Current Situation and Challenges of the Dissemination of the Traditional Ainu Dance

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1 Current Situation and Challenges of the Dissemination of the Traditional Ainu Dance Mr. President of the Traditional Ainu Dance Preservation Association Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. I am very happy to be here to talk to the people from all over the world. We are from Hokkaido, the northernmost island of. Let me introduce myself first. My name is Tadashi Kato. I am President of the Hokkaido Federation of Preservation Associations for the Traditional Ainu Dance. I am here today with Vice President, Mr. Koichi Kaizawa and Secretary General, Mr. Yukio Sato. It was truly a pleasure that the Traditional Ainu Dance was inscribed on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. I am greatly honoured to be here to talk to you today and I would like to thank our host for giving us an opportunity to participate in today s workshop. I would like to introduce what the Ainu is and talk about our efforts to hand down and preserve our traditional culture. First, I would like to briefly talk about the history of the Ainu people so that you may have a clear picture about how Ainu culture has been evolved in the history. The Ainu people used to live in Hokkaido since the ancient times, and also in the south of Sakhalin Island, now administered by Russia, the Kamchatka Peninsula and part of the Tohoku region of. They lived on hunting and gathering, appreciating natural gifts from mountains, oceans and rivers. Hokkaido is the coldest place in, and the temperature sometimes goes down to 30 degrees below Celsius. The Ainu people, however, knew how to live in such a frigid climate in comfort. Let me use the term "Wajin" here in order to distinguish between the ese from the mainland and the Ainu. By the middle of the 15 th Century, Wajin started to set up bases on the coast of the Oshima Peninsula and traded with the Ainu. They maintained peace at first. However, as the trade developed, Wajin s communities gradually expanded, and frictions between both peoples slowly increased. After several conflicts, the Ainu were forced to work hard in the manufacture of ese products. They were involved in their economic society, leaving behind 1

2 the simple life of hunting and gathering. In the meantime, Russia was expanding its territory to the east and had reached to the Kurile Islands by the middle of the 18 th Century. The Edo Shogunate, under the policy of isolation, tried to block Russia to come down from the Kurile Islands to Ezochi (Hokkaido) and claimed that the Ainu people were ese and the land where they lived belonged to. In 1868, the Meiji era started. The Ainu people were registered as ese nationals under the family registration law. However, they were distinguished from ese and were called old aborigines. Their customs and traditions were prohibited. All of these had a serious impact on the Ainu culture. At present, there are only few old people who can speak the Ainu language. It was very difficult for the Ainu to keep their own culture in the trend of the times. Our ancestors, however, never gave up and passed down the culture to the next generations through oral tradition. After the World War II, the ese government did not take any special measures to Ainu culture. In the latter half of the 70s, a sense of renaissance gained momentum among Ainu people and they tried to revive traditional ceremonies. They started to hold Icharupa (ancestors memorial service), Iomante (ritual of brown bear sacrifice) and Ashiricheppunomi (ceremony to receive new salmon). They also tried to relearn the Ainu language. The long-time efforts and history of our ancestors to restore and preserve the Ainu culture during the hard times has borne fruit and the Ainu Culture Preservation Society was established locally. Now, let me introduce the Traditional Ainu Dance. The Traditional Ainu Dance is performed at ceremonial celebrations and various traditional cultural events. Songs and dances are based on the indigenous religion and still keep many ancient movements. It is particularly characteristic that the dance is closely connected to the religion, performing art and daily life. Currently, the dance is performed at Icharupa, memorial services, Ainu festivals, family events and celebrations in many parts of Hokkaido. The dance has many variations: dances performed to the music, such as Kinetsuki Uta (Song of Pounding with Pestle) and Zarukoshi Uta (Straining through Colander Song), express labour movements of brewing sake for festivals. Tsurugi no Mai (Sword Dance) and Yumi no Mai (Bow Dance) are ceremonial dances. Tsuru no Mai (Crane Dance) and Batta no Mai (Locust Dance) are dances imitating movements of animals and insects. Bo Odori (Stick Dance), Bon Tori Odori (Pick-up Tray Dance) and Uma Oi Odori (Driving Horse Dance) embody entertaining factors. Iro Otoko no Mai (Lover Boy s Dance) is a humorous dance with 2

3 improvisational factors. There are also many traditional songs. Songs and dances are all slightly different depending on each Kotan (village, community), but the traditional dance is basically Rimse (circle dance) and performed in tune with Upopo (song). Now, let me show you a little bit of the Traditional Ainu Dance. Video tape, please. (The Traditional Ainu Dance) Now, that was the Traditional Ainu Dance. The traditional dance has been passed on in many areas in Hokkaido. At present, there are seventeen groups to preserve Ainu dance which is designated as an Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property of the country and the federation of these groups is called the Hokkaido Federation of Preservation Associations for the Traditional Ainu Dance. Each group is strongly proud of the dance that it has traditionally inherited locally. Their activities are funded by the membership fee, financial aids from local governments, subsidies from governmental programme for traditional activities and honoraria. As we have made efforts to promote and preserve Ainu culture, these activities have been more active since the introduction of the Law for the Promotion of the Ainu Culture and for the Dissemination and Awareness-raising of the Ainu Traditions (the Ainu Culture Promotion Law) entered into force in July The traditional Ainu dance is performed in domestic and international cultural programmes and the Ainu Culture Festivals. Not only the traditional Ainu dance, but also various projects related to tangible and intangible culture are carried out: Exhibitions of Ainu crafts owned by overseas museums and Ainu craft contests are held; and the programme to revive the Ainu language is carried out. I have talked about the history and present situation of the Ainu people so far. Now, I would like to talk about the prospects and hopes for the future of the safeguarding activities of the Ainu culture, which is the main topic of this workshop. We were so happy and proud when we heard the news that the Ainu dance was inscribed on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage. Thanks to the inscription, the traditional Ainu dance is now recognized not only domestically but also internationally. We also feel a strong sense of responsibility to safeguard the traditional Ainu dance and keep it alive. We have to make the most of this wonderful opportunity to enhance preservation activities. As I said, there are now seventeen groups working for preservation of Ainu culture. Most of them, however, face problems of aging membership and insufficient number of young participants, 3

