Bronislaw Pilsudski

A Polish scholar named Bronislaw Pilsudski became a fluent speaker of the Ainu language while developing strong empathy towards these indigenous peoples.  Pilsudski felt such great affection towards the Ainu that he even tried to set up a school for the children:

"... he attempted to organize schools for Ainu children on southern Sakhalin and prepared a thoughtful proposal for the establishment of a more fair Russian administrative system for dealing with the Ainu" (Kan, 2005).

Though there have been great numbers of linguists, anthropologists, and scholars who have gone into the Ainu communities in attempts to help revitalize their language and let their culture flourish, there is still lots of work to be done in order for huge projects like this to happen.



Kan, Sergei
          2005 Bronislaw Pilsudski's Scholarly Legacy Rediscovered: Review Essay.  Arctic Anthropology (42)2: 95-98.