Ainu Identity and Japan's Identity: The Struggle for Subjectivity
This paper seeks to contribute to the academic debate on the contemporary identity of the Ainu. Ainu, the indigenous people of what today constitutes part of northern Japan, as well as the Russian Kurile Islands and parts of the island of Sakhalin, became the first subjects of modernizing Japan'...
Published in: | The Copenhagen Journal of Asian Studies |
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2012
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Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.22439/cjas.v28i2.3428 https://doaj.org/article/cb5389555a4a4dfe9993bfa6984cdcb8 |
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:cb5389555a4a4dfe9993bfa6984cdcb8 2023-05-15T18:09:13+02:00 Ainu Identity and Japan's Identity: The Struggle for Subjectivity Alexander Bukh 2012-01-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.22439/cjas.v28i2.3428 https://doaj.org/article/cb5389555a4a4dfe9993bfa6984cdcb8 EN eng CBS Open Journals https://rauli.cbs.dk/index.php/cjas/article/view/3428 https://doaj.org/toc/2246-2163 doi:10.22439/cjas.v28i2.3428 2246-2163 https://doaj.org/article/cb5389555a4a4dfe9993bfa6984cdcb8 The Copenhagen Journal of Asian Studies, Vol 28, Iss 2 (2012) Ainu Japan identity indigenous colonialism Northern Territories Political institutions and public administration - Asia (Asian studies only) JQ1-6651 Social sciences and state - Asia (Asian studies only) H53 article 2012 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.22439/cjas.v28i2.3428 2022-12-30T22:45:07Z This paper seeks to contribute to the academic debate on the contemporary identity of the Ainu. Ainu, the indigenous people of what today constitutes part of northern Japan, as well as the Russian Kurile Islands and parts of the island of Sakhalin, became the first subjects of modernizing Japan's expansion in the second half of the nineteenth century. In general, the Ainu's history, culture, and the struggle for recognition as indigenous people as well as against discrimination in Japan have been subjected to intense academic scrutiny in both English and Japanese. This article, however, aims to shed a different light on the construction of Ainu identity, by locating it within the broader contemporary discourse on Japan's national identity. It argues that the emergence of Ainu subjectivity in the public discourse in the 1970s can be partially attributed to the domestic struggle between the conservative and the progressive camps over the definition of Japan's identity. The paper analyzes both sides of the discourse and examines the role of the Ainu 'other' within this construction. It proceeds further to examine the challenge that the emergence of Ainu subjectivity has posed to Japan's politics, mainly in the context of the 'Northern Territories' dispute. The concluding part briefly examines the policy responses aimed at addressing these challenges. Article in Journal/Newspaper Sakhalin Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles The Copenhagen Journal of Asian Studies 28 2 35 53 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
Ainu Japan identity indigenous colonialism Northern Territories Political institutions and public administration - Asia (Asian studies only) JQ1-6651 Social sciences and state - Asia (Asian studies only) H53 |
spellingShingle |
Ainu Japan identity indigenous colonialism Northern Territories Political institutions and public administration - Asia (Asian studies only) JQ1-6651 Social sciences and state - Asia (Asian studies only) H53 Alexander Bukh Ainu Identity and Japan's Identity: The Struggle for Subjectivity |
topic_facet |
Ainu Japan identity indigenous colonialism Northern Territories Political institutions and public administration - Asia (Asian studies only) JQ1-6651 Social sciences and state - Asia (Asian studies only) H53 |
description |
This paper seeks to contribute to the academic debate on the contemporary identity of the Ainu. Ainu, the indigenous people of what today constitutes part of northern Japan, as well as the Russian Kurile Islands and parts of the island of Sakhalin, became the first subjects of modernizing Japan's expansion in the second half of the nineteenth century. In general, the Ainu's history, culture, and the struggle for recognition as indigenous people as well as against discrimination in Japan have been subjected to intense academic scrutiny in both English and Japanese. This article, however, aims to shed a different light on the construction of Ainu identity, by locating it within the broader contemporary discourse on Japan's national identity. It argues that the emergence of Ainu subjectivity in the public discourse in the 1970s can be partially attributed to the domestic struggle between the conservative and the progressive camps over the definition of Japan's identity. The paper analyzes both sides of the discourse and examines the role of the Ainu 'other' within this construction. It proceeds further to examine the challenge that the emergence of Ainu subjectivity has posed to Japan's politics, mainly in the context of the 'Northern Territories' dispute. The concluding part briefly examines the policy responses aimed at addressing these challenges. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Alexander Bukh |
author_facet |
Alexander Bukh |
author_sort |
Alexander Bukh |
title |
Ainu Identity and Japan's Identity: The Struggle for Subjectivity |
title_short |
Ainu Identity and Japan's Identity: The Struggle for Subjectivity |
title_full |
Ainu Identity and Japan's Identity: The Struggle for Subjectivity |
title_fullStr |
Ainu Identity and Japan's Identity: The Struggle for Subjectivity |
title_full_unstemmed |
Ainu Identity and Japan's Identity: The Struggle for Subjectivity |
title_sort |
ainu identity and japan's identity: the struggle for subjectivity |
publisher |
CBS Open Journals |
publishDate |
2012 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.22439/cjas.v28i2.3428 https://doaj.org/article/cb5389555a4a4dfe9993bfa6984cdcb8 |
genre |
Sakhalin |
genre_facet |
Sakhalin |
op_source |
The Copenhagen Journal of Asian Studies, Vol 28, Iss 2 (2012) |
op_relation |
https://rauli.cbs.dk/index.php/cjas/article/view/3428 https://doaj.org/toc/2246-2163 doi:10.22439/cjas.v28i2.3428 2246-2163 https://doaj.org/article/cb5389555a4a4dfe9993bfa6984cdcb8 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.22439/cjas.v28i2.3428 |
container_title |
The Copenhagen Journal of Asian Studies |
container_volume |
28 |
container_issue |
2 |
container_start_page |
35 |
op_container_end_page |
53 |
_version_ |
1766181684482408448 |