4 and they are concerned that activities may be difficult to continue in future. How can we solve these problems? As one of the solutions, we have developed an international cultural exchange programme for the youth of the Hokkaido Ainu Association where the Federation s Secretariat has an office. We invite Ainu young people to join the international exchange programme. After attending some classes to learn more about the Ainu culture, including the traditional dance, they participate in the cultural exchange programme with other young indigenous people abroad. Let me show you some pictures of the exchange. This picture shows the exchange programme with the indigenous people in Taiwan, and that picture shows the programme with an ethnic minority group living in the mountains of the northern part of Thailand. The programme is basically for the Ainu high school and college students. Some are aware of the significance of the programme to a certain extent since their parents have long engaged in the culture preservation activities; others join the programme without any prior knowledge. All of them, however, show stronger identity and a sense of satisfaction after the programme. The appreciation and sharing of their traditional dance by other people enhance mutual understanding that the Ainu culture is wonderful and so is theirs. The programme is very effective in preserving the traditional dance and strengthening young people s identity. These activities usually accompany considerable financial burden, however, we continue to implement them by applying some programmes under the Ainu Culture Promotion Law to reduce the cost. When young people have an opportunity to know more about Ainu culture, they get interested in their own family history and culture first, and the spirit and culture of the Ainu eventually. So, I believe that, in order to develop young people who help promote intercultural understanding and international cooperation, it will be necessary to think of more diverse ways to preserve our culture: not only in the context of, particularly in Hokkaido, or in the relationship between the Wajin and the Ainu, but also in the larger context of international activities and their spreading effects. Now, I would like to talk about the Ainu culture and tourism. Hokkaido is a famous tourist spot and visited by many people not only from many parts of the country but also from many parts of the world. They visit Hokkaido, enjoy great nature, beautiful sites and delicious foods, then go home fully satisfied. Utilizing tourist resources encourages consumption and creates jobs. There is the Ainu Museum in Shiraoi-cho, where I live. The museum was established and 4

5 managed by the Ainu people. There were more than 800 thousand visitors a year at the peak time, but presently the number of visitors declined to about 200 thousand. Due to the decrease of visitors, the number of workers was reduced and the space for making and selling Ainu crafts was eliminated. The facility and management of the museum is not adequate to satisfy the requests and expectations from visitors, including tourists. I believe it is necessary to create the space for interaction, communication and presentation as soon as possible. In addition, the lakefront of Lake Akan (Akanko) in the east of Hokkaido is also a famous tourist destination. At a corner of the lakefront, there is a shopping place with some Ainu souvenir shops and restaurants, called Ainu Kotan. At this place, local Ainus are engaged in showcasing the traditional Ainu dance and selling Ainu crafts to tourists. We are now considering how to develop Ainu culture and the traditional Ainu dance. Some of us have created new dance, based on the traditional Ainu dance but arranged in a modern way for theatre performance. Some younger people have formed a band of modern music, using Tonkori, a string instrument of the Karafuto Ainu, which they connect with a small amplifier. I think it is good to revive culture by new attempts. The most important thing is, whatever we do, we have to keep the base of the Ainu culture which our ancestors preserved with all their efforts through difficult times. Talking from the standpoint as a member of minority groups of the world, one year has passed since the traditional Ainu dance was inscribed on the UNESCO List. In addition to those attempts I have just mentioned, and with all strategies and plans, I, hope to strengthen ties between community members, discuss together to address challenges and steer our way for the better future, as a member of the association which strives for preservation and dissemination of the traditional Ainu dance so that we may present our important spiritual culture to others. Finally, I would like to show you some pictures from the Ainu dance-related events. These pictures were taken at the Ainu Culture Festival, showing performances of Suwari Uta (Sitting Song), Kujira no Odori (Whale Dance) and Kitsune no Odori (Fox Dance). These are pictures of Yumi no Mai (Bow Dance) and Pororimuse (Circle Dance). These events are held annually. If you ever have an opportunity to visit Hokkaido, please do not forget to visit us. This is the end of my presentation made on behalf of the Hokkaido Federation of Preservation Associations for Traditional Ainu Dance. Now, it will be my turn to listen to other people s presentation for our reference. Thank you very much. 5

6 International Seminar on the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage: Current Situations and Challenges on the Safeguarding Measures in the Asia-Pacific Region Published on 5 March 2010 by the Department of Intangible Cultural Heritage, National Research Institute for Cultural Properties, Tokyo Ueno Park, Taito-ku, Tokyo, JAPAN Tel 無形文化遺産国際研究会 アジア太平洋諸国における保護措置の現状と課題 平成 22 年 3 月 5 日印刷 編集 発行独立行政法人国立文化財機構東京文化財研究所無形文化遺産部 東京都台東区上野公園 Tel