Recently, the governments of South Korea and Japan have made significant efforts to implement various measures to preserve languages that are on the verge of extinction.
The label Ainu haunted Miyuki Muraki throughout her childhood. The 64-year-old woman recalls: “As a child, I was called Ainu and bullied. Therefore, there was a time when I hated the word Ainu.” The Ainu are the indigenous people of northern Japan and the first settlers of Hokkaido Island. The Meiji government prohibited their customs and traditions in the late 19th century.
Ainu cultural simulation at the Ainu Museum and National Park in Hokkaido, Japan. (Image: CNA).
Meanwhile, Japan is spending millions of USD to support the Ainu people and their culture. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has classified the Ainu language as critically endangered.
Experts believe that the Ainu are descendants of the Jomon people who lived in Japan around 11,000 to 6,000 BC. The Ainu Association conducts a survey every seven years among the Ainu in Hokkaido. In 2017, the number of Ainu in Hokkaido was 13,118, a reduction of about 3,700 from seven years prior. The Ainu language is also difficult to pass down due to the lack of a written form and its division into numerous dialects.
Muraki’s workplace, the Ainu Museum and National Park in Hokkaido, has been striving to revive this dying language. Since its opening in 2020, the Ainu Museum and National Park has attracted over a million visitors. Various activities are regularly held here to promote the Ainu language.
Sapporo’s Hokkaido University began announcing information in Ainu starting January. This initiative was inspired by a similar program in Biratori Town, Hokkaido.
Meanwhile, nearly 2,000 km away from Hokkaido, Jeju Island, the largest island in South Korea, is also working to reverse the decline of its indigenous language. Once an integral part of this volcanic island’s identity, Jeju-eo was classified as critically endangered in 2010. However, public curiosity is helping to drive the revival of this language. Jeju-eo has also found an unexpected ally in social media, where it is increasingly attracting followers.
Hamdeok Beach on Jeju Island, South Korea. (Image: Internet).
In South Korea, reports indicate that only about 10,000 indigenous people still speak Jeju-eo. With improved connectivity, Jeju residents have started learning Korean. They mainly speak standard Korean “mixed” with some Jeju-eo words.
The female divers of Jeju Island (haenyo) are among the last groups who still speak Jeju-eo. The first records of haenyo date back to the 17th century, when many men lost their lives at sea, leading women to assume the responsibility of supporting their families as divers. A 78-year-old haenyo, Lee Jung-hee, shared: “My grandchildren cannot speak this language, but I believe they can understand what I say.”
Content creator and YouTuber Kim Hong-gyu is contributing to maintaining the presence of Jeju-eo. Kim Hong-gyu (29 years old) travels around the island to converse with the elderly about their childhood and daily lives in Jeju-eo. He stated that his channel has grown since he started posting videos about the language. “I used to use Jeju-eo as content. People really liked it, and when I did that, they left comments and feedback. Everyone is very disappointed to hear that the Jeju language may soon disappear,” he said. The videos Kim Hong-gyu records are invaluable documentation of this endangered language for future generations.
This year, the Jeju government has requested elementary schools to teach Jeju-eo and the island’s culture for at least 11 hours a year. Shinjeju Elementary School, one of the largest on the island, has been chosen as a model for the Jeju language education program. The school incorporates Jeju-eo into regular classes, games, and other activities, rather than adding separate language classes.
Principal Park Eun-jin stated: “If we separate the Jeju-eo subject, children may feel disinterested or pressured. Therefore, I think it’s better to let children learn Jeju-eo naturally through regular classes, creative experiential activities, and clubs.” However, despite these efforts, the future of Jeju-eo remains precarious as the elderly speakers of the language are dwindling, while an increasing number of young people on the island are moving to the mainland.
