Ryūkyū

The Ryūkyū Kingdom grew from the rival polities of Okinawa. Its later seat was Shuri, and it became a link in trade between East and Southeast Asia.

Tradition credited the kingdom's founder Shō Hashi with defeating Hokuzan in 1416 and Nanzan in 1429; by 1430 he was Okinawa's sole tributary to Ming China. Ryūkyū expanded into the Amami and Sakishima islands. In 1609 Satsuma invaded and made the kingdom its vassal, while Ryūkyū continued to pay tribute to China.