Professional kanzashi craftspeople typically undergo a five- to 10-year traditional apprenticeship to learn the trade. In 1982, tsumami kanzashi were officially designated as a traditional Japanese handcraft in the Tokyo region. However, kanzashi can be, and still are, worn with everyday hairstyles as simple hair accessories there are a number of varieties and styles of wearing kanzashi, with modern varieties worn as hairclips both common and popular. In the present day, traditional Japanese hairstyles are not commonly worn, typically being worn only by geisha, maiko, sumo wrestlers, brides, modern tayū and oiran re-enactors, with both geisha, brides, tayū and oiran, and some apprentice geisha in some regions of Japan, using pre-styled wigs instead of their own hair.Īs such, few people wear kanzashi with traditional hairstyles.

During the latter part of the Edo period, the craftsmanship of kanzashi is considered to have reached a high point, with a number of styles and designs created, many of which persist to the modern day. Artisans began to produce more finely crafted products, including some hair ornaments that could be used as defensive weapons. Kanzashi came into wider use during the Edo period, when hairstyles became larger and more complicated, using a larger number of ornaments. During this time period, the term kanzashi began to be used as a general term for any hair ornament, including combs and hairpins.ĭuring the Azuchi-Momoyama period, hairstyles changed from the taregami ( 垂髪, 'hair hanging down') style, to the wider variety of styles worn up – predecessors of modern nihongami styles, which made more use of hair ornaments. ĭuring the Heian period, hairstyles shifted from being worn up to being worn long, and tied back relatively low.

The items brought back from China included Chinese hairpins ( zan, 簪 written with the same Chinese character as kanzashi), amongst other hair ornaments such as Chinese combs. The Jōmon period also saw the introduction of hair combs.ĭuring the Nara period, a variety of Chinese cultural aspects and items were brought to Japan through mutual trade and envoys. During that time, the wearing of a single thin rod or stick was considered to hold powers to ward off evil spirits, with people wearing them in their hair for protective purposes. Kanzashi were first used in Japan during the Jōmon period. In the English-speaking world, the term kanzashi is typically used to refer to hair ornaments made from layers of folded cloth used to form flowers ( tsumami kanzashi), or the technique of folding used to make the flowers. The term kanzashi refers to a wide variety of accessories, including long, rigid hairpins, barrettes, fabric flowers and fabric hair ties. Kanzashi ( 簪) are hair ornaments used in traditional Japanese hairstyles. JSTOR ( July 2010) ( Learn how and when to remove this template message)Ī modern tsumami kanzashi set of the type worn by maiko (apprentice geisha) for the month of January.Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. This article needs additional citations for verification.

Japan hair pins