It banned many Ainu traditions including salmon catching, hunting with poison-laced arrows, and tattoos for adult women. After the Hokkaido Former Aborigines Protection Act was enacted in 1899 ...

Some of Shimada's relatives have tattoos around their mouths, which are a mark of adulthood for Ainu women. Shimada says only about 100 of the thousands of Ainu in the Tokyo area are engaged in ...