was a Japanese stage actress who spanned the Meiji and Taishō periods of

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

and was known by the name Hanako (花子). The ''

kanji are logographic Chinese characters, adapted from Chinese family of scripts, Chinese script, used in the writing of Japanese language, Japanese. They were made a major part of the Japanese writing system during the time of Old Japanese and are ...

'' given for her name when born were 飛佐 (''Hisa''), but she did not use those during her career. Starting in 1902, she spent the majority of her career touring Europe and was the only Japanese person to model for

Auguste Rodin François Auguste René Rodin (; ; 12 November 184017 November 1917) was a French sculptor generally considered the founder of modern sculpture. He was schooled traditionally and took a craftsman-like approach to his work. Rodin possessed a u ...

, who gave her two masks he created, using Hanako as a model.''Gifu City Walking Map''. Gifu Lively City Public Corporation, 2007. These masks are on display in the city of

Gifu is a Cities of Japan, city located in the south-central portion of Gifu Prefecture, Japan, and serves as the prefectural capital. The city has played an important role in Japan's history because of its location in the middle of the country. Durin ...

Gifu Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu. Gifu Prefecture has a population of 1,910,511 () and has a geographic area of . Gifu Prefecture borders Toyama Prefecture to the north; Ishikawa Prefecture ...

, where she spent her twilight years. She was also the basis for

Mori Ōgai Lieutenant-General , known by his pen name , was a Japanese people, Japanese Military medicine, Army Surgeon general officer, translator, novelist, Japanese poetry, poet and father of famed author Mori Mari, Mari Mori. He obtained his medical l ...

's short story ''Hanako''.

Timeline

* 1868 - Born in Kamisobue, Nakashima,

Owari Province was a province of Japan in the area that today forms the western half of Aichi Prefecture, including the modern city of Nagoya. The province was created in 646. Owari bordered on Mikawa, Mino, and Ise Provinces. Owari and Mino provinces w ...

(now

Ichinomiya, Aichi is a Cities of Japan, city located in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. The city is sometimes called Owarichinomiya to avoid confusion with other municipalities of the same name, including Ichinomiya, Aichi (town), Ichinomiya (now part of the city of Toy ...

) to a farmer. * 1875 - Adopted by a green-grocer, as her family was unable to afford to feed her. * 1884 - Became a ''

geisha {{Culture of Japan, Traditions, Geisha {{nihongo, Geisha{{efn, {{IPAc-en, lang, ˈ, ɡ, eɪ, ., ʃ, ə, {{IPA, ja, ɡei.ɕa, ɡeː-, lang{{cite book, script-title=ja:NHK日本語発音アクセント新辞典, publisher=NHK Publishing, editor= ...

''. * 1888 - Married first husband. * 1898 - Divorced first husband and married second husband. * 1901 - Divorced second husband. * 1902 - Travels to Europe for the first time. * 1904 - Begins touring Germany with a performance troupe. * 1906 - Meets Rodin in July. * 1907 - Travels to America for the first time. * 1910 - Travels to Russia for the first time. * 1916 - Returns to Japan to recruit dancers for her troupe and begins touring Europe again. * 1921 - Returns to Japan for good. * 1927 - Adopts her brother's son. * 1934 - Granddaughter is born.''Little Hanako: The Strange Store of Rodin's Only Japanese Model'', by Suketaro Sawada. Chunichi Publishing Company, Nagoya, Japan, 1984.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ota Hisa 1868 births 1945 deaths Japanese stage actresses People from Ichinomiya, Aichi History of Gifu Actresses from Gifu Prefecture 20th-century Japanese actresses