Foreign Friday

Traditional kimono of Northern Japan
Sapporo, Hokkaido
Japan
February 1980
Hokkaido is the upper island in the Japanese chain, and its culture is very different from the island of Honshu.

The photo of above was taken when I visited Hokkaido for the Sapporo Snow Festival. Other photos taken on that trip can be seen here. In my opinion, the traditional clothing worn in the typical tourist photo, shown above, has a distinct Alaskan air which begs the question - are the native Alaskans descendants of the Ainu, the Nivkh or the Orok people?

Comments

  1. Beautiful kimonos! You could be right about the Alaska connection.

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  2. I love the kimonos. They are great.

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  3. 248 inches of snow!!???
    I would have loved that festival. I find snow so calming

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  4. They are among the most beautiful kimonos I've seen! Native Alaskans could be related to any of those people but the Ainu have the most colorful dress so I'm leaning that way. They all, however, seem to have a Russian connection.

    I agree with Kathy, that is a LOT of snow but I love snow!

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  5. I do see the Alaskan similarities.

    My son served a church mission in the Tokyo area, and loved it, but is fascinated with Hokkaido.

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  6. That does look Alaskan. My father brought home a kimono after WWII and it looked nothing like those. Do you suppose the internet or fashion magazines influence kimono design?

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  7. Such interesting experiences you've had - wow! I had a pen pal from Hokkaido for about 25 years. I've always wondered what happened to her as we lost touch with each other.

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  8. I'm intrigued by Katherine's response. Russian and Japanese make Alaskan? Sure, why not!

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