Ainu, also known as Ainu Itak or Anyu Itak ^[1], is the language of the Ainu people of the Japanese island of Hokkaido. The origin of the language is still unknown, but prior to its endangerment Ainu was spoken in the Kuril Islands, as well as the northern part of Honshu and the southern half of Sakhalin ^[2]. The three main dialects of the Ainu language are Hokkaido-dialect, Sakhalin-dialect,and Kurile-dialect. There are no known letters or characters associated with the Ainu, nor is there an written record of the language.

The Ainu are not distinguished from the Japanese on the census report, which is why there is no accurate number of the Ainu population. The only method that can be used to figure out the population is the self-identification method, however as many deny any relation to being Ainu, that number may be much higher than reported. There are only 15 speakers remaining out of the 304 people reported to understand Ainu.Of the 15,000 people who claim to be of Ainu origin, a majority of them strictly speak Japanese. Those who are actually of Ainu decent are thought to be of higher class, but others choose to deny it in fear of discrimination. ^[3] The last speaker of Ainu had passed away in 1994. However, efforts of reviving the language are being made by Shigeru Kayano. Kayano has set up schools dedicated to teaching the language and traditional Ainu stories. ^[4]

Hokkaido began to experience many earthenware cultural differences between the Yayoi and Muromachi Period including the Zoku-Jomon culture period and the Satsumon period. ^[5] The Ainu culture had only been revelent from the 1400s to 1700s as the Satsumon culture had slowly shifted into the Ainu. During the mid-1400s, the Ainus began to be oppressed by the influence of the other Japanese. In the 1400s, the Ainu had there first encounter with Japanese from the main islands and they had engaged in their first trade. ^[6]

To resist oppression, the Ainu waged in the Batte of Kosyamain in 1457, the Battle of Syaksyain in 1669 and the Battle of Kunasiri-Menasi in 1789. After losing all three battles, Japan integrated the Northern island. In the Meiji era, the Ainu were prohibited ,by government policy, from observing their daily customs. By 1878, the Ainu were given the status of former aborigines. By 1899, the Hokkaido Aborigine Protection Act was passed. This protection act made the Ainu powerless against the law. It was aimed to help the Ainu become more engaged with agriculture as a sense of relief. ^[7] As time went on, this oppression quickly turned into discrimination against the Ainu.

Although there is no known writing specifically to be associated with Ainu, the katakana syllabary is said to be used. The Latin alphabet is also used. John Batchelor became the first person to write in Ainu. He studied the works of the Ainu language and used them to create a writing system similar to that of katakana. He translated the New Testement in Ainu in 1897 with the help of the British and Foreign Bible Society and the American Bible Society. ^[8]

In the 1930s, Ainu Kyokai, the first Ainu organization, was created. It was established by young leaders including Hokuto Iboshi and Torazo Ega. In 1946, the Hokkaido Ainu Association, later changed to the Hokkaido Utari Association, was created to provide higher education in the construction of social welfare facilities. ^[9] In 1984, the Hokkaido Utari Association got the government to enact the New Ainu Law, replacing the Hokkaido Aborigine Protection Act. ^[10]

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Ainu. Retrieved from https://www.omniglot.com/writing/ainu.htm

Ainu (Japan). Retrieved from http://endangeredlanguages.com/lang/1212

Ainu language. Retrieved from /info/en/?search=Ainu_language#Typology_and_grammar

Ainu History and Culture. Retrieved from http://www.ainu-museum.or.jp/en/study/eng01.html<nowiki> History of the Ainu. Retrieved from <nowiki>https://www.mtholyoke.edu/~wfukui/history.htm

Japan's Endangered Ainu Language. Retrieved from http://alphaomegatranslations.com/foreign-language/japans-endangered-ainu-language/

Language of the day- Ainu. (2015). Retrieved from https://www.duolingo.com/comment/4499793/Language-of-the-day-Ainu