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The world population is aging．More and more people are expected to live longer．In Japan, there is an island called “the island of long life” －Okinawa(沖繩島)．
Okinawa has had the highest proportion of centenarians in Japan since 1990．Centenarians are those people who have lived one hundred years or more, in other words, people who have lived a “century”．In 2003, the number of centenarians per 100,000 for Japan as a whole was 14.09; Okinawa topped the nation with 39.50．The total number of centenarians in Japan was 17,934; 525 of them lived in Okinawa．By 2006, the number of centenarians in Okinawa had risen to 740, and the proportion had grown to about 50 per 100,000．
Okinawa is said to be a model of long life．The Okinawans believe they will return to their childhood when they turn 97．They will even receive a certificate and a cash prize as birthday gifts from the government．
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