Omoro Sōshi
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The Omoro Sōshi (おもろさうし, Okinawan: Umuru U-Sōshi,[1] Northern Ryukyuan: おもろおさうし Omoro O-Saushi) is a compilation of ancient poems and songs from Okinawa and the Amami Islands, collected into 22 volumes and written primarily in hiragana with some simple kanji. There are 1,553 poems in the collection, but many are repeated; the number of unique pieces is 1,144.[2]
The hiragana used, however, is a traditional orthography which associates different sounds to the characters than their normal Japanese readings, due to it originally being based on an earlier stage of Northern Ryukyuan that has not yet undergone vowel raising characteristic of the modern languages. The characters used to write omoro, for example (おもろ), would be written this same way, but pronounced as umuru in Okinawan.
The poetry contained in the volumes extends from the 12th century, or possibly earlier, to some composed by the Queen of Shō Nei (1589-1619). Though formally composed and recorded at these times, most if not all are believed to derive from far earlier traditions, as a result of their language, style, and content. The poems contained in the compilation vary, but follow a general pattern of celebrating famous heroes of the past, from poets and warriors to kings and voyagers. A few are love poems. They range from two verses to forty, some making extensive use of rhyme and couplet structures.