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Who is Yayoi Kusama? Everything You Need to Know

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Yayoi Kusama is a Japanese contemporary artists. Check out this biography to know about her childhood, life and achievements.

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Maiko are usually aged 17 to 20, and graduate to geisha status after a period of training that includes traditional dance, the shamisen, kouta, and, in Kyoto only, learning the Kyoto dialect. The apprenticeship ranges from a few months to a year or two years, although apprentices too old to dress as maiko may advance to geisha despite still training.

Apprentice geisha in other locations in Japan are known by other terms, such as (, hangyoku lit. 'half jewel', referring to a term for a geisha's wages, 'jewel money') for apprentices in Tokyo. The traditions of apprentice geisha in these areas diverge from those in Kyoto, sometimes to a considerable degree, including an apprentice's appearance and the structure of her apprenticeship.

In the morning, maiko take lessons in the traditional arts. At night, they dance, sing, play the shamisen, and serve visitors at exclusive ochaya (teahouses).

Maiko originated from women who served green tea and dango (Japanese dumpling made from rice flour) to visitors to the Kitano Tenman-gū or Yasaka Shrine in teahouses in Kyoto about 300 years ago.

During their career, maiko will wear different kinds of nihongami (traditional Japanese hairstyles) depending on rank, formality and occasion. These hairstyles are then decorated with seasonal and occasional kanzashi (traditional hair ornaments).

Most maiko, unlike geisha, use their own hair with the addition of extensions, though apprentices in different areas of Japan may also use wigs. Maiko using their own hair have their hair restyled every week, requiring them to sleep on a special pillow known as a takamakura - a raised wooden block with a pillow - in order to maintain it.

Kimono and outfit

Most maiko wear a style of kimono known as a hikizuri. Hikizuri are typically anywhere from 200-240 centimetres (79-94 in) long, and often feature a lightly-padded hem to create weight allowing the skirt to trail along the floor. When walking outside, maiko hold their hikizuri up either with their hands, or by tying it in place with a small cord so that it does not drag along the ground. The style of hikizuri worn by most maiko features long, furisode-style sleeves, and may feature tucks sewn horizontally into the sleeves and vertically along the shoulders; this is a holdover from before WWII, when maiko often began their training at a young age, and would remove the tucks as they grew.

Maiko wearing hikizuri kimono typically wear it with an obi known as a darari obi. The darari obi is 6-7 metres (20-23 ft) long, is roughly 30 centimetres (12 in) wide, and is worn exclusively by maiko. Due to its length and weight, a male dresser (known as an otokoshi) is needed to tie it; otokoshi can dress a maiko in as little as five minutes, and may dress a number of maiko each night. The crest of a maiko's okiya is either dyed, embroidered or woven onto the end of the obi, below the kaikiri (end lines). For formal occasions, gold brocade darari obi are worn.

Some maiko outside of Kyoto, and in particular in Tokyo, wear furisode instead of hikizuri. These apprentices (sometimes known as hangyoku) may also wear a wig instead of having their own hair styled.

Maiko outside Kyoto may also wear a fukuro obi instead of a darari obi, which is easier to tie and wear, Apprentices in Tokyo typically tie their obi in the fukura suzume style.

Minarai wearing shidare kanzashi, composed by long chains of silk flowers

Maiko with willow kanzashi

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Maiko are usually aged 17 to 20, and graduate to geisha status after a period of training that includes traditional dance, the shamisen, kouta , and, in Kyoto only, learning the Kyoto dialect. The apprenticeship ranges from a few months to a year or two years, although apprentices too old to dress as maiko may advance to geisha despite still training.

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Geisha (; Japanese: ), also known as geiko (in Kyoto and Kanazawa) or geigi, are a class of female Japanese performing artists and entertainers trained in traditional Japanese performing arts styles, such as dance, music and singing, as well as being proficient conversationalists and hosts. Their distinct appearance is characterised by long, trailing kimono, traditional hairstyles and oshiroi make-up. Geisha entertain at parties known as ozashiki, often for the entertainment of wealthy clientele, as well as performing on stage and at festivals.

Modern geisha are not prostitutes. This misconception originated from conflating Japanese courtesans ( oiran), , the extant tayū, and prostitutes, who historically also wore kimono. The first female geisha appeared in 1751, with geisha before that time being male performers who entertained guests within the pleasure quarters; only later did the profession become mainly characterised by female workers.

The arts that geisha perform are considered highly developed and, in some cases, unique throughout Japan to the world of geisha. For example, the Gion district of Kyoto is the only district wherein the kyo-mai style of Japanese traditional dance is taught. This style of dance is taught solely to the geisha within the district by the Inoue school, with the school's former head, Inoue Yachiyo, having been classified as a " Living National Treasure" by the Government of Japan, the highest artistic award attainable in the country, in 1955.

A regional term for geisha with a slightly different meaning. Geiko is a term used to describe geisha in Western Japan, including Kyoto and Kanazawa. This term directly translates as ' woman of art ', and is part of the Kyoto dialect spoken by geisha in Kyoto and Western Japan.

lit. 'artist' or 'performing artist' or 'artisan'. A traditional female hostess, entertainer and performing artist. The word geisha consists of two kanji: gei and sha.

The five geisha districts of Kyoto; Gion Kobu and Gion Higashi, Ponto-chō, Miyagawa-chō and Kamishichiken. Kyoto previously had six hanamachi, with Shimabara, formerly a red light and geisha district, still being considered an active hanamachi in the 1970s. In the present day, Shimabara is active only as a host for tayū, who are considered to be entertainers of a similar kind to geisha, but the district is still not considered to be an active hanamachi.

The district where a geisha works, is affiliated, and potentially lives. Geisha generally do not work outside of their hanamachi, though customers may call them for special occasions in other districts, or on excursions - however far away - to places outside the karyūkai.

A term for apprentice geisha in some regions of Japan such as Tokyo. The term han-gyoku means ' half-jewel ', referring to one of the terms for a geisha's wages, 'jewel money'.

An alternative term for the districts in which geisha live and work; interchangeable with karyūkai.

The community or society that geisha inhabit. In the present day, this term refers solely to the world of geisha, as well as the few remaining tayū; before the decline and eventual disappearance of oiran, the term karyūkai referred to the entertainment districts (the "world") of both geisha and courtesans, with oiran acting as the "flowers", ostensibly for their beautiful and showy appearance, and geisha being the subtler "willows".

The most common term for an apprentice geisha, translating to ' woman of dance '.

The second typical stage of a maiko's training, and the step that always follows that of shikomi. A minarai wears a version of a maiko's outfit, with a shorter obi, shorter kimono sleeves, and more hair accessories (kanzashi).

During the minarai period, an apprentice will receive training through one specific teahouse, referred to as the minarai-jaya.

A euphemistic term used to describe the entertainment and red-light districts in Japan, including the worlds of kabuki actors and geisha.

Though geisha may entertain at their okiya, restaurants or inns, they will usually entertain guests at a teahouse.

A geisha lodging house. All geisha must be registered to an okiya, though not all geisha live in their okiya day-to-day. Okiya are usually run by women, many of whom are ex-geisha themselves. Geisha may entertain guests within their okiya.

A term for a geisha's engagements, which may take part or the whole of an evening. The term ozashiki combines the name for a banqueting room, zashiki, and the honorific prefix o-, changing the meaning to a term exclusively referring to the engagements a geisha takes.

The typical first stage of a maiko's training. Shikomi wear kimono, though they do not wear the elaborate outfit, hairstyle and makeup of fully-fledged maiko.

Geisha engagements not held in licensed restaurants, teahouses, or a geisha's own hanamachi.

In the early stages of Japanese history, saburuko (serving girls) were mostly wandering girls whose families had been displaced by war. Some of these saburuko girls offered sexual services for money while others with a better education made a living by entertaining at high-class social gatherings.

After the imperial court moved the capital to Heian-kyō (Kyoto) in 794, aspects of now-traditional Japanese art forms and aesthetic ideals began to develop, which would later contribute to the conditions under which the geisha profession emerged. Skilled female performers, such as shirabyōshi dancers, thrived under the Imperial court, creating the traditions of female dance and performance that would later lead to both the development of geisha and kabuki actors.

During the Heian period, ideals surrounding relationships with women, sexual or otherwise, did not emphasise fidelity, with marriage within the Heian court considered a relatively casual arrangement. Men were not constrained to be faithful to their wives, with the ideal wife instead being a modest mother who managed the affairs of the house, following Confucian customs wherein love had secondary importance to the other roles a wife fulfilled within the marriage. As such, courtesans-who provided not only sexual enjoyment, but also romantic attachment and artistic entertainment-were seen both as an outlet for men and as common companions. Though geisha would not appear until the 1800s, the role and status of courtesans as artistic and romantic entertainers were a tradition that geisha came to inherit, with the basic artforms of entertaining guests through song, dance and conversation being employed and adapted to contemporary tastes by geisha.

Walled-in pleasure quarters known as yūkaku were built in the 16th century, with the shogunate designating prostitution illegal to practice outside of these "pleasure quarters" in 1617. Within the pleasure quarters, yūjo - a term used to refer to prostitutes as a whole - were classified and licensed, the upper echelons of which were referred to as oiran, a category with its own internal ranks, the highest of which being the tayū.

Though women in the lower ranks of yūjo did not provide as much artistic entertainment as they did sexual, oiran, whilst still prostitutes, also included the traditional arts as a key aspect of their entertainment, their practice of which differed considerably from those of geisha. As oiran were considered to be low-ranking members of the nobility, the instruments they played and the songs they sang were often confined to those considered "respectable" enough for the upper classes. This typically meant that oiran sang long, traditional ballads (nagauta), and played instruments such as the kokyū (a type of bowed shamisen) and the koto (a 13-stringed harp).

However, some yūjo also performed theatrical plays, dances and skits; one such person was Izumo no Okuni, whose theatrical performances on the dry riverbed of the Kamo River are considered to be the beginnings of kabuki theatre.

Following their inception by the shogunate in the 17th century, the pleasure quarters quickly became popular entertainment centres that developed their own additional forms of entertainment outside of sex. The highly accomplished courtesans of these districts entertained their clients by dancing, singing, and playing music. Some were renowned poets and calligraphers as well; the development of the cultural arts of the pleasure quarters led to the rise in oiran being considered to be the celebrities of their day.

Around the turn of the 18th century, the first geisha, or forerunners of geisha, performing for guests of the pleasure quarters began to appear; these entertainers, who provided song and dance, developed from a number of sources. Some geisha, who were something of travelling entertainers going from party to party, were men, who would entertain the customers of courtesans through song and dance. At the same time, the forerunners of female geisha, the teenage odoriko ("dancing girls"), developed, trained and hired as chaste dancers-for-hire within these pleasure quarters. Further still, some courtesans, whose contracts within the pleasure quarters had ended, chose to stay on to provide musical entertainment to guests, making use of the skills they had formerly developed as part of their job.

In the 1680s, odoriko had become popular entertainers and were often paid to perform in the private homes of upper-class samurai; by the early 18th century, many of these odoriko had also begun offering sexual services as well as chaste performances. Performers who were no longer teenagers (and could no longer style themselves odoriko) adopted other titles in order to continue working - with one being "geisha", after the male entertainers of the time.

The first woman known to have called herself "geisha" was a prostitute from Fukagawa, roughly around 1750, who had become a skilled singer and shamisen player. The geisha, who took the name of Kikuya, became an immediate success, bringing greater popularity to the idea of female geisha. In the next two decades, female geisha became well known for their talents as entertainers in their own right; these performers often worked in the same establishments as male geisha.

By 1800, the profession of geisha was understood to be almost entirely female, and was established as a distinct role in its own right; however, geisha were, throughout various points within the Edo period, unable to work outside of the pleasure quarters, being affected by reforms aimed at either limiting or shutting down the pleasure quarters. These reforms were often inconsistent, and were repealed at various times.

Once established as an independent profession, a number of edicts were then introduced in order to protect the business of courtesans and separate the two professions. Geisha were firstly forbidden from selling sex, though many continued to do so; if a courtesan accused a geisha of stealing her customers and business of sex and entertainment, an official investigation was opened, with the potential for a geisha to lose her right to practice the profession. Geisha were also forbidden from wearing particularly flashy hairpins or kimono, both of which were hallmarks of higher-ranking courtesans, who were considered to be a part of the upper classes.

Despite their official status as lower-class entertainers, geisha continued to grow in popularity. While courtesans existed to meet the needs of upper-class men (who could not respectably be seen to visit a lower-class prostitute) and prostitutes met the sexual needs of lower-class men, this left a gap of skilled and refined entertainers for the emerging merchant classes, who, though wealthy, were unable to access courtesans because of their social class. The status of courtesans as celebrities and arbiters of fashion had also waned considerably; the art forms they practiced had become stiffly-cherished relics of the upper classes, as had their manner of speech and their increasingly gaudy appearance. In contrast, machi geisha ( lit.  'town geisha') had begun to successfully establish themselves as worldly, cutting-edge entertainers, more artistically daring than their cloistered, indentured cousins, and able to come and go and dress as they pleased.

This popularity was then increased by the introduction of various laws intended to clamp down on and regulate the lower classes - in particular, the emerging merchant classes who had established themselves as the premiere patrons of geisha. Both had, over time, come to hold much of the purchasing power within Japan, with their status as lower class allowing them a degree of freedom in their tastes of dress and entertainment, in contrast to upper class families who had little choice but to appear in a manner deemed respectable to their status.

As the tastes of the merchant classes for kabuki and geisha became widely popular, laws introduced to effectively neuter the appearances and tastes of geisha and their customers were passed. This, however, had the adverse effect of leading to the rise in popularity of more refined and subversive aesthetical senses within those classes, further alienating courtesans and their patrons from popularity and contemporary taste; the introduction of laws on dress only furthered the popularity of geisha as refined and fashionable companions for men. As a result, over time, courtesans of both higher and lower ranks began to fall out of fashion, seen as gaudy and old-fashioned.

By the 1830s, geisha were considered to be the premiere fashion and style icons in Japanese society, and were emulated by women of the time. Many fashion trends started by geisha soon became widely popular, with some continuing to this day; the wearing of haori by women, for example, was first started by geisha from the Tokyo hanamachi of Fukagawa in the early 1800s.

There were considered to be many classifications and ranks of geisha, though some were colloquial or closer to a tongue-in-cheek nicknames than an official ranking. Some geisha would sleep with their customers, whereas others would not, leading to distinctions such as kuruwa geisha - a geisha who slept with customers as well as entertaining them through performing arts - yujō ("prostitute") and jorō ("whore") geisha, whose only entertainment for male customers was sex, and machi geisha, who did not, officially and in reality, sleep with customers at all.

By the end of the 19th century, courtesans no longer held the celebrity status they once did.

This trend would continue until the criminalisation of prostitution in Japan in 1956.

World War II brought lasting change to the geisha profession; before the war, geisha numbers, despite seeing competition from jokyū (café girls, the precursor to the bar hostess profession in Japan), had been as high as 80,000, however, following the closure of all geisha districts in 1944, mostly all geisha had been conscripted into the war effort proper, with many finding work in factories or elsewhere through customers and patrons.

Though geisha returned to the karyūkai relatively quickly after the war, many had decided to stay on in their wartime jobs, considering it to be a more stable form of employment. Both during and after the war, the geisha name lost some status, as some prostitutes began referring to themselves as " geisha girls" to members of the American military occupying Japan.

