region on Honshu island. The capital is the city of Hiroshima.- History :The area around Hiroshima was formerly divided into Bingo Province and Aki Province. This location has been a center of trade and culture since the beginning of Japan's recorded...
, Kanagawa
Kanagawa Prefecture
is a prefecture located in the southern Kantō region of Japan. The capital is Yokohama. Kanagawa is part of the Greater Tokyo Area.-History:The prefecture has some archaeological sites going back to the Jōmon period...
, and Osaka
Osaka Prefecture
is a prefecture located in the Kansai region on Honshū, the main island of Japan. The capital is the city of Osaka. It is the center of Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto area.- History :...
prefectures. In 1899, Mapiri River
Mapiri River
Mapiri River is a river of Amapá state in Brazil. It is a tributary of the Jari River which is part of the Amazon River basin....
Region in La Paz experienced the first entrance of 91 Japanese workers assigned for rubber plantations. Since then, Andes Mountains continued to attract few more hundreds of Japanese laborers, who luckily caught work in mining and railroad construction. The inland Amazon River
Amazon River
The Amazon of South America is the second longest river in the world and by far the largest by waterflow with an average discharge greater than the next seven largest rivers combined...
region appeared as the second main destination for the workers, who also came through Peru to work on rubber plantations in northwestern Bolivia. The end of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
and Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
shifted Japanese workers in the rubber and mining industries respectively. The only places in Bolivia that survived changes were the town of Riberalta
Riberalta
Riberalta is a town in the Beni Department in northern Bolivia, situated where the Madre de Dios River joins the Beni River. Riberalta is on the south bank of the Beni River....
and La Paz, which served as the Japanese commercial activities. In 1930s, most Japanese remained as settlers and many brought wives from their home country while most married local women; these made difference that divided the community.
When World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
began, only 29 Japanese Bolivians were deported to United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. But because more than that, the war had not much effect on the lives of residents of Japanese descent in Bolivia, since the local government did not make anti-Japanese measures. Since the end of the war, the government warmly permitted Japanese refugees. Treaties after 1954 guided in a new chapter of Japanese Bolivian history and the massive influx of agricultural settlers from U.S.-controlled Okinawa and mainland Japan. The need of relocating surplus populations from war-torn Japan met the Bolivian government's wish to develop the eastern lower lands in Santa Cruz Department
Santa Cruz Department
Santa Cruz, with an area of 370,621 km², is the largest of the nine constituent departments of Bolivia. In the 2001 census, it reported a population of 2,029,471. The capital is the city of Santa Cruz de la Sierra. The state is one of the wealthiest states in Bolivia with huge reserves of...
. With the financial help of the Japanese government, the Colonia Okinawa and Colonia San Juan de Yapacaní were established; the two settlements formed the distinctive communities with separate identities—one Okinawan and the other mainland Japanese—that are also currently in transition from the immigrant to the Bolivian-born generation.
Language
First-generation Japanese settlers generally use Japanese in their daily discourse, and cannot speak Spanish fluently. Subsequent generations had a decreased fluency in the Japanese language, which was attributed to the absence of Japanese-language schools in communes, and speak Spanish more fluently than the first-generation settlers.Religion
A study done by an Cheistopher Reichl and Thompson in the 1960s among the Japanese settlers at San Juan de Yapacaní noted that 32% of the Japanese were Buddhist, with an equal number being Roman Catholics. A minority identified themselves as members of Soka Gakkai or Shinto. The majority of the Japanese Catholics converted to the faith after reaching Bolivia. Conversion to Catholicism among the Japanese community increased during the 20th century, which Thompson noted was due to the absence of strong Shinto or Buddhist religious institutions which the settlers could emphasise their faith. Among the non-Japanese Christians, some first and second-generation settlers maintained household Shinto shrines, although the sizeable majority became agnostic in religious outlook.Notable Japanese Bolivians
- Armando Yoshida - Ambassador to Japan, former Chancellor of Bolivia
- Michiaki Nagatani Morishita - Presidential Candidate
- Pedro ShimosePedro ShimosePedro Shimose is a poet, professor and essayist from Bolivia.- Biography :Born in Riberalta in 1940 to Japanese parents and based in Madrid since 1971, Shimose is best known for his politically-inspired poetry which touches on the themes of national identity and social...
– essayist, professor, and poet