Mamoru Shō

Mamoru Shō is an ethnic Ryukyuan businessman who is the current head of the Shō family, the former Ryukyuan royal family. He lives in Ise City, Mie Prefecture.

Life

Mamoru Shō was born in Tokyo on 18 August 1950, the eldest son of Hiroshi Shō. After graduating from Tamagawa University, he obtained an MBA from Samford University.
He is the great-great-grandson of Shō Tai, the last king of the Ryukyu Kingdom, and became the Shō family head upon the death of his father on 30 August 1996. In May 2019, he established the Ryukyu History and Culture Inheritance Promotion Association and currently serves as its representative director. He has also donated a number of family documents and artefacts to Naha City for preservation.

Family

Shō formally adopted a married couple, Takayuki and Maki, into his family, following a Japanese custom known as fūfu yōshi. Shō has a biological son named Takeshi, whom he has declined to appoint as his heir apparent, instead endorsing Takayuki and Maki. Maki serves as the current leading clergy member of the acting Kikoe-ōgimi.

Father: Hiroshi Shō
Mother: Keiko Shō
Wife: Midori Iwanabe
*Son: Takeru Shō
*Adoptive son: Takayuki Shō
*Adoptive daughter: Maki Shō