Ainu Marriage Customs
"Betrothal is not absolutely binding upon the young people, for the veto power remains with the children; and if, upon reaching marriageable age, either of the principal parties to the…
From: 1888 C.E. To: 1888 C.E.
Location: Hokkaido, Japan
Note: This article has been excerpted from a larger work in the public domain and shared here due to its historical value. It may contain outdated ideas and language that do not reflect TOTA’s opinions and beliefs.
"Ainu Family Life and Religion," by J.K. Goodrich from Popular Science Monthly, 1888.
Children are sometimes betrothed by their fathers when quite young, and this is done without the intervention of a middle-man. This is not usually a matter of commerce, but often occurs when two men, during a drinking-bout, conceive a great friendship for each other. It frequently happens, however, that two rich men, desirous of combining the wealth of their respective families, will betroth their children.
But betrothal is not absolutely binding upon the young people, for the veto power remains with the children; and if, upon reaching marriageable age, either of the principal parties to the marriage feels any inclination to do so, he or she will annul the betrothal contract, in which event any presents that may have been given must be returned, or their value fully recompensed to the donors. It is sometimes a difficult matter for the girl to have her own way, for there are conventionalities even in Ainu society; but the boy simply takes the law into his own hands and consummates wedlock with the object of his affection, and, when her condition betrays the fact, opposition often ceases!
At the time of betrothal, if the choice be an independent one on the part of either the groom or bride, it is customary for the fathers to exchange presents, of no great value, to be sure, but sufficient to show their approval of the match. Long engagements are not popular, and when once a betrothal has been effected the pair are soon married, if they are of suitable age; that is, about eighteen or twenty for the man, and sixteen or eighteen for the woman. It will be noticed that there is a certain doubt expressed in all matters pertaining to age, time, etc. This is because the people have no record of time, except to mark the recurring seasons, and do not themselves know how old they are.
When two young people are married, the wedding-feast is usually held at the house of the groom's father. The village chief (or his representative if he can not attend in person) and all the members of the two families attend, with the immediate relatives and the nearest neighbors. Like all their social and religious meetings, the occasion is made an excuse for sake-drinking; the men drinking themselves into a state of intoxication. As they are hard-headed fellows, and take their liquor cold (instead of heated, as the Japanese do), the quantity of sake consumed is sometimes enormous. To give some idea of the Ainu excessive fondness for sake, I may mention the fact that many of the northern Ainu often refuse to work for money-wages, and stipulate that they shall receive sake in full payment before they will commence.
The mistress of the house superintends the preparation of the wedding-feast, and is assisted by all the assembled women in pounding the millet and making wedding-cakes, which are boiled like dumplings. The groom is expected to provide most of the sake, if not all of it, as he is supposed to have engaged in manly vocations, to have received his share of the products of hunting and fishing, and to have accumulated enough money to buy the ceremonial wine, or beer rather, as sake is a brewed beverage, not a fermented or distilled liquor.
The newly married couple at once take possession of a new, small hut, which has been erected for them. These huts are made with a light frame of poles, the sides and roof being heavily thatched with reeds. They are by no means warm or impervious to the weather; indeed, many breaks in the thatching admit of ventilation to a degree that must lower the temperature in winter to a point well-nigh unbearable. The first hut is usually built upon ground belonging to the bride's father, and near his own house; but the location of the new hut seems to depend in a measure upon the manner of asking in marriage.
If the groom or his father asks for the bride, then, to compensate the bride's father for the loss of his daughter, the groom goes to live on his father-in-law's land and becomes a member of his household; but if, on the contrary, the application has come from the other side, and the bride (as may sometimes be the case) or her father has asked for the groom in marriage, then compensation is considered to be due to his family, and the bride goes to her husband's land, becomes a member of her father-in-law's family, and assists in the domestic duties of her new home. An exception to this rule may occur when the bride's father has no sons, and asks for a husband for his oldest daughter in order to secure an heir.
When first married an Ainu couple is considered well set up in housekeeping if a small hut is provided with barely sufficient room for them to sleep on the left-hand or northern side of the central fireplace, a tiny little platform at the eastern end, opposite the entrance and under the sacred window, and a space on the right of the fireplace for guests, of about the same dimensions as the sleeping-place.
For furniture there will probably be some mats to sit and sleep on, some rugs or skins for covering, a kettle, and a few dishes in which to serve food. As the family increases; and this is almost sure to be the case, for a childless family is unknown unless the fault is the man's, the house is either added to, or (as is more frequently the case) taken down and entirely rebuilt in more and more pretentious proportions, until it has its entrance porch opening to the south, its anteroom in a western extension, and its main apartment, sometimes thirty or forty feet square. Near it will be a small storehouse raised on stilts, and at one side a little patch of garden for beans, millet, etc.
When the newly married couple take possession, a housewarming is held. This, like every Ainu ceremony, is merely an excuse for sake-drinking, and, instead of bringing assistance to the young people in their early struggles, rather tends to deplete the none-too-plethoric purse; for the beverage is provided by the groom, whose resources will have been severely taxed when he has furnished sake for the marriage-feast and the house-warming as well. At the latter feast a prayer is offered to the goddess of fire, by the village chief or one of the elders, invoking her protection for the house and its inmates, and asking that male children may be numerous and strong. This is called chisei nomi.
Marriages are seldom contracted between residents of different villages, and if the Ainu kept anything like a record of blood-relationship, marriage between first cousins would probably be found the rule rather than the exception. But that inhabitants of different villages do intermarry is proved by the fact that they have words in their language to indicate the fact. Thus, iriwak means blood-relations, those who are received into the family circle and are close together (a village is virtually a large family), while iritak means distant relations, those who are taken away.
Again, the names of those who go from their own village to wed with those of a distant village are changed, but whether or not this is done according to any rule is not quite clear; certainly there is nothing in the new name to indicate the birthplace of the person. With increasing facilities for traveling and temptations to wander in search of employment, these marriages out of the family circle are becoming more frequent.
Polygamy is permitted indefinitely, the number of wives being determined by the wishes of the man himself and his ability to secure a plurality; one can hardly say his ability to support them, since the support of the man himself and of his family is mainly provided by the women.
Widows are isolated for a period of three years, during which time each lives in her own little hut, supporting herself as best she can by doing a little gardening and by catching a few fish at night in a semi-surreptitious way. They must wear a distinctive cap during this period, and are not allowed to participate in any of the ceremonies of the village. At the expiration of the three years they doff their caps, resume their places in society, and are once more "eligible," and, if known to be good wives and mothers, are sought after. Old women (widows) with grown-up children are exempted from this enforced seclusion, and are supported by their offspring.
J. K. Goodrich, "Ainu Family Life and Religion," Popular Science Monthly 34 (November 1888), 81-92.
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