Yukar
Encyclopedia
are Ainu
sagas that form a long rich tradition of oral literature
. In older periods the epics were performed by both men and women; during the 19th and early 20th centuries, when Ainu culture was in decline, women were generally the most skillful performers.
Traditional tales describe floating worlds with "Ainu Mosir", or the land of the humans (as opposed to "Kamui
Mosir", the land of the gods), resting on the back of a fish whose movements cause earthquakes.
Professor Kyōsuke Kindaichi
collected yukar and translated them into Japanese.
In August 2006, the Asahi Shimbun
reported in its article that Japan's Agency of Cultural Affairs (Bunkacho) is about to discontinue funding by fiscal year 2007 of the project of translating , which consist of 92 yukar stories written in Romaji with the tenth story lost and 49 stories left untranslated. It is said that the stoppage is because of Shigeru Kayano
's death in May 2006.
In 1999 a multi-national group of educators and translators established Project U-e-peker with the intention of making more Ainu folktales available in English. They have produced English versions of two of Kayano's books under the titles The Ainu: A Story of Japan's Original People (Tuttle Publishing 2004) and The Ainu and the Fox (RIC Publications 2006). Future projects include picturebook English versions of the yukar recorded in , an anthology of stories from the Ainu oral tradition which were first put into writing and translated into the Japanese language by Chiri Yukie (1903-1922), the niece of Kannari Matsu, an invaluable assistant to Kindaichi until she died at the age of 19.
Perhaps the only book relating the epic songs
of the Ainu in English is Songs of Gods, Songs of Humans: The Epic Tradition of the Ainu by Donald L. Philippi. Philippi translates 35 epics, all of them originally recorded by women, the majority by Imekanu
.
The Ainu epic Kutune Shirka
is a major example of the yukar style.
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...
sagas that form a long rich tradition of oral literature
Oral literature
Oral literature corresponds in the sphere of the spoken word to literature as literature operates in the domain of the written word. It thus forms a generally more fundamental component of culture, but operates in many ways as one might expect literature to do...
. In older periods the epics were performed by both men and women; during the 19th and early 20th centuries, when Ainu culture was in decline, women were generally the most skillful performers.
Traditional tales describe floating worlds with "Ainu Mosir", or the land of the humans (as opposed to "Kamui
Kamui
Kamuy are divine spirits in the mythology of the Japanese Ainu culture.Kamui may also refer to:-People and groups:* Kamui Fujiwara , Japanese game designer & cartoonist...
Mosir", the land of the gods), resting on the back of a fish whose movements cause earthquakes.
Professor Kyōsuke Kindaichi
Kyosuke Kindaichi
was an eminent Japanese linguist from Morioka, Iwate Prefecture. He is chiefly known for his dictations of yukar, or sagas of the Ainu people. Linguist Haruhiko Kindaichi was his son....
collected yukar and translated them into Japanese.
In August 2006, the Asahi Shimbun
Asahi Shimbun
The is the second most circulated out of the five national newspapers in Japan. Its circulation, which was 7.96 million for its morning edition and 3.1 million for its evening edition as of June 2010, was second behind that of Yomiuri Shimbun...
reported in its article that Japan's Agency of Cultural Affairs (Bunkacho) is about to discontinue funding by fiscal year 2007 of the project of translating , which consist of 92 yukar stories written in Romaji with the tenth story lost and 49 stories left untranslated. It is said that the stoppage is because of Shigeru Kayano
Shigeru Kayano
was one of the last native speakers of the Ainu language and a leading figure in the Ainu ethnic movement in Japan.- Early life :...
's death in May 2006.
In 1999 a multi-national group of educators and translators established Project U-e-peker with the intention of making more Ainu folktales available in English. They have produced English versions of two of Kayano's books under the titles The Ainu: A Story of Japan's Original People (Tuttle Publishing 2004) and The Ainu and the Fox (RIC Publications 2006). Future projects include picturebook English versions of the yukar recorded in , an anthology of stories from the Ainu oral tradition which were first put into writing and translated into the Japanese language by Chiri Yukie (1903-1922), the niece of Kannari Matsu, an invaluable assistant to Kindaichi until she died at the age of 19.
Perhaps the only book relating the epic songs
Epic poetry
An epic is a lengthy narrative poem, ordinarily concerning a serious subject containing details of heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation. Oral poetry may qualify as an epic, and Albert Lord and Milman Parry have argued that classical epics were fundamentally an oral poetic form...
of the Ainu in English is Songs of Gods, Songs of Humans: The Epic Tradition of the Ainu by Donald L. Philippi. Philippi translates 35 epics, all of them originally recorded by women, the majority by Imekanu
Imekanu
, also known by her Japanese name of , was an Ainu missionary and epic poet.-Life and work:Imekanu belonged to an Ainu family of Horobetsu in Iburi subprefecture, Hokkaidō . She began to learn her repertoire of Ainu poetry from her mother, Monashinouku, a seasoned teller of Ainu tales who spoke...
.
The Ainu epic Kutune Shirka
Kutune Shirka
The , known in Japanese as or simply is a sacred yukar epic of the native Ainu people of Japan. The Ainu title refers to a magic sword wielded by the story's protagonist. It is one of the most important, if not the most important, piece of Ainu literature...
is a major example of the yukar style.