Iyomante (イヨマンテ) is the name of an Ainu ceremony. The word literally means "to send something/someone off", and generally refers to the Ainu brown bear sacrifice. However, in some Ainu villages, it is a Blakiston's fish owl, rather than a bear, that is sacrificed. In Japanese, the ceremony is known as "sending off the bear" (熊送り kumaokuri) or, sometimes, "the bear festival" (熊祭 kumamatsuri). The ceremony is perhaps the most famous (and controversial) part of Ainu culture.