Ainu Identity Survival: Reviving Japan’s Indigenous Culture Amid Historical Challenges
Introduction For centuries, Japan’s indigenous Ainu people faced systematic efforts to erase their culture, language, and identity. The Ainu, who primarily inhabit Japan’s northernmost island of Hokkaido, have a rich cultural heritage distinct from the majority Yamato people of Japan. However, policies of assimilation, discrimination, and marginalization over generations nearly drove them to extinction as…