Japanese Traditional Clothing.

Japanese fashion trends have evolved over the years. The bizarre to the really creative designs can be found out here. Clothing in Japan now is very much as per the seasons as is the case all over the world. Bright colors can be seen in the spring season and fall colors can be witnessed in the autumn season.

Japanese traditional clothing can be seen in many varieties. Some of these are worn even today. The Japanese kimono and the yukata remain to be the most popular kinds. Formal Japanese clothing can be very elaborate in their design or simple and elegant as well. Let us read about the finer nuances of traditional Japanese clothing.

Japanese Traditional Clothing:

Kimono:
The word Kimono actually referred to all types of clothing. It also remains to be the national costume of Japan. Some of the earliest designs of the kimono were hugely influenced by the Hanfu, which is a part of Chinese clothing. During the 8th century, Chinese fashion trends gained popularity amongst the Japanese. The kimono turned into a stylish version during Japan’s Heian period. Over the years, one could see visible changes in the designs of the kimono.

This form of Japanese traditional clothing is always worn by women and particularly for special occasions. As per the Japanese tradition, unmarried women wear a specific style of the kimono, which is called the furisode. Today, kimonos come in a variety of styles and forms and one can see designs such as Kurotomesode (mostly for married women), Tsukesage (modest version of an elaborate kimono), Edo Komon (it has tiny dots all over), Susohiki (worn by the Geishas or stage performers) etc.
Hakama:
This type of Japanese traditional clothing consists of a wide pleated skirt. Today, men as well as women wear the hakama but in the earlier days, the hakama was worn only by men. In the ancient times, the hakama was worn by the samurai so that the opponent would not be able to see the footwork. A hakama has around 7 pleats, which are a representation of certain virtues. These are known to hold a lot of importance for the samurai. The men and women’s hakama are also found in many varieties today.

Yukata:
The yukata is also a part of Japanese traditional clothing and can be considered to be a casual version of the kimono. People generally wear the yukata after bathing and this is a common sight to see in traditional Japanese inns. These being garments that are meant to cool the body are made in fabrics like cotton.

Demography

The population in 1999 was 127,000,000. The country is heavily urbanized, and urban areas have extremely high population densities. According to the 1995 census, 81 million people (65 percent) live in urban areas; that constitutes only 3 percent of the land area.


During the last 150 years of industrialization and economic development, the population has grown from around thirty million to its present size. This increase occurred as a result of a rapid demographic transition characterized by an enormous movement of people from rural to urban areas, dramatic decreases in infant mortality, increases in longevity, widespread reliance on birth control, and transformations of family composition from large, multigenerational extended households to small nuclear families.
Life expectancy is the highest in the world, and the birthrate has been declining dramatically. Because of these trends, the population is projected to peak early in the twenty-first century and then shrink.

Location and Geography.

The Japanese archipelago consists of four major islands and over six-thousand minor ones, covering approximately 234,890 square miles (378,000 square kilometers), and has enormous climatic variation. The four major islands are Hokkaidō, Honshū, Shikoku, and Kyūshū. The southern island group of Okinawa (the Ryūkyū Islands) is geographically, historically, and culturally distinct.

Japan faces the Pacific Ocean along the entire eastern and southern coastline. To the north and west are the Sea of Okhotsk, the Sea of Japan, and the East China Sea. The Korean peninsula is the closest point on the Asian mainland. Japanese life has always been oriented toward the ocean. The currents that converge offshore create fertile and varied fishing grounds. 

The climate is shaped by Asian-Pacific monsoon cycles, which bring heavy rains from the Pacific during the summer and fall, followed by icy winds from North Asia during the winter that dump snow in the mountains.
There are approximately 1,500 volcanoes, and because the islands lie on major fault lines, earthquakes are common occurrences. Only about 15 percent of the land is level enough for agriculture, and so the population density in coastal plains and valleys is extremely high. Because of the steep mountains, there are almost no navigable inland waterways.