Joe Watkins, "Indigenizing Japan: Ainu Past, Present, and Future" (U Arizona Press, 2025)

Oct 26, 2025

Joe E. Watkins, a seasoned archaeologist and Senior Consultant, dives into the rich history and cultural resilience of the Ainu, Japan's Indigenous people. He shares insights from his 18-year collaboration with Ainu communities, highlighting their unique lifeways and the impacts of colonization. Watkins discusses key historical events like the Nibutani Dam case and the 2007 recognition of the Ainu. He emphasizes ongoing cultural revitalization efforts and draws parallels between the Ainu and Choctaw experiences in the broader context of Indigenous rights.

Ask episode

AI Snips

Chapters

Books

Transcript

Episode notes

ANECDOTE

A Four-Day Trip That Became 18 Years

Watkins recounts a 2007 invitation to Sapporo that began an 18-year engagement with Ainu archaeology and community work.
That short trip grew into long-term excavations, collaborations, and the book itself.

INSIGHT

Deep Genetic Roots And Regional Drift

Genetic studies show early settlers spread into Japan 40,000 years ago and later diverged by isolation and new migrations.
Ainu genetics reflect ancient mainland roots plus later input from the Amur region, explaining differences from mainland Japanese.

INSIGHT

Regional Lifestyles Across Hokkaido

Archaeology shows Ainu lifeways were diverse: marine hunting in the north, riverine salmon economies in the east, and shellfish/deer diets in the south.
These hunter-gatherer economies contrast sharply with wet-rice agriculture societies on the main islands.

Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode

Get the app

In Indigenizing Japan: Ainu Past, Present, and Future (University of Arizona Press, 2025), archaeologist Joe E. Watkins provides a comprehensive look at the rich history and cultural resilience of the Ainu, the Indigenous people of Hokkaido, Japan, tracing their journey from ancient times to their contemporary struggles for recognition.

Relaying the deep history of the islands of Japan, Watkins tells the archaeological story from the earliest arrivals some 40,000 years ago to 16,000 years ago when local cultures began utilizing pottery and stone tools. About 2,300 years ago, another group of people immigrated from the Korean peninsula into the Japanese archipelago, bringing wet rice agriculture with them. They intermarried with the people who were there, forming the basis of the contemporary Japanese majority culture. As the Japanese state developed on the central Islands of Honshu, Ryukyu, and Shikoku, the people of Hokkaido continued developing along a different trajectory with minimal interaction with the mainland until colonization in the mid-nineteenth century, when the people known as the Ainu came under Japanese governmental policy.

Watkins's insightful analysis highlights the Ainu's enduring spirit and their resurgence as part of the global Indigenous movement. Key events such as the 1997 Nibutani Dam case and the 2007 recognition of the Ainu as Japan's Indigenous people are explored in depth, showcasing the Ainu's ongoing fight for cultural preservation and self-determination. By situating the Ainu's experiences within broader global colonial histories, Indigenizing Japan underscores the shared struggles and resilience of Indigenous communities worldwide.

Joe E. Watkins is a senior consultant for Archaeological and Cultural Education Consultants (ACE Consultants), based in Tucson, Arizona. His study interests concern the ethical practice of anthropology and anthropology's relationships with descendant communities and populations on a global scale.

Caleb Zakarin is editor of the New Books Network.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network