In 1945, the karyūkai saw restrictions on its practices lifted with teahouses, bars, and geisha houses ( okiya) allowed to open again. Though many geisha did not return to the hanamachi after the war, it was evident that working as a geisha was still considered to be a lucrative and viable career, with numbers increasing quickly. The vast majority of geisha after the war were aged 20-24, as many retired in their mid-twenties after finding a patron - a trend carried over from the pre-war karyūkai:

I showed the mother of the Yamabuki [ okiya, in 1975] some statistics on the age distribution of the geisha population in the 1920s. She remarked on the big dip in figures when women reached the age of twenty-five. "In those days, when you found yourself a patron you could stop working. If you were lucky you would be set up in your own apartment and have a life of leisure, taking lessons when you wanted to for your own enjoyment[...] I think it's pretty unusual nowadays for a geisha to stop working when she gets a patron."

The status of geisha in Japanese society also changed drastically after the war. Throughout the 1920s and 1930s, much discussion had taken place surrounding the status of geisha in a rapidly-Westernising Japanese society. Some geisha had begun to experiment with wearing Western clothing to engagements, learning Western-style dancing, and serving cocktails to customers instead of sake. The image of a "modern" pre-war geisha had been viewed by some as unprofessional and a betrayal of the profession's image, but as a necessary change and an obvious evolution by others. However, the incumbent pressures of the war rapidly turned the tide against Westernisation, leading to an effective abandonment of most radical "Western-style" geisha experiments.

After the war, geisha unanimously returned to wearing kimono and practicing the traditional arts, abandoning all experimental geisha styles of appearance and entertainment. This, however, led to the final blow for the profession's reputation as fashionable in wider society; though the geisha did not experience the rapid decline and eventual death that courtesans had experienced in the previous century, they were instead rendered as "protectors of tradition" in favour of preserving the image geisha had cultivated over time.

Nonetheless, in the decades after the war, the profession's practices still underwent some changes. Following the introduction of the Prostitution Prevention Law in 1956, geisha benefited from the official criminalisation of practices such as mizuage, a practice that had at times been undertaken coercively or through force by some maiko in mostly pre-war Japan. Despite this, the misconception of geisha being on some level prostitutes and of mizuage being a common practice continues, inaccurately, to this day.

After Japan lost the war, geisha dispersed and the profession was in shambles. When they regrouped during the Occupation and began to flourish in the 1960s during Japan's postwar economic boom, the geisha world changed. In modern Japan, girls are not sold into indentured service. Nowadays, a geisha's sex life is her private affair.

From the 1930s onwards, the rise of the jokyū bar hostess began to overshadow geisha as the premiere profession of entertainment at parties and outings for men. In 1959, the Standard-Examiner reported the plight of geisha in an article written for the magazine Bungei Shunju by Japanese businessman Tsûsai Sugawara. Sugawara stated that girls now "prefer[red] to become dancers, models, and cabaret and bar hostesses rather than start [the] training in music and dancing at the age of seven or eight" necessary to become geisha at the time.

Compulsory education laws passed in the 1960s effectively shortened the period of training for geisha apprentices, as girls could no longer be taken on at a young age to be trained throughout their teenage years. This led to a decline in women entering the profession, as most okiya required a recruit to be at least somewhat competent and trained in the arts she would later go on to use as a geisha; by about 1975, okiya mothers in Kyoto began accepting both recruits from different areas of Japan in larger numbers, and recruits with little to no previous experience in the traditional arts. Before this point, the number of maiko in had dropped from 80 to just 30 between 1965-1975.

By 1975, the average age of a geisha in the Ponto-chō district of Kyoto was roughly 39, with the vast majority being aged 35-49. The population of geisha at this time was also surprisingly high, roughly equivalent to the numbers of young women within the profession; geisha no longer retired young when they found a patron, and were less likely than other women of the same age to have both children and an extended family to support them. In 1989, it was reported in the New York Times that there were an estimated 600-700 geisha left throughout the whole of Japan.

Modern geisha mostly still live in okiya they are affiliated with, particularly during their apprenticeship, and are legally required to be registered to one, though they may not live there every day. Many experienced geisha are successful enough to choose to live independently, though living independently is more common in some geisha districts - such as those in Tokyo - than others.

Geisha are often hired to attend parties and gatherings, traditionally at tea houses or traditional Japanese restaurants ( ryōtei). The charge for a geisha's time, previously determined by the time it took to burn one incense stick (known as senkōdai or gyokudai, was modernised during the 19th century to a flat fee charged per hour. In Kyoto, the terms ohana and hanadai (both meaning "flower fees") are used instead as part of the Kyoto dialect. However, appointments and arrangements are still made by the mother of the house (the okasan) through the official registry office, which keeps a record of both the appointments taken by a geisha and her schedule.

In modern Japan, geisha and their apprentices are a rarer sight outside of the hanamachi or chayagai (, "tea house district", often referred to as "entertainment district"); most sightings of geisha and maiko in and around cities such as Kyoto are actually tourists who pay a fee to be dressed up as either a maiko or geisha for the day, a practice known as henshin.

Over time the number of geisha has declined, despite the efforts of those within the profession. Factors include the nature of the economy, declining interest in the traditional arts, the exclusive and closed-off nature of the karyūkai, and the expense of being entertained by geisha. The number of maiko and geisha in Kyoto fell from 76 and 548 in 1965 respectively to just 71 and 202 in 2006 as a result.

However, following the advent of wider accessibility to the internet from the mid-2000s onwards, a greater number of recruits have decided to join the profession with no existing ties to the karyūkai through watching online documentaries and reading websites set up by okiya to promote their business; documentary pieces commonly inspire young women to join the profession, such as the geisha Satsuki, who later became the most popular geisha in Gion for a seven-year period:

[Geisha] Satsuki first took an interest in the kagai while a middle school student in Osaka, at around the age of 14, after seeing a documentary about a maiko's training. "I already had heard of maiko, but it was when I saw the documentary that I thought - I want to do that."

In recent years, a growing number of geisha have complained to the authorities about being pursued and harassed by groups of tourists keen to take their photograph when out walking. As a result, tourists in Kyoto have been warned not to harass geisha on the streets, with local residents of the city and businesses in the areas surrounding the hanamachi of Kyoto launching patrols throughout Gion in order to prevent tourists from doing so.

A geisha's appearance changes symbolically throughout her career, representing her training and seniority. Apprentice geisha typically appear in one style of dress, the most formal, the entire time they are working: a long-sleeved kimono with a trailing skirt, a formal obi which may be extremely long, full white makeup and a traditional hairstyle, which is done using the apprentice's own hair. A geisha, in contrast, may not be called to wear her most formal outfit (a trailing kurotomesode with an obi of matching formality, a wig and full white makeup) to every engagement.

Changes, and style of appearance, vary depending on the region of Japan a geisha or apprentice geisha works in; however, there is a general progression of appearance that can be seen as applicable to all geisha.

Both maiko and geisha wear traditional white foundation known as oshiroi; in the past, this white makeup - formerly made with lead - would have illuminated the face of a geisha when the only lighting available was that of candlelight. Oshiroi is worn with red and black eye and eyebrow makeup, red lips and light pink blusher. Both maiko and geisha underpaint their lips with a red lipstick known as beni, but first-year apprentice geisha paint only the lower lip, and wear less black around the eyes and eyebrows than senior maiko. Younger apprentices may also paint their eyebrows slightly shorter or rounder to emphasise a youthful appearance. Maiko wear noticeably more blush - known as tonoko - than geisha. Young apprentices may have the mother of the house or their "older sister" mentors help them apply makeup.

Geisha wear more black around the eyes and eyebrows than maiko, and older geisha tend only to wear a full face of traditional white makeup during stage performances or on special occasions; older geisha generally stop wearing oshiroi around the same time they stop wearing hikizuri to parties.

For a short period before becoming a geisha, maiko in some geisha districts colour their teeth black, usually accompanied by wearing the sakkō hairstyle and a decorated black formal kimono. Teeth blackening was once a common practice amongst married women in Japan and the imperial court in earlier times, but is now an extremely uncommon practice.

