Bronisław Piłsudski
Encyclopedia
Bronisław Piotr Piłsudski (2 November 1866 – 17 May 1918), brother of Józef Piłsudski, was a Polish
cultural anthropologist
who conducted outstanding research on the Ainu
ethnic group
, which then inhabited Sakhalin Island
, but now live mostly on the Japan
ese island of Hokkaidō
, with only a small minority left on Sakhalin.
in 1874, where they continued self-education for three years. After their mother's death in 1886, they left for Saint Petersburg
. Bronisław Piłsudski passed an examination at a local university.
Bronisław, for his involvement with a socialist
in a plot to assassinate Alexander III of Russia
in 1887 together with Vladimir Lenin
's brother Alexander Ulyanov, was sentenced to fifteen years at hard labor on Sakhalin island (Ulyanov was hanged). He used his time there to conduct research. While on Sakhalin in 1891, he met ethnographer Lev Sternberg. He was then sent to the southern part of the island. The rest of his prison sentence was changed to ten years of internal exile because he had settled without permission of the Russian authorities.
Three years later, he was given a grant by the Imperial Academy of Sciences to study the Ainu
. That year he settled in an Ainu village, fell in love with an Ainu woman, Chufsanma, officially married her and had a son and daughter, Sukezo and Kiyo, with her. His wife was a niece of Chief Bafunkei of the village of Ai in Sakhalin
. In 1903 he recorded the Ainu language. From these original recordings an Ainu dictionary of over a thousand words was made, which was translated into over ten languages. Piłsudski also wrote down the myths, culture, music and customs of the Ainu. He built an elementary schools in the village where he taught Russian language
and mathematics
to the local children. The schools were open only in winter, the slack season of the farm.
In 1905, the Russo-Japanese War
broke out. Due to the rumour that if one speaks Russian he would be conscripted to the Russian Army, the locals began refusing to learn Russian. Also, Ainus were prepared to cooperate with the Japanese after they landed on Sakhalin. A local told Bronisław that he would not send his son to Bronisław's school. Chief Bafunkei told Piłsudski to be back in Poland for a while to avoid troubles that might happen to him and his family at the wartime. Piłsudski reluctantly agreed with him.
He moved to Japan by himself, where he was befriended by Ōkuma Shigenobu
, Futabatei Shimei
, Torii Ryūzō
, Katayama Sen
, etc. and helped an organisation of anti-imperial Russian refugees. Among them Futabatei Shimei became Bronisław's very close friend. He affectinately describes Bronisław as "an 'odd ball' who was so kind-hearted and innocent like a child that he would always insisted in a very excited tone that he needed to do something to help Ainus and that it was his destiny to do that despite the fact that he was always a 'complete broke' then".http://src-h.slav.hokudai.ac.jp/coe21/publish/no5/inoue.pdf
In the same year, he arrived in Kraków
, Poland, after traveling from Japan via the United States
. When there was upheaval preceding World War I
, he escaped to Switzerland
. In 1917 he left for Paris
, where he worked at the Paris office of Polish National Committee
, which had been founded by Roman Dmowski
, the political archrival of Bronisław's younger brother Józef Piłsudski.
On 17 May 1918 he drowned in the Seine River near le Pont Neuf
. On 21 May 1918 his body was found near le Pont Mirabeau
. His death was thought to be a suicide.
All the descendants of his son and daughter live in Japan today as Japanese citizens. As Józef Piłsudski had daughters only, the direct paternal descendent of the entire Piłsudski Family is only Bronisław's, who lives in Yokohama
.http://src-h.slav.hokudai.ac.jp/coe21/publish/no5/inoue.pdf
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
cultural anthropologist
Anthropology
Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...
who conducted outstanding research on the Ainu
Ainu people
The , also called Aynu, Aino , and in historical texts Ezo , are indigenous people or groups in Japan and Russia. Historically they spoke the Ainu language and related varieties and lived in Hokkaidō, the Kuril Islands, and much of Sakhalin...
ethnic group
Ethnic group
An ethnic group is a group of people whose members identify with each other, through a common heritage, often consisting of a common language, a common culture and/or an ideology that stresses common ancestry or endogamy...
, which then inhabited Sakhalin Island
Sakhalin
Sakhalin or Saghalien, is a large island in the North Pacific, lying between 45°50' and 54°24' N.It is part of Russia, and is Russia's largest island, and is administered as part of Sakhalin Oblast...
, but now live mostly on the Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese island of Hokkaidō
Hokkaido
, formerly known as Ezo, Yezo, Yeso, or Yesso, is Japan's second largest island; it is also the largest and northernmost of Japan's 47 prefectural-level subdivisions. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaido from Honshu, although the two islands are connected by the underwater railway Seikan Tunnel...
, with only a small minority left on Sakhalin.
Life
Bronisław and Józef Piłsudski lived in VilniusVilnius
Vilnius is the capital of Lithuania, and its largest city, with a population of 560,190 as of 2010. It is the seat of the Vilnius city municipality and of the Vilnius district municipality. It is also the capital of Vilnius County...
in 1874, where they continued self-education for three years. After their mother's death in 1886, they left for Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
. Bronisław Piłsudski passed an examination at a local university.
Bronisław, for his involvement with a socialist
Socialism
Socialism is an economic system characterized by social ownership of the means of production and cooperative management of the economy; or a political philosophy advocating such a system. "Social ownership" may refer to any one of, or a combination of, the following: cooperative enterprises,...
in a plot to assassinate Alexander III of Russia
Alexander III of Russia
Alexander Alexandrovich Romanov , historically remembered as Alexander III or Alexander the Peacemaker reigned as Emperor of Russia from until his death on .-Disposition:...
in 1887 together with Vladimir Lenin
Vladimir Lenin
Vladimir Ilyich Lenin was a Russian Marxist revolutionary and communist politician who led the October Revolution of 1917. As leader of the Bolsheviks, he headed the Soviet state during its initial years , as it fought to establish control of Russia in the Russian Civil War and worked to create a...
