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Hakama are a type of traditional Japanese clothing. Originally stemming from Ku (p=Kù), the trousers worn by members of the Chinese imperial court in the Sui dynasty and Tang dynasty, this style was adopted by the Japanese in the form of in the 6th century. are tied at the waist and fall approximately to the ankles. They are worn over a kimono specially adapted for wearing , known as a .
There are two types of : divided and undivided . The type have divided legs, similar to trousers. Both of these types appear similar. A "mountain" or "field" type of was traditionally worn by field or forest workers. They are looser in the waist and narrower in the leg.
are secured by four straps (): two longer attached on either side of the front of the garment, and two shorter attached on either side of the rear. The rear of the garment may have a rigid trapezoidal section, called a koshi-ita. Below that on the inside, there may be a hakama-dome (a spoon-shaped component sometimes referred to as a ) which is tucked into the or at the rear, and helps to keep the in place.
, especially those for martial arts, may have seven deep pleats, two on the back and five on the front. Although they appear balanced, the arrangement of the front pleats (two to the right, three to the left) is asymmetrical, and as such is an example of asymmetry in Japanese aesthetics.
Historically, a boy would start wearing his first pair of from the age of five, as commemorated in ; a similar practice to this, called "breeching", was seen in Europe up until the Victorian age, where boys would from then on start to wear breeches instead of dresses, as a recognition of coming of age.
In addition to martial artists, are also part of the everyday wear of Shinto , priests who maintain and perform services at shrines.
are worn with any type of kimono except (light cotton summer kimono generally worn for relaxing, for sleeping or at festivals or summer outings). While glossy black-and-white striped are usually worn with formal kimono, stripes in colours other than black, grey and white are worn with less formal wear. Solid and graduated (ombré) colours are also common. For casual wear, men sometimes wear (kimono with just a and no ) or (kimono alone, as for ).
Traditionally made of silk, are sometimes made with blends. is woven with a dense warp. Traditionally, the weft is woven wet, and beaten firmly into place to make it denser. The silk strands are not twisted, and are treated in lye. These techniques makes the cloth glossy and the pattern very small-scale and precise.
traditionally formed part of a complete outfit called a kamishimo. Worn by samurai and courtiers during the Edo period, the outfit included a formal kimono, , and a sleeveless jacket with exaggerated shoulders called a .
Samurai visiting the and other high-ranking at court were sometimes required to wear very long called (). These resemble normal in every way except their remarkable length in both the back and front, forming a train one or two feet long and impeding the ability to walk normally, thus helping to prevent a surprise attack or assassination attempt. are now only worn particularly in Noh plays (including ), kabuki plays, and Shinto rituals.
(armored trousers) had small armor plates or mail armor sewn to the cloth of the . They were worn by samurai warriors.
While men's can be worn on both formal and informal occasions, women rarely wear , except at graduation ceremonies and for traditional Japanese sports such as kyūdō, some branches of aikido and kendo. Women do not wear at tea ceremony. The image of women in kimono and are culturally associated with school teachers. Just as university professors in Western countries don their academic caps and gowns when their students graduate, many female school teachers in Japan attend annual graduation ceremonies in traditional kimono with .
are worn by or shrine maidens who assist in maintenance and ceremonies. A 's uniform consists of a plain white kimono with a bright red , sometimes a red during formal ceremonies. This look stems from the attire worn by high-ranked aristocratic woman in the Heian era, as well as court performers such as .
While formal men's are made of striped fabric, women's formal are either a solid colour or dyed with graduating hues. for young women are sometimes sparsely decorated with embroidered flowers such as cherry blossoms. Women typically wear just below the bust line, while men wear them at the waist.
have traditionally been worn as school wear. Before the advent of school uniforms in Japan, students wore everyday clothes, which included for men. In the [[Meiji period]] (1868–1912) and Taishō period (1912–1926), Western-style wear was adopted for school uniforms, initially for both male and female uniforms. However, at the time, Western women's dress was fairly cumbersome.
Utako Shimoda (1854–1936), a women's activist, educator and , found traditional kimono to be too restrictive, preventing women and girls from moving and taking part in physical activities, harming their health. While Western dress was being adopted at the time, she also believed to be restrictive and harmful to women's health. Shimoda had worked as a lady-in-waiting to Empress Shōken from 1871 to 1879. She adapted the clothing worn by ladies-in-waiting at the Japanese imperial court to make a uniform for her Jissen Women's School. During the Meiji period and Taishō period, other women's schools also adopted the . Source says: "See Shimoda, "Honbō joshi fukusō no enkaku本邦女子服装の沿革 The," Part I, Onna, 31 January 1901, in Shimoda Utako chosakushū, vol. 1, 1-3; "Joshi no tainin no han’i ni tsukite," Nihon Fujin, 25 April 1900, in Shimoda Utako chosakushū, vol. 4, 107-127." It became standard wear for high schools in Japan, and is still worn for graduation ceremonies.
The image of women in is also culturally associated with school teachers. Just as university professors in Western countries don their academic caps and gowns when their students graduate, many female school teachers in Japan attend annual graduation ceremonies in traditional kimono with .
The method of tying the ties is also different, with women's being tied in a simpler knot or a bow. As with men's , the front ties are first brought to the back, then to the front, then tied at the back in a knot. Then the back are brought around to the front. At this point, they may be tied with a bow at the left hip, just in front of the opening, with the ends of the ties at equal lengths. For more secure fastening, the ties may be wrapped once at center front, then tied inside at the back.
Various martial arts traditions in which practitioners wear them have prescribed methods of folding the . This is often considered an important part of etiquette.
In some martial arts it is also an old tradition that the highest ranking student has the responsibility to fold the teacher's as a token of respect.
Tying
There are many ways for men to tie . First, the is tied in a special knot (an "under- knot") at the rear. Starting with the front, the ties are brought around the waist and crossed over the top of the knot of the . The ties are brought to the front and crossed below the waist, then tied at the back, under the knot of the . The is then tucked behind the , the is adjusted, and the rear ties brought to the front and tied in a variety of ways. The most formal method results in a knot that resembles two bow-ties in a cross shape.
Folding
Like all types of traditional Japanese clothing, it is important to fold and store correctly to prevent damage and prolong the life of the garment, especially those made of silk. With this is particularly important, since have so many pleats which can easily lose their creases; re-creasing the pleats may require specialist attention in extreme cases.
are often considered particularly challenging to learn to fold properly, in part because of their pleats and in part because their long ties must be correctly smoothed and gathered before being tied in specific patterns.
See also
Further reading
target="_blank" rel="nofollow"> How to tie a Hakama, Bu Jin Design Corporation.
External links
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