Suwanosejima
Encyclopedia
is a volcanic island with a population of about fifty located in the Tokara Islands
, part of the Nansei Islands, Japan
. It is 8 km long and is one of the most active volcanoes in Japan. It belongs to the village of Toshima
in Kagoshima District
, Kagoshima
, Japan
. It is the home of Buzoku
, also called the Banyan Ashram, a commune founded in the 1960s by Sansei Yamao
, Nanao Sakaki
, and others, and home for a while to Gary Snyder
. It is seventeen hours by boat from the mainland.
The island has probably been populated (at times, depending on volcanic activity) for several thousand years. It was abandoned after a great 15th century eruption, until it was resettled by people of the Amami Islands
in the 19th century.
Tokara Islands
The Tokara Islands is a group of islands in part of the Satsunan Islands, which is part of the Nansei Islands. The whole island group belongs to Toshima Village, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan....
, part of the Nansei Islands, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. It is 8 km long and is one of the most active volcanoes in Japan. It belongs to the village of Toshima
Toshima, Kagoshima
is a village located in Kagoshima District, Kagoshima, Japan. The village encompasses the whole Tokara Islands. The village office is located in Kagoshima City outside the village....
in Kagoshima District
Kagoshima District, Kagoshima
Kagoshima is a district located in Kagoshima Prefecture. As of October 1, 2008, the district has an estimated Population of 1,087 and a Density of 8.19 persons/km². The total area is 132.71 km²....
, Kagoshima
Kagoshima Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu. The capital is the city of Kagoshima.- Geography :Kagoshima Prefecture is located at the southwest tip of Kyushu and includes a chain of islands stretching further to the southwest for a few hundred kilometers...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. It is the home of Buzoku
The Tribe (Buzoku)
The Tribe was the best known name of a loose-knit countercultural group in Japan in the 1960s and 70s.Central figures of the group's beginnings in Shinjuku and leadership included Nanao Sakaki, Tetsuo Nagasawa, Sansei Yamao, Mamoru Kato, and Kenji Akiba, who shared an interest in an alternative...
, also called the Banyan Ashram, a commune founded in the 1960s by Sansei Yamao
Sansei Yamao
Sansei Yamao – Japanese poet.Sansei Yamo was born in Tokyo in 1938. He studied western philosophy at Waseda University, but dropped out before graduation. In the latter half of the 1960s, he and his companions Nanao Sakaki and Tetsuo Nagasawa started a commune called Buzoku , with an aim to change...
, Nanao Sakaki
Nanao Sakaki
Nanao Sakaki was a Japanese poet, author of Bellyfulls and leading personality of the Tribe. He was born to a large family in the Kagoshima Prefecture, and raised by parents who ran an indigo dye-house....
, and others, and home for a while to Gary Snyder
Gary Snyder
Gary Snyder is an American poet , as well as an essayist, lecturer, and environmental activist . Snyder is a winner of a Pulitzer Prize for Poetry...
. It is seventeen hours by boat from the mainland.
The island has probably been populated (at times, depending on volcanic activity) for several thousand years. It was abandoned after a great 15th century eruption, until it was resettled by people of the Amami Islands
Amami Islands
The are a group of islands that is part of the Satsunan Islands, which are then part of the Nansei Islands. The islands are part of Kagoshima Prefecture, in the Kyūshū region of Japan...
in the 19th century.