Ainu Culture Festival

July 15 in Matsukata Hall-Kobe

To jump right to the slideshow of the festival, in which you'll see some of the crafts, and music and dance, along with picutres of Mr.Kayano's speech, click here.

To learn more about the Ainu, read below. The small images can be enlarged. Picture's text is in Japanese. Summary of text is on this page.

Hear the Mukkuri
English: http://www.frpac.or.jp/eng/e_ins/index.html
日本語: http://www.frpac.or.jp/ins/mukuri2.html

Hear the Tondori:
English not available (click black squares-green 'listen')
日本語 http://www.tonkori.com/disc/tonkori.html

Language:
The Ainu language that still survives in common use, is the language naming geographical locations, such as the river, or the animals of the river and forests.

Stories:
As with all early inhabitants of a country, stories are handed down from generation to generation. Many of the storytellers also added original melodies when they told the story. Stories often were about the bear, fox, and other animal dieties. They incorporated the wisdom of living in nature without disturbing it.

Ainu Language today:
During the Meiji era, all schools taught Japanese, so there wasn't much of an opportunity to speak Ainu. Increasingly people are taking Ainu language classes and listening to Ainu radio shows in ofrder to learn the language.

Religious Faith:
The Ainu believe that nature and the forces of nature are dieties, some good, some bad. They are beyond the reach of humans, but very important to their lives. When they pray, the fire diety is always invoked to carry their prayers to the other dieties.

Sending Back the Spirits of the Dieties:
The bear is an important diety, for it delivers fur and meat. During the Bear Festival, the spirits of the bears who have visited are sent back to the world in which they belong. The more important a diety is to everyday life, the bigger and more ceremonious is the festival returning it's spirit to the land of the dieties.

Living: Life in the Kotan
The Ainu lived near the rivers to easily find food and water. People lived by fishing, hunting, and gathering plants. Houses were called Cise in Ainu. They used natural materials such as grasses and bamboo, weaving and framing the structure. They also used tree bark for walls and roofs. The inside of the Cise was square and divided into sleeping areas, a storage area for valuables ( where the dieties were enshrined) and a main entrance with the hearth. There was one window opposite the entrance so that the dieties could enter and exit. Around the Cise were other structures: outhouses, food storage houses, and other necessities. There was a prayer house and cages for raising bears and other animals. Each region had it's own layout for a Cise.

Livelihood: Fishing, Hunting and Gathering
The Ainu lived in the harsh northern environment near rivers and the sea. The men would go fishing and hunting and do other physical labor while the women and children gathered plants, did weaving and other household chores. Deer and brown bear were two of the common animals hunted and trout and salmon the comon fish caught. The hides were used for shoes, clothes, bags and other things. Some birds were also caught to make clothes. Plants were gathered, but pieces of root were always left for the next season's crop.

Trade:
While most of the fur and skins were used for the village, some was traded with the surrounding peoples for such things as glass, silk an metal implements.

Food:
The Ainu searched for food amongst nature, and were always careful to 'preserve' the source of the food, never gathering it to extinction. Seasonal plants and animals were steamed, boiled, or roasted.

Ceremonial meals:
Meals to send back the spirits of the bear and other dieties, weddings, funerals, and such, called for special dishes. Mixed grains and dumplings were additions to the regular meal and were only eaten a few times a year.

Passing on traditions:
At the end of the Edo period the Ainu began to cultivate vegetables which were used in a wide variety of dishes. They began also to use a variety of spices. These traditional dishes have been passed on today.

Clothing: Casual wear and Holiday Attire
The Ainu had clothing for everyday use and for special ceremonies. Traditional Ainu clothing would be woven from the inner bark of the Japanese Linden and other trees, or woven from nettle fiber or sewn from salmon or trout skin, or the pelts of seals and brown bears. Some also would be sewn with tufted puffin feathers. Holiday attire would be made of cottor or silk which was obtained from trade. Shoes were made from salmon skin and deer hide.

Unique patterns:
Ainu patterns were embroidered or made from small patches and are called whirlpool patterns. They believed that patterns on the cuffs and hems kept the evil spirits from entering though these openings.

Entertainment: Dancing, Songs, Mukkuri, Tonkori
The Ainu always sang and danced during ceremonies or when getting together with friends or when praying. Dancing is mostly done by women accompanied by the clapping and singing of the audience.
Songs, again sung mostly by women, were expressions of inner feelings or expressions of love for the opposite sex. Some individual songs have been passed down and become traditional.
The mukkuri is a Jew's harp type of instrument which uses the instrument itself and the mouth of the person playing it to create the sounds.
The tonkori is a harp like instrument made of soft wood and the tendons of whale or deer.

Present Day Ainu Culture:
Though there has been prejudice and repression of their culture, the Ainu have not succumbed to it and have continued to pass down their traditions to the next generation. However, social transformations have made this very difficult. For example the ceremony to send back bear spirits, one of the most important in the culture, was banned; the salmon ceremony became difficult in the wake of fishing restrictions. In the late 70's and early 80's the restoration of the ceremonies has been called for, and some have been carried out.
Traditional dances have been performed and passed down, trying to maintain the regional differences. The Ainu Ethnic and Cultural Festivals are held yearly and these dances are demonstrated. Recently they have also traveled to the US, UK, and Finland and other countries to share their culture. There is an increasing awareness that the keepers of the Ainu tradition are aging; though the young can be seen dancing and the circle of oral tradition is expanding. In 1997 a law for the promotionn of the Ainu Culture was enacted; conservation activities have become more significant.