August 6, 2007:
Last June, Japan officially changed
the name of "Iwo Jima" island to "Iwo To." The island inhabitants have long
called the island, the scene of a major World War II battle, Iwo To. But when
Japanese troops arrived in 1944, to defend the island against expected American
attack, the officers in charge used an alternative term for "Sulfur Island."
Both names basically mean that in Japanese, but the descendents of those
thousand ilanders, have long sought official government recognition of the
traditional name.
After World War II, the inhabitants were not
allowed to return, partly because of all the unexploded munitions lying about,
the shortage of room, and Japanese soldiers who refused to surrender and kept
shooting at people. These holdouts hid in the many caves on the island, and
lived off food, or garbage, they stole from the American garrison. The last of
these holdouts surrendered in 1949. Since then, Iwo Jima has been exclusively a
military base. The U.S. will continue to call the island Iwo Jima, and the
names on the military memorials there, at least the American ones, will not be
changed. But Japan will issue new maps next month, labeling the island Iwo
To. Iwo Jima will disappear from
Japanese records.