Who Geisha Are
The word geisha is usually written with characters meaning “person of the arts.” That plain meaning is the best starting point: geisha are professional performers and hosts, trained in traditional music, dance and conversation, who entertain guests at banquets and gatherings. They are not courtesans or prostitutes. That confusion is one of the most persistent misunderstandings about them, and it has caused real hurt to people in the profession, so it is worth stating clearly at the start.
In Kyoto, the term more often heard is geiko, and apprentices are called maiko. Other regions have their own words and customs. The tradition is small today, and it is concentrated in a limited number of districts, historically known as hanamachi, or “flower towns.”
Historical Background
The profession took shape in the Edo period. Earlier, entertainers of various kinds worked at banquets and in licensed pleasure quarters, which existed under tight government rules. Over time, performers who specialized in music and dance and did not offer sexual services became a recognized group of their own. Accounts differ on the exact early sequence, and it is wise to treat the neat story that is often told with some caution.
Historically, the first people to be called geisha were often men who entertained guests with music, storytelling and wit. Women took over the role in the course of the eighteenth century, and the profession became a female one. This was a time when the arts of the townspeople flourished, and geisha were part of that world, alongside the theatre, music and fashion culture described under the Edo townspeople. The era’s taste for understated chic, the iki ideal, was often associated with them, though the connection should not be overstated.
After the Meiji period, the districts adapted to new conditions. Social change, war and later decline in the number of patrons all affected the profession, and the number of geisha fell during the twentieth century. Today there are far fewer than there once were, and the world they work in is quite different from the one shown in films and novels.
Training and Daily Arts
Becoming a geisha has traditionally involved years of training. A young woman may begin as an apprentice, often at an age that is now at or beyond that of adulthood, though practices have changed over time and vary by place. She learns:
- Traditional singing and shamisen playing, along with other traditional instruments such as drums and flute
- Nihon buyo, the dance style that grew out of Noh and kabuki
- The tea gathering and its etiquette
- Conversation, hosting and the art of making a banquet comfortable
- In some districts, calligraphy, poetry and other accomplishments
The arts are learned from teachers within schools, often with a strong emphasis on discipline and correct form. Apprentices typically live and learn within an okiya, a household that supports their training, and they follow senior geisha as mentors.
Appearance and Dress
The look associated with maiko and geiko includes white makeup, elaborate hairstyles and rich kimono. Maiko tend to wear longer, more colorful garments with a long obi sash tied at the back, and the details of hair ornaments and collar color can reflect the stage of training or the season. Fully qualified geisha usually dress more quietly. Traditional footwear such as tall wooden clogs is also part of the look, and the styles of the various types of kimono help signal rank, season and occasion. The makeup and hair styles are not casual fashion but part of a performing tradition, and they differ from place to place.
Role in Preserving the Arts
The strongest claim that can be made for the geisha tradition is cultural. Because patrons hired geisha to perform, there was a steady demand for skilled musicians and dancers, and that helped keep certain styles of song and dance alive. Some districts hold public stage performances of dance each year, where audiences can see the arts in a theatre setting. The geisha world is also tied to the seasons, with dances and events marking the cherry blossoms in spring and other points of the year.
At the same time, geisha did not single-handedly shape Japanese aesthetics. They worked alongside actors, teachers, craftspeople and patrons, and the arts they practice come from older sources such as Noh and kabuki. A fair summary is that they were one important group among many who carried traditional performance skills from one generation to the next.
Common Misconceptions
- Geisha are prostitutes. They are not. Their work is entertainment through the arts. Confusion arose partly through the presence of other kinds of entertainers in the pleasure quarters and partly through foreign accounts, including some that were later shown to be unreliable.
- Geisha are a relic of the past. Fewer in number than before, but the profession still exists and has to adapt to modern life, including how it recruits and trains.
- All geisha are the same. Customs, titles and styles differ by region. Kyoto’s practices are not universal.
- The mystery is the point. Gatherings are traditionally private and invitation-based, which is why outsiders often know little. That privacy should not be mistaken for secrecy about something improper.
- Anyone in a kimono and white makeup is a geisha. Many visitors rent costumes for photographs, which is a separate thing from the profession itself.
Respect is the useful rule for visitors in the districts where geisha live and work: the women and girls on the street are people going to work, and not exhibits.
Why the Tradition Matters
The geisha tradition shows how arts survive through apprenticeship, patronage and community. It also shows how an image can drift away from a reality. Understanding the real profession, one of disciplined study and performance, is a good way to see how traditional music, dance, dress and hospitality fit together as a living practice, even as it changes.