A Zooarchaeological Study of the Formation Process of the Ainu Bear-sending Ceremony

Abstract

The worship of bears and the performance of rituals for hunted bears were universally observed among indigenous peoples living in the northern parts of the world. On the other hand, traditions involving grand festivals with raised bear cubs only occurred among peoples that lived in the Far East: along the Amur River, in the Russian Maritime Provinces, in Sakhalin, and in Hokkaido.