Geisha and maiko always wear kimono while working, and typically wear kimono outside of work. However, the type of kimono varies based on age, occasion, region and season of the year.

Both geisha and apprentice geisha typically wear kimono known as hikizuri (also known as susohiki, which have extra-long, trailing skirts. These kimono feature a collar set further back into the neck, and sleeves attached unevenly to the body of the kimono. These features allow the collar to be pulled further down the back when worn, with the sleeves - which, like all women's kimono, feature an open portion underneath the shoulder - offset on the shoulder to ensure that the underarm is not exposed awkwardly through the open inner side of the sleeve.

Hikizuri are formal kimono, and are almost invariably made of fine silk. Their patterns generally follow the placement of motifs on formal kimono such as hōmongi and irotomesode, with motifs unsymmetrically placed along the hem and along the shoulders. For extremely formal occasions, black hikizuri that resemble kurotomesode are seen.

Because they are formal clothes, informal fabrics, such as slubbed silk, cotton, linen and polyester, are not used for hikizuri. As with regular women's kimono, hikizuri are lined for most of the year, and unlined for the summer months; in winter, heavier formal fabrics such as rinzu may be used, and in summer, lightweight silk weaves such as ro (a plain weave with interspersed lines of leno weave) may be worn. When off-duty, if wearing kimono, both geisha and their apprentices wear regular, non-trailing kimono.

Maiko wear hikizuri with furisode-style sleeves, with a tuck sewn into either sleeve, and a tuck sewn into each shoulder. These tucks are holdovers from a time when maiko spent most of their teenage years as apprentices; the tucks would be let out as they grew. These tucks are still seen on some children's kimono.

Apprentices wear long, formal obi. For apprentices in Kyoto this is almost always a darari ( lit. 'dangling') obi, a type of obi roughly 6 metres (20 ft) long, but elsewhere may be the shorter and narrower fukuro obi. Darari obi are always worn in a knot showing off the length, whereas apprentices elsewhere wear fukura-suzume and han-dara ( lit. 'half-dangling') knots. When wearing casual kimono in off-duty settings, an apprentice may still wear a nagoya obi, even with a yukata.

Apprentices wear either zōri or okobo with their kimono, with okobo being worn (in Kyoto at least) with all formal kimono. For training and in everyday life, zōri are worn, even when wearing casual short-sleeved kimono such as komon and yukata.

Not all geisha wear hikizuri; older geisha tend to wear regular formal kimono to engagements, with no trailing skirt or deep-set collar. The appearance of regional geisha varies less across Japan so than that of apprentice geisha.

Geisha exclusively wear solid white han-eri, and wear either geta or zōri when wearing kimono.

Following World War II, many of the hairstylists who had previously served the karyūkai no longer operated, leading to the redevelopment of hairstyles for geisha and maiko. Geisha, unable to reliably book in with a hairstylist once a week to maintain their hair, began to wear human hair wigs in the shimada style that required restyling far less. The hairstyles of maiko, still utilising the apprentice's own hair, became wider, placed higher upon the head, and shorter in length.

There are five different hairstyles that a maiko wears, which mark the different stages of her apprenticeship. The nihongami hairstyle with kanzashi hair ornaments are most closely associated with maiko, who spend hours each week at the hairdresser and sleep on special pillows ( takamakura) to preserve the elaborate styling. Maiko can develop a bald spot on their crown caused by the stress of wearing these hairstyles almost every day, but in the present day, this is less likely to happen because maiko begin their apprenticeship at a later age. Maiko in certain districts of Kyoto may also wear additional, differing hairstyles in the run up to graduating as a geisha.

Both the hairstyles of maiko and geisha are decorated with hair combs and hairpins ( kanzashi), with geisha wearing far fewer kanzashi than maiko. The style and colour of hair accessories worn with some maiko hairstyles can signify the stage of an apprentice's training. Typical combs and hairpins may be made of tortoiseshell or mock-tortoiseshell, gold, silver and semi-precious stones such as jade and coral.

Geisha entertain their guests with a combination of both their hostessing and conversational skills, and their skills in traditional Japanese art forms of dance, music and singing. Before deciding to begin a career as a geisha, new recruits are generally expected to have an interest in the arts, as well as some experience; however, as geisha numbers have fallen throughout the decades, this is no longer a strict prerequisite. Some okiya will take on recruits with no previous experience, with some young geisha, despite having existing experience, expected to begin their lessons from the beginning.

The style of dance practiced by geisha today evolved from dance styles used in both nōh and kabuki theatre. Over time, the more exaggerated theatrical styles evolved into the subtle and more stylised form of dancing used today; despite the difference, elements of traditional Japanese dance, such as the use of gestures to tell a story and the symbolism used to represent this, run throughout both as a common feature.

These dances are accompanied by traditional Japanese music. The primary instrument used by geisha to accompany dance is the shamisen, a banjo-like three-stringed instrument played with a plectrum. Originating in China as the sanxian, it was introduced to Japan first through Korea, and then the Ryukyu Islands in the 1560s, obtaining its current form within a century. The shamisen soon became the mainstay instrument of geisha entertainment in the 1750s. It is described as having a distinct and melancholic sound, with traditional shamisen music using only minor thirds and sixths in its composition.

All geisha must learn to play the shamisen, alongside additional instruments that often accompany the shamisen, such as the ko-tsuzumi (small shoulder drum) and fue (flute), during their apprenticeship, as well as learning traditional Japanese dance; however, after graduation to geisha status, geisha are free to choose which art form they wish to pursue primarily. Geisha who pursue musicianship are known as jikata (, "ground [seated, when playing instruments and singing] person") geisha, whereas geisha who pursue dance are known as tachikata geisha. Some geisha not only dance and play music, but also write poems, paint pictures, or compose music.

While traditionally geisha led a cloistered existence, in recent years they have become more publicly visible, and entertainment is available without requiring the traditional introduction and connections.

The most visible form of this are public dances, or odori (generally written in traditional kana spelling as , rather than modern ), featuring both maiko and geisha. All the Kyoto hanamachi hold these annually (mostly in spring, with one exclusively in autumn), dating to the Kyoto exhibition of 1872, and there are many performances, with tickets being inexpensive, ranging from around ￥1500 to ￥4500 - top-price tickets also include an optional tea ceremony (tea and wagashi served by maiko) before the performance. Other hanamachi also hold public dances, including some in Tokyo, but have fewer performances.

At the Kitano Tenman-gū shrine there is an annual open-air tea ceremony during the plum-blossom festival every February 25. During this ceremony, geisha and maiko from the Kamishichiken district in northwest Kyoto serve tea to 3,000 guests. As of 2010, they also serve beer in a beer garden at the Kamishichiken Kaburenjo Theatre during the summer months. Another geisha beer garden is available at the Gion Shinmonso ryokan in the Gion district. These beer gardens also feature traditional dances by the geisha in the evenings.

Before the 20th century, geisha began their training at a young age, around the age of six. In the present day this is no longer the case, and geisha usually debut as maiko around the age of 17 or 18. Labour laws stipulate that apprentices only join an okiya aged 18, although okiya in Kyoto are legally allowed to take on recruits at a younger age, 15-17. Now, girls must graduate from middle school and then make the personal decision to train to become a geisha. Young women who wish to become geisha now most often begin their training after high school or even college. Many more women begin their careers in adulthood.

Before debuting as a maiko, apprentices may live at the okiya as shikomi - essentially a trainee, learning all the necessary skills to become a maiko, as well as attending to the needs of the house and learning to live with her geisha sisters and within the karyūkai. By watching other geisha and learning from the mother of the house (known as the okā-san), apprentices learn how to speak with guests, the mannerisms necessary to be a geisha, and the traditions of the karyūkai. Apprentices also learn how to comfortably wear kimono.

