Iwo Jima or Iwo To
c/p from cnn.com
TOKYO, Japan (AP) -- Japan has rechristened the island of Iwo Jima, site of one of World War II's most horrific battles, with its pre-war name in an attempt to rectify a misnomer proliferated for a half-century by such movies as Clint Eastwood's "Letters from Iwo Jima."
The new name, Iwo To -- pronounced "ee-woh-toh" -- is the same as that used by the island's original inhabitants and the one still preferred by residents in the area. It was adopted Monday by the Japanese Geographical Survey Institute in consultation with Japan's coast guard.
The change was championed by surviving islanders evacuated during the war, who wanted to reclaim an identity they said had been hijacked. But others said the overhaul cheapens the memory of a brutal campaign that today is inextricably linked to the words Iwo Jima.
Back in 1945, the small, volcanic island was the vortex of the fierce World War II battle immortalized by the famous photograph by Joe Rosenthal of The Associated Press showing Marines raising the American flag on the islet's Mount Suribachi.
But before the war, the isolated spit of land was called Iwo To by the 1,000 or so civilians who lived there. In Japanese, that name looks and means the same as Iwo Jima -- or Sulfur Island -- but it has a different sound.
The civilians were evacuated in 1944 as U.S. forces advanced across the Pacific. Some Japanese navy officers who moved in to fortify the island mistakenly called it Iwo Jima, and the name stuck. After the war, civilians weren't allowed to return and the island was put to exclusive military use by both the U.S. and Japan, cementing its identity.
Locals were never happy the name Iwo Jima took root.
But the last straw came this year with the release of Eastwood's "Letters from Iwo Jima" and "Flags of Our Fathers," twin war films that only reinforced the misnomer.
In March, Ogasawara, the municipality that administers Iwo To and neighboring islands, responded by adopting a resolution making Iwo To the official reading. Ogasawara residents and descendants of Iwo To evacuees petitioned the central government to follow suit.
"Though we're happy for Iwo To, which has been forgotten by history, the islanders are extremely grieved every time they hear Iwo To referred to as Iwo Jima," the local Ogasawara newspaper quoted the resolution as saying of the Eastwood movies.
The government agreed; an official map with the new name will be released September 1.
Still, Iwo Jima is the only name that clicks with most Japanese not from the remote island chain, some 1,120 kilometers (700 miles) southeast of Tokyo in the Pacific Ocean.
Even some veterans, like 84-year-old Kiyoshi Endo, who heads an association commemorating soldiers killed in the battle, feel uncomfortable about the switch.
"Naval maps have long used the name Iwo Jima," Japan's Sankei newspaper quoted Endo as saying. "We should respect that history."
Today Iwo To's only inhabitants are about 400 Japanese soldiers.
In the U.S., Maj. Gen. Fred Haynes, who was a 24-year-old captain in the regiment that raised the flag on Mount Suribachi, was surprised and upset by the news.
"Frankly, I don't like it. That name is so much a part of our tradition, our legacy," said Haynes.
Haynes, 85, heads the Combat Veterans of Iwo Jima, a group of about 600 veterans that travels back to the island every year for a reunion. He is currently working on a book about the battle called "We Walk by Faith: The Story of Combat Team 28 and the Battle of Iwo Jima." He doesn't plan to change the name.
"It was Iwo Jima to us when we took it," said Haynes. "We'll recognize whatever the Japanese want to call it but we'll stick to Iwo Jima."
The 1945 battle for Iwo Jima pitted some 100,000 U.S. troops against 22,000 Japanese deeply dug into a labyrinth of tunnels and trenches. Nearly 7,000 Americans were killed capturing the island, and fewer than 1,000 of the Japanese survived.
The Americans occupied the island after the war, and returned it to Japanese jurisdiction in 1968. The U.S. Navy still uses an Iwo To airstrip to train pilots who operate from aircraft carriers.
TOKYO, Japan (AP) -- Japan has rechristened the island of Iwo Jima, site of one of World War II's most horrific battles, with its pre-war name in an attempt to rectify a misnomer proliferated for a half-century by such movies as Clint Eastwood's "Letters from Iwo Jima."
