Lovely nursery rhymes, folk songs, and children's songs

Okinawan folk songs, children’s songs, and nursery rhymes: the heart of our hometown passed down through song.

Editor-in-Chief, RAG MUSICKeisuke Hane
Editor-in-chief of RAG MUSIC. After working at a music studio and in wedding sound engineering, joined the RAG MUSIC editorial team in 2016. Experienced with various instruments: marching band in elementary school, clarinet in middle school wind ensemble, and drums in a band from high school onward. Drawing on personal music activities and professional experience, produces daily articles, including song introductions, features on music festivals around Japan, and live reports. Enjoys a wide range of music, from domestic and international rock to, more recently, a broad spectrum of J-pop.

Doesn’t Okinawan music have a unique vibe that many people love?

In Okinawa, a distinct culture has been nurtured over a long period of time.

As a result, the unique resonance of the Ryukyuan scale combined with lyrics in the Okinawan dialect gives the music a charm unlike any other.

In this article, we’ll introduce plenty of folk songs and children’s songs that have been passed down from adults to children for generations in Okinawan music.

Listen to the songs we’re about to share, and carry on the spirit of Okinawa in song yourself.

Okinawan folk songs, children's songs, and nursery rhymes: the heart of our homeland passed down through song (21–30)

Song of the GutlessYo Henaiko

Aiko Nube ♫ Kuganasa-bushi ↝ TBNYD13

Gannasanabushi yohen aiko

Literally, it means “to love the heart,” but it can also mean “to love from the heart.” Based on the lyrics, it can even be understood as “sincere love.” The lyrics, which say that when we are young we seek love in the warmth of skin, and as we grow older it becomes a love of true sincerity, are profoundly deep.

Raise the rankinglower

NaakuniMasao Uehara & Masahiko Uehara

Ryukyuan folk songs Nākunī, Kaisarē, Masao Uehara, Masahiko Uehara

Masao Uehara of Narkuni & Masahiko Uehara

Nākuni is often called the “chanson of Okinawa” and is a renowned song representing the main island of Okinawa.

Alongside the Miyako folk song “Tūganī” and the Yaeyama folk song “Tubarāma,” it is also one of Okinawa’s signature songs.

It is said that you make it your own only after singing it a thousand times, and although mastering Nākuni is considered difficult, it is a song that is widely sung despite its difficulty.

Raise the rankinglower

Okinawan folk songs, children’s songs, and nursery rhymes: The enduring heart of our homeland (31–40)

Futami Love StoryKazumi Tamaki, Takeshi Yamauchi

Futami Love Story by Kazumi Tamaki and Takeshi Yamauchi

Futami Love Story - Kazumi Tamaki, Takeshi Yamauchi

It is said to have been composed by Teruya Chōbin, who had taken refuge in northern Okinawa during the Battle of Okinawa, in praise of the nature and warmth of the people of Futami who cared for him.

The song features a Yamato-style melody, which is rare in Okinawan folk music.

A monument with the lyrics has been erected at the Futami Community Center in Futami, Nago City, and the piece is also well known as a staple enjoyed as a male-female call-and-response in folk music taverns.

Raise the rankinglower

Poem of the HeartYoriko Ganeko

kokoro no uta　(aisuru noga heta dakara)

The poem of the heart—me, as if from ancient times, a child.

It’s a song that really touches the heart.

Many artists have covered it, but the original folk-style singing by Yoriko Gagaku feels very warm and soothing.

I feel it’s a song about the theme of love—not just romantic love.

It brings a comforting feeling, like the moment you find joy in seeing an ordinary flower blooming by the roadside.

Raise the rankinglower

Chin-nuku jūshīFour Sisters

Four Sisters Chin Nuku Jūshī (Four Sisters chinnuku jūshī)

Chinnuku Jushi Four Sisters

This is a song played at Miebashi Station on the Okinawa Urban Monorail, themed around nostalgic scenes of Okinawan family life from a slightly earlier time.

The image of an Okinawan evening comes vividly to mind.

In an era when family ties are weakening, the compassion conveyed through this song and its lyrics moves us deeply.

Raise the rankinglower

Noboru JahanaShoukichi Kina

Shoukichi Kina – Noboru Jahana

Shohanashi Kina Shoukichi

Shōkichi Kina was strongly influenced by one of Okinawa’s great figures.

After reading the biography of Sho Jahana, Shōkichi was deeply moved by this predecessor who fought against authority for the sake of Okinawa.

Jahana safeguarded Okinawan identity, kept Okinawa in his thoughts until his death, and left achievements in the Freedom and People’s Rights Movement, agricultural policy, and overseas emigration.

This is a song about Sho Jahana.

Raise the rankinglower

Flower ThoughtsKanako Horiuchi

Kanako Horiuchi / Flower Thoughts (Japanese Subtitles)

Hana Omoi Kanako Horiuchi

Kanako Horiuchi, a Hokkaido native who sings Okinawan folk songs, sets off on a round-the-world journey with her sanshin on her back to introduce Okinawan folk music.

This song was born from a collaboration she encountered on that journey with the kora, a Senegalese instrument.

Her activities are driven not only by singing Okinawan folk songs, but also by a desire to bring them overseas.

Raise the rankinglower