Geisha 芸者 or Geiko 芸子(in Kyoto dialect) are professional female artist aiming to entertain
their guests during dinners, banquets and other occasions. They are extremely
well trained in a variety of Japanese arts like traditional dancing, preforming
music, games and other skills.
The
word Geisha consists of two Kanji; Gei and Sha, Gei 芸 means ‘art’ and Sha 者
means ‘doer’. Like all Japanese nouns there is no plural version. Apprentice
Geisha are called Maiko which literally means dancing child. The word
consists of two characters also. ‘Dancing’ 舞 and ‘child’子.
Origin
The
Geisha originated from serving girls called ‘saburuko’. These girls where most
of the time without a family. Some of them offered sexual services while
the other girls which had better education, preformed at social gatherings to
entertain guests. In the traditional Japan, sexual delights where not a taboo
and it was very common for Japanese men to search a courtesan for some
pleasure. They even build the so called pleasure quarters in the 16th century.
Outside the pleasure quarters prostitution was illegal. Inside the quarters
they had yuujo 遊女
‘play women’ which were legal. The highest rank of yuujo preformed erotic
dances and skits. This art was called kabuku which means ‘to be wild and
outrageous’. This was the beginning of Kabuki theater.
As
these quarters quickly began to grow to large entertainment centers, the yuujo
offered a lot more than sexual services. Each of them began to develop a
special skill and some of them were even renowned artists, poets or calligraphers.
Before Geisha the odoriko (dancing children) appeared. When they grew out of
their teenage years they adopted different names which depended on their skill.
The first woman who ever called herself a Geisha was a Fukagawa prostitute. She
was a skilled singer and samisen-player and a huge success making female Geisha
extremely popular in Fukagawa. After that the Geisha became more spread over
the country and often worked solely as entertainers and no more as prostitutes.
Still
many Geisha worked as prostitutes imprisoned in the pleasure quarters, in order
to protect the business of the Oiran 花魁.
Eventually
the Geisha evolved and many of them became professional entertainers, while
others still offered sexual services which was still legal up until the 1900s.
Influence
of the second world war
In
the period of the WWII many Geisha were forced to stop because they had to work
in factories or had to move. With the Americans coming to Japan, prostitutes
started to call themselves ‘Geisha girls’ to attract the attention of the
American soldiers and the original Geisha lost their status. In 1940 all the
teahouses ‘ ochaya’ and bars were forced to close, so that all employees could
work in factories. A year later, they were allowed to reopen. The few Geisha
that continued rejected all western influences and hoped to rebuild the Geisha
image with the traditional ways of Japan. It was up to these few Geisha to
bring back the traditional standards and keep their image clean.
Becoming
a Geisha
The
training of the Geisha starts around the early age of 9. Some of them were
raised in an ‘Okiya’ 置屋which is a Geisha house. They were given food, kimono’s, very expensive
training and board. These debts must be repaid to the Okiya with the earning
she makes. The repayment continues until she has paid for all her debts. After
that she is permitted to move out and work independently. In the 1950s the
Okiyas disappeared with the outlawing of child labor.
The
apprentice Geisha, so called Maiko will start their training by observing a full-fledged
Geisha at work. She must find an older Geisha which will act as her
mentor. They call their mentor ‘onee-san’お姉さん which means older sister. They have to
follow their onee-san everywhere and they must obey her as well. The mentor
trains her Maiko in all the required skills such as conversing, playing
shamisen, dancing and other requirements. The onee-san will even help her pick
a name to use in her career.
Maiko’s
are very beautiful to look at, they were colorful kimonos with a very low,
loose hanging collar in the back which accentuates the back of the neck. Also
there are 5 different hairstyles a Maiko can wear which show the different
stages of her apprenticeship. The hairstyles are decorated with ‘Kanzashi’簪 traditional Japanese hair ornaments.
Geisha
today
Although
there are not many Geisha left today, you will have the highest possibility to
see one in Kyoto. Kyoto's most famous district is Gion 祇園
which is known as one of the 5 Geisha districts (hanamachi). Nowadays it's not
impossible for tourists and outsiders to see Geisha and Maiko. They are still
very exclusive and expensive and often require an introduction from someone who
is already a customer. However with the tourism growing in Kyoto there are some
hotels and travel agencies which offer lunch or dinner with the entertainment
of Geisha and Maiko for any tourist with a sufficient budget.
Every
day at Gion Corner at the end of Hanami-Koji, the Geisha and Maiko give a show
which is aimed at tourists. The show gives an introduction to several Japanese
arts. In April you can watch the Miyako Odori which are daily dance performances
by Maiko. There are four one-hour performances every day which costs around
2000 – 4000 yen per person.
Shijio Avenue also
located in Gion district, is a popular shopping are with many stores selling
local products like sweets and crafts.
There are also several
Maiko studios in Kyoto where you can dress up as a Maiko or Geisha, some of
them are especially aimed at tourists.
Outside Kyoto in the
Higashi Chaya district in Kanazawa you can find a former ochaya which is open
to the public as a museum. You can see a traditional tatami room here and
exhibits of various items such as utensils, accessories and instruments.
Whenever you see a
Geisha or Maiko don’t start making pictures out of the blue. Act respectfully.
I hope you enjoyed a
little history again~
~ Mei mei
