Category of high ranking courtesan in Japanese history
Oiran
(
花魁
)
is a collective term for the highest-ranking
courtesans
in Japanese history, who were considered to be above common prostitutes (known as
y?jo
(
遊女
,
lit.
'
woman of pleasure
'
)
) for their more refined entertainment skills and training in the traditional arts. Divided into a number of ranks within this category, the highest rank of
oiran
were the
tay?
, who were considered to be set apart from other
oiran
due to their intensive training in the traditional arts and the fact that they lived and worked in Kyoto, the political capital of Japan, which remained the cultural heart of the country when the seat of political power moved to Tokyo.
[1]
Though
oiran
by definition also engaged in prostitution, higher-ranking
oiran
had a degree of choice in which customers they took;
tay?
, in contrast, did not engage in
sex work
at all.
[2]
[
failed verification
]
The term
oiran
originated in
Yoshiwara
, the
red light district
of
Edo
in the 1750s, and is applied to all ranks of high level courtesans in historical Japan.
[3]
The services of
oiran
were well known for being exclusive and expensive, with
oiran
typically only entertaining the upper classes of society, gaining the nickname
keisei
(
lit.
'
castle toppler
'
)
for their perceived ability to steal the hearts and match the wits of upper-class men. Many
oiran
became celebrities both inside and outside of the pleasure quarters, and were commonly depicted in
ukiyo-e
woodblock prints and in
kabuki
theatre plays.
Oiran
were expected to be well versed in the traditional arts of singing, classical dance and music, including the ability to play the
koky?
and the
koto
, and were also expected to converse with clients in upper class and formalised language.
Though regarded as trend setting and fashionable women at the historic height of their profession, this reputation was later usurped in the late 18th through 19th centuries by
geisha
, who became popular among the
merchant classes
for their simplified
clothing
, ability to play short, modern songs known as
kouta
on the
shamisen
, and their more fashionable expressions of contemporary womanhood and companionship for men,
[4]
which mirrored the tastes of the extremely wealthy, but for lower class merchants, who constituted the majority of their patronage.
The popularity and numbers of
oiran
continued to decline steadily throughout the 19th century, before prostitution was
outlawed in Japan
in 1957. However, the
tay?
remaining in
Kyoto
's
Shimabara
district were allowed to continue practising the cultural and performing arts traditions of their profession, and were declared a "special variety" of geisha.
[5]
In the present day, a handful of
tay?
, who do not engage in prostitution as part of their role, continue to perform in Kyoto, alongside a number of
oiran
reenactors elsewhere in Japan who perform in reenactments of the courtesan parades known as
oiran d?ch?
.
[6]
[7]
Etymology
[
edit
]
The word
oiran
comes from the Japanese phrase
"oira no tokoro no n?san"
(
おいらの所の姉さん
)
which translates loosely to "the lass at our (my) place." When written in
kanji
, the word consists of two characters:
花
, meaning "flower", and
魁
meaning "leader" or "first." Though only the highest ranking prostitutes of Yoshiwara were technically known as
oiran
, the term is now widely applied to all.
[8]
Traditions
[
edit
]
Traditional arts
[
edit
]
Compared to
y?jo
, whose primary attraction was the sexual services they offered,
oiran
, and particularly
tay?
, were first and foremost entertainers. In order to become an
oiran
, a woman first had to be educated in a range of skills from a relatively young age, including
sad?
(
Japanese tea ceremony
),
ikebana
(flower arranging) and
calligraphy
.
Oiran
also learned to play the
koto
,
shakuhachi
,
tsuzumi
(hand drum),
shamisen
and
koky?
.
Clients expected
oiran
to be well read, able to converse and write with wit and elegance, and able to match them in intellect in conversation.
[3]
Names
[
edit
]
Within the pleasure quarters, an
oiran
's prestige was based on her beauty, character, education and artistic ability,
which was reflected in the number of ranks falling in the category of
oiran
. An
oiran
, unlike geisha or common prostitutes, could be promoted or demoted by the owner of her brothel, and commonly inherited a generational name
(
名跡
,
my?seki
)
upon gaining promotion to a higher rank; these names, exclusively the property of the brothel owner, typically carried the prestige of the person who held it previously, and brothel owners commonly chose only those of similar countenance and reputation to inherit them.
