Al Toma is a member of the Okinawan Genealogical Society of Hawaii (OGSH), which is part of the Hawaii United Okinawan Association (HUOA). He says that the new Okinawan database just went online. This means that we can submit an electronic request for information about our issei ancestors through the OGSH website.

Here’s the text from form 1 below: Hi! We are the Okinawan Genealogical Society of Hawaii (OGSH). Along with the Okinawa Prefectural Library (OPL), we are providing this FREE resource to find your isseis! All our volunteer members can provide help in Okinawan genealogical research, koseki request preparation and non-commercial translation services. 

Please enter your 1st generation immigrant’s last and first names. You can use English or their kanji names. Partial names are acceptable. As there are multiple English readings of kanji, you will have better results entering their kanji names if you know them. The address can be a partial entry of the city, town, village or house number. Birth year searched will be between the previous and next entered year. If you do not know the birth year, you can try obtaining a death certificate from the Board of Health or locating their headstones and urns at the cemetery.

The text from form 2 below: We are the Okinawan Genealogical Society of Hawaii (OGSH).  We can help you find your 1st generation ancestors who emigrated to Hawaii and beyond. We also can help you find your ancestral roots in Okinawa by assisting you in koseki (family registration) request preparation. We meet every Friday from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm at the Hawaii United Okinawan Center in the Serikaku Chaya Room. We have monthly meetings where presentations are offered relating to Okinawa Emigration, Arts, Culture and Language. Join us!

The following copies of the search form and question/comment form are provided to give you an idea of what the forms look like and the kinds of information they request. To complete the actual forms, go to the OGSH website.

Form 1: Copy of the search form. Click to enlarge.

Form 2: Copy of the question/comment form. Click to enlarge.