The Ainus - Paul Carus

8/13/2019 The Ainus - Paul Carus

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http://e-asia.uoregon.edu
http://e-asia.uoregon.edu/


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THE AINUS

Paul Carus

The Open Court

VOL. XIX (No. 3), March,

1905, no. 586, pp. 163-177


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THE AINUS.

BY THE EDITOR.

ON Yezo, the most northern Islandof the Japanese empire, there isiving the remnant of a peculiar

people, called the Ainus, who arecommonly supposed to have beenthe earliest inhabitants of the whol

archipelago. They were notunknown to the Chinese, who in areport of the year 310 A. D. aboutstrange ship wrecked people on

their coast, speak of them as mao


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in or hairy men. When the rulingclasses of the present Japanesepopulation, who arc probably a

mixture of Malay and Hindu, orperhaps Siamese, conquered thecountry, the Ainus were driven from

their original homes, until now theyare to be found only in the northernslands, counting a population ofnot more than 50,000 souls.

he Japanese as a rule look downupon the Ainus as an inferior race,

and when Professor Starr went toJapan for the purpose of engagingan Ainu family for exposition at theSt. Louis World's fair, the Japanese


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authorities tried to frustrate theproject. His wishes were acceded toonly on his promise that he would

not fail to impress the truth uponthe visitors to the Fair, that theAinus were not Japanese, but

merely subject to the Mikado, andwere primitive tribes speaking aanguage of their own, with theirown peculiar customs and

nstitutions.

Now it is interesting for us to know

that the Ainus are obviously a whiterace and are nearer kin to theEuropeans than any Asiatic races.hey seem to have come to Japan


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from the continent of Asia, and mayat a remote prehistoric time haveextended over the whole of Siberia

A priori it would seem probable thathey might to be nearest in blood tothe Russians --- the most eastern

nhabitants of Europe; and if wecompare the features of the Ainuswith the Russian type we are struckwith their remarkable similarity.

page 164


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AINU FAMILY WITH JAPANESE INTERPRETER

page 165

Anthropologists, folklorists, and


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philologists have so far troubledvery little about the Ainus, and thebest authority on the subject, so fa

as we know, is still the Rev. JohnBatchelor who came to Yezo in1879 and has worked among the

people as a missionary and civilisesever since. We learn from ProfessorStarr, who met


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OLD MAN WHITTLING.


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him at his home in the far East, thaMr. Batchelor has ready in

manuscript a dictionary of the Ainuanguage, and it would be verydesirable for the interests of

anthropology in general to have itpublished, that students ofcomparative philology might begiven

page 166

an opportunity to determine thecharacter of the language and thussee whether or not there is anysimilarity to the Slavic tongues.


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he Ainus, not unlike Russianpeasants, are a most inoffensiveand peaceable people. They are no

rovers but like to remain home, andare good natured and amenable toauthority. The become dangerous

only when driven to despair by cruetreatment


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A TYPICAL RUSSIAN PEASANT.

page 167


16/45AINU MAN.


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page 168

and since the Japanese governmens very considerate with them they

have rarely proved anything butsubmissive. They are veryndustrious, and live mainly byhunting and fishing, but are also

fond of weaving carpets, baskets,mats, etc., and are experts atwhittling, by this means making

spoons, bowls, and other utensils.

he writer of this sketch visited theAinus at the St. Louis Exposition in

the company of Prof. Frederick Star


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of the University of Chicago, andProf. F. W. Kelsey from Ann Arbor.he head of the household was a

venerable old man who bore astriking resemblance to the greatRussian philosopher Tolstoy, not so

much


19/45CARPET WEAVING.


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page 169

perhaps, in particular features as inhis general appearance. Another

Ainu who represented the type offullgrown manhood, looked like aRussian peasant of the better classwith benevolent features and an

almost Christ-like expression in hiseye. So far as exterior is concernedhe would certainly be a welcome

candidate for the


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BASKET MAKING.


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chief role at Oberammergau. Thewomen among the Ainus are

noticeably different and seem to beof a Mongolian type.

heir thatched hut was built exactlyike the homes they left in Yezo, ofmaterials brought with them for thepurpose, and as we approached it,

they greeted us after their nativefashion by


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AINU MOTHER.

page 170

raising three times both hands,palm upwards, with fingers widelyspread, and then gravely stroking

their beards downwards. Thewomen who wore tattooedmustaches welcomed us in apeculiar manner which we could no

help considering ridiculous, bydrawing the first finger of the righthand under the nose, and Professor

Starr thought that the artificial


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beard was probably made for thepurpose of enabling them to imitatetheir husbands' method of greeting

We discoursed with these amiablechildren of nature through


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MAKING MATS.


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page 172

their Japanese interpreter who

spoke enough English to makehimself understood to us and hadfull command of Ainu speech. We

squatted round the fire over whichour hosts baked rice cakes andserved tea.

he old man made wood shavingswhich were curling under his knife.hey serve a religious purpose, and

he explained to us the orthodoxway of making them, although theheterodox way was not so muchabhorred as deemed inefficient. At

any rate, he did not hesitate to


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make shavings either way and toreject the heterodox and throwthem into the fire as useless.

he shavings are frequently lefthanging from the top of the sacred

willow-stick, called inao, and thisgives it something of theappearance of a mop. A large inaos kept constantly in the northeast

corner of the house whence it isnever removed. It is called "the oldman," and the Ainus dislike to

speak on the subject, and regard itwith great reverence. Other inaosare set up at places which theywish to consecrate --- at springs, a


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storehouses,(wherever theyexpect divine

protection. Theseodd symbols seemto serve as

guardians, andare supposed tobe endowed withsupernatural

power. A sacredhedge, callednusa, is grown on

the east side ofAinu dwellings,and ProfessorStarr advises


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foreigners never to meddle witheither inao or nusa (See Starr, TheAinu Group at the St. Louis

Exposition, pp. 26-28.)

he Ainus are naturally devout, but

their religion is so vague that itwould be very difficult to givedefinite explanation of it, for theythemselves are probably least fit to

be the interpreters of theirtraditional beliefs. They only followthe precedents established by their

fathers, and any one who would

page 174

attempt to describe their religion


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would have to begin with simply adescription of their customs,nstitutions, rituals, and festivals.

