ニャティヤ洞

Niya-Thiya Cave - Niyatiya Cave

Useful Information

Location:	Ie-son, Kunigami-gun Okinawa Prefecture. (26.708780, 127.771460)
Open:	no restrictions. [2022]
Fee:	free. [2022]
Classification:	Karst cave
Light:	bring torch
Dimension:
Guided tours:	self guided
Photography:	allowed
Accessibility:	no
Bibliography:
Address:	Niya-Thiya Cave, Ie-son, Kunigami-gun Okinawa Prefecture
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History

Description

ニャティヤ洞 (Nyatiyadō, Niya-Thiya Cave) is a small cave above the sea. There is a parking lot with toilets, which is obviously intended for the cave visitors, as there is no beach. The cave is located in the cliff, and there is also a sea cave at the foot of the cliff ahich is worth a visit. The cave is a shelter cut by the waves into the lower end of the cliff forming a long overhang.

Niya-Thiya Cave is a place of worship or sanctuary for the locals. There is a legend that there is a power stone called Bijiru-ishi in the cave and a woman who prays while holding up the stone will be blessed with a child. If the stone is heavier than you thought it would be, you’ll have a boy, and if it’s lighter than you thought it would be you’ll have a girl. The magic stone is easy to find, there is a sort of altar with some text on it and a small circular pilar on which the rock resides.

The cave was used as an air raid shelter for residents during World War II. It is also called Senningama (Cave of A Thousand Men) since then. The nearby beach is called GI-Beach, that's probably not because it was a battlefield, we guess it's because the soldiers from the nearby U.S. airbase go swimming here.