Ainu flag explained
Ainu flag |
Imagetext: | Vector rendering of an interpretation uploaded to Flags of the World |
Use: | 000000 |
Adoption: | 1973 |
Design: | Blue field with white figure and red arrow |
Designer: | Bikki Sunazawa |
An Ainu flag was designed by Bikki Sunazawa, a Japanese sculptor of Ainu ancestry.[1] [2] [3]
Upon a repeated request from his friend, Bikki Sunazawa eventually designed the flag in 1973 – although he distanced himself from political activism seeking government support. Nevertheless, an Ainu group displayed the flag when they marched at a May Day celebration in Sapporo in the same year.[4] On rare occasions, it is still seen at Ainu functions.[5]
In 2020 Bikki's son Jin Sunazawa claimed copyright ownership and requested disuse of the flag.[6]
Description
The flag consists of a cerulean blue field standing for sky and sea, a white figure standing for snow, and a red arrow flying beneath Hokkaido's sky.[7] The arrow is red because of surku, the aconite poison used in traditional hunting, a way of life that was banned by the Japanese. The white figure, commonly known as Bikki mon'yō, was not a traditional Ainu motif but Bikki's personal invention.[8]
External links
Notes and References
- Web site: Independence movements and aspirant peoples (Japan). 20 October 2017.
- Web site: ФЛАГ АЙНОВ. Геральдика.ру. geraldika.ru. 20 October 2017. ru.
- Book: Irish, Ann B.. Hokkaido: A History of Ethnic Transition and Development on Japan's Northern Island. McFarland & Company. 2009. 978-0-7864-5465-5. 208. 646854076.
- Book: Weiner, Michael. Japan's Minorities: The Illusion of Homogeneity. 2003-07-13. Routledge. 978-1-134-74442-8. 37. en.
- Web site: Dubreuil. Chisato (Kitty). The Ainu and Their Culture: A Critical Twenty-First Century Assessment. The Asia-Pacific Journal. apjjf.org. 24 October 2017.
- Web site: Jin Sunazawa . 2020 nendo Sapporo Ainu Kyōkai sōkai giansho (mushūsei) to migatte na sakujo irai . ja:2020年度・札幌アイヌ協会総会議案書 (無修正)と身勝手な削除依頼 . Kōshin minzoku Ainu . ja:後進民族 アイヌ . 2020-10-02 . 2020-10-18.
- Book: Minahan, James B.. Encyclopedia of Stateless Nations. 2016-08-01. ABC-Clio. 978-1-61069-954-9. 14. en.
- Web site: Jin Sunazawa . Bikki mon'yō wa Ainu mon'yō ni arazu! Hokkaidō Shinbun no sabetsu kiji . ja:ビッキ紋様はアイヌ文様にあらず!北海道新聞の差別記事 . Kōshin minzoku Ainu . ja:後進民族 アイヌ . 2020-10-12 . 2020-10-18.