Explanations will have to be derivedfrom the data of comparative

religion.

It is characteristic of the Ainus thatthey celebrate festivals


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OLD MAN WITH INAO.

BEAR'S CAGE

page 175


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n honor of animals, and the mostmportant of these is the bear,which seems to be regarded as an

ncarnation of the deity whoassumes this visible form in order tofurnish the Ainus with food and

clothing. The reverence with whichthe bear is regarded, the love withwhich the cub is raised, and thereligious observance with which he

s finally eaten, furnishes us with apeculiar parallel to the customs ofthe Aztecs who feed a

representative of the god andfinally sacrifice and eat himceremoniously in a sacramentalmeal.


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AINU HOUSE.

page 176


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We learn from Professor Starr's littlebook (pp. 45-50) that the festival is

a regular institution among theAinus. Bear hunting n takes place inwinter and early spring, and on one

of their expeditions they areparticularly anxious to capture alivea little bear cub. Mr. Batchelor toldProfessor Starr that the bear cub

was suckled by the women of thevillage.

"On one occasion, when he waspreaching in a house, the little cubwas taken into the service and waspassed from one woman to another


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and suckled, in the most matter offact way. Later on, though noonger suckled, the pet bear is mos

carefully fed; sometimes thewoman will give it a soft morselwith her lips. When the animal is

too large to be longer kept in thehouse and petted, it is put out intoa cage, constructed of a cob-web ofogs and raised a little above the

ground on posts. In feeding it therea special wooden trough with ahandle is used. Formerly the bear

was kept two or three years in thevillage; now one rarely, sees a beamore than a year old in the cages.Finally the time for the great


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ceremonial arrives. Food and drinkare prepared in large quantitiescakes or dumplings, millet beer,

and sak (Japanese rice brandy).Guests from other villages arenvited. Everyone is dressed in their

finest clothing. The older and moremportant men wear their crowns.he men have bathed and their

foreheads and the back of their

necks have been shaved and theirhair trimmed; bathing, shaving, andhair trimming regularly occur but

once a year. Abundance of freshnao are cut. A preliminaryfeasting takes place, at which themen seat themselves in a semi-


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circle to the east of the house,facing the nusa, near the food anddrink, whirl: are placed before them

the women sit behind the men.Presently a man, chosen for thatservice, goes to the bear's cage,

where he salaams and makes anaddress to the captive. Mr.Batchelor prints one such address,as follows: "Oh, thou divine one,

thou wast sent into the world for usto hunt. Oh, thou precious littledivinity, ire worship thee; pray hear

our prayer. We have nourished theeand brought thee up with a deal ofpains and trouble, all because weove thee so. Now, as thou hast


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grown big, we are about to sendthee to thy father and mother.When thou comest to them please

speak well of us, and tell them howkind we have been; please come tous again and we will sacrifice

thee." Two young men, one oneither side, now noose the bearwith lassoes and drag him outamong the people. Armed with

bows and arrows, with blunt,wooden points, they shoot at him totease and irritate him. Such arrows

are not used on any other occasionand the tips are stained black afterwhich

page 177


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ornamental patterns are cutthrough, to show the white wood

beneath; a bit of red flannel isadded at the very tip. After beinged around for some time, the

animal is tied to a stout stakedriven into the ground, and theteasing continues. Finally, twoyoung men attack the animal, one

seizing it by the ears and head, theother taking it by the hind quartersa third man rushes up holding a

stick by the ends in his hands andforces it between the bear's teeth;four other men seize the animal byhis legs or feet and drag them


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outward until the bears liessprawling upon the ground. Twoong poles are then placed, one

under the bear's throat, the otheracross the nape of his neck. Uponthese the people crowd and weigh

down to strangle the poor beast.Sometimes a man with a bow andarrow shortens the creature'ssufferings by a well directed shot.

he bear is then skinned and itshead is cut off, the skin remainingattached to it. The skin and head

are then laid out upon a nice matnear the east window, anddecorated with inao shavings,beads, earrings, small mirrors, etc.;


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a bit of its own flesh is placed undets snout;

ARROW USED IN THE BEAR FEAST.

dried fish, sak or millet beer, milledumplings, and a cup of its own

meat boiled are offered to it. Aworshipper addresses it in somesuch fashion as this: 'Oh, cub, wegive you these inao, cakes, and

dried fish: take them to yourparents and say, "I have beenbrought up for a long time by an

Ainu father and mother and have


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been kept from all trouble andharm; as I am now grown big, I amcome to you. I have also brought

you these inao, cakes, and driedfish. Please rejoice." If you say thisto them, they will be very glad.'

Dancing and feasting then ensue. Acup of the animal's flesh hasmeantime been boiled; after thishas been offered to him, a little is

given to every person present, eventhe children. A general feast uponthe meat of the bear follows, until

practically nothing is left except hisbones. The head with its skinattached is then placed upon thenusa and left there. In time,


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through decay and weathering, onlythe bleached skull remains."

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The Ainus - Paul Carus

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