's brother Alexander Ulyanov, was sentenced to fifteen years at hard labor on Sakhalin island (Ulyanov was hanged). He used his time there to conduct research. While on Sakhalin in 1891, he met ethnographer Lev Sternberg. He was then sent to the southern part of the island. The rest of his prison sentence was changed to ten years of internal exile because he had settled without permission of the Russian authorities.
Three years later, he was given a grant by the Imperial Academy of Sciences to study the Ainu
Ainu people
The , also called Aynu, Aino , and in historical texts Ezo , are indigenous people or groups in Japan and Russia. Historically they spoke the Ainu language and related varieties and lived in Hokkaidō, the Kuril Islands, and much of Sakhalin...
. That year he settled in an Ainu village, fell in love with an Ainu woman, Chufsanma, officially married her and had a son and daughter, Sukezo and Kiyo, with her. His wife was a niece of Chief Bafunkei of the village of Ai in Sakhalin
Sakhalin
Sakhalin or Saghalien, is a large island in the North Pacific, lying between 45°50' and 54°24' N.It is part of Russia, and is Russia's largest island, and is administered as part of Sakhalin Oblast...
. In 1903 he recorded the Ainu language. From these original recordings an Ainu dictionary of over a thousand words was made, which was translated into over ten languages. Piłsudski also wrote down the myths, culture, music and customs of the Ainu. He built an elementary schools in the village where he taught Russian language
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
and mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
to the local children. The schools were open only in winter, the slack season of the farm.
In 1905, the Russo-Japanese War
Russo-Japanese War
The Russo-Japanese War was "the first great war of the 20th century." It grew out of rival imperial ambitions of the Russian Empire and Japanese Empire over Manchuria and Korea...
broke out. Due to the rumour that if one speaks Russian he would be conscripted to the Russian Army, the locals began refusing to learn Russian. Also, Ainus were prepared to cooperate with the Japanese after they landed on Sakhalin. A local told Bronisław that he would not send his son to Bronisław's school. Chief Bafunkei told Piłsudski to be back in Poland for a while to avoid troubles that might happen to him and his family at the wartime. Piłsudski reluctantly agreed with him.
He moved to Japan by himself, where he was befriended by Ōkuma Shigenobu
Okuma Shigenobu
Marquis ; was a statesman in the Empire of Japan and the 8th and 17th Prime Minister of Japan...
, Futabatei Shimei
Futabatei Shimei
was a Japanese author, translator, and literary critic. Born Hasegawa Tatsunosuke in Edo , Futabatei's works are in the realist style popular in the mid- to late-19th century...
, Torii Ryūzō
Torii Ryuzo
was a Japanese ethnologist, anthropologist and folklorist. He was known for his anthropological investigation in Taiwan and also conducted archaeological excavations and attempted to understand prehistoric Northeast Asia.-Life:...
, Katayama Sen
Sen Katayama
Sen Katayama , born Yabuki Sugataro , was an early member of the American Communist Party and co-founder, in 1922, of the Japan Communist Party....
, etc. and helped an organisation of anti-imperial Russian refugees. Among them Futabatei Shimei became Bronisław's very close friend. He affectinately describes Bronisław as "an 'odd ball' who was so kind-hearted and innocent like a child that he would always insisted in a very excited tone that he needed to do something to help Ainus and that it was his destiny to do that despite the fact that he was always a 'complete broke' then".http://src-h.slav.hokudai.ac.jp/coe21/publish/no5/inoue.pdf
In the same year, he arrived in Kraków
Kraków
Kraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
, Poland, after traveling from Japan via the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. When there was upheaval preceding World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, he escaped to Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
. In 1917 he left for Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, where he worked at the Paris office of Polish National Committee
Polish National Committee (1914–1917)
Polish National Committee was formed in Russian partition during World War I, and grouped Polish politicians who wanted to advance the Polish cause by supporting Russia in World War I...
, which had been founded by Roman Dmowski
Roman Dmowski
Roman Stanisław Dmowski was a Polish politician, statesman, and chief ideologue and co-founder of the National Democracy political movement, which was one of the strongest political camps of interwar Poland.Though a controversial personality throughout his life, Dmowski was instrumental in...
, the political archrival of Bronisław's younger brother Józef Piłsudski.
On 17 May 1918 he drowned in the Seine River near le Pont Neuf
Pont Neuf
The Pont Neuf is, despite its name, the oldest standing bridge across the river Seine in Paris, France. Its name, which was given to distinguish it from older bridges that were lined on both sides with houses, has remained....
. On 21 May 1918 his body was found near le Pont Mirabeau
Pont Mirabeau
The pont Mirabeau was built between 1895 and 1897. It was listed a historical monument in 1975.-Geography:The bridge spans the Seine from the 15th arrondissement , to the 16th arrondissement. It links rue de la Convention and place Mirabeau, on the left bank, to rue de Rémusat. On the left side,...
. His death was thought to be a suicide.
All the descendants of his son and daughter live in Japan today as Japanese citizens. As Józef Piłsudski had daughters only, the direct paternal descendent of the entire Piłsudski Family is only Bronisław's, who lives in Yokohama
Yokohama
is the capital city of Kanagawa Prefecture and the second largest city in Japan by population after Tokyo and most populous municipality of Japan. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of Tokyo, in the Kantō region of the main island of Honshu...
.http://src-h.slav.hokudai.ac.jp/coe21/publish/no5/inoue.pdf
See also
- List of Poles
- Polish Museum, Rapperswil