An Ainu Folktale Told in the Ainu Language!

[@abelgerli]

It's magical to see the dragonfly landing on your shoulder. Like it's knowing what story you're telling 😊

[@GoNorthJapan]

There were SO MANY dragonflies up there that day. I had to keep my mouth covered as I walked in some areas out of fear of swallowing one by mistake!

[@thecloofer1255]

That was magical!

[@whittledraws]

This is such a cool story!! I hope someone has gathered the folktales of Ainu somewhere they can be preserved. Thank you for bringing attention to this beautiful culture!

[@chrissonnenschein6634]

There are KZbin videos and animations...alas in Ainu &Japanese, but still of interest to watch.

[@kas6583]

I am enjoying this series very much. I am always fascinated by how many similarities there are between the Ainu and Inuit Cultures. Thank you for your amazing research!!! Also, the dragonfly, in almost every part of the world symbolizes change and change in the perspective of self realization. 😀

[@GoNorthJapan]

Oh that's interesting! I didn't realize that about dragonflies!

[@Glarson03]

The dragonfly on his shoulder!! Anyone else see that? Poetic. Continue the good work sir! Love this channel.

[@susanburnside111]

That was beautiful, Quinlan. Thank you for sharing. Like others, I was completely mesmerized by the dragonfly that landed on your shoulder. What a magical moment 😌🙏🏻

[@GoNorthJapan]

I didn't even notice it at the time. They were everywhere!

[@TopAnimeLoverEver]

I love this! It is a little sad however that she didn't mean to lay waste to them, she was simply delighting in their existence, but her delight was too powerful. Thank you for sharing a piece of history with us Quinlan. ❤️ I absolutely adore cultural folktales and stories.

[@chrissonnenschein6634]

Now relegated to Hokkaido - but there are places in tohuku with names derived from Ainu - previously Ainu were all the way up to Kamchatka and west to Vladivistok via Sakhalin. Thus many were used in the Russian Gulags (along with Koreans) and never allowed to go back (Japan also would not let them return for the most part). Spent some time Hokkaido mid90s around Lake Shikotsku ... There are also special katakana for Ainu not enabled for many western browsers... They made unique double walled reed/thatch buildings stuffed with down and fur for insulation. Also a very technical way of weaving combining a special loom where the warp & weft can be interchanged and dying the thread in various colours akin to Ikat.. Hope to hear more what you find.. There were some Ainu poets that studied with Anglican priests back in the day - but their books are all in Japanese so not really much help unless you “spend the time”. Love to hear more what you find out. Also Ainu were the middlemen in trade with China (in periods when japan was at heads with Ryukyu and China). Even back in the ancient times there is a Japanese term for the “northern red mountain trade route” from Iwaizumi (Northern Fujiwara) thru to the ancient port west of Hirosaki (Lake Jusanko/Nakadomari). Ainu also had territory with forts around Sai/Mutsi pensinsula and Noheji. intrinsic for trade and resupply of Kitamaebune for their return journey.

[@kas6583]

Thank you for this information. 😀

[@chrissonnenschein6634]

@@kas6583 Not a problem. A little passion of mine since travelling to Japan. In modern times Aomori gets relegated but there is so much history if one only scratches the surface. The real mystery are the Emishi....

[@GoNorthJapan]

Great information, thank you! I really new to the study of the Ainu, but I'm starting to read a lot more now. Just spent a few days kayaking on Lake Shikotsu in July! Beautiful area! Yeah- I'm desperate to learn more about the Emishi, but there is so little concrete information about them, even in Japanese.. Also- I did learn that some place names here in Iwate are of Ainu origin! For example the last kanji in Hachimantai　八幡平 - if you weren't local you might think this read Hachimantaira, but I was told it was Ainu pronunciation that governed it, as well as Fudotai 不動平...