My?seki
were written in kanji, and were typically more elaborate than the average woman's name of the time, holding meanings taken from poetry, literary history and nature;
my?seki
were rarely passed from one
oiran
directly down to their apprentice.
[12]
Oiran
not considered to be high ranking or skilled enough to hold an inherited name would instead use a professional name considered elegant enough to be the name of a courtesan; these were typically pseudonyms taken to either protect one's identity or to promote the brothel's image, and were likely to be slightly more elaborate than the average woman's name. These names, alongside the names of both
kamuro
and
shinz?
(child attendants and apprentice courtesans respectively) were written in
hiragana
.
[3]
[13]
Appearance
[
edit
]
The appearance of
oiran
was markedly different from that of both geisha and the average woman, reflecting the upper class tastes and expectations of their customers; by the height of their profession at the beginning of the Edo period,
oiran
wore upwards of eight large
kanzashi
(hair ornaments), typically made from tortoiseshell, silver, gold and gemstones, in their large, elaborate and heavily waxed
hairstyles
; these hairstyles, all with different names and meanings, were worn to represent different ranks, seasons and occasions.
An
oiran
's outfit consisted of a number of layered
kimono
; the outermost kimono would usually be a heavily decorated silk brocade garment known as the
uchikake
, which would feature a heavily padded hem. Though
uchikake
were also worn by noblewomen and, towards the end of the Meiji period, began to be worn by some brides, the
uchikake
worn by
oiran
were far more excessive and loud. These
uchikake
featured elaborate, traditional and auspicious designs, such as dragons, butterflies, arabesque rondels, pine, plum and bamboo, woven and embroidered in heavy gold and silver thread.
This would be worn unbelted over the top of the underkimono, which featured a patterned design only on the lower skirt, and resembled a
juban
(underkimono; part of kimono underwear) otherwise. The ensemble was belted with an
obi
tied at the front. During the Edo period, this
obi
became both wider and stiffer, adding weight and discomfort.
Oiran
became known for wearing a specific style of
obi
known as the
manaita obi
(
lit.
'
cutting board
obi
'
)
, which presented a large, flat surface on which large designs would be decorated.
When parading or otherwise walking,
oiran
wore
koma geta
? 20 cm (7.9 in) tall pauwlonia wood clogs with three "teeth". Though lightweight for their size, these would prevent an
oiran
from taking anything other than small, slow footsteps when walking;
oiran
would thus walk in
koma geta
with a sliding, figure of 8 (
suri-ashi
) step, with two manservants (known as
wakaimono
) assisting her.
Oiran
generally did not wear
tabi
socks, with her bare foot considered to be a point of eroticism in her outfit. In total, a formal parade outfit worn by an
oiran
could weigh in excess of 20 kg (44 lb), often weighing as much as 30 kg (66 lb),
[a]
and would require great assistance to put on.
Ranks
[
edit
]
The highest rank of courtesan was that of
tay?
(
太夫
)
, followed by
k?shi
(
格子
)
.
[15]
[16]
Unlike courtesans of lower rank,
tay?
had sufficient prestige to refuse clients.
Their high status also
made the services of
tay?
extremely pricey ? a
tay?
's fee for one evening was between one
ryo
and one
ryo
, three
bu
, well beyond a labourer's monthly wage and comparable to a shop assistant's annual salary.
Though many courtesans could be registered in one area, extremely few reached
tay?
status; a guidebook published in 1688 listed the contemporary numbers of high-ranking courtesans in comparison to all the courtesans listed in one area:
[19]
- 13
tay?
were registered in Shimabara out of 329 registered courtesans
- 7
tay?
were registered in Shinmachi out of 983 registered courtesans
- 3
tay?
were registered in Osaka and Yoshiwara out of 2,790 registered courtesans
A Yoshiwara guidebook published in 1792 listed the six extant ranks of
oiran
, including
tay?
and
k?shi
, who had, by the time of the guidebook's publication, been dormant, with no courtesans in these roles in Yoshiwara, for 30 years:
[3]
- Tay?
