Anthropological Themes Today Viewed from Northern Studies　　　Takashi Irimoto

　Northern culture refers to the mode of life unique to northern areas in terms of ecology, society and culture, dating back to the advance into Northern Eurasia by modern man (Homo sapiens sapiens) in the history of human evolution and proliferation to North America. Northern culture is a whole body of cultures, which have changed, descended and developed up to today (IRIMOTO. 1992: 1-2, 11-12; 2004a: 1-2, 54).
　I actually defined northern culture as mentioned above and stipulated the direction of our research in October 1990 when we launched the preparatory committee for the Hoppo Gakkai (Northern Studies Association, or NSA), founded the NSA in September 1991 and held the first international symposium in commemoration of the Association’s foundation at Hokkaido University in October of the same year. NSA was founded for the purpose of contributing to the understanding of human beings through studies of various northern cultures in Eurasia and North America, as well as through international exchanges. The Association has two functions; it is an association for regional studies and also an association for studies of human beings, that is, anthropology in a broad sense. In terms of regional studies, the northern region is the subject of the study, including Eurasia and North America, two important areas where sufficient studies and information are lacking. Japan has historical, ecological, and cultural characteristics indicative of its location on one end of the Eurasian continent. When one looks at Japan as part of the northern Pacific Rim region, however, a close relationship with North America is evident. Therefore, it is important to study Eurasia, Japan and North America, as a continuous and unified northern region.
　Northern studies in Japan have gone through unique changes and developments during the long history before modern times. Research subjects have changed from Ainu culture to a variety of cultures in broad northern circumpolar areas including Northern Eurasia, Japan and North America. Study methodology also has changed from folklore and ethnology to shizenshi – anthropology of nature and culture, and study objectives have shifted from the clarification of the origin of the Japanese and their culture to the clarification of universal issues in anthropological studies – i.e., “What are human beings?”(IRIMOTO 2004b).
　Shizenshi (spontaneous/natural record) referred here is a new anthropological theory and methodology, which could be called anthropology of nature and culture. The literal interpretation of shizen is “nature” in English; however, it also includes meanings “as it is, or whole truth” in Japanese, and -shi means “record.” Here, human beings are considered as nature as well as culture, and human lives, which is the common field for both physical anthropology and cultural anthropology, becomes to be a study subject. Also, human lives are considered as systems of activities. Shizenshi is accordingly the systemic description of human activities, in which culture and nature overlap each other. Empirical observational method is methodology that observers identify themselves with subjects and experience their world from inside (IRIMOTO 1996:9-21; IRIMOTO 2004c: 291).
　Through shizenshi, “original oneness” based on the idea that humans and animals are essentially the same, the recognition of the relationship between human and the supernatural has reciprocity, and the recognition of nature as a whole, including human from a perspective of cycle and symbiosis, were extracted as characteristics of northern cultures. It was then unveiled that these ideas were closely connected with ecology, society and worldview in hunting-based northern areas. However, I believe these characteristics might be some universal ideas of mankind not limited to northern cultures alone. To clarify why such ideas were born and how they now function in the framework of human evolution history is to understand the human mind and also to answer the anthropological thesis, “What are human beings?” Northern studies developed from the exploration of northern cultures to the search for the universality of human beings.
　Studies on the ethnicity and identity in northern cultures have revealed that the idea of symbiosis played the role of resolving ethnical conflicts. The importance of the functions of the symbiotic idea and agency in the creation and restoration of Ainu culture was accordingly pointed out. The first half of the 21st century is said to be the age of ethnic conflicts. As seen in the collapse of socialistic states and other events, this is because the relationship between states and ethnic groups and that among ethnic groups have changed, and ethnic groups who had been oppressed started to assert themselves. A number of people were killed or became refugees during large conflicts involving such violations. It is therefore thought that various mechanisms for conflict resolution, once integrated into culture, must be illuminated using an anthropological approach.
　If northern studies are able to contribute to the resolution of these problems, answers to not only the question “What are human beings?” but also the thesis “How should human beings live?” will be surely provided. Through northern studies, we encounter issues common to human beings in addition to those unique to northern cultures. To talk about northern cultures is no longer to talk about issues of the limited areas. It is to discuss current anthropological issues, which can be seen beyond such limits, such as ecology, religion, nations, language, states, ethnicity, identity, society, activities, mind, evolution, conflicts and conflict resolutions, and roles of studies. If this is the case, as an outlook for the future, we may be able to call the 21st century the “Age of the Humanity” for anthropology.
　On the basis of the theory mentioned above, the special symposium “Anthropological Themes Today Viewed from Northern Studies,” under the joint auspices of the 21st century COE (Center of Excellence) Program “Cultural and Ecological Basis of the Human Mind (Humanities, Hokkaido University),” was held as a part of the 39th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society of Cultural Anthropology (May 21-22, 2005, Hokkaido University).
　The Participants and the titles of their presentation are as follows.
1. Takashi Irimoto (Hokkaido Univ.) “Development of Northern studies”
2. Tadashi Kato (Director-General, Hokkaido Utari (Ainu) Association) “Social and Human Roles of Study”
3. Tomomi Sato (Hokkaido Univ.) “Themes and Prospects of Studies on Ainu Language”
4. Shiro Sasaki (National Museum of Ethnology) “Northern Anthropological Studies in the Age of Post-Socialism”
5. Kazunobu Ikeya (National Museum of Ethnology) “Human Ecology and Environmental Problem on the Earth Viewed from Chukchee Studies”
6. Nobuhiro Kishigami (National Museum of Ethnology) “Northern Indigenous Peoples and Development−The Case of Canadian Inuit”
7. Takako Yamada (Kyoto Univ.) “Meaning of Religion and Nature Reading from Cultural Revitalization−The Cases of Khanty and Sakha”
8. Toshio Yamagishi (Hokkaido Univ.) “Cultural and Ecological Bases of the Mind”
9. Mutsuo Nakamura (President, Hokkaido Univ.) “Studies on Ainu and Northern Cultures, and the Roles of Hokkaido University”
　At the Symposium, each participant presented the papers concerning about human, society, and nature at large from the different point of view to discuss on the future prospects for northern studies and anthropology. The result will be published in book form shortly, entitled “Themes of Cultural Anthropology Today−From the Viewpoint of Northern Studies. ”(Sekaishiso Pub. Co. in 2007)
Reference
IRIMOTO, Takashi
　1992 “On the Foundation of the Northern Studies Association (NSA).” Northern Studies Association Bulletin, 1: 1-2,11-12.
　1996 Bunka no Shizenshi (Shizenshi of Culture−An Anthropology of Nature and Culture). Tokyo: Univ. of Tokyo Press.
　2004a “Northern Studies and Anthropology.” Northern Studies Association Bulletin, 10:1-4,52-54.
　2004b “Northern Studies in Japan.” Japanese Review of Cultural Anthropology, 5:55-89.
　2004c The Eternal Cycle: Ecology, Worldview and Ritual of Reindeer Herders of Northern Kamchatka. Senri Ethnological Reports, No.48. Osaka: National Museum of Ethnology.
▲ページトップ

INDEX＞Northern Studies Association＞Anthropological Themes Today Viewed from Northern Studies