Kimono: The dress worn by both men and women in Japan 

What comes to your mind when you think of Japan? Their lip-smacking sushi, eye-catching cherry blossoms, bonsais and of course kimonos. Kimono is the national attire of Japan, that is worn by both men and women. Isn’t it fascinating to have a gender-neutral dress with a unique style of its own?  Here is our guide to kimono for you: How it looks, its history and evolution.  

What does kimono look like? 
Let’s start with the etymology of the word kimono. It has been derived from two separate Japanese words, ‘ki’ meaning ‘to wear’ and ‘mono’ meaning ‘thing.’ So, as you can guess, kimono literally means a thing to wear. Coming to how this attire looks, anyone who is familiar with it will tell you that it is no less than a puzzle. It has multiple parts, and if one goes missing, the entire outfit will falter. Broadly speaking, it looks like an intricately designed multi-layered robe with nine parts in front and six at the back.  

Kimono is often worn with a wide range of accessories, that adds to its elegance and versatility. Some of the important ones include a waistband called obi that holds the kimono in place and traditional footwear such as tabi (split toe socks) or zori (sandals made from organic raw materials such as straws). All of them have their unique appeal. 

Types of kimonos 
There are several types of kimonos, that are different in style, pattern and colour. In fact, all of them are reserved for separate occasions as well. Here is a sneak peek into the most popular ones. 

Furisode: Considered to be the most formal kimono, furisode is usually worn by unmarried women. Its speciality is that it comes with different sleeve lengths. Based on the sleeves, it can be categorised further into three types: Ofurisode (longest sleeve), chu-furisode (medium sleeve) and kofurisode (shortest sleeve).  

Hikizuri: This kimono type got its name from its length, and literally means “trailing skirt.” Earlier, it was worn mainly by women belonging to royalty. However, nowadays it is mainly worn by stage performers.  

Tomesode: This low-waist kimono is considered to be a formal attire, mostly worn by married women. It is an equivalent to the West’s evening dress. 

Houmongi: This is a semi-formal kimono and it literally means ‘visiting wear.’ It is worn by both unmarried and married women. The pattern on this kimono often looks like a well-made painting.  

Iro Muji: Considered to be one of the most informal variations of kimono, iro muji usually comes in single colours and lacks any kind of pattern. It is often worn during solemn events, such as a funeral. 

Komon: This is perhaps the most widely available and worn kimono, and is regarded as a casual everyday wear. They often have repeating patterns, such as vertical stripes. 

Yukata: This type of kimono is often worn during the summer, as it is light-weight and made out of cotton. It is often paired with the wooden flip-flop styled footwear called ‘geta.’ 

Wedding kimono: As the name suggests, this kimono is worn during weddings and is essentially white in colour. It is officially called ‘shiromuki.’ 

Men’s kimono: In earlier times, men used to wear kimonos as much as women. However, they have lost their popularity over the years and are only reserved for special occasions. These kimonos are usually simple in style and come in subdued shades. The formal kind of kimono worn by men is a blend of hakama,  a skirt-like lower that has either divided or undivided legs) and haori, a jacket that comes with a thin collar and no overlapping panels. A haori features triangular panels on both sides of the seam and is tied at the front. However, the most common type of kimono that men still wear is called kinagashi that is paired with an obi (belt).  

History and evolution of kimono 
Kimono is known to have originated in Japan during the Nara period between 710 AD and 794 AD. It used to refer to any Japanese clothing, either ensemble consisting of separate upper and lower garments or a one-piece suit. However, kimono as we know today, was born in between 794 AD and 1193 AD during the Heian period. It was made using the straight-line cut method, that is, cutting fabric pieces in straight lines and then sewing them together. However, the type of fabric and adornments depended upon the social status of people who wore them. Gradually, during the following two periods, Kamakura (1185 AD to 1333 AD) and Muromachi (1336 AD to 1573 AD), both sexes enjoyed wearing the brightly-hued kimonos. In fact, warriors started wearing them to the battlefields.  

This Japanese attire underwent major changes between the Meiji period (1868-1912) and the modern times. During this period, Japan started being westernised. As a matter of fact, the government strongly encouraged that officials wear western clothing, while the common masses were expected to continue wearing kimono as a daily wear. This is when the kimono type ‘mantsuki’ evolved. It was decorated with the wearer’s family crest (‘kamon’) which revealed their backgrounds. Since then, mantsuki became the most popular and universally acknowledged kimono.