The new name, Iwo To -- pronounced "ee-woh-toh" -- is the same as that used by the island's original inhabitants and the one still preferred by residents in the area. It was adopted Monday by the Japanese Geographical Survey Institute in consultation with Japan's coast guard.
The change was championed by surviving islanders evacuated during the war, who wanted to reclaim an identity they said had been hijacked. But others said the overhaul cheapens the memory of a brutal campaign that today is inextricably linked to the words Iwo Jima.
Back in 1945, the small, volcanic island was the vortex of the fierce World War II battle immortalized by the famous photograph by Joe Rosenthal of The Associated Press showing Marines raising the American flag on the islet's Mount Suribachi.
But before the war, the isolated spit of land was called Iwo To by the 1,000 or so civilians who lived there. In Japanese, that name looks and means the same as Iwo Jima -- or Sulfur Island -- but it has a different sound.
The civilians were evacuated in 1944 as U.S. forces advanced across the Pacific. Some Japanese navy officers who moved in to fortify the island mistakenly called it Iwo Jima, and the name stuck. After the war, civilians weren't allowed to return and the island was put to exclusive military use by both the U.S. and Japan, cementing its identity.
Locals were never happy the name Iwo Jima took root.
But the last straw came this year with the release of Eastwood's "Letters from Iwo Jima" and "Flags of Our Fathers," twin war films that only reinforced the misnomer.
In March, Ogasawara, the municipality that administers Iwo To and neighboring islands, responded by adopting a resolution making Iwo To the official reading. Ogasawara residents and descendants of Iwo To evacuees petitioned the central government to follow suit.
"Though we're happy for Iwo To, which has been forgotten by history, the islanders are extremely grieved every time they hear Iwo To referred to as Iwo Jima," the local Ogasawara newspaper quoted the resolution as saying of the Eastwood movies.
The government agreed; an official map with the new name will be released September 1.
Still, Iwo Jima is the only name that clicks with most Japanese not from the remote island chain, some 1,120 kilometers (700 miles) southeast of Tokyo in the Pacific Ocean.
Even some veterans, like 84-year-old Kiyoshi Endo, who heads an association commemorating soldiers killed in the battle, feel uncomfortable about the switch.
"Naval maps have long used the name Iwo Jima," Japan's Sankei newspaper quoted Endo as saying. "We should respect that history."
Today Iwo To's only inhabitants are about 400 Japanese soldiers.
In the U.S., Maj. Gen. Fred Haynes, who was a 24-year-old captain in the regiment that raised the flag on Mount Suribachi, was surprised and upset by the news.
"Frankly, I don't like it. That name is so much a part of our tradition, our legacy," said Haynes.
Haynes, 85, heads the Combat Veterans of Iwo Jima, a group of about 600 veterans that travels back to the island every year for a reunion. He is currently working on a book about the battle called "We Walk by Faith: The Story of Combat Team 28 and the Battle of Iwo Jima." He doesn't plan to change the name.
"It was Iwo Jima to us when we took it," said Haynes. "We'll recognize whatever the Japanese want to call it but we'll stick to Iwo Jima."
The 1945 battle for Iwo Jima pitted some 100,000 U.S. troops against 22,000 Japanese deeply dug into a labyrinth of tunnels and trenches. Nearly 7,000 Americans were killed capturing the island, and fewer than 1,000 of the Japanese survived.
The Americans occupied the island after the war, and returned it to Japanese jurisdiction in 1968. The U.S. Navy still uses an Iwo To airstrip to train pilots who operate from aircraft carriers.
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Yes, but the US Army captured Iwo To.
Don't you read ??
Doug0 -
Doug,
[?]
Everything I've read paints the battle of Iwo Jima as a Marine operation.0 -
The forces that captured Iwo Jima followed the format used on such islands as Guadalcanal. The Marines forced the landing and the primary stages of attack. The Marines would then be relieved by army units for completion of securing the island. In the case of Iwo, virtually all of the above ground area was owned by the US at the time the Marines were replaced by army units. However considerable casualties occurred after the island was "secured" because the Japanese remained in their underground hiding places, taking shots of opportunity. The last offensive action was when a group of Japanese attacked a "rear area" of tents occupied by sleeping soldiers and some Marines. Since it was considered secure, most of the troops had checked their weapons in the armory and were virtually defenseless to the armed and suicidal Japanese. 0 -
John Wayne called it Iwo Jima, I call it Iwo Jima. 0 -
Just like Prussia attacked France in the Franco Prussian War, so too did we attack Iwo Jima. What they called it before or since doesn't matter.
What about the smaller battle on Chichi Jima? Is that now Chichi To?0 -
quote:Originally posted by ElMuertoMonkey
Kind of like how they changed the name of Stalingrad back to Volgagrad (sp?).
Don't worry - those little b@$#@rds can run, but they can't hide from the truth... the US kicked their @$$es but good and the USMC was the boot doin' it.
I don't think they're arguing who won on the island, they just want to change the name back to what it used to be. And they can if they want to, its an island of Japan after all.0 -
It is yet another attempt by the Japs to hide WWII. The people who did this are despicable[}:)][}:)][}:)] 0 -
We should prevent them from changing it.
It is our Hallowed Ground.
Screw them.
Doug
NOTE: I was kidding about the Army. No disrespect was intended to those Great Marines.0 -
it is their Hallowed ground also. Many more Japanese died during that battle than Americans, i dont care what they want to call it, i think it should be preserved as a memorial to ALL the fallen warriors of both nations who died there. I am not taking anything away from the Marines and soldiers who gave their lives there, I served in the Marines myself, but the island saw a tremendous loss of life for both sides. as far as the official "name-changing" i could care less, its iwo jima to me, always will be. 0 -
The japs lost trying to rule the world.
We won, freeing the world.
The japs should have no input as to how WE decide to deal with the ground they lost, including the home islands.
We should not allow this.
There is no hallowed ground for tyrants.
Doug0 -
yeah right, maybe we should stick them all back in internment camps just like we did 60 years ago.
the Japanese that died on Iwo were not tyrants, they were simple soldiers doing their duty to their country, just like the Marines who died there.
"The japs should have no input as to how WE decide to deal with the ground they lost, including the home islands."
are you serious?? F-it, just make em all slaves, i mean, their grandfathers started a war with us 60 years ago, right??? i am ashamed that their are still Americans who feel the way you do doug.0 -
Those words brought to you by a guy who is scared to acknowledged his own name or where he lives.
How many of your Father's Friends were slaughtered by those filthy sub-humans - my Dad lost many. Speaking of treacherous little yellow people - how many Friends did your Brother lose trying to hold back the hordes of them in Korea - my Brother lost many. And I ?? I lost many Friends trying to save a peaceful nation from the Communist aggressors in a place called Viet Nam.
In case you haven't figured it out, I truly dislike them.
Shove your supercilious, self righteous opinions.
Doug0 -
scared to acknowledge who i am or where i live????
my real name is in my signature box. Bert Jepson. i live in Oregon, my phone number? 503 410 9489. what is your problem? im sorry you have had unpleasant experiences with "them". i have not. We fought against white people in a number of wars, does that mean you should hate white people??? i dont see your logic here doug. please explain.0 -
It is their island, they can call it what they like, jingoist bigots on this board and in this country not withstanding. 0 -
It is a blatant attempt at Revisionist History. It is also a function of Cultural Clash - in Japanese, the written figures that say Iwo Jima (our written transliteration of the symbol) also say and look like Iwo To.
And, if you want to seem totally uncaring about something, the correct/logical way to say it is: "I COULDN'T CARE LESS" - see, if you could not care less, you care the least possible. If you say "I could care less", it implies that you care, maybe a lot. Follow?0 -
Found this article on Military.com
http://www.military.com/NewsContent/0,13319,139993,00.html0 -
Who cares what Japan calls it.......The entire world will call that stinking island Iwo Jima until doomsday 0 -
Japan took US soil and renamed it Omiya Jima.
This is the Japanese Imperial Navy outside of a former US Marine Corps Barracks they took there:
I don't like the Japanese either. They are forcing the 3rd Marines out of Japan.0
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