Traditionally the shikomi stage of training lasted for years, and some girls were bonded to geisha houses as children. Daughters of geisha were often brought up as geisha themselves, usually as the successor ( atotori, meaning "heir" or "heiress") or daughter-role ( musume-bun) to the okiya. Successors, however, were not always blood relations. Nowadays, a girl is often a shikomi for up to a year.

A maiko is an apprentice and is therefore bonded under a contract to her okiya. The okiya will usually supply her with food, board, kimono, obi, and other tools of her trade, but a maiko may decide to fund everything herself from the beginning with either a loan or the help of an outside guarantor. A maiko's training is very expensive, and debts must be repaid over time with her earnings to either the okiya or her guarantor. This repayment may continue after graduation to geishahood, and only when her debts are settled can a geisha claim her entire wages and work independently (if loaning from the okiya). After this point she may choose to stay on living at her okiya, must still be affiliated to one to work, and even living away from the okiya, will usually commute there to begin her working evening.

A maiko will start her formal training on the job as a minarai (a name meaning "learning by observation") at an ozashiki, where she will sit and observe as the other maiko and geisha interact with customers. In this way, a trainee gains insights into the nature of the job, following the typical nature of traditional arts apprenticeships in Japan, wherein an apprentice is expected to learn almost entirely through observation. Although geisha at the stage of minarai training will attend parties, they will not participate on an involved level and are instead expected to sit quietly. Trainees can be hired for parties, but are usually uninvited - though welcomed - guests, brought along by their symbolic older sister as a way of introducing a new trainee to patrons of the karyūkai. Minarai usually charge just a third of the fee a typical geisha would charge, and typically work within just one particular tea house, known as the minarai-jaya - learning from the "mother" (proprietress) of the house. The minarai stage of training involves learning techniques of conversation, typical party games, and proper decorum and behaviour at banquets and parties. This stage lasts only about a month or so.

After the minarai period, a trainee will make her official debut ( misedashi) and become a maiko. This stage can last between three and five years. During this time, they learn from both other trainees senior to them, and their geisha mentors, with special emphasis placed on learning from her symbolic "older sister" ( onee-san). Though any maiko or geisha "senior" in rank to an apprentice may be called "older sister", an apprentice's official "older sister" is a geisha bonded to her in an official ceremony, who will thereafter typically teach her about working in the karyūkai. This involves learning how to serve drinks, hold casual conversation, and some training in the arts, though the latter is usually carried out through by dance and music teachers.

There are three major elements of a maiko's training. The first is the formal arts training, which takes place in schools found in every hanamachi. They study traditional instruments: the shamisen, the flute, and drums, as well as learning games, traditional songs, calligraphy, Japanese traditional dances (in the Buyō style), tea ceremony, literature, and poetry. The second element is the entertainment training which a trainee learns at various tea houses and parties by observing her "older sister". The third is the social skill of navigating the complex social web of the hanamachi; formal greetings, gifts, and visits are key parts of the social structure of the karyūkai, and crucial for the support network necessary to support a trainee's eventual debut as a geisha.

Around the age of 20-21, a maiko will graduate to geisha status in a ceremony known as erikae (turning of the collar).

Following debut, geisha typically do not go through major role changes, as there are no more formal stages of training. However, geisha can and do work into their eighties and nineties, and are still expected to train regularly, though lessons may only be put on a few times a month. A geisha may decide to retire from her work, either to move away from the karyūkai, take on the role of "mother" of an okiya, or to mainly focus on performances and teaching other younger geisha.

Since the 1970s, non-Japanese have also trained as and become geisha. Liza Dalby, an American national, worked briefly with geisha in the Pontochō district of Kyoto as part of her doctorate research, although she did not formally debut as a geisha herself.

Some foreign nationals who have completed training and worked as geisha in Japan include:

Fukutarō - (Isabella), a Romanian national who worked in the Izu-Nagaoka district of Shizuoka Prefecture. She began her apprenticeship in April 2010 and debuted a year later in 2011.

Ibu - (Eve), a geisha of Ukrainian descent working in the Anjō district of Aichi Prefecture. Ibu first became interested in being a geisha in 2000, after visiting Japan for a year to study traditional dance, and came back 7 years later to become a geisha. Ibu debuted as a member of the Ichikoma okiya on 5 October 2010, and was still working as a geisha as of early 2012. She is reported as retired in 2016.

Juri - (Maria), a Peruvian geisha working in the resort town of Yugawara in the Kanagawa Prefecture.

Kimicho - (Sydney Stephens), an American national who worked as a geisha in the Shinagawa district of Tokyo. Stephens debuted in August 2015, but left the profession in 2017 for personal reasons.

Rinka - (Zhang Xue), a Chinese national from Shenyang, who became a geisha in Shimoda in the Shizuoka Prefecture in September 2011.

Sayuki - (Fiona Graham), an Australian geisha trainee who debuted in the Asakusa district of Tokyo in 2007 as the first registered foreign geisha in Japan. In February 2011, she left the Asakusa Geisha Association, and reestablished a geisha house in the historic Fukagawa district.

Geisha are regarded in wider Japanese society as some of the most successful businesswomen in Japan, with almost the entirety of the karyūkai being owned and run by women. New geisha are trained for the most part by their symbolic mothers and older sisters, and engagements are arranged through the mother of the house. Infrequently, men take contingent positions within the karyūkai such as hair stylists, dressers (known as otokoshi, as dressing a maiko requires considerable strength) and accountants. The heads ( iemoto) of some dance and music schools that geisha train under may also be male, with some barrier to entry for women to achieve the legacy of being the head of an artistic school.

The geisha system was founded, actually, to promote the independence and economic self-sufficiency of women. And that was its stated purpose, and it actually accomplished that quite admirably in Japanese society, where there were very few routes for women to achieve that sort of independence.

Historically, the majority of women within Japan were wives whose familial duties kept them from working outside their homes. A geisha, however, could achieve independence by working to pay off her debts, making the profession one method for women to support themselves without becoming a wife. Moreover, a geisha chosen as the heir ( atotori) of a geisha house would have stable employment for much of her life, running the okiya throughout her career until the next generation.

Over time, some Japanese feminists have seen geisha as exploited women, but some modern geisha see themselves as liberated feminists: "We find our own way, without doing family responsibilities. Isn't that what feminists are?"

Historically, geisha held an appeal for mainly male guests as a woman outside of the role of "wife". Wives were modest, responsible, and at times sombre, whereas geisha could be playful and carefree. Geisha would, on occasion, marry their clients, but this required retirement.

Though relatively uncommon in previous decades, geisha parties are no longer understood to be affairs for male guests exclusively, with women commonly attending parties alongside other male guests. Though geisha will still gracefully flirt and entertain male guests, this is understood to be a part of a geisha's hostessing and entertainment skills, and is not taken as a serious sign of personal interest.

Despite long-held connotations between sex and geisha, a geisha's sex and love life is usually distinct from her professional life.

Geishas are not submissive and subservient, but in fact they are some of the most financially and emotionally successful and strongest women in Japan, and traditionally have been so.

Most geisha are single women, though they may have lovers or boyfriends over time, and are allowed to pursue these relationships outside of having a patron. In the present day, some geisha are married and continue to work in their capacity as geisha, despite it being uncommon; these geisha are likely to be based in regions outside of Kyoto, as its heavily traditionalist geisha districts would be unlikely to allow a married geisha to work.

Geisha have historically been conflated with prostitution and commonly confused with prostitutes, despite the profession being mostly forbidden from receiving payment for sex since its inception. Despite this, some geisha have historically engaged in prostitution, either through personal choice, or through coercion and at times force.

In 1872, shortly after the Meiji Restoration, the new government passed a law liberating "prostitutes ( shōgi) and geisha ( geigi)", ambiguously grouping both professions together. The terms of the law caused controversy from the unclear differentiation between professions, with some officials claiming that prostitutes and geisha worked different ends of the same profession, and that there would be little difference in calling all prostitutes "geisha". Nonetheless, the government maintained an official distinction between both professions, arguing that geisha should not be conflated with or confused for prostitutes.

Though the law officially maintained a distance between geisha and prostitutes, some geisha still engaged in prostitution. Writing in 1956, former geisha Sayo Masuda wrote of her experiences in the onsen town of Suwa, Nagano Prefecture, where she was sold for her virginity a number of times by the mother of her okiya. Such practices could be common in less reputable geisha districts, with onsen towns in particular being known for their so-called "double registered" geisha (a term for an entertainer registered as both a geisha and a prostitute). A geisha working to pay off her incumbent debts to the mother of the house often had little choice but to engage in prostitution, whether forced to by her occupational "mother", or coerced to do it in order to pay off her debts.

In 1956, and following its implementation in 1958, the Prostitution Prevention Law (Baishun-bōshi-hō) criminalised the vast majority of prostitution, essentially leading to the outlawing of practices such as mizuage for geisha. In the present day, mizuage does not exist, and apprentices mark their graduation to geisha status with a series of ceremonies and events.

Despite this, the modern conflation between geisha and prostitutes continues as a pervasive idea, particularly in Western culture. Sheridan Prasso wrote that Americans had "an incorrect impression of the real geisha world[...] geisha means 'arts person' trained in music and dance, not in the art of sexual pleasure". Similarly, K.G. Henshall stated that the job of a geisha included "[entertaining] their customer, be it by dancing, reciting verse, playing musical instruments, or engaging in light conversation. Geisha engagements may include flirting with men and playful innuendos; however, clients know that nothing more can be expected. In a social style that is common in Japan, men are amused by the illusion of that which is never to be."

In the past, it had been unspoken tradition for an established geisha to take a danna, or patron, who would pay for her expenses, buy her gifts, and engage her on a more personal level - at times involving sex - than a banquet or party would allow. This would be seen as a sign of the man's generosity, wealth, and status, as the expenses associated with being a geisha were relatively high; as such, a danna was typically a wealthy man, sometimes married, who may have been financially supporting the geisha in question through company expenses.

In the present day, it is less common for a geisha to take a danna, simply because of the expenses involved and the unlikelihood that a modern man could support both his household and a geisha's living expenses. Nonetheless, it was still common for geisha to retire from the profession in their mid-twenties to live off the support of their patron following the Second World War. The practice continues today, though geisha do not take danna anywhere as commonly, and though intimacy in a danna partnership was in previous decades not seen as essential, in modern times it is valued to a much greater degree because of the formal nature of the commitment and the awareness by both parties of how expensive it can be. The taking of a patron by a geisha is the closest thing to paid compensation for a personal partnership - whatever that partnership might entail - that a geisha officially engages in today.

During the Allied occupation of Japan, some prostitutes, almost exclusively working for the occupying forces in Japan, began to advertise themselves as "geisha girls", partly because many foreign soldiers could not tell the difference between a geisha and a woman dressed in a kimono. These women came to be known commonly as "geesha girls", a misnomer originating from the language barrier between the armed forces and the prostitutes themselves; the term spread quickly, as evidenced by the fact that shortly after their arrival in 1945, it was said that some occupying American GIs congregated in Ginza and shouted "We want geesha girls!".

The English term "geisha girl" soon became a byword for any female Japanese prostitute, whether actually selling sex or not; the term was applied to bar hostesses (who occupy the role of entertaining men through conversation, not necessarily sex) and streetwalkers alike. The term "geisha girls", its quick spread to Western culture, and the accompanying mental image of a woman in a kimono offering sex and entertainment, is largely speculated as responsible for the continuing misconception in the West that all geisha are engaged in prostitution.

Mizuage was a ceremony undergone by junior kamuro (apprentice courtesans) and some maiko as part of the process of promotion to senior status. Originally meaning the unloading of a ship's cargo of fish, over time, the term became an innuendo for money earned in the karyūkai, another name for the entertainment business being the mizu shōbai - literally, "the water business".

Alongside changes in appearance - such as from the junior wareshinobu hairstyle to the more senior ofuku style, - and visits paid to businesses and places of importance around the karyūkai, an apprentice would occasionally have their virginity sold to a patron, who ostensibly supported their graduation to geisha status - usually through the exorbitant fee charged for the privilege. Unscrupulous okiya owners would not uncommonly sell an apprentice's virginity more than once to different customers, pocketing the entire fee for themselves with the apprentice herself remaining an apprentice.

During World War II, some prostitutes would use this term to refer to their acts with customers, leading to some confusion - particularly when referring to themselves as "geisha" when in the company of foreign soldiers, and sometimes amongst Japanese customers. After 1956, prostitution was criminalised in Japan, and mizuage is no longer practiced within the karyukai.

Geisha work in districts known as hanamachi, and are said to inhabit the karyūkai ("flower and willow world"), a term originating from a time when both courtesans and geisha worked within the same areas. Courtesans were said to be the "flowers" in this moniker for their showy and beautiful nature, with geisha being the "willows" for their understated nature.

Part of the comparison between geisha and willows comes from the perceived loyalty amongst geisha to their patrons - over time, it became known that certain factions, such as certain political parties, would patronise some geisha districts with their rivals patronising others. Though courtesans (and by extension, prostitutes) were humorously known for having loyalty only to the customer paying them for the night, a geisha would stand by her patrons and defend their best interests, her loyalty to her patrons being perceived as higher than her loyalty to her money.

Historically, geisha on occasion were confined to operate in the same walled districts as courtesans and prostitutes; however, both professions have on some level always maintained a distance officially, despite often being legislated against by the same laws.

The six hanamachi in Tokyo are Asakusa, Akasaka, Kagurazaka, Shimbashi, Mukōjima, and Yoshichō. The Fukagawa district of Tokyo is known for being the location of the first female geisha in Japan; however, the area faced decline following WWII, with its registry office closing temporarily in the 1980s, before being partially revived in the mid- to late-2000s.

Within the Tokyo prefecture but outside of the city's 23 wards, the city of Hachiōji has its own geisha culture heritage.

In Kyoto, the different hanamachi - known as the gokagai - are seen as unofficially ranked. Gion Kobu, Ponto-chō and Kamishichiken are seen as the most prestigious, with Gion Kobu at the top; below these three are Gion Higashi and Miyagawa-chō. The more prestigious hanamachi are frequented by powerful businessmen and politicians.

In the 1970s, the geisha districts in Kyoto were known as the rōkkagai, as the district of Shimabara was still officially active as a geisha district, as well as hosting tayū reenactors; however, no geisha are active in Shimabara in the 21st century, despite modern tayū continuing to work there.

The northern city of Niigata has its own geisha tradition, which dates to the Edo period. The geisha in Niigata are known as geigi. The Furumachi neighbourhoood is the place where most ochaya are located, with places such as the Nabechaya.

The Niigata geigi are known for holding more flexible rules and traditions than other geisha districts in Japan, leading to the district's revival in the modern day, following a period of decline in the 1980s.

Geisha in onsen towns such as Atami may also be seen as less prestigious, as geisha working in these towns are typically hired to work in one hotel for travelling customers they are usually not familiar with before entertaining; nevertheless, all geisha, regardless of region or district, are trained in the traditional arts, making the distinction of prestige one of history and tradition.

Geisha have been the subject of numerous films, books, and television shows.

