Ainu's traditional 'shishamo' smelt festival

Ainu's traditional 'shishamo' smelt festival

KUSHIRO, Japan - The Ainu people's traditional "Shishamo" smelt festival is held in Shiranuka Town, Hokkaido, on Nov. 2, 2014, to pray for a bountiful catch and safe fishing.

Italian man working at cheese factory in Hokkaido

Italian man working at cheese factory in Hokkaido

Gianluca Sarais from Italy holds a cheese at Shiranuka Rakukeisha, a cheese factory in the town of Shiranuka in Japan's northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido, on Aug. 12, 2015. Sarais, who has been working at the factory since June, said he wants to make and sell his own cheese someday. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Ainu people in Hokkaido commemorate ancestors

Ainu people in Hokkaido commemorate ancestors

Ainu people in Japan's northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido offer prayers to their ancestors in the prefecture's Shiranuka town on Aug. 2, 2015, during a traditional ritual. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Ainu people pray to fire god in commemoration of ancestors

Ainu people pray to fire god in commemoration of ancestors

Ainu people in Japan's northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido pray to the god of fire at an Ainu cultural facility in Shiranuka town on Aug. 2, 2015, during a ritual to commemorate their ancestors. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Ainu perform traditional ritual to thank whales

Ainu perform traditional ritual to thank whales

Ainu perform a ritual dance to thank whales on Sept. 6, 2015, in Shiranuka, Hokkaido Prefecture, northern Japan. The ritual is based on a legend among the ethnic group that their hunger-stricken ancestors ate the meat of a whale that washed up on the coast as a godsend. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Ainu perform traditional ritual to thank whales

Ainu perform traditional ritual to thank whales

Ainu perform a ritual dance to thank whales on Sept. 6, 2015, in Shiranuka, Hokkaido Prefecture, northern Japan. The ritual is based on a legend among the ethnic group that their hunger-stricken ancestors ate the meat of a whale that washed up on the coast as a godsend. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Ainu's traditional 'shishamo' smelt festival

Ainu's traditional 'shishamo' smelt festival

KUSHIRO, Japan - The Ainu people's traditional "Shishamo" smelt festival is held in Shiranuka Town, Hokkaido, on Nov. 2, 2014, to pray for a bountiful catch and safe fishing. (Kyodo)

Japan to stipulate Ainu as "indigenous people" in new law: sources

Japan to stipulate Ainu as "indigenous people" in new law: sources

File photo taken in August 2015 in the town of Shiranuka on the northernmost Japanese main island of Hokkaido shows members of the Ainu indigenous people offering prayers to their ancestors. The Japanese government is likely to stipulate for the first time in law that the Ainu are an "indigenous people" of the nation, sources familiar with the matter said Aug. 28, 2017. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo