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영어

This article examines the genderization of space that occurs in a US military base after the withdrawal or return of its facilities. Partial return of the Makiminato housing area of US Military base in Okinawa began from 1975, transforming the area into the new city center of Naha by 2005. This area is lined with all kinds of culture and consumer facilities such as duty free stores and large shopping malls, and the typical shopping activities carried out in this area are based on traditional gender order. Just as the existence of a US military base itself represented the relationship between the ruler and the ruled as that of male and female, the space is also genderized after the withdrawal of the US military base. Similar genderization is found in the sites that have been designated as UNESCO World Heritage in 2000. These World Heritage Sites mainly include Okinawan traditional culture and folk beliefs. Representing Okinawa as a world of shamanism dominated by spirituality divine spirits is nothing more than a metaphorical feminization of Okinawa. A thorough investigation on how genderization of space originating from militarism affects the tourism industry will have great implications on reasoning the neo-colonialism in Okinawa that continues even today.