Kyoko Aihara "Geisha A living tradition"　Carlton Books Ltd,　ISBN 1858689376 (Hardcover)in English

Kyoko Aihara "The World of Geisha" Periplus Editions Ltd (Tuttle), ISBN 4805306114 (Hardcover)in English

Kyoko Aihara "The World of Geisha" Seven Oaks, ISBN 1862000662 (Hardcover)in English

Kyoko Aihara "Geisha - Une tradition vivante" Soline edition, ISBN 2876774313 (Hardcover)in French

Kyoko Aihara "Geisha - A living tradition" New Holland, ISBN 1864366575 (Hardcover)in English

Kyoko Aihara "Gesak - Elo hagyomany" DEE-SIGN, ISBN 9630037432 (Hardcover)in Hungarian

Kyoko Aihara "Geisha - A living tradition" Carlton Books Ltd, UK, ISBN 1844424901 (Paper Back)in English

Kyoko Aihara "GEJSZA - Żywa tradycja" Świat Książki, ISBN 8373914641 (Hardcover)in Polosh

Kyoko Aihara "Kahekone Kimonoga/Dialogue with Kimono" Estonia-Japan Association, ISBN 9789949300105 (Paper Back) in Estonian and in English

Crihfield, Liza (1976). The institution of geisha in modern Japanese society (book). University Microfilms International. OCLC 695191203.

Dalby, Liza (2008). Geisha: 25th Anniversary Edition. University of California Press. ISBN 978-0520257894. OCLC 260152400.

Ditmore, Melissa Hope (2006). Encyclopedia of prostitution and prostitution. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press. ISBN 0-313-32969-9.

Iwasaki, Mineko; Brown, Rande (2002). Geisha: A Life (1st ed.). New York, NY: Atria Books. ISBN 978-0-7434-4432-3.

Kalman, Bobbie (March 1989). Japan the Culture. Stevens Point, Wisconsin: Crabtree Publishing Company. ISBN 0-86505-206-9.

Maske, Andrew L. (2004). Geisha: Beyond the Painted Smile. Peabody, MA: Peabody Essex Museum.

Matsugu, Miho (2006). "In the Service of the Nation: Geisha and Kawabata Yasunari's 'Snow Country'". In Feldman, Martha; Gordon, Bonnie (eds.). The Courtesan's Arts: Cross-Cultural Perspectives. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-517028-8.

Rahayu, Mundi; Emelda, Lia; Aisyah, Siti (2014). "Power Relation In Memoirs Of Geisha And The Dancer". Register Journal. 7 (2): 151. doi:10.18326/rgt.v7i2.213. ISSN 2503-040X.

Stanley, Amy (August 2013). "Enlightenment Geisha: The Sex Trade, Education, and Feminine Ideals in Early Meiji Japan". The Journal of Asian Studies. 72 (3): 539-562. doi:10.1017/S0021911813000570. ISSN 0021-9118. S2CID 162791823.

Tames, Richard (September 1993). A Traveller's History of Japan. Brooklyn, NY: Interlink Books. ISBN 1-56656-138-8.

Tetsuo, Ishihara (2001). Nihongami no Sekai: Maiko no Kamigata [The World of Traditional Japanese Hairstyles: Hairstyles of the Maiko ]. Nihongami Shiryōkan. ISBN 4-9902186-1-2.

Tiefenbrun, S. (2003). "Copyright Infringement, Sex Trafficking, and the Fictional Life of a Geisha". Michigan Journal of Gender & Law. 10. doi:10.2139/ssrn.460747. SSRN 460747.

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Geisha (; Japanese: ), also known as geiko (in Kyoto and Kanazawa) or geigi , are a class of female Japanese performing artists and entertainers trained in traditional Japanese performing arts styles, such as dance, music and singing, as well as being proficient conversationalists and hosts.

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Japan has so many amazing drinks with unique flavors. With new products being available in Japanese supermarkets and convenience stores weekly there is too much to try! Before you have had a chance to try it, it might have already disappeared from the shelves. However there are a few drinks that have remained popular throughout the years and always available, let's check out these 10 popular original Japanese drinks!
1. Ramune
Ramune is probably one of the most famous Japanese drinks mainly due to the unique bottle and the unique flavors it comes in. Of course among the more popular flavors are fruity ones like strawberry, peach and grape but there are also some crazy flavors like wasabi, chili oil and kimchi! You can read about crazy flavors here or check out our youtube video in which we tried them out! It often appeared in anime and manga as well which contributed to its popularity. It was invented in 1872 which makes it one of the oldest Japanese sodas. The marble inside the bottle is what makes it unique, pushing it down to open to bottle has proven to be a challenge to many people!
2. Pocari sweat
Pocari sweat is as the name suggests a drink that restores all electrolytes and nutrients that are lost when sweating. In short, it's a sports drink from Japan, invented in 1980! Japanese people also swear by drinking Pocari Sweat when they're down with the flu. The drink is available in pet bottles, cans and even in powder form.
3. Calpis
Calpis was invented in 1919 and was inspired by Mongolian fermented horse milk drink. It was Japan's first lactic acid drink. You can choose to mix it with anything you like which is what made it so popular! Some popular combinations are calpis mixed with water, carbonated or fruity lemonades especially strawberry and melon.
4. Mitsuya cider
Mitsuya cider is interestingly enough not an alcoholic beverage but it's just a carbonated soft drink, first sold in 1884. People have described the flavor of Mitsuya cider as a mix of sprite and ginger ale but seasonal flavors are available as well.
5. Canned coffee
Canned coffee is an original Japanese invention from the 1970's. You can especially find these drinks in vending machines both hot and cold and black or sweet! Of course you can also find canned coffee at convenience stores.
6. Matcha
Matcha, green tea powder is used in many different kind of drinks, unsweetened and sweet, tea or milky latte and super popular outside of Japan as well, you can even order a matcha latte at Starbucks! The bitter sweet drink is not only available in cafes but also in bottles in Japanese convenience stores..
7. Mugicha, roasted barley tea
When people think of Japanese tea, green tea is probably the first thing that comes to mind. Actually mugicha or roasted barley tea is just as popular! At many restaurants you get a glass of water but sometimes mugicha is served instead, you can also get a bottle at the supermarket or convenience store. Since it's an acquired taste, quite bitter and unusual it's not always loved by tourists but you should give it a try anyway!
8. Melon soda
The green melon soda catches the eye of any tourist visiting Japan for the first time. Sweet and yet fresh it's loved by many! It's so popular that it's available everywhere, even at chain stores like Burger King, Mc donald's and karaoke!
9. Yakult
Yakult is Japan's most successful probiotic drink, invented 1930 is available in Japanese supermarkets and convenience stores and even in supermarkets all over the world! In some countries, Japan India and Brazil it's even being sold door to door!
10. Qoo
Qoo was invited in 1999 and marketed towards children and teenagers. The brand is actually owned by coca-cola but the drinks are non-carbonated and have fruity flavors. It's popular all over Asia but not so much in other countries, although it was available in Germany for a while!

What drink did have you tried? Which one would you like to try and which one are you scared of trying? Let us know in the comments below!

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Top 10 Japanese original drinks! Delicious or crazy? | TokyoTreat

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Japan has so many amazing drinks with unique flavors. With new products being available in Japanese supermarkets and convenience stores weekly there is too much to try! Before you have had a chance to try it, it might have already disappeared from the shelves.

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The history of tea in Japan began as early as the 9th century, when the first known references to tea were made in Japanese records. Tea became a drink of the religious classes in Japan when Japanese priests and envoys sent to China to learn about its culture brought tea to Japan.

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Japanese Chado Matcha Green Tea Ceremony #TeaStories | TEALEAVES

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How to make Japanese green tea - simple instructions in English

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Differences between a Geiko (Geisha) and a Maiko (with subtitles) 【HD】

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'The Spirit of Noh 能'  - Oldest surviving form of theater in the world

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Kabuki: The people's dramatic art - Amanda Mattes

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A tourist's guide to Kabuki, Japanese theater.

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Bunraku (文楽) is the traditional puppet theater of Japan. It started of as popular entertainment for the commoners during the Edo Period (1603-1868) in Osaka and evolved into artistic theater during the late 17th century. Along with noh and kabuki, it is recognized as a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage.

What is it?