- K?shi
- Yobidashi Tsukemawarashi
- Sancha
- Tsukemawarashi
- Zashikimochi
In 1761, the last
tay?
of Yoshiwara retired, marking the end of the
tay?
and
k?shi
ranks in that pleasure quarter, though both
tay?
and
k?shi
continued to work in Kyoto and Osaka.
[3]
The word
oiran
therefore appeared in Yoshiwara as a polite term of address for any remaining woman of courtesan rank.
History
[
edit
]
Rise to prominence
[
edit
]
The profession of
oiran
arose in the early
Edo period
(1600?1868), following the introduction of laws restricting brothels to bounded pleasure quarters known as
y?kaku
(
遊廓/遊郭
,
lit.
'
playground
'
)
in roughly 1600, sometimes restricting brothels to literal walled-in districts.
[4]
:
59
These quarters were often placed at some distance from the centre of the attached town or city, and the legal status and location of these districts changed on a number of occasions throughout the following centuries; on occasion, some were closed and their inhabitants either sent to live or work in another, larger red light district.
The three best-known districts historically were Shimabara in Kyoto (which also housed geisha until the 1970s),
[21]
Shinmachi
in
Osaka
and Yoshiwara in Edo (present day Tokyo). Over time, these districts rapidly grew into large and self contained neighbourhoods, containing a number of different forms of entertainment outside of prostitution including performances and festivals. Geisha ? whose profession came into existence in the late 18th century ? also occasionally worked within these districts, as edicts passed at various times restricted them from working outside of officially designated red light areas.
Outside of their physical presentation, the traditional aesthetics of the
oiran
and their attire bled into other aspects of the Edo period; within Yoshiwara,
oiran
eventually became the main source of entertainment, performing and entertaining at parties for guests. Scholar Jonathan Clements emphasised the striking presence of the
oiran
outside of their quarters, where a parading
oiran
's slow movements, brightly coloured and layered clothing, and lacquered hair provided a source of titillation for "the implications of Edo life [to be] so devoid of women."
[22]
As a larger than life figure, historical accounts of the oiran recall the transferral of respectable house names as tangible products for potential clients, as well as signifiers of rank for established providers. This resulted in a widespread desire for anonymity for the mostly male population within Yoshiwara. Specialized products, such as
kasa
hats, medicinal intervention,
[
vague
]
and the newly developed medium of kabuki encompassed the centricity of the red-light district economy, while also supporting anonymity of its patrons. Thus, the mythical persona for the
oiran
did not only extend to physical interactions with her, but embodied one's journey through Yoshiwara itself. Outside of prostitution and the arts, the aesthetic reverence utilised to distinguish different classes of the
oiran
became a vehicle for other means of aesthetic expression.
This had a profound impact on the economy, while also reflecting a point of contention between the upper and lower classes of Edo. Yoshiwara, known as "the place without night", represented one of the new places in which "high" culture was able to mingle with that of the lower classes, forging a new aesthetic environment within Edo society alongside their mingling. Another nickname for the Yoshiwara was "
ukiyo
", a Buddhist word that meant suffering world, which, when written in new characters, came to mean "floating world". This would also later influence the creation of ukiyo-e woodblock prints. Laura W. Allen, the curator of Japanese art at the Asian Art Museum describes the aesthetic intervention as "ignoring the problems that might have existed in a very strictly regulated society and abandoning yourself, bobbing along on the current of pleasure."
[23]
Decline
[
edit
]
Because of their isolation, the rigidity of their contracts as courtesans ? which often ran for 10?15 years before ending their involvement with the profession ? and their inability to leave the pleasure districts,
[4]
: 59
oiran
became steadily more traditional, outdated and ritualised, further and further removed from popular society and bound by their strict rules of etiquette, behaviour and speech. This, combined with their relative financial inaccessibility to most people, created a vacuum of entertainment for the rising
merchant classes
, whose relatively high wealth and relatively low social status left them unable to hire
oiran
,
[2]
:
18
thus leading to the decision to patronise the greatly more accessible and less expensive geisha instead.
Over time,
oiran
also lost their celebrity status in wider society, and came in part to be seen less as highly cultured courtesans reflecting formal, high class standards of speech and appearance, and more as caged women unable to leave the pleasure districts and chained to the debts they owed to their brothel.
