Furubetsu

Furubetsu lies on Etorofu, a volcanic island in the southern Kurils. Ainu villages along its coasts lived from the sea and maintained connections with neighbouring islands. In 1800 the Japanese official Kondo Juzo opened a post at Oito in the Furubetsu district as the shogunate extended its direct administration over eastern Ezo. Officials also sought to change Ainu names and customs, bringing new pressures to the island communities.