Kumajiro Uehara

Japanese: 上原熊次郎 - うえはら・くまじろう

Year of birth: Year of birth and death unknown. A famous Ainu translator in the Edo period. Found in Mogami Tokunai. In 1792, he compiled the Japanese Ezo vocabulary "Moshiho-gusa" ("Ezo Dialect Moshio-gusa"), which was classified into 11 categories such as heaven and earth, people, and plants, and in 1824, he created "Ezo Place Name Guide". In 1811, when Golovnin was imprisoned in Matsumae, he worked as an interpreter while learning Russian with Murakami Sadasuke. It seems that he had a hard time learning Russian, and Golovnin commented that Kumajiro "does not understand any grammar in the world" ("Nihon Yuju-ki"). On the other hand, he was highly praised by Ainu linguist Kindaichi Kyosuke, who called him "the founder of Ainu linguistics." <Works> "Mosiokusa" ("Ainu Language Materials Series") <References> Kyosuke Kindaichi "Ainu Studies"

(Shinichi Fumoto)

Source: Asahi Japanese Historical Biography: Asahi Shimbun Publications Inc. About Asahi Japanese Historical Biography

Japanese:

生年：生没年不詳
江戸時代の著名なアイヌ語通辞。最上徳内に見いだされる。寛政4(1792)年,天地,人物,草木など11項目に分類した日蝦夷語彙『もしほ草』(『蝦夷方言藻汐草』)を編み,文政7(1824)年には『蝦夷地名解』を作る。文化8(1811)年,ゴローニンを松前で幽閉する際,通辞を務めるかたわら村上貞助とロシア語を習得する。ロシア語の習得には苦労したようで,ゴローニンは熊次郎を「世界中の如何なる文法をも解していない」(『日本幽囚記』)と評している。一方アイヌ語に関しては「アイヌ語学の鼻祖」とアイヌ語学者金田一京助に高く評価されている。<著作>『藻汐草』(『アイヌ語資料叢書』)<参考文献>金田一京助『アイヌの研究』

(麓慎一)

出典　朝日日本歴史人物事典：（株）朝日新聞出版朝日日本歴史人物事典について　情報

<<: Masaki Uehara (2nd generation)

>>: Uehara-shi