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A STUDY OF URBAN MORPHOLOGY OF JAPANESE COLONIAL TOWNS IN NAN'YO GUNTO : Part 2 Koror in Palau

2002; Architectural Institute of Japan; Volume: 67; Issue: 562 Linguagem: Inglês

10.3130/aija.67.317_3

1881-8161

Keiko Ono, John Lea, Tetsuya ANDO,

Remote Sensing and Land Use

Koror, capital of the Republic of Palau, was formerly administrative centre of Japanese Micronesia (Nan'yo Gunto) in the 30 years before World War Two. Opinions about the town offered by contemporary observers ranged from ones of admiration for its modernity to describing it as merely a low status outpost. This paper draws a distinction between the planned administration and government housing precinct in West Koror and the informal development of East Koror, as well as that between the mainland Japanese governing elite, the Okinawan migrants and the indigenous Palauan residents. It suggests that Koror's urban morphology in colonial times reflected its temporary status as a staging post on the path towards southern advancement (nanshin).