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[[File:Ainu.jpg|right|thumb|320px|Ainu individuals in modern and traditional clothing; image from exhibition "Ainu Treasures: A Living Tradition in Northern Japan," East-West Center Gallery, Honolulu, Spring 2013]]
*''Japanese'': アイヌ ''(ainu)''
*''Japanese'': アイヌ ''(ainu)''
==Ainu Society==
==Ainu Society==
[[File:Ainu-robes.jpg|right|thumb|320px|Ainu robes on display at the East-West Center Gallery]]
From the 16th century or so (or perhaps earlier) onwards, Ainu society was organized into small communities called ''[[kotan]]''. There was no overall Ainu chief or king, or any sort of government administration or bureaucracy; the ''kotan'' was, more or less, the largest social (or political) entity in Ainu society.
From the 16th century or so (or perhaps earlier) onwards, Ainu society was organized into small communities called ''[[kotan]]''. There was no overall Ainu chief or king, or any sort of government administration or bureaucracy; the ''kotan'' was, more or less, the largest social (or political) entity in Ainu society.