The change of folk culture and women's role among fishing communities in Ryukyu Islands.

该研究项目于1998年至2000年开展，目的是讨论妇女参与非伊曼海事社会民俗文化变革的情况。为此研究目的，选择了两个海洋社区进行实地调查，即宫古岛的Sarahama（渔业社区以农业为主）和八山石垣岛的Oohama（渔业社区以渔业为主）。我收集的数据集中在1)渔业活动和转型，2)渔业家庭的经济，3)渔民妻子的经济作用，4)渔民妻子的社会贡献，5)妇女对渔民信仰和仪式的影响。这两个社区对渔业的经济依赖程度差别很大，然而，妇女对社会和经济方面的参与几乎是相同的，这是渔业社区所特有的。妇女主要参与一个领域的石潮渔捞活动，渔民的妻子作为摊贩和市场妇女活跃于渔获物分配领域。渔民的家庭经济基本上是通过性别分工来维持的，也就是说，男人在海上当渔民，女人在土地上卖丈夫捕到的鱼。妇女对渔民的情感和精神影响以及经济影响是显著的，因此妇女通常在海洋社区中占据主导地位。

This research project has carried out from 1998 to 2000, to discuss women's participation to the change of folk culture among non-Itoman maritime societies. For this research purpose, two maritime communities had been selected for field survey, namely Sarahama (fishing community supplemented by agriculture) Irabu Island in Miyako and Oohama (agricultural community supplemented by fishing) in Ishigakijima, Yaeyama.I collected data focusing on 1) fishng activities and transformation, 2) economy among fishing household, 3) economic role of fisherman's wife, 4) social contribution of fisherman's wife, 5) women's influence to the belief and the ritual among fishermen. Economic dependence on fishing is widely different between these two communities, however, women's participation to social and economic aspect which is peculiar among fishing communities is almost same.Women participate mostly in a domain of fishing activities in stone tidal ware and fishermen's wife is active in a area of distribution of catch as a venders and market woman. Household economy among fisher-folk is maintained basically by sexual division of labor, that is to say, men work on the sea as fishermen and women work on the land selling fish cauhgt by their husbands.Women's emotional and mental influence on fishermen is remarkable as well as economic influence, so that women usually hold dominant position in a maritime communities.