For the gyaru form of Japanese girls' school uniform, see Kogal.
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A typical sailor fuku with long sleeves for autumn and winter
The Japanese school uniform is modeled in appearance similar to that of the European-style naval uniforms. It was first used in Japan in the late 19th century, replacing the traditional kimono.[1] Today, school uniforms are common in many of the Japanese public and private school systems. The Japanese word for this type of uniform is seifuku (制服).
Bankara students in 1949, wearing hakama and uniform caps
The majority of Japan's junior high and high schools require students to wear uniforms. The Japanese school uniform is not only a symbol of youth but also plays an important role in the country's culture, as they are felt to help instill a sense of discipline and community among youth. There are many types of uniforms that range from standard to unique ones varying in the ensembles used.
Japanese school uniforms have been around for 150 years.
Originally students just wore standard everyday clothes to school; kimono for female students, with hakama for male students. During the Meiji period, students began to wear uniforms modelled after Western dress.[2]
Initially, in the 1880s, female students wore Western dress, but this was rather impractical.[4]Utako Shimoda (1854–1936), a women's activist, educator and dress reformer, 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 corsets to be restrictive and harmful to women's health.[3] Utako Shimoda had worked as lady-in-waiting to Empress Shōken from 1871 to 1879.[5] She adapted the clothing worn by ladies-in-waiting at the Japanese imperial court, which included hakama, to make a uniform for her Jissen Women's School. During the Meiji period (1868–1912) and the following Taishō period (1912–1926), other women's schools also adopted the hakama.[3] It became standard wear for high schools in Japan,[4] and is still worn by many women to their university graduations.
A 1917 gakuran with cap
During the Taishō period, male students began to wear gakuran (matching black trousers and a tunic with a standing collar and five gold buttons, and geta). These, apart from the footwear, are still worn today.[2]
There was then a fashion for European-style naval uniforms, called serafuku in Japanese, and first introduced in 1920. The idea was taken from scaled-down sailor suits worn by children coming from royal European families. It was relatively easy to sew and thus was easily adopted in the country. Talking about junior and senior high school uniforms, the traditional attire was taken from the Meiji period consisting of military-style uniform for boys and sailor outfit for girls. After which, many schools adopted a more Western-pattern Catholic uniform style.[2] Girls started wearing white blouses with ties, blazers with their school crests, and skirts. Boys also wore white shirts with ties, blazers, and tailored trousers. Schools in Japan do not have gender-exclusive locker rooms; thus, it is quite difficult to change from classroom uniforms into sports uniforms. As a result, most students wear their sports uniforms under their classroom uniforms. Some schools are very particular with the hairstyles as well as the footwear, too. Traditionally, school uniforms were worn outside of school.[citation needed]
The gakuran and sailor-style dress have always been a part of Japan's "growing modern" culture due to its formal appearance and its existence as a concept. Old-fashioned textbooks state that the uniforms were based on the Imperial Japanese Army uniform rather than the European uniforms. The sides of the uniform are similar to existing styles of Japanese dressmaking and the collar had straight lines. Many home economics classes in Japan up until the 1950s gave sewing sailor outfits as assignments. Girls sewed sailor outfits for younger children in their communities. In the 1980s, sukeban gangs began modifying uniforms by making skirts longer and shortening the tops, and so schools began switching to blazer or sweater vest style uniforms to try to combat the effect. As of 2012[update], 50% of Japanese junior high schools and 20% of senior high schools use sailor suit uniforms. The Asahi Shimbun stated in 2012 that, "The sailor suit is changing from adorable and cute, a look that 'appeals to the boys,' to a uniform that 'girls like to wear for themselves.'" As of that year, contemporary sailor suits have front closures with zippers or snaps and more constructed bodices. The Asahi Shimbun stated that "the form is snug to enhance the figure—the small collar helps the head look smaller, for better balance."[citation needed]
Usage
In almost all schools, Japanese students are required to take off the shoes they wear outdoors and wear different indoor shoes. At some schools, students wear uwabaki, a kind of soft slipper meant to be used only indoors.
