Ｒｅｐｕｂｌｉｃ ｏｆ Ｉｓｉｍｏｔａ
いしもた こんへこ・
異島田 共和国
Welcome to the Republic of Isimota!
Originally inhabited by Polynesians, Isimota was visited long ago by visitors from China. Those visitors brought trade, knowledge, and their writing system - eventually establishing an academy in Nohoa'a Tele (also called "Tan Viu" in Kani/Chinese reading). The islands were invaded by Japan in 1921 and were under Japanese rule until after WW2, when they became a trust territory of the United States. By that point, Hiragana (a Japanese script) had been adapted for use with Isimotan and was already widely used. While the Latin script (also called "Iban" / "英文") was widely promoted by the Americans, it never achieved the same level of local usage as Isimotan Hiragana (also called "Waban" or "和文").
In 1988, the United States trusteeship held a vote for whether to become a US overseas territory or an independent nation. By a margin of 2%, Isimotans voted for independence. Since then, investment has poured in from Japan, China, and sometimes the Republic of Korea. Isimota's location just to the south of Japan and China has made it a hotspot for tourists from those countries. Japanese and Chinese, alongside English now, are hot languages to learn at the famous Pacific College located in Hala Tele. Japanese tourists need not worry about English proficiency, as all of our regional capitals boast tour guide staff with at least conversational Japanese.
In Hala Tele, you can visit the old capital of Isimota! Complete with the original campus of Pacific College built by Chinese Buddhist monks, an old Japanese-era colonial library, and the US-built trusteeship administration building. Nohoa'a Tuai features the old Chief's Palace, the national Sento Shrine dedicated to the country's patrion diety Hoan Ti, and the National History Museum. Uahu Mamao, while much smaller and more remote than the other cities, boasts vast nature reserves and pristine beaches. Enjoy a weekend hike and a romantic mountain retreat, all on one island!
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Side note: I wanted to design an island nation that was a mixture of Polynesian, Chinese, and Japanese cultures, and this was what I came up with. I'm still brainstorming parts, but I thought this was a lot for now.
About the flag: The flag is designed to prominently feature the sun, which is a holdover from Japanese influence of the sun as a signifier of the patron deity. The sun here is yellow, which represents Huan Ti, the patron deity of Isimota. He is a carbon copy of Huang Di, the god from Chinese tradition, but he has been combined with various stories from Polynesian traditions. The five rays of the sun represent the traditional "five islands" (though the counting of five is only traditional and does not actually correspond to five real islands). The white stripe is representative of the horizon and the white beaches of the various islands. The flag was designed post-independence but the five-ray sun was a popular local symbol of Sento ("Way of the Gods", name lifted from Shendao/Shinto, basically local religious traditions).
