07.17.08
Finnish newspaper on geiko and maiko
As the international edition of HS taking a summer recess, here is a brief summary of the news from the Japanese front.
Geisha and maiko were mentioned in the leading Finnish newspaper Helsingin Sanomat: Geishan ura houkuttaa jälleen japanilaisnuoria (Japanese teens again interested in the geisha profession) and Geishan työ painottuu iltaan (A geisha’s working hours are mainly in the evening).
The first article:
Walking down the narrow streets of Kyoto one may be in for a surprise. In the evening, around the corner, there might be a geisha on her way to meet her clients. Kyoto is known as the cradle of traditional Japanese culture, and for its geisha. Geisha have become a vanishing tradition, however.
The number of geisha peaked in the 1920’s, when there were around 80, 000 geisha, but since that the number has come down to around 1,000. The trend seems to have shifted. Asahi Shinbun newspaper reports there are now more maiko, apprentice geisha, in Kyoto than in the last four decades. The number of geisha hit the bottom in 1978 with only 28 maiko. Now, in Kyoto, there are a hundred. “Although the number of maiko began to decrease in all of Japan in the middle of the 1950´s, the Kyoto geisha community seems to have stabilized by the end of the 1990’s,” writes anthropologist Liza Dalby in the revised version of her Geisha book that will be published in the fall. Dalby studied the gaisha in Japan, living with them and studying their profession.
One reason for the recent interest towards geisha and maiko is their publicity in the media and the information in the Internet.
“I dreamt of becoming a maiko ever since I saw one on TV,” told Keiko, 16, to Asahi Shinbun.
Another newcomer is 17-year-old Ayano, who told she had searched the Internet. Only the Kyoto geisha have managed to keep their community strong. It could be one of the reasons why Kyoto maiko no longer are only local girls. Keiko is from Osaka and Ayano comes from Tokyo.
The background of maiko today differ from the olden days. Today’s newcomers aren’t necessarily trained in traditional arts. In the past a girl pursuing maiko career was usually trained in some art form, most often dance. It is also easier to be accepted as maiko today. In the past the biggest obstacle was to find a person to introduce the girl to the tea house matron. Now the ones aspiring to the profession just click away to the tea house home pages and send email directly to the owners.
The places where customers wine, dine, and enjoy the performances and company of the geisha are called tea houses, or ochaya.
Also the tea houses have changed with the times. “Most tea houses have remodeled their lounges to Western-type bars where modern customers can relax in comfortable chairs in the company of one or two geisha,” Dalby writes.
The entrance is no freer than to traditional socials on the tatami mats: money and networks count.
The second article says geisha and maiko take part in evening socials that start around 6 PM and end around midnight. During one evening they attend three or four parties, or zashiki. They converse with guests and perform dancing and playing instruments. For one zashiki they are payed 25 000–35 000 yen, so one night makes 600 euro. In addition they might get tipped or attend occasions in the afternoons. A popular geisha of Kyoto earns approximately 120 000 yen (ca. 720 euro) and her annual income is 28 800 000 jeniä (ca. 172 000 euro).
