The 21-sq.-km island of Mikura has a distinctive history remembered and shared well by villagers.
While some archeological evidence shows that the island was inhabited as far back as 6,000 years ago, modern-day villagers say the oldest written records that link them to their ancestors are those from the Edo Period (1603-1867), during which the island was under the direct control of the Tokugawa Shogunate.
"The Izu Islands were designated as places of exile during the Edo Period," explains Setsuyoshi Hirose, a 54-year-old Mikura native who now works at the local tourist information center. "In any of the Izu Islands, about 10 percent of the population are said to be descendants of those who were exiled from Edo (present-day Tokyo) -(mostly for political reasons). Because of limited food and other resources, it was a huge burden for the islanders to accept exiles."