Gyaru-oh
Encyclopedia
Gyaruo are a sub-group of modern Japan
ese youth culture. They are the male equivalent of the gyaru
. The o suffix that is added to the word, is one reading of the Kanji
for male (男). And recently, the kanji for 'dirty' in Japanese (汚), which also has the same reading, is often used by gyaru and gyaru-o in a light hearted way, poking fun at themselves because of the reputation that their subculture has gained within society due to their dark skin, hairstyles and often grittish, rough style of clothing that they wear. Gyaruo are characterised by their deep tans, dyed hair, party lifestyle and a liking for all different types of trance music including para-para dancing
music, Eurobeat
.
, "Men's Roses" or Men's Egg Bitter (for gyaruo aged 23+) and a fairly new magazine called Men's Digger. Then there is the popular Men's Knuckle magazine which is aimed at wearers of the more mature looking onii-kei fashion (お兄系), hosts (ホスト) and gyaruo.
Men's Egg is the most popular magazine amongst gyaruo, and is often described as the "gyaruo bible". It is this magazine that has arguably had the largest influence on the development and constant change of gyaruo lifestyle and fashion. Men's Egg magazine which is published monthly, has everything from the latest fashion to articles about the sex lives of the readers. It was this last part that got the magazine a temporary ban by the government, due to complaints by parents and disgruntled traditional politicians who had heard news of the magazines content. Every month this magazine hosts Men's Egg Events at different clubs around Japan keeping its customers entertained by inviting along the magazine's most popular models along to the events to be adored by the excited crowd. The events which are called 'Men's Egg Night', is often shortened to just 'mennai' (メンナイ).
Most major cities in Japan will have certain streets or districts within the city centre where Gyaruo and gyaru are most likely to be hanging out. Using the two biggest gyaruo culture influencing cities as example: in Tokyo
two of the popular places to hang out are around the Shibuya
or Shinjuku areas. In Osaka
, Amerikamura
, which is often shortened to Ame-mura (アメ村), and the Shinsaibashi
(心斎橋) areas are popular places for gyaruo to hang around.
In 2005, Tokyu Hands opened up a second branch of their popular girl's gyaru fashion shopping complex, 109
, called 109-②. Two floors of the Shibuya
located 109-② store are dedicated to gyaruo brands such as Vanquish, Jack Rose, Varosh, Diavlo, Roi Franc, and Gennaro. The rise in gyaruo fashion has led to openings of other 109-② stores featuring male brands in Fukuoka
, Machida, Shizuoka
and Nagoya.
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese youth culture. They are the male equivalent of the gyaru
Gyaru
is a Japanese transliteration of the English word gal, that of girl being . The name originated from a 1970s brand of jeans called "gals", with the advertising slogan: "I can't live without men", and was applied to fashion- and peer-conscious girls in their teens and early twenties. Its usage...
. The o suffix that is added to the word, is one reading of the Kanji
Kanji
Kanji are the adopted logographic Chinese characters hanzi that are used in the modern Japanese writing system along with hiragana , katakana , Indo Arabic numerals, and the occasional use of the Latin alphabet...
for male (男). And recently, the kanji for 'dirty' in Japanese (汚), which also has the same reading, is often used by gyaru and gyaru-o in a light hearted way, poking fun at themselves because of the reputation that their subculture has gained within society due to their dark skin, hairstyles and often grittish, rough style of clothing that they wear. Gyaruo are characterised by their deep tans, dyed hair, party lifestyle and a liking for all different types of trance music including para-para dancing
Para Para
is a synchronized group dance that originated in Japan. Unlike most club dancing and rave dancing there are specific synchronized movements for each song much like line dancing...
music, Eurobeat
Eurobeat
Eurobeat is a form of italo-disco/hi-NRG music that developed in the late 1980s.In the United States, Eurobeat was sometimes marketed as Hi-NRG and for a short while shared this term with the very early freestyle music hits....
.
Lifestyle
Gyaruo fashion can be seen in certain magazines such as Men's EggMensEGG
MensEGG is a style magazine distributed in Japan aimed at young men. It is a counterpart of Egg magazine, which focuses on Gyaru-oh fashions – it is the gyaru-oh bible...
, "Men's Roses" or Men's Egg Bitter (for gyaruo aged 23+) and a fairly new magazine called Men's Digger. Then there is the popular Men's Knuckle magazine which is aimed at wearers of the more mature looking onii-kei fashion (お兄系), hosts (ホスト) and gyaruo.
Men's Egg is the most popular magazine amongst gyaruo, and is often described as the "gyaruo bible". It is this magazine that has arguably had the largest influence on the development and constant change of gyaruo lifestyle and fashion. Men's Egg magazine which is published monthly, has everything from the latest fashion to articles about the sex lives of the readers. It was this last part that got the magazine a temporary ban by the government, due to complaints by parents and disgruntled traditional politicians who had heard news of the magazines content. Every month this magazine hosts Men's Egg Events at different clubs around Japan keeping its customers entertained by inviting along the magazine's most popular models along to the events to be adored by the excited crowd. The events which are called 'Men's Egg Night', is often shortened to just 'mennai' (メンナイ).
Most major cities in Japan will have certain streets or districts within the city centre where Gyaruo and gyaru are most likely to be hanging out. Using the two biggest gyaruo culture influencing cities as example: in Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
two of the popular places to hang out are around the Shibuya
Shibuya, Tokyo
is one of the 23 special wards of Tokyo, Japan. As of 2008, it has an estimated population of 208,371 and a population density of 13,540 persons per km². The total area is 15.11 km²....
or Shinjuku areas. In Osaka
Osaka
is a city in the Kansai region of Japan's main island of Honshu, a designated city under the Local Autonomy Law, the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and also the biggest part of Keihanshin area, which is represented by three major cities of Japan, Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe...
, Amerikamura
Amerikamura
Amerikamura is usually referred to by locals as "Ame-mura." It is a sizable retail and entertainment area near Shinsaibashi in the Minami district of Osaka, Japan....
, which is often shortened to Ame-mura (アメ村), and the Shinsaibashi
Shinsaibashi
Shinsaibashi is a district in the Chūō-ku ward of Osaka, Japan and the city's main shopping area. It centers around Shinsaibashi-suji, a covered shopping street, that is north of Dōtonbori and parallel and east of Mido-suji street. Associated with