An Ethnological Mapping of Okinawa’s Kume Villagers in Ryukyu from 1392 to Present: Language, Religion, Occupations and Identity

久米村是十四至十五世紀琉球地方向明國朝貢初期移住那霸的福建人－「閩人三十六姓」－所形成的聚落。久米村人對琉球王國外交、文化、思想、信仰有深遠的影響。本論文以時間為縱軸，以民族集團客觀特徵的姓名、語言、信仰、主觀認同意識為橫軸，探討閩人三十六姓自十四世紀末移住琉球那霸久米村之後至今600年之間，在琉球‧沖繩社會脈絡下改變的過程和因應機制，以及客觀文化特徵與主觀認同意識的相互關係。 論文除「緒論」、「結論」外，本論有六章，第一章「久米村人的形成」，寫久米村人的人來源、社會組織、現況，和久米村的地理位置。第二章「久米村人的職業」，重點在描述久米村人在封貢體系中擔任外交官重要角色的實態。第三章「久米村的姓名」，探討久米村人的命名制度及其因時代所起的變化。第四章「久米村人的語言」，析論久米村人閩南話、漢語官話、琉球語及日語之使用與變遷。第五章「久米村人的宗教信仰」，研析久米村人之祖先崇拜、天妃信仰，以及琉球民間信仰與日本民間信仰對久米村人信仰的影響。三、四、五章並分別就姓名、語言、信仰之客觀的文化特徵，探討其作為久米村人民族邊界的有效性。第六章「久米村人的認定與認同」，敘述琉球王國的身分認定制度，並析論此一制度對久米村人主觀認同的影響。 關鍵詞：沖繩 閩人三十六姓 認定 認同Kume Village was initially formed by 36 Fujian clans in the 14th Century when the Ryukyu Islands became one of the tributaries to the Ming Empire of China. Kume Villagers had a great influence on the Ryukyu Kingdom in diplomacy, culture, thought, and belief perspectives. The tenets of this dissertation focus on the development of the people of Kume Village; their careers, the evolution of their languages, their system of assigning names to individuals, and how they related first to China, then later to the Okinawa Kingdom, Japan, and how they were perceived by Okinawans throughout this time. The dissertation consists of six chapters. The first chapter, "The Kume Village", writes where Kume villagers come from originally, its past and present social organization, and the Kume Village geographical position. The second chapter, "The Kume Villagers’ Social Niche", mainly describes the important role Kume villagers play in the tribute system as diplomats. The third chapter, "The Naming of a Kume Villager", discusses the Kume Villagers naming system and its evolution. The fourth chapter "The Kume Villager’s Language” analyzes these 4 languages: Southern Fujian, Chinese Mandarin, Ryukyu Islands, and Japanese as they are imported and integrated by the Kume community. The fifth chapter, "The Kume Villagers Religious Beliefs", analyzes the Kume Villagers worship of ancestors, Tian Fei beliefs, as well as how the Ryukyu Islands folklores and the Japanese folklores influenced Kume Villagers. The third, fourth, and fifth chapters test the validity of name, language, and general belief mores as robust ethnic boundaries. The sixth chapter, "Caste-assignment and Social Identity", narrates the establishment of distinct castes and government relegation of the Kume Villagers into an elite class and analyzes how this policy influenced Kume Villagers. Applying time and several ethnic features as its frames of reference, this dissertation debates in detail the development of the culture of Kume Villagers parallel to and as the result of their interaction with Okinawa society in the last 600 years. Keywords：Okinawa, 36 Fujian clans, Chinese overseas, Identit