are the highest class of traditional

courtesan Courtesan, in modern usage, is a euphemism for a "kept" mistress (lover), mistress or prostitute, particularly one with wealthy, powerful, or influential clients. The term historically referred to a courtier, a person who attended the Royal cour ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. Though technically the highest class of , a general term for the highest-ranking courtesans, were distinguished historically from other due to their intensive training from a young age in numerous traditional artforms, and the fact that they did not engage in sex work, unlike courtesans below their rank. were known for their training in

Japanese tea ceremony The Japanese tea ceremony (known as or ) is a Japanese cultural activity involving the ceremonial preparation and presentation of , powdered green tea, the procedure of which is called . While in the West it is known as "tea ceremony", it is se ...

, , ,

Japanese calligraphy also called is a form of calligraphy, or artistic writing, of the Japanese language. Written Japanese was originally based on Chinese characters only, but the advent of the hiragana and katakana Japanese syllabaries resulted in intrin ...

, poetry,

dance Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

, singing, and the playing of traditional instruments, such as the .

History

differed from lower ranks of by the social class of their customers. Traditionally, catered for the uppermost echelons of society, including the nobility and the imperial court. were recognised as a group in the beginning of the

Edo period The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional '' daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was characteriz ...

. Due to the limited size of their clientele, they were never numerous; during their peak there were approximately 40 working in

Kyoto Kyoto (; Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin metropolitan area along with Osaka and Kobe. , the ci ...

in the Shimabara district. have survived into the modern day in Shimabara,

, having been allowed to continue practising the cultural and performing arts traditions of their profession following the introduction of the

Prostitution Prevention Law The (Law no. 118, May 24, 1956) is a law in Japan that aims to prevent prostitution, punish third parties involved in the trade and to protect and rehabilitate women involved in prostitution. It is also known as the 'Anti-Prostitution Law'. The l ...

in 1957; they were declared a "special variety" of geisha. The most famous in history was , who lived in the 17th century. Trained from the age of 7, she quickly mastered the many arts required to be a , and made her debut at the age of 14, immediately becoming a sensation. Yoshino was well-known for her beauty, skill and erudition. Yoshino is buried in the

Jōshō-ji was a former Buddhist monastery in northeastern Kyoto, Japan, endowed by Emperor Sutoku in fulfillment of a sacred vow. It is known as one of the ,Adophson, Mikael S. (2000) ''The Gates of Power: Monks, Courtiers, and Warriors in Premodern Japan ...

temple in Kyoto. Every year on the second Sunday in April, near the anniversary of her death, there is a procession of to the temple, where a ceremony is held.

Appearance

While entertaining, wear elaborate

kimono The is a traditional Japanese garment and the national dress of Japan. The kimono is a wrapped-front garment with square sleeves and a rectangular body, and is worn left side wrapped over right, unless the wearer is deceased. The kimono ...

and hair ornaments weighing more than . Unlike modern-day and

geisha {{Culture of Japan, Traditions, Geisha {{nihongo, Geisha, 芸者 ({{IPAc-en, ˈ, ɡ, eɪ, ʃ, ə; {{IPA-ja, ɡeːɕa, lang), also known as {{nihongo, , 芸子, geiko (in Kyoto and Kanazawa) or {{nihongo, , 芸妓, geigi, are a class of female ...

, but similarly to some apprentice geisha, they do not use wigs for their traditional hairstyles, but instead use their own hair. wear white face makeup and blacken their teeth. are accompanied by an older female attendant and two (young girls wearing red livery bearing the 's name). When outdoors, wear distinctive extremely high platform sandals, which require a special mode of walking in order to look elegant, and also an attendant for support. This and many other aspects of the 's appearance were copied by the , most notably in the , a procession where the processes to meet a customer.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tayu Prostitution in Japan

History

Appearance

See also

References