[24]
The preservation of the appearance of
oiran
had also not reflected changes in fashion ? as the profession of geisha had evolved and become increasingly popular, the authorities had sought to clamp down on the profligate and wealthy tastes of the merchant classes, leading to a number of dress edicts that changed popular aesthetics and led to the rise of subdued and cultivated aesthetics such as
iki
, which
oiran
categorically did not reflect or resemble.
Similarly, the entertainment that
oiran
offered had mostly remained unchanged since generations of courtesans previous. Though
oiran
played the
shamisen
, they did not play the popular and contemporary tunes composed for it, and instead stuck to longer ballads such as
nagauta
, which had refined, but restrained, lyrical content.
[4]
: 59,259
This was in contrast to the
kouta
(
lit.
'
little songs
'
)
favoured and sung by geisha, whose lyrical content was often heartfelt and honest.
[25]
Competition with geisha
[
edit
]
In the years that
oiran
declined, the geisha profession was born and grew increasingly stronger, contributing in part, if not in majority, to this decline.
Geisha were, officially-speaking, considered to be a relatively low-class form of entertainment, and as such, were not patronised by the upper classes, who were officially supposed to patronise
tay?
instead; however, during the Edo period, geisha came to represent the tastes of the merchant classes, whose low social status and high financial freedom left them free of social obligations to uphold the status of a samurai family that men of the upper classes were commonly beholden to.
As the merchant classes throughout Edo-period society grew in wealth and profligacy, they became the main source of income for geisha, who represented social and financial accessibility in a way that
oiran
did not. Geisha were cheap to patronise, informal to converse with, required few introductions before entertaining a customer and both played and sang the most popular songs of the time. Through various dress edicts aimed at controlling the merchant classes and thus preserving the appearances and social status of the upper classes, extravagant or obvious displays of wealth had been outlawed and driven underground, bringing aesthetics such as
iki
into popularity, which geisha came to both represent and champion. A geisha's loyalties were also held to be more true, as geisha could choose whom they wished to entertain, and geisha became the subject of many popular romantic stories.
Though geisha also worked within the pleasure districts that
oiran
did ? at times forbidden to work outside of them ? as the profession developed, laws regarding the separation of the two professions were passed. This, over time, ironically led to exaggerate and exacerbate the differences between geisha and
oiran
, heightening the popularity of the former and leading to the eventual destruction of the latter. Geisha were forbidden to dress elaborately, in the manner of
oiran
, and were not allowed to sleep with their customers. Geisha were registered at a separate registry office, and if an
oiran
accused a geisha of stealing a customer, she would be fully investigated, with the potential to be forbidden from working if found guilty.
[4]
: 59
Though geisha and
oiran
were likely to be at least in part indentured to their houses, geisha were not considered to be the same kind of physical property that
oiran
were considered to be by their employers. Though
oiran
were unable to leave their pleasure quarters and could be, if not in the highest ranks, forced to entertain whichever customers the head of her brothel demanded she entertain, geisha were allowed to both leave their houses and choose which patrons she wished to entertain, leading to the rise of adages comparing the loyalties of an
oiran
with square eggs, the punchline being that neither were things that existed.
[4]
Though many geisha went into debt or held at least some debt with their
okiya
, few found themselves in the same situation of financial domination and ownership that
oiran
were almost entirely bound to.
[4]
: 68
Later years (1850?1957)
[
edit
]
Towards the end of the Edo period,
oiran
continued to dwindle in popularity as the geisha grew in numbers, accessibility, and appeal. By the beginning of the
Meiji period
, official attitudes towards legalized prostitution within Japan had changed owing to the country's increasing international presence. Towards the end of the 19th century, geisha had replaced
oiran
as the entertainer and companion of choice for the wealthiest in Japanese society, with the central appeal of
oiran
having grown increasingly remote from everyday life.
Oiran
continued to see clients within the old pleasure quarters, but were no longer at the cutting edge of fashion, and during the years of
World War II
, when any show of luxury was heavily clamped down upon, the culture surrounding
oiran
suffered even further, being dealt the final blow in 1957 by the
Anti-Prostitution Law
? after which the profession of courtesan (excluding the performance arts of
tay?
) became illegal.
Modern
oiran
and
tay?
[
edit
]
Tay?
[
edit
]
Tay?
continue to entertain in a similar manner to geisha, with fewer than five
tay?
left in modern-day Kyoto. The last remaining
tay?
house is located in Shimabara, which lost its official status as a
hanamachi
for geisha in the late 20th century.
[26]
However, some still recognize Shimabara as a
hanamachi
, with the number and activities of
tay?
slowly growing. The few remaining women still currently practising the arts of the
tay?
, without the sexual aspect, do so as a preservation of cultural heritage rather than as a profession or lifestyle.
Oiran
[
edit
]
The
Bunsui Sakura Matsuri Oiran D?ch?
is an annual event held every April in
Bunsui
,
Niigata
Prefecture (now part of the city of
Tsubame
). The parade, which takes place in spring, historically re-enacts the walk made by top courtesans around their district in honour of their guests. The modern parade features three women dressed as
oiran
in full traditional attire with approximately 70 accompanying servants. The
oiran
, who are named
Shinano
,
Sakura
, and Bunsui, walk with the distinctive slow gait of wearing
koma geta
. Due to the event's popularity in Japan, organizers are often inundated with applications to be part of the parade as one of the three
oiran
or as a servant.
D?ch?
is a shortened form of
oiran-d?ch?
, it is also known as the Dream Parade of
Echigo
(
Echigo no yume-d?ch?
).
The ?su Street Performers' Festival is an event held around
?su Kannon
Temple in
Nagoya
yearly around the beginning of October. The highlight of this two-day festival is the slow procession of
oiran
through the ?su Kannon shopping arcade. Thousands of spectators crowd the shopping streets on these days to get close enough to photograph the
oiran
and their retinue of male bodyguards and entourage of apprentices (young girls in distinctive red kimono, wearing
oshiroi
(white face paint) and loose, long black hair).
An
oiran d?ch?
parade is held in the Minamishinagawa district near
Aomono-Yokoch?
,
Shinagawa
every September.
[28]
See also
[
edit
]
Notes
[
edit
]
- ^
In this video, the Shochiku Costume Company presents a modern reproduction costume for the role of Agemaki, a courtesan in the play
Sukeroku
. Though kabuki costumes are exaggerated, the costumes used for courtesans are highly similar to those used by
oiran
at the time (
Edo period
), making the techniques, decoration and fabrics used highly similar, if not entirely, and reliable as a resource for what
oiran
actually wore.
[14]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"Oiran"
.
The Kyoto Project
. Archived from
the original
on 19 October 2014
. Retrieved
30 March
2018
.
- ^
a
b
Kimino, Rinko; Ichikawa, Somegoro (2016).
Photographic Kabuki Kaleidoscope
(1st ed.). Tokyo: Shogakukan. p. 18.
ISBN
978-4-09-310843-0
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
"About Japanese Courtesans' Names"
.
issendai.com
. Issendai.
Archived
from the original on 12 July 2020
. Retrieved
14 July
2020
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
Dalby, Liza (1983).
Geisha
(3rd ed.). London: Random House Vintage. p.
59
.
ISBN
0-09-928638-6
.
- ^
Dalby, Liza.
"newgeisha tayu"
.
lizadalby.com
. Liza Dalby. Archived from
the original
on 11 March 2014
. Retrieved
15 November
2020
.
- ^
ShinoStore (2015-02-22).
"OIRAN 花魁 ? Japanese Lamp (020L)"
.
YouTube
.
Archived
from the original on 2021-12-21
. Retrieved
2018-08-13
.
- ^
ktodoma (2016-11-20).
"Oiran 花魁 in New York"
.
YouTube
.
Archived
from the original on 2021-12-21
. Retrieved
2018-08-13
.
- ^
2006-1-27, 藤田 ?一,
京都?角屋の文化 ―?問の手?えること―
Archived
2011-03-21 at the
Wayback Machine
, Kansai University. Quote: 「花魁は、江?の吉原にしかいません。吉原にも?初は太夫がいたのですが、揚屋が消滅したのにともなって、太夫もいなくなりました。その替わりに出てきたのが、花魁なのです。ですから、花魁は江?吉原?用の語なのです。」
- ^
"Kamuro"
.
issendai.com
. Issendai.
Archived
from the original on 12 July 2020
. Retrieved
14 July
2020
.
- ^
"Lower-Ranking Japanese Prostitutes' Names"
.
issendai.com
. Issendai.
Archived
from the original on 12 July 2020
. Retrieved
14 July
2020
.
- ^
"Kabuki KOOL"
(Youtube video)
.
youtube.com
. NHK World.
Archived
from the original on 2021-12-21
. Retrieved
9 January
2020
.
(25:33)
- ^
Early Modern Japanese Literature: An Anthology, 1600?1900
. Columbia University Press, 2008.
- ^
The life of an amorous woman
. Taylor & Francis. Commentary "APPENDIX III. THE HIERARCHY OF COURTESANS" p. 286.
- ^
Guide to the Quarters of the Land
(Shokoku irozato annai), 1688
- ^
Dalby, Liza.
"The notes, references, and links listed here are keyed to the new preface "Geisha in the 21st Century" in the 25th anniversary edition of GEISHA"
.
Liza Dalby
. lizadalby.com
. Retrieved
9 January
2020
.
Note 12
- ^
Clements, Jonathan (2018).
A Short History of Tokyo
. Haus Publishing.
doi
:
10.2307/j.ctv131bwq1.6
.
ISBN
978-1-912208-97-5
.
JSTOR
j.ctv131bwq1
.
S2CID
217810020
.
- ^
Hix, Lisa.
"Sex and Suffering: The Tragic Life of the Courtesan in Japan's Floating World"
.
Collectors Weekly
. Retrieved
2022-04-07
.
- ^
Eichman, Shawn.
"Tongue in Cheek: Erotic Art of 19th Century Japan"
(Online museum exhibition)
.
honolulumuseum.org
. Honolulu Museum of Art. p. 102
. Retrieved
30 May
2020
.
Though the precise reasons for [the decline] in the public's perception of the Yoshiwara [Edo brothel district] during the 19th century can only be speculated, the decline was as precipitous as it was undeniable. By the early 20th century, the aura of dignity and elan the courtesans had once exuded was all but lost, and these women, many of whom suffered from venereal disease, appeared more like sexual slaves than celebrities.
- ^
Dalby, Liza (2000).
Little Songs of the Geisha
(2nd ed.). Vermont: Tuttle Publishing.
ISBN
0-8048-3250-1
.
- ^
Dalby, Liza.
"Courtesans and Geisha ? the Tayu"
Archived
2015-05-22 at the
Wayback Machine
.
www.lizadalby.com
Retrieved 3-11-2014.
- ^
Miura, Yoshiaki (30 November 2014).
"Shinagawa, a gateway to old and new Tokyo"
.
The Japan Times Online
. Retrieved
23 September
2018
.
Further reading
[
edit
]
- Swinton, Elizabeth de Sabato; Campbell, Kazue Edamatsu; Dalby, Liza Crihfield; Oshima, Mark (1995).
The women of the pleasure quarter: Japanese paintings and prints of the floating world
. Hudson Hills Press.
ISBN
9781555951153
.
- Dalby, Liza Crihfield.
Chapter: Courtesan and Geisha: The Real Women of the Pleasure Quarter
.
- Swinton, Elizabeth de Sabato.
Chapter: Reflections on the Floating World
.
- Becker, J. E. de (2000).
The Nightless City: Or, The History of the Yoshiwara Y?kwaku
. ICG Muse.
ISBN
9784925080316
.
- Hickey, Gary (1998).
Beauty & Desire in Edo Period Japan
. National Gallery of Australia.
ISBN
9780642130846
.
- Longstreet, Stephen; Longstreet, Ethel (1988).
Yoshiwara: The Pleasure Quarters of Old Tokyo
. C.E. Tuttle Company.
ISBN
9780804815994
.
- Ry?, Keiichir?
(2008).
The Blade of the Courtesans
. Vertical.
ISBN
9781934287019
.
- Seigle, Cecilia Segawa (1993).
Yoshiwara: The Glittering World of the Japanese Courtesan
.
University of Hawaii Press
.
ISBN
9780824814885
.
External links
[
edit
]
Look up
花魁
or
oiran
in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to
Oiran
.
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Red-light districts
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Types of prostitutes
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Other
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