was a Japanese entomologist

Entomology

Entomology is the scientific study of insects, a branch of arthropodology...

 and anthropologist

Anthropology

Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...

. His academic training, at Hokkaido Imperial University

Hokkaido University

Hokkaido University is one of the most prestigious universities in Japan. It can be seen in the several rankings such as shown below.-General Rankings:...

, was in entomology, and he became a faculty member in the Biology

Biology

Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...

 Department at that institution. His emphasis within entomology was on Coleoptera

Beetle

Coleoptera is an order of insects commonly called beetles. The word "coleoptera" is from the Greek , koleos, "sheath"; and , pteron, "wing", thus "sheathed wing". Coleoptera contains more species than any other order, constituting almost 25% of all known life-forms...

, his doctoral work (completed circa 1932) concerning a Japanese billbug

Weevil

A weevil is any beetle from the Curculionoidea superfamily. They are usually small, less than , and herbivorous. There are over 60,000 species in several families, mostly in the family Curculionidae...

 (Okada, 1964). He performed taxonomic

Biological classification

Biological classification, or scientific classification in biology, is a method to group and categorize organisms by biological type, such as genus or species. Biological classification is part of scientific taxonomy....

 work in Coleoptera as well, describing a new genus of Lycid

Lycidae

Lycidae is a family in the beetle order Coleoptera, members of which are commonly called net-winged beetles.Beetles of this family are elongated and usually found on flowers or stems. The adults of some species are nectarivores while some may have short-lived adult lives during which they may not...

 beetle, Benibotarus (ITIS). His academic work in biology was interrupted due to World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, and he left Hokkaido University in 1944 (Okada, 1964). During this time, he took up the study of anthropology, following in the footsteps of his father, Tsunekichi Kōno (d. 1930). Both father and son studied the Ainu

Ainu people

The , also called Aynu, Aino , and in historical texts Ezo , are indigenous people or groups in Japan and Russia. Historically they spoke the Ainu language and related varieties and lived in Hokkaidō, the Kuril Islands, and much of Sakhalin...

 of Hokkaidō

Hokkaido

, formerly known as Ezo, Yezo, Yeso, or Yesso, is Japan's second largest island; it is also the largest and northernmost of Japan's 47 prefectural-level subdivisions. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaido from Honshu, although the two islands are connected by the underwater railway Seikan Tunnel...

, and Hiromichi amassed an important collection of Ainu material (Beardsley, 1959; Okada, 1964).