The Japanese junior and senior-high-school uniform traditionally consists of a military-styled uniform for boys and a sailor outfit for girls. These uniforms are based on Meiji-period formal military dress, themselves modeled on European-style naval uniforms. The sailor outfits replace the undivided hakama (known as andon bakama (行灯袴)) designed by Utako Shimoda between 1920 and 1930.[6][bettersourceneeded] While this style of uniform is still in use, many schools have moved to more Western-pattern Catholic school uniform styles. These uniforms consist of a white shirt, tie, blazer with school crest, and tailored trousers (often not of the same colour as the blazer) for boys and a white blouse, tie, blazer with school crest, and tartanculottes or skirt for girls.
Regardless of what type of uniform any particular school assigns its students, all schools have a summer version of the uniform (usually consisting of just a white dress shirt and the uniform slacks for boys and a reduced-weight traditional uniform or blouse and tartan skirt with tie for girls) and a sports-activity uniform (a polyester track suit for year-round use and a T-shirt and short pants for summer activities). Depending on the discipline level of any particular school, students may often wear different seasonal and activity uniforms within the same classroom during the day. Individual students may attempt to subvert the system of uniforms by wearing their uniforms incorrectly or by adding prohibited elements such as large loose socks or badges. Girls may shorten their skirts, permanently or by wrapping up the top to decrease length; boys may wear trousers about the hips, omit ties, or keep their shirts unbuttoned.[citation needed]
Since some schools do not have sex-segregated changing- or locker-rooms, students may change for sporting activities in their classrooms. As a result, such students may wear their sports uniforms under their classroom uniforms. Certain schools also regulate student hairstyles, footwear, and book bags; but these particular rules are usually adhered to only on special occasions, such as trimester opening and closing ceremonies and school photo days.
It is normal for uniforms to be worn outside of school areas, but this is going out of fashion and many students wear casual dress outside of school.[7] While not many public elementary schools in Japan require uniforms, many private schools and public schools run by the central government still do so.[citation needed]
The gakuran (学ラン), also called the tsume-eri (詰襟), is the uniform for many middle-school and high-school boys in Japan. The colour is normally black, but some schools use navy blue.
The top has a standing collar buttoning down from top-to-bottom. Buttons are usually decorated with the school emblem to show respect to the school. Pants are straight leg and a black or dark-coloured belt is worn with them. Boys usually wear penny loafers or sneakers with this uniform. Some schools may require the students to wear collar-pins representing the school and/or class rank.
Traditionally, the gakuran is also worn along with a matching (usually black) student cap, although this custom is less common in modern times.
The gakuran is derived from the Prussian Waffenrock or the Christian clergy cassock.[citation needed] The term is a combination of gaku (学) meaning "study" or "student", and ran (らん/蘭) meaning the Netherlands or, historically in Japan, the West in general; thus, gakuran translates as "Western style clothes for student (uniform)".[8]
The original model of the present day gakuran was first established in 1873 for students of all schools. During the Japanese occupation, such clothing was also brought to school in Korea, pre-1980s Taiwan, Manchukuo and pre-1949 China. Nowadays, the gakuran is still worn in some South Korean high schools.
While the gakuran is associated solely as the boys' uniform of both most middle schools and conservative high schools nowadays, blazers began to be adopted in most number of high schools in Japan (both public and private).
Sailor fuku
Masako Nakata in Sailor fuku, c.1928A group of Japanese schoolgirls in sailor suits
The sailor fuku (セーラー服, sērā fuku) (lit.'sailor outfit') is a common style of uniform worn by female middle school students, traditionally by high school students, and occasionally, elementary school students. It was introduced as a school uniform in 1920 at Heian Jogakuin (平安女学院)[9] and 1921 by the principal of Fukuoka Jo Gakuin University (福岡女学院),[10] Elizabeth Lee. It was modeled after the uniform used by the British Royal Navy at the time, which Lee had experienced as an exchange student in the United Kingdom.
Much like the male uniform, the gakuran, the sailor outfits bear a similarity to various military-styled naval uniforms. The uniform generally consists of a blouse attached with a sailor-style collar and a pleatedskirt. There are seasonal variations for summer and winter; sleeve length and fabric are adjusted accordingly. A ribbon is tied in the front and laced through a loop attached to the blouse. Several variations on the ribbon include neckties, bolo ties, neckerchiefs, and bows. Common colours include navy blue, white, gray, light green, and black.
