Origin of the Ainos. 18 



origin ; but this there is good reason to doubt. At all events, 

 in their own language, the word means "man" and appears to 

 be the only equivalent of this word in use ; and every attempt 

 to trace it back to inu or ai-no-ko would but strengthen our be- 

 lief in attempts to degrade the Aino as much as possible. 

 This, moreover, is in accord with the line of policy which has 

 been pursued by the conquering people from the first up to 

 very recent date, for we find that with their advent the 

 Ainos were looked upon with contempt as very inferior 

 beings ; and, ' as they did not give way to the new-comers 

 quite rapidly enough, were pursued into the northern 

 wilds by a war of extermination. From that time on, the 

 Japanese have considered it degrading to have any relations 

 with the Ainos, other than those which would naturally exist 

 between a conquering and conquered people ; and, in carry- 

 ing this policy to an extreme, there might and doubtless 

 would arise many stories greatly to the disadvantage of the 

 Aino, which, repeated through several centuries, would come 

 to be looked upon by many as true, and finally accepted to a 

 certain extent by the Ainos themselves because of their 

 realizing the gulf which separated them from the Japanese, 

 as well as faith in the superior knowledge of the latter. 



We must, therefore, look elsewhere for the origin of this 

 interesting people ; and we naturally turn at once to an ex- 

 amination of them as they are found at the present day, as 

 well as of localities where they have been, and where they 

 have left undoubted evidence of their presence in words of 

 their language which still linger as first applied to na- 

 tural objects. Of the Aino movement previous to their 

 occupation of Japan, we can derive no evidence from re- 

 mains of their manufactures or structures, for none of these 

 have yet been found ; and we are thus brought to base our 

 knowledge of their progress upon remnants of their lan- 

 guage, which, after all, is the most reliable guide we can 

 probably have, particularly when supplemented by physical 

 characteristics and traditions. 



We are well aware that, even at the present time, the 

 Ainos are familiar denizens of eastern Siberia, but it is de- 

 sirable to determine whence they came for settlement even 

 there. 



