Abstract
In the 1840s and 1850s, seven French missionaries stayed in the kingdom of Ryûkyû. While waiting for the conclusion of the treaty between Japan and France, they used their time to learn the different languages (the dialect of Ryukyu, Mandarin and Japanese). The first French missionary in Ryukyu at that time could not get any help from the government of the kingdom. Following the meeting between the Ryûkyû governors and the French admiral in 1846, the next two missionaries were able to learn the language with Ryûkyû language teachers and some texts. In the 1850s, missionaries arrived in Ryûkyû bringing the result of the studies of their predecessors. Contrary to the previous decade, the Ryûkyû government allowed to provide not only language teachers but also books in Japanese since the conclusion of the Franco-Ryûkyû convention in 1855. Thus, even if their language teachers taught without too much zeal, the French missionaries redoubled their energy to learn and improve their level.
