Nihongami


Nihongami is the term used for a number of traditional Japanese hairstyles considered to be distinctive in their design, shape, and societal role. Many nihongami are no longer commonly worn and are today most often seen on maiko, geisha, and sumo wrestlers. A number of different styles of nihongami are also worn by courtesan re-enactors and many are also seen in kabuki plays, where they are faithfully reproduced in several plays dating back to the Edo period.
Traditionally, the basic shape of any nihongami hairstyle features two "wings" at the side of the head that partially stick out and curve towards the back, which typically features a topknot or ponytail. The hair below this typically forms a long loop and is also drawn into the topknot. Most styles of nihongami are hardened and shaped with wax, known as abura, and for women, can often feature a number of different hair accessories. Nihongami require special tools to shape and construct, which typically include bamboo or paulownia wood combs and heated tongs used to straighten the hair.

History

Many hairstyles considered to be nihongami were developed during the Edo period, when a preference amongst women for long, flowing hairstyles began to give way to elaborate, upswept styles featuring buns at the back of the neck. This trend, originating amongst courtesans and kabuki actors, soon spread to fashionable merchants' wives, before becoming a general fashion trend. A number of hairstyles were developed and worn by Japanese women, often changing throughout different points in their life.
One such hairstyle that developed during the Edo period was the shimada, which became the basis for a number of different hairstyles, and was commonly worn by girls in their late teens. In the mid-Edo period, the tōrōbin shimada, a popular deviation from the shimada, became popular, featuring wide wings at the side of the head, and was often depicted in ukiyo-e prints by artists such as Utamaro. The name was said to refer to the fact that the area behind a person could be seen through the wings on the sides, like scenery seen through a tōrō lantern. Other hairstyles - such as sakkō and momoware, now worn only by maiko - were also worn by young women; momoware was typically worn by girls during the Edo period, and sakkō was worn by newly-married women during the later Edo period and Meiji period.
Historically, traditional hairstylists - known as keppatsu-shi - were almost-entirely women, a trend which continued up until the 1970s, when the last hairstylist servicing the tayū re-enactors in Kyoto passed away, leading to hairstylist Tetsuo Ishihara taking the role. The boxwood and bamboo combs used to create the hairstyles were, and continue to be, handmade by craftspeople; however, though as many as 200 made combs near Osaka in the mid-19th century, few craftspeople exist to produce traditional combs in the modern day.
During WWII, the number of traditional hairstylists servicing the geisha community dwindled significantly, leading to the development of wigs being worn by geisha; whereas one's own hair would need to be re-styled weekly, a wig needed re-styling far less often.
The hairstyles worn by maiko also changed, though they continued to style their own hair; previously, maiko had worn hairstyles relatively similar to the shimada style worn by geisha, but post-war, the hairstylists with the knowledge of this hairstyle's construction either became casualties of the war or did not return to the karyūkai. This led to the re-development of their hairstyles into a style with significant differences to both their pre-war appearances and the appearances of geisha.
In the present day, there are still relatively few traditional hairstylists, with just five in 2004 in Kyoto servicing the entirety of the geisha communities.

Styling

Though a number of different hairstyles exist, most nihongami style the hair by first dividing it into six sections, roughly the same across all hairstyles. These are the front, the sides, the bun or topknot at the back of the head, and the long loop of hair at the back of the head underneath the topknot.
Each section is styled towards the mage at the top of the head; variations in the volume and shape can denote a different hairstyle entirely, and the knowledge of styling as many as 115 different styles of nihongami survives to the present day.
The hair is styled using traditional boxwood or bamboo combs, which are hand-carved by a small number of craftsmen, and is kept in shape with the addition of wax, the thickness of which varies based on factors such as weather and humidity. Parts of the hairstyle are supported by the addition of waxed hair extensions, typically yak hair, before being secured with wire cords known as mottoi and kept in place with hair accessories and combs.

Geisha

Post-WWII, geisha began to wear wigs instead of styling their own hair due to a shortage of hairstylists, a trend which continues to this day. Geisha generally wear shimada-style wigs known as geigi shimada, geiko shimada and chū taka shimada. This style is distinguishable from the shimada that brides wear by its generally flatter and thinner appearance; the bin are smaller and less rounded, the mage is placed further back on the head, and the tabo is longer and thinner; the maegami is also typically not as full. Geisha katsura are styled to suit each individual's face, meaning that no two geisha katsura appear alike.
The style of shimada worn by older geisha to special events is known as the tsubushi shimada. This style of shimada, worn by older women in previous centuries, is the flattest form of the shimada, with the mage pushed relatively far back off the head, appearing somewhat squashed with the usually-open loop of the mage crushed to form two smaller, tighter loops of hair.

Brides

For traditional Japanese weddings, a style of shimada known as the taka shimada or bunkin taka shimada is worn by the bride, which appears incredibly similar to the shimada worn by geisha.
The taka shimada worn by brides is typically a pre-styled wig hired for the day, featuring full, rounded bin, a mage set relatively high on the head, a fuller maegami and a shorter, fuller tabo at the back. This is usually worn with a set of matching kanzashi, which can be gold, silver, tortoiseshell or faux-tortoiseshell.

Maiko wear a number of different hairstyles throughout their apprenticeship to become geisha, many of which vary by region and individual geisha district. The hair accessories worn by maiko vary by season and occasion, and are considerably larger than most kanzashi worn by women. Some nihongami are particular to a certain district or event; for instance, maiko from Gion Kobu wear a special hairstyle for the Miyako Odori.
Typically, the average maiko will go through five changes in hairstyle throughout their apprenticeship. These are:
The mage is formed by shaping a typical shimada-style mage, before being split into two wings with a long strip of waxed hair. A kanoko dome hair ornament is placed in the middle of the wings, before two padded rolls of shibori-dyed red silk - known as kanoko - are inserted at the top and bottom, giving the appearance of a donut-shaped red ring with two wings of hair on either side. The wareshinobu is worn for a maiko's formal debut, known as misedashi, where it is also decorated with formal kanzashi made of tortoiseshell, silver and red miokuri, and two bira bira kanzashi.
Historically, courtesans wore a number of different, typically elaborate and heavily-dressed styles of nihongami. These included, but were not limited to:
Other styles worn by tayū had less-elaborate counterparts commonly worn by townswomen, maiko and women of the samurai class. These included:
Other Japanese hairstyles include: