harukor

Harukor got tattooed

1.     The Ainu stopped tattooing because the Japanese Meiji banned it. If a person was tattooed they were not allowed access to any government service.  This included land ownership.  That means the Ainu could not farm.

2.     During the 1890s. The government colonized Hokkaido with farmers/militia and Ainu were pushed away.  The Ainu were not allowed to farm traditional lands unless they could use Japanese language proficiently.  They had to pass a test.  The only way they could do this was through educational programs.  Even though tattooing gradually stopped, the Ainu found it impossible to compete with Japanese settlers.  Most settlers from the South were given land in exchange for military service.

3.     Opinion

4.     The Ainu tattooed in order to fulfill their social obligation.  It was a ritual that showed a woman was of marriageable age.

5.     Ainu believed in heaven. As the story tells us, if a woman was not tattooed she would be incomplete.  This story is told to young Ainu as a story or myth.  The animals that communicate with the Ainu are spirit beings who communicate with humans.  Also, the pain of tattooing, and her ability to put up with it, showed she was ready for childbirth.

Questions

1.     Why did Ainu stop tattooing?

2.     When did Ainu stop tattooing?

3.     What do you think of the Ainu tattooing?

4.     Why did Ainu tattoo?

5.     What did Ainu think of the significance of tattooing?