Hokuzan

Hokuzan, also called Sanhoku, was one of the three kingdoms that divided Okinawa Island during the Sanzan period. It emerged in 1314, when the lord of Nakijin broke away from the island's paramount chieftain and established himself at Nakijin Castle in the north. Hokuzan was the largest of the three states but also the poorest and most sparsely populated, with wild terrain and few farming or fishing villages. Its rulers built their power around Nakijin Castle on the Motobu Peninsula and drew wealth from trade with Japan and China. In 1416 the army of Chūzan, led by Shō Hashi, captured Nakijin Castle and destroyed the kingdom; Nanzan fell in 1429, completing the unification of Okinawa under the Ryūkyū Kingdom. Hokuzan sent tribute missions to Ming China from 1383, and its envoys were recorded in Chinese court annals. After unification the north became a nominal prefecture of the Ryūkyū Kingdom. Its capital was Nakijin.