Bunraku puppets are about one-half life size and each is operated by three performers: a principal operator and two assistants. Strings are not used, but rather the puppeteers co-operate to maneuver the limbs, eyelids, eyeballs, eyebrows and mouths of the puppets, thereby producing life-like actions and facial expressions. The puppeteers are in full view of the audience, but are dressed in black to symbolize that they are to be taken as "invisible".

The story is narrated by a single person, who also speaks the voice of all the puppets, and therefore must have a diverse repertoire of vocal expressions to represent both genders and all ages. The pace of the narration is dictated by accompanying music played on the shamisen. It is delightful to watch the sophisticated puppets come to life as the performers create their intricate movements, synchronized with the narration and the music from the shamisen.

Bunraku and kabuki often depict stories based on adaptations of scripts with similar themes. Classic tragic love stories, heroic legends and tales based on historical events are popular.

Where to watch it?

Nowadays, bunraku is mostly performed in modern theaters with Western-style seats. A day's performance is usually divided into two segments (one in the early afternoon and one towards the evening), and each segment is further divided into acts. Tickets are usually sold per segment, although in some cases they are also available per act. They typically cost between 1500 and 6500 yen.

Below are some venues where bunraku can be watched:

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A tourist's guide to Bunraku, Japanese traditional puppet theatre.

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Noh (能, Nō) is a form of theater involving music, dance and drama, originating in the 14th century. It was developed together with kyogen, which are comical pieces performed during interludes of the main noh performance. The dual art of noh and kyogen is known as nogaku, and has been designated an Intangible Cultural Heritage by UNESCO.

Noh as we know it today was popularized and formalized by a man named Zeami during the Muromachi Period (1333-1573). It was Zeami's work that attracted the government's patronage of the art form. Zeami later fell out of favor with the government and was banished to Sado Island. Four main noh troupes were subsequently established, receiving sponsorship from shrines and temples.

During the Tokugawa Period (1603-1867), the shogunate made noh its official ceremonial art and issued regulations for its governance. Noh thus became increasingly standardized, with an emphasis on tradition rather than innovation. A fifth troupe was added during this time, making five main noh troupes which survive and perform till this day.

What is it?

Noh theater is structured around song and dance. Movement is slow, language is poetic, tone is monotonous, and costumes are rich and heavy. Plots are usually drawn from legend, history, literature and contemporary events. Themes often relate to dreams, supernatural worlds, ghosts and spirits.

Stage

Noh is performed on a square stage with a roof which is supported at its four corners by pillars. All sides of the stage are open except for the back side which consists of a wall with a painted image of a pine tree. A bridge runs at an oblique angle off the stage for performers to enter the stage. Noh used to be typically staged outdoors, but recently modern indoor theaters have also become a common venue.

Roles

All performers in noh are male.

Shite - the leading character. Depending on the play, the shite may act as a holy old man, a deity, a demon, a spirit or a living man. His movements express various moods.

Waki - the supporting actor. The waki plays roles such as a priest, monk or samurai. In contrast to the shite, the waki always portrays living people.

Hayashi - the musicians. Four musicians provide accompaniment for the performance with a flute (fue), shoulder drum (kotsuzumi), hip drum (otsuzumi) and stick drum (taiko).

Jiutai - the chorus. The chorus sits to the left of the stage and assists the shite in the narration of the story.

Koken - stage attendants. Dressed in black, the stage attendants are not part of the play but assist the performers in various ways, such as handing them props.

Masks

One key element of noh are the masks which the shite wears. They tell the audience what kind of character is being portrayed. Frequently used masks represent demons and spirits, as well as women and men of various ages. The masks are carved from blocks of Japanese cypress. Their three dimensional properties allow skilled actors to induce a variety of expressions with changes in head orientation.

Costumes and props

Costumes consist of multiple layers and textures that create an effect of resplendent elegance but also a bulky, massive figure. Expressiveness is enhanced by props, most notably a folding fan. Closed, partly closed or open, the fan may represent any object as suggested by its shape and handling, for example a dagger or a lantern.

Kyogen

Kyogen are the comic pieces performed at intervals between the main noh performance. They utilize satire and witty jokes and are often performed with rhythmical language and sometimes exaggerated actions to inspire laughter from the audience. Most kyogen pieces last for about 15-20 minutes and involve two or three actors. Plots are usually about stories of everyday life, such as men expressing their desire to find wives or farmers praying for good fortune.

Where to watch noh?

Some of the easiest places to watch noh today are modern indoor theaters with an in-built noh stage. In Tokyo, such venues include the National Noh Theatre near Sendagaya Station, the Kanze Noh Theater in Ginza and the Cerulean Tower Noh Theatre in Shibuya. In Osaka, there is the Otsuki Noh Theatre, while Nagoya has the Nagoya Noh Theatre, next to Nagoya Castle.

These days, a typical noh program lasts a couple of hours and consists of two or three noh acts with short kyogen pieces in between. Tickets range from 3,000 up to 12,500 yen, and can be bought over the counter or over the internet. Some places offer discounted tickets to watch a single act of a noh performance, which may be ideal for those looking for a short introduction to the Japanese artform. Note that ticket purchases often require Japanese language skills.

As mentioned before, shrines, temples and the nobility were some of the first patrons of the noh theater. Accordingly, at some famous shrines and temples beautiful outdoor noh stages still exist today. They hold occasional performances, but tickets may be difficult to obtain. Miyajima's Itsukushima Shrine (where the stage stands on pillars in the sea), Hiraizumi's Chusonji Temple, Kyoto's Fushimi Inari Shrine and Tokyo's Yasukuni Shrine are some places where such outdoor stages can be found.

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A tourist's guide to Noh, a form of traditional Japanese theater originating in the 14th century.

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(Captions can be opened in Youtube)

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Issa wrote before his death:

If you leave so much,
As a firefly’s glimmer,
Good Lord! Good Heavens!

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This was Bashō’s last poem, written during his final illness:

Falling sick on a journey,
My dream goes wandering,
Over a field of dried grass.

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A team from Kyoto University has found that patients are less likely to leave hospital on "unlucky" days.

Many Japanese people belief in Taian-Butsumetsu, a superstition relating to the six-day lunar calender.

Taian is a day of good fortune and Butsumetsu means bad luck.

The authors found that significantly more patients were discharged on lucky days, in particular older patients and especially women.

Doctors were reluctant to force patients to leave hospital for fear of damaging the doctor-patient relationship.

Dr Kenji Hira and his colleagues concluded that although hospital stays need to be kept as short as possible to minimise costs, doctors should not ignore the possible psychological effects on patients' health caused by ignoring their superstitions.

Writing in the Britiish Medical Journal, they said: "The superstition-related behaviours of patients cause financial and complex psycho-social problems.

"Doctors should explain drawbacks of unnecessarily extending hospital stay to the patients while taking into consideration the possible psychological impact of the superstition on health."

Impact of superstition

Previous studies have shown that superstitious beliefs can have a negative impact on health.

One study found that there were more hospital admissions as a result of traffic accidents on Friday the 13th than other Fridays.

Dr Hira's team argues that superstition may have a similar influence on health as the placebo effect, in which patients' health improves after a dummy treatment because of their belief that they have received a proper medicine.

The researchers also speculate that patients' health might benefit from a feeling that they, and not the hospital authorities, have the final say as to when they are discharged.

Most medical costs in Japan are covered by a public medical insurance system.

The researchers warn that if costs keep rising more reliance may have to be placed on private sector and out of pocket payment by patients.

The average length of hospital stay in Japan is much longer than in Western countries.

In 1989 the average length of stay for a patient with a physical condition was 44.9 days in Japan, compared to 6.5 days in the US.

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bbc news world uk international foreign british online service

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BBC News | Health | Superstitious Japanese bump up health costs

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A team from Kyoto University has found that patients are less likely to leave hospital on "unlucky" days. Many Japanese people belief in Taian-Butsumetsu, a superstition relating to the six-day lunar calender. Taian is a day of good fortune and Butsumetsu means bad luck.

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East Asian Studies Center, The Ohio State University

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