ONEOFMANYFEATHERS'
The Ainu
Ainu, also know as Ezo in historical texts, are an ethnic group indigenous to Hokkaido, the Kuril Islands, and much of Sakhalin. The Ainu are shorter than the Japanese people, with lighter skin, robust body and short limbs. Unlike typical Mongoloids, their hair is wavy and the body hair is abundant; men wear large beards and mustaches, considered a sign of beauty, to the point that married women tattoo their lower face to mimic a beard. Ainu have not such pronounced almond-shaped eyes and lack the Mongoloid fold of the eye; the nose is large and straight. All these point to their origin in Polynesia or southeastern Asia
In the mid-1400 s, the Japanese extended their influence over southern Hokkaido, primarily Esashi and Matsumae. Later, they came to op-press the Ainu. To resist the oppression by the Japanese, the Ainu waged the Battle of Kosyamain in 1457, the Battle of Syaksyain in 1669, and the Battle of Kunasiri-Menasi in 1789. The Ainu lost each time. After losing the Battle of Kunasiri-Menasi in particular, the Ainu fell completely under the control of the Japanese.
In 1899, the Hokkaido Aborigine Protection Act was passed. Its aim was to provide relief for the Ainu and help them become engaged in agriculture, however, it designated the Ainu as "former aborigines" and clarified the distinction between the Japanese and the Ainu. This law was repealed only in 1997 when the Law for the Promotion of the Ainu Culture and Dissemination and Advocacy for the Traditions of the Ainu and the Ainu Culture (Culture Promotion Law), was enacted.
With an increasing number of Japanese colonizing Hokkaido from Honshu in the late Meiji era, the oppression and exploitation of the Ainu was replaced by discrimination. Discrimination against the Ainu still remains and has become a major social problem.
The Ainu who lived in Hokkaido, the Kurile Islands and Sakhalin were called "Hokkaido Ainu", "Kurile Ainu" and "Sakhalin Ainu" respectively. However, except for the few Ainu people who now live in Sakhalin, most live in Hokkaido.
The estimated Ainu populations from 1807 to 1931
1807 : 26,256
1822 : 23,563
1854 : 17,810
1873 : 16,272
1903 : 17,783
1931 : 15,969
A survey conducted in 1984 by the Hokkaido Government, listed the 1984 Ainu population of Hokkaido at 24, 381.
Note: Reasons for decrease in population between 1822 and 1854 was due to forced labor which brought about the breakup of Ainu families, and the spread of such diseases as smallpox, measles, cholera, tuberculosis and venereal diseases.
Ainu is the traditional language. According to research by Alexander Vovin, in 1996 only 15 fluent speakers remained, and the last speaker of the Sakhalin dialect had died in 1994. Most Ainu today are native speakers of Japanese or Russian.
The Ainu people are still struggling for the full recognition and acceptance by the Japanese society of their culture and language, and for the recognition in law of their rights as an indigenous people.
Remember