Maiko

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Apprentice geisha in Kyoto and Western Japan

title: "Maiko" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["types-of-geisha"] description: "Apprentice geisha in Kyoto and Western Japan" topic_path: "general/types-of-geisha" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maiko" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Apprentice geisha in Kyoto and Western Japan ::

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b6/Fumino_misedashi_full_height.jpg" caption="[[kanzashi]]}} on the sides of her hairstyle." alt="An apprentice wearing formal black kimono and tall sandals"] ::

A is an apprentice geisha (geiko in Kyoto). Their jobs consist of performing songs, dances, and playing the ja or other traditional Japanese instruments for visitors during banquets and parties, known as ja.

ja are usually aged 17 to 20, and graduate to geiko status after a period of training that includes traditional dance, the ja, , 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 ja may advance to geiko despite still training.

Apprentice geisha in other locations in Japan are known by other terms, such as 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.

Work

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

Origin

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

Appearance

Hair

Main article: Nihongami#Maiko

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

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

Kimono and outfit

{{transliteration|ja|Hikizuri}}

Most ja wear a style of kimono known as a . ja are typically anywhere from 200 – long, and often feature a lightly padded hem to create weight allowing the hem to trail along the floor. When walking outside, ja hold their ja 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 ja worn by most ja features long, ja-style sleeves, and may feature tucks sewn horizontally into the sleeves and vertically along the shoulders; this is a holdover from before WWII, when ja often began their training at a young age, and would remove the tucks as they grew.

For formal occasions, ja wear a black ja-style ja featuring 5 crests (ja) to signify the ja they belong to.

{{transliteration|ja|Darari obi}}

ja wearing ja kimono typically wear it with an ja known as a . The ja is 6 – long, is roughly 30 cm wide, and is worn exclusively by ja. Due to its length and weight, a male dresser (known as an ja) is needed to tie it; ja can dress a ja in as little as five minutes, and may dress a number of ja each night. The crest of a ja's ja is either dyed, embroidered or woven onto the end of the ja, below the ja (end lines). For formal occasions, gold brocade ja are worn.

Kimono

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

{{transliteration|ja|Obi}}

ja outside Kyoto may also wear a ja, which is easier to tie and wear than a darari obi. Apprentices in Tokyo typically tie their ja in the ja style.

Contemporary controversies

In recent years, allegations have emerged regarding the working conditions of maiko in Kyoto's hanamachi districts, particularly concerning underage apprentices. Former maiko Kiyoha Kiritaka has reported forced alcohol consumption, coercion in mixed bathing with customers (ofuro-iri), and other forms of harassment.

In media

Gallery

File:Satsuki and Kyouka walking.jpg|Two Kyoto ja walking File:Katsunosuke minarai.jpg|alt=Maiko wearing shidare kanzashi, composed by long chains of silk flowers|ja wearing ja, composed by long chains of silk flowers File:Fukuyu with willow kanzashi.jpg|alt=A maiko wearing willow hair ornaments|ja with willow ja File:Maiko Fukuyuu dancing selection 2010.webm|(video) A ja dancing

References

References

  1. (2021). "Maiko Masquerade: Crafting Geisha Girlhood in Japan". University of California Press.
  2. (2024-05-10). "「お風呂入り」「未成年飲酒」……元舞妓が国連に訴えた驚きの内容 花街の"閉鎖的な体質"は変わるのか". TV Asahi.
  3. (2024-05-12). "元舞妓が告発する花街の人権問題".

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