[@chrissonnenschein6634]

@@GoNorthJapan Much easier nowadays to find information, it was only just starting to be a thing when I was there. I just happened to meet unique people in my travels. I think they still tour a bit, but you may want to trackdown Oki Kano and the Oki Dub Ainu Band - he/they have done a fair bit disseminating information.

[@chrstopherblighton-sande2981]

This was such a beautiful video and hearing you read the story while listening to the woman recite it in Ainu was really quite magical, helped by that special moment when the dragonfly landed on your shoulder. It is such a shame that the Ainu language has declined so much. Here in the UK the Cornish language is continuing to grow slowly, having been revived which shows these things are possible even if difficult, so I hope that efforts can be made to help the Ainu language be spoken more widely in the Ainu community and beyond both now and in the future. Thanks Quinlan for sharing this lovely story with us

[@cailinanne]

I live in the North American southwest and my degree is in anthropology- Native American studies. I gotta say- the anui story telling reminds me of Navajo song stories and it even sounds a bit like Inuit language. There is some genetic proof of very distance ancestry used to discover the migration patterns of humans from there to here, it’s rather fascinating to think they are all little off shoots of a very resilient group of migratory people from 30-20 thousand years ago. There are so many languages that humans have had that we will even never know of, let alone hear. I think it’s amazing this one has the chance to be heard by so many- even if native speakers are running low. It’s there. It can be learned still. I hope they can keep it alive. I’m literally crying over here. I get so emotional over this stuff 🤣🤣 I’m a daughter of a 1st generation Irish immigrant woman- I get the importance of deep deep thousands of years old history being preserved, especially via story telling and language. It’s beautiful.

[@GoNorthJapan]

It is beautiful! Yes- I've read that 20,000 or 30,000 years ago people came over into North American from the Tibetan Plateau. Lots of similarities, definitely!

[@cailinanne]

@@GoNorthJapan the throat signing on the other video got me too because it’s a very very important tradition to northern Canadian tribes. So neat! 🥺 First Nations and indigenous folks are so very connected! Ahh. I love it! 🖤

[@minnar9573]

Thank you!

[@GoNorthJapan]

Thank you so much!! I really appreciate it!

[@hollish196]

A truly wonderful video, with the folk tale told in Ainu and your necessary explanation. Such an interesting story! I was surprised at the strong resemblance between the Ainu language and some of the Native American languages. The telling of the tale sounded a great deal like music from a pow-wow. Also, I looked up the museum, and saw the pictures they have of the Ainu objects and the recreation of a man's full dress. That also is very similar to regalia of Native Americans'.

[@GoNorthJapan]

Yes, it is definitely similar!

[@manonh]

All those dragonflies dancing around you are a magical sight. I recently read a report about the Ainu in a French magazine called "Tempura". It covers japanese trends and issues that we don't easily hear about otherwise (topics such as deliquency and jail in Japan, historical negationism, inequalities and minorities... but also lighter ones like food trends, architecture, art, etc). In that report, Kanako Uzawa, an Ainu woman, talks about the difficulties her people are still facing nowadays: discrimination, scorn, denial of their identity... For instance, she contributed to an exhibition about the Ainu in Germany, to which about ten Japanese deputies were invited. Not one of them came to greet or talk to her. Actually, they were even the first to leave. This anecdote may reflect the general disregard of the Japanese for this issue. In 2008, the Japanese government finally recognized the Ainu as "a native people of Japan" and promised to improve their living conditions... although there hasn't been much change, she says. In 2019, the Ainu were incorporated into the legislation, but not into the Constitution. She laments the fact that since 2008, "the different laws haven't brought about a real reinstatement of indigenous rights, but rather a 'promotion' of Ainu culture". So the Japanese government promotes their culture in museums and attracts tourists, but actually neglects the issue of their rights. You say, Quinlan, that the Ainu may be very few by now. Most probably, those issues are not going to change in the near future, and then it will be too late because the Ainu will have disappeared. They've had to mix with the rest of the Japanese to survive, so little by little, their Ainu heritage thins. People could retort "Come on, it's not like they've disappeared, and the current government isn't killing them either". Well, true, they're being "swallowed" by Japan, not "eradicated". On the cultural level though, most of their heritage will be lost, as if it were eradicated. Like you said, at some point their language will become "a language remembered" instead of a living language. By saying all this, I don't intend to be overly critical nor to point at the Japanese. Issues like this one are hard to handle, and overall, I think Japan is great and beautiful. The few Japanese I have been able to talk to so far have always been very kind and open-minded. However, precisely because I love Japan and its people, I think I have to look at it for what it really is. Some aspects might be harsh, but it's better than believing in a utopia. It's sad that, anywhere in the world, we humans tend to spurn different people unless they accept to become like us... even though differences are immensely enriching both on the individual and societal levels.

[@Km0577]

Great video! Very artistic location, and great interaction with wildlife, even!

[@cronopiooroz6857]

Thank you for giving us a taste of this fading and yet luminous culture. It is wonderful to find such specialized, selfless content in KZbin. Thank you ;)

[@martinemartin4779]

It's good that you're doing this - thank you. I wish it was just subtitled and not talked over, so we could hear her.

[@GoNorthJapan]

Ah, sorry about that!

[@fredd3.14]

thank you, very interesting.

[@manfredmarschik]

Danke!

[@GoNorthJapan]

Thank you so much! Really appreciate it!

[@osanilefun9774]

Thank you Quinlan, this is video is amazing!

[@GoNorthJapan]

So glad you liked it!

[@y38]

Fascinating story

[@jayphillips4942]

What a beautiful event to share with us, something that is a once in a lifetime opportunity to view, thank you so much for sharing with us!!

[@onesan1028]

I really love this kind of videos. It's so interesting and the way you present it is so artistic.

[@GoNorthJapan]

So glad that you enjoyed it!

[@anthonynelson6671]

Again, you bring us something unique with perspectives we probably would not have thought of ourselves. Thank you!

[@shokifilmsjpn8875]

I live in Japan and didn't know about this place. your channel is nice!

[@GoNorthJapan]

Thanks!

[@Nynke_K]

So nice to hear this story partially in actual Ainu! For those wondering about Ainu language revitalisation, Life Where I'm From has a few videos on the Ainu and one of them also focuses on some revitalisation.

[@brewstergallery]

Thanks! It is super interesting. Love to know more.

[@gogakushayemi]

This was really cool! I hope I can learn some Ainu at some point (right now all I know is hello).

[@markames3688]

Nice

[@theresalwayssomethingtobui944]

Oh no, I'm sad to hear about the language... Thanks for talking about this! The story reminds me of Persephone from ancinent Greece where spring comes up when she is allowed to leave Hades to go back to the surface.

[@s70driver2005]

So cool to see more Ainu info!!! Arigato gozaimasu Quinlan san.

[@etherdog]

Quinlan, this was fascinating and enlightening. I would be cautious about making a direct causal link (from 1200 CE) between the Ladahk and the Ainu lore as there may be a common ancestor story that has given birth to both legends, or there was a syncretism if Buddhists had made inroads into the Ainu communities at about that time. As I understand it, there are a lot more similarities between the Ainu cultural expressions and Indigenous American populations, as they both have strong common genetic roots from the Beringia genetic isolation event that lasted until about 23,000 years ago. NOVA on PBS in the US had a recent episode on finding human footprints crossing the path of a Giant Sloth in White Sands National Park that date to 23,000 to 21,500 years ago that I urge you to watch (if your VPN allows you to do so). It provides strong evidence that the coastal "kelp highway" was the primary route to the peopling of the Americas.

[@GoNorthJapan]

I didn't mean to imply anything causal there! I was just saying that professor wrote a paper somehow relating them. I haven't read it yet, so can't say anything about it! I would definitely agree that at least from my superficial knowledge they have a lot in common with Native Americans. Oh- I'll see if I can find that special, sounds great!

[@PhsykoOmen]

Casual link or not, there is links between Serbia, Tibet and the earlier Jomon peoples,. Genetically there is evidence of a connection with Native American just as much. It’s not indicative of any one peoples.

[@grenm9]

With all my interest in japan this is my first time hear a person speak it

[@michaelsmith7193]

Thank you so much for this fascinating glimpse into Ainu language and culture - these insights you share are greatly appreciated! What a wonderful episode this was!

[@GoNorthJapan]

So glad that you liked it! Thanks!

[@deathcabkerouac]

Great video. I've really been enjoying these cultural videos you've been doing.

[@GoNorthJapan]

Glad you like them!

[@moisessalazar4432]

The Ainu language still have native speakers in the kuriles islands and khahalin, Japan should rehabilitate its two other languages: Ryuku islands language and Ainu since they are a cultural patrimony of the world. Japan is no the monolithic country that some people would have us believe ...

[@alex-rv-uk]

Good content Quinlan, I for one find this kind of information fascinating and I'm unaware of anyone else on the 'tube putting out stuff like this. I'd love to see more of your unique perspective on Hokkaido. Always enjoy your output, keep up the good work.❤ from England.

[@GoNorthJapan]

Thanks!

[@VerhoevenSimon]

I loved this story, and one can easily imagine how it came to be. Do you know if any actions are being undertaken to preserve the language/stories like recording or akin?

[@GoNorthJapan]

I don't know specifics, but there is a decent amount of money going toward building museums and such in Hokkaido right now, so I would hope that efforts are being made!

[@VerhoevenSimon]

​@@GoNorthJapan I was actually thinking more akin to what the USC Shoah foundation is doing for Holocaust survivors, it's really something else, and given the evolution of technology the results can be outstanding (for reference kzbin.info/www/bejne/kIu7i61qf8qDg80 )

[@garytheosophilus]

I’m always interested in learning more, especially ethnological subjects

[@HeatherHalavais]

It is sad that the Ainu language will be forgotten soon. I hope that people like Hisae can pass down the language to their children and it can be somewhat carried on. How old was this particular story? I found the singing story telling sounding a lot like the Polynesian way of story telling. The dragonfly was very auspicious! Thanks for a wonderful vlog!

[@GoNorthJapan]

Yeah- it is really sad. I hope they are able to preserve most of it along with oral histories and folktales... I'm not sure about the age of this particular story, but it would have to at least be several hundred years old I would think... Yeah- the dragonfly was a great surprise when I looked at the footage!

[@pillbobaggins2766]

it's great that they are learning from efforts to keep Te Reo Maōri alive

[@oqqaynewaddingxtwjy7072]

by writing English you add the nail to coffin nice words in English the killer of languages will not revive Ainu A=utari sinen sinen, a=kor itak sinnayno an kus keraypo, pirkano sinna uwekarpa oka, sinna urespa oka

[@Laura_Darkspear]

That dragonfly was captivated by the story! Or maybe he just liked your shirt. 😆 Very interesting language. Shame it’s fading away.

[@GoNorthJapan]

Yeah, it is too bad. And there were so many dragonflies there!! It was great - they keep away the biting flies.

[@RKusmie64]

Very much enjoyed this, Quinlan...thank you for sharing!! Loved hearing the tale sung, and I've marked the article you linked to read later. There's so much to learn, isn't there? ;-) xoxo

[@GoNorthJapan]

There is indeed so much to learn!!

[@CelticUchuu]

Hopefully the Ainu language undergoes a revival. Many languages have vanished from the world, even to this day.

[@GoNorthJapan]

Yeah, it's sad..

[@alexross5714]

Interesting that every verse seems to begin with "Ha oh oh oh." I wonder what it means.

[@bethbarclay855]

I got distracted by the fact the dragonfly was interested in your story.

[@GoNorthJapan]

There were sooo many dragonflies!

[@miro2196]

ainulanguage is going to be lost as will our eskimo(inuit) so everything u can do to preserve its worth it. tell us the prof story