CACrown ArchivesThe cinema collection
Menu
Research dossier · General Reference

Teruo Nakamura

Imperial Japanese Army soldier (1919–1979)

Cross-disciplinary reference desk with index cards, atlas, dictionary and catalogue
General referenceInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionAug 31, 2026
Entity authorityQ700512 ↗
Source-derived summary

Teruo Nakamura (中村 輝夫, Nakamura Teruo; Zhōngcūn Huīfū; born Attun Palalin; also known as Suniuo (史尼育唔) and by an adopted Chinese name Lee Kuang-hui (李光輝, Lǐ Guānghuī); 8 October 1919 – 15 June 1979) was an ethnically Taiwanese Aborigine soldier of the Imperial Japanese Army who fought for Japan in World War II and did not surrender until 1974, holding out in the island of Morotai. He was the last known Japanese holdout to surrender after the end of hostilities in 1945.

Military service

Nakamura was born in Taiwan on 8 October 1919, when the island was under Japanese rule, and was an Amis Taiwanese aborigine. Western sources cite his birth name as being Attun Palalin although other sources claim his original name was Suniuo. He spoke his people's Amis language and had only trivial Japanese and Chinese language skills. He was married with a son who was an infant when he left. He was given the Japanese name of Teruo Nakamura as a result of Japanization policies. In November 1943, he enlisted in a Takasago Volunteer Unit of the Imperial Japanese Army. Nakamura was stationed on Morotai Island, in the Dutch East Indies, shortly before the Allies overran that island in the September 1944 Battle of Morotai. Allegedly, the Imperial Japanese Army declared Nakamura dead on 13 November 1944.

Editorial summary

The public source identifies “Teruo Nakamura” as imperial Japanese Army soldier (1919–1979). This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Teruo, Nakamura and Imperial.

Editorial reviewA practical starting point whose main value is the path it opens into stronger specialist and primary sources. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1919, 1979, 1974, 1945—that can be checked directly. The linked authority record independently contributes the date 1919-10-08. Its value is orientation rather than verdict, with Teruo, Nakamura and Imperial providing the first useful test.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Teruo Nakamura”, the useful work is to connect “imperial Japanese Army soldier (1919–1979)” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.

Evidence profile

Vocabulary and entity names are the principal evidence signals here, because they determine the precision of every later search. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 31, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q700512. VIAF identifies the subject as 21103231. The Library of Congress control number is n85032854. 2 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1919, 1979, 1974 and 1945.

Critical limits

Overview language is designed for orientation and should not be treated as a substitute for the evidence cited beneath it. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.

Best used for
  • Subject orientation
  • Search vocabulary
  • Locating named sources
Verify next

The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Teruo Nakamura”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Teruo Nakamura primary sources, Teruo Nakamura archive and Teruo research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Teruo Nakamura”?
  2. What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
  3. Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
Subject index

Search terms from this dossier

Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from “Teruo Nakamura” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.