Shoes, socks, and other accessories are sometimes included as part of the uniform. These socks are typically navy or white. The shoes are typically brown or black penny loafers. Although not part of the prescribed uniform, alternate forms of legwear (such as loose socks, knee-length stockings, or similar) are also commonly matched by more fashionable girls with their sailor outfits.
The sailor uniform today is generally associated solely with both most middle schools and conservative high schools, since a majority of high schools have changed to more Western-style tartan skirts or blazers, similar to the Catholic school uniform.
Genderless uniforms
Historically, school uniforms in Japan are decided on the basis of sex, with trousers for male students and skirts for female students. However, in April 2019, public junior high schools in Tokyo's Nakano Ward began allowing students to choose their uniform regardless of sex. This started with a sixth grader who did not want to wear skirts in junior high school and asked her female classmates for their opinions on uniforms. The responses showed that most of her classmates also wanted the freedom to choose their uniforms. The young student delivered the survey results to the mayor of Nakano, and all of the principals for the ward's public junior high schools agreed on the proposal, allowing students to freely choose their uniforms.[11]
Schools allowing trousers for female students rose to 600 in 2019 from only four in 1997,[12] and over 400 schools adopted genderless uniforms for 2022's fiscal year.[13] There was a lot of support from female students for the adaptation of genderless uniforms and the implementation of slacks since it allowed for more comfort by keeping their legs warm and making it easier to ride their bicycles.[14] The decision for genderless uniforms is also in consideration of sexual minority students.[12]
In addition to changes made in the uniform, schools made adaptations to the school bags and uniforms for outside-of-class activities. In 2022, genderless swimwear was introduced at a few high schools and has quickly spread to more schools throughout Japan.[15] Genderless swimwear gradually evolved from the need to protect against sunburn to a desire to deemphasize body shape by adding more coverage.
Cultural significance
Kogal culture: Japanese schoolgirls wearing short skirts and loose socks.
School uniform varies throughout different schools in Japan, with some schools known for their particular uniforms. School uniform can have a nostalgic characteristic for former students, and are often associated with relatively carefree youth. Uniforms are sometimes modified by students as a means of exhibiting individualism. This is done in ways such as lengthening or shortening the skirt, removing the ribbon, hiding patches or badges under the collar, etc. In past decades, brightly coloured variants of the sailor outfits were also adopted by Japanese yankii, sukeban and bōsōzoku biker gangs.[16]
There are typically two types of clothing worn in Japan: traditional clothing known as Japanese clothing, including the national dress of Japan, the kimono, and Western clothing, which encompasses all else not recognised as either national dress or the dress of another country.
Hakama are a type of traditional Japanese clothing. Originally stemming from kù, the trousers worn by members of the Chinese imperial court in the Sui and Tang dynasties, this style was adopted by the Japanese in the form of hakama in the 6th century. Hakama are tied at the waist and fall approximately to the ankles. They are worn over a kimono specially adapted for wearing hakama, known as a hakamashita.
A skirt is the lower part of a dress or a separate outer garment that covers a person from the waist downwards.
A blouse is a loose-fitting upper garment that may be worn by workmen, peasants, artists, women, and children. It is typically gathered at the waist or hips so that it hangs loosely ("blouses") over the wearer's body. Today, the word most commonly refers to a girl's or woman's dress shirt, although there is considerable confusion between a true blouse and a women's shirt. It can also refer to a man's shirt if it is a loose-fitting style, though it rarely is. Traditionally, the term has been used to refer to a shirt which blouses out or has an unmistakably feminine appearance, although even many "standard" shirts today have a somewhat blousy fit, and the numbers of men wearing such shirts may match that of women wearing actual blouses.
Fashion in the 1890s in Western countries is characterized by long elegant lines, tall collars, and the rise of sportswear. It was an era of great dress reforms led by the invention of the drop-frame safety bicycle, which allowed women the opportunity to ride bicycles more comfortably, and therefore, created the need for appropriate clothing.
A Catholic school uniform in North America typically consists of a pleated and tartan skirt or jumper dress, Mary Jane or saddle shoes, a button-down shirt, and a sweater for girls, while boys' uniforms consist of a button-down shirt, a necktie, and dark pants. Actual school uniforms vary widely by location and individual school.
Victorian dress reform was an objective of the Victorian dress reform movement of the middle and late Victorian era, led by various reformers who proposed, designed, and wore clothing considered more practical and comfortable than the fashions of the time.
Culottes are an item of clothing worn on the lower half of the body. The term can refer to either split skirts, historical men's breeches, or women's underpants; this is an example of fashion-industry words taken from designs across history, languages and cultures, then being used to describe different garments, often creating confusion among historians and readers. The French word culotte is panties, pants, knickers, trousers, shorts, or (historically) breeches; derived from the French word culot, meaning the lower half of a thing, the lower garment in this case.
Bishop Douglass Catholic School is a Roman Catholic co-educational secondary school and sixth form, situated in East Finchley area of the London Borough of Barnet, England. Its current Headmaster is Martin Tissot, a former pupil at the school.
A sailor suit is a uniform traditionally worn by enlisted seamen in a navy or other governmental sea services. It later developed into a popular clothing style for children, especially as dress clothes and school uniforms.
The United States Marine Corps (USMC) prescribes several types of military uniform to distinguish its service members from other armed services, depending on the situation.
Fashion in the period 1900–1909 in the Western world continued the severe, long and elegant lines of the late 1890s. Tall, stiff collars characterize the period, as do women's broad hats and full "Gibson Girl" hairstyles. A new, columnar silhouette introduced by the couturiers of Paris late in the decade signaled the approaching abandonment of the corset as an indispensable garment.
St Albans Girls' School, usually referred to as STAGS, is a girls' secondary school in St Albans, Hertfordshire. It was formerly known as "St Albans Girls' Grammar School."
Utako Shimoda was a Japanese educator and poet of the Meiji and Taishō period. Born in present-day Ena, Gifu, she was the founder many educational organizations, including what is today Jissen Women's University. She had international influence, and was one of the most influential women in Asia.
The school uniform is black and white, derived from the municipal colours of Edinburgh.
School uniforms in England are worn in over 90% of primary and secondary schools in England. Parents are required to purchase the uniform which in 2015 averaged roughly £212.88 per child.
Almost all South Korean secondary students wear a prescribed school uniform, gyobok. The majority of elementary schools except some private elementary schools do not have uniforms; however, the uniform is strictly enforced from the start of middle school and up. A typical South Korean uniform usually consists of a shirt, blazer and tie, with skirts for girls and trousers for boys. More recently, the uniform is often worn by celebrities who target the younger, teen audience to sell entertainment products. The school uniform and school setting is frequently used as a venue for romance. As a result, the uniform has become something akin to an expression of fashion among students.
School uniform is a practice that dates to the 16th century in England. Charity schools such Christ's Hospital, founded in 1552 in London, were among the first schools to use a uniform for their students. The earliest documented proof of institutionalised use of a standard academic dress dates back to 1222 when the Archbishop of Canterbury ordered wearing of the cappa clausa.
A sailor dress is a child's or woman's dress that follows the styling of the sailor suit, particularly the bodice and collar treatment. A sailor-collared blouse is called a middy blouse. In early 20th-century America, sailor dresses were very popularly known as Peter Thomson dresses after the former naval tailor credited with creating the style.
Japanese clothing during the Meiji period (1867–1912) saw a marked change from the preceding Edo period (1603–1867), following the final years of the Tokugawa shogunate between 1853 and 1867, the Convention of Kanagawa in 1854 – which, led by Matthew C. Perry, forcibly opened Japanese ports to American vessels, thus ending Japan's centuries-long policy of isolation – and the Meiji Restoration in 1868, which saw the feudal shogunate dismantled in favour of a Western-style modern empire.
References
↑ Katarina Kottonen (August 25, 2017). "Seifuku". Chance and Physics. Archived from the original on February 18, 2018. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
1 2 3 Racel, Masako N. Thesis (2011). Finding their Place in the World: Meiji Intellectuals and the Japanese Construction of an East-West Binary, 1868-1912 (Thesis). Georgia State University. Source says:"See Shimoda, "Honbō joshi fukusō no enkaku本邦女子服装の沿革 [The Historical Development of Women’s Clothing in Japan]," 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."
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