Kiyuna Spring (Chunnaga)

A Village Spring in Stone

The Kiyuna Spring (Chunnaga) (喜友名泉, pronounced Chunnaga) is a stone-built spring of the later Edo period in Kiyuna, Ginowan City, Okinawa Prefecture, and was designated an Important Cultural Property on August 10, 1992. It served as the shared well of Kiyuna village and has two basins, Ufuga and Kaagwa (Agency for Cultural Affairs, Ginowan City).

The Agency for Cultural Affairs records it as a stone spring comprising the ufuga, the kaagwa, the surrounding channels, the stone walls and the approach path (120.7 metres). It is counted as one enclosure, dated to the later Edo period (1751 to 1829), owned by Ginowan City and the University of the Ryukyus and managed by Ginowan City.

Two Springs, Two Uses

According to the Agency, the Kiyuna Spring is divided into the ufuga for men and the kaagwa for women, each enclosed in stone walls that hold the natural spring water.

Ginowan City fills in the detail. The kaagwa has a spout so that women and children could easily draw drinking water, and it was also used for bathing, washing vegetables and laundry. At the ufuga people drew wakamiji, the first water of the New Year, and ubumiji, water for a newborn; day to day it was where men and livestock washed after work in the fields, which is why it is built larger. The slope from the village down to the spring is only about 100 metres but steep, and carrying water up every day was hard work.

Why It Was Designated

The Kiyuna Spring was designated an Important Cultural Property in 1992. The Agency for Cultural Affairs notes that the main stone walls date from around the early 19th century and that their large-block masonry is of real merit, making this a representative stone spring of Okinawa.

What to Look For

Openings are made in the stone walls of the Kiyuna Spring so that the water appears to well out of them (Agency for Cultural Affairs), turning a hidden spring into water flowing from a stone mouth.

Compare the two basins: the ufuga is wide, and the kaagwa has its spout (Ginowan City). The 120.7-metre approach path is part of the designation, so you can follow the route villagers took down to fetch water.

Visiting the Kiyuna Spring

Visits to the Kiyuna Spring must be arranged in advance. Ginowan City asks visitors to contact the city Board of Education Culture Division (098-893-4430) or the Kiyuna district association (098-892-3649) at least a week before the preferred date, on weekdays between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.