Okitsura: Fell in Love with an Okinawan Girl, but I Just Wish I Knew What She's Saying is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Egumi Sora. It began serialization on Shinchosha's Kurage Bunch website in January 2020. An anime television series adaptation produced by Millepensee aired from January to March 2025.
Contents
Plot
Nakamura Teruaki, a boy from Tokyo who transfers to Uruma, Okinawa Prefecture as a student, meets, and develops a crush on, his new classmate, Kyan Hina. Talking to her, however, is a problem because she mostly speaks in the Okinawan dialect. He would not understand her at all if not for another classmate of his, Hina's friend Higa Kana, who translates for him. Unbeknownst to Teruaki, Kana has a crush on him, and has been translating for him as an excuse to get near him. With them and their friends, Teruaki becomes more exposed and learns a lot about Okinawa, its people, and its culture.
Characters
Teruaki Nakamura (中村 照秋, Nakamura Teruaki)
Voiced by: Takeo Ōtsuka
A transfer student who moves in to Okinawa from Tokyo. He has a crush on Hina, but does not understand her Okinawan dialect. Over the course of his time, he begins to enjoy the culture and traditions of Okinawa.
Hina Kyan (喜屋武 飛夏, Kyan Hina)
Voiced by: Akari Kitō (PV, anime)
A girl who speaks with an Okinawan dialect. She is also proficient with the Okinawan language. She is outgoing and is kind to children and helps when she can. She is completely oblivious to Teruaki's crush on her, and isn't keen on the idea of having a relationship with anyone, something that usually mortifies her.
Kana Higa (比嘉 夏菜, Higa Kana)
Voiced by: Fairouz Ai (PV, anime)
A friend of Hina and classmate of Teruaki. She helps translate Hina's Okinawan dialect to Teruaki. She appears to be in love with Teruaki, and often feels jealous when he only shows affection to Hina and not her; Teruaki is completely oblivious to this.
Yae Agena (安慶名八重, Agena Yae)
Voiced by: Shino Shimoji
A friend of Hina and Kana, and she could tell Kana has a crush on Teruaki, just as Teruaki has a crush on Hina.
Tensuke Uema (上間 天介, Uema Tensuke)
Voiced by: Shugo Nakamura
Isao Shimoji (下地 勲, Shimoji Isao)
Voiced by: Kentarō Kumagai
Isao and Tensuke are classmates of Teruaki, Hina, and Kana who would occasionally hang around.
Oki Memo Shisha (沖メモシーサー)
Voiced by: Etsuko Kozakura
A shisa who would come out and point out the intricacies of Okinawan culture.
Tetsu Higa (比嘉 鉄, Higa Tetsu)
Voiced by: Yamato Kinjo
Kana's older brother. He can be distinguished by his glasses, hairstyle, and tanned skin. He knows how to fish using a purse seine net.
Suzu Higa (比嘉 すず, Higa Suzu)
Voiced by: Miyuri Shimabukuro
Kana's younger sister. She and her brother first met Teruaki by the seaside, which led to him meeting Kana.
Naoya Higa (比嘉 なおや, Higa Naoya)
Voiced by: Risa Tsumugi
Kana's younger brother. He and Suzu first met Teruaki by the seaside, which led to him meeting Kana.
Sachiko Kyan (喜屋武 幸子, Kyan Sachiko)
Voiced by: Yūko Gibu
Hina's grandmother.
Media
Manga
Written and illustrated by Egumi Sora, Okinawa de Suki ni Natta Ko ga Hōgen Sugite Tsurasugiru began serialization in Shinchosha's Kurage Bunch manga website on January 10, 2020. The first volume was released on July 9, 2020. It has been collected in eleven tankōbon volumes as of February 9, 2026.
Anime
An anime television series adaptation was announced on July 3, 2023. It is produced by Millepensee and written and directed by Shingo Tanabe and Shin Itagaki, with Itagaki serving as chief director, Tomohiro Yoshida designing the characters, Tomohisa Ishikawa, Yoshimi Katayama, and Ayano Kinjō composing the music, Hodaka Fukumura serving as dialect coach, and narration by Tarusuke Shingaki. The series aired from January 5 to March 23, 2025, on Tokyo MX and other networks. Crunchyroll streamed the series. Okinawan VTuber Ui Nema served as a public relations ambassador for the anime adaptation.
The opening theme song is "Dai Dai Daisuki" (大大大好き, I Really, Really Love You), performed by Okinawan band HY, while each episode features a different ending theme song which are covers related to Okinawa, all performed by Akari Kitō and Fairouz Ai as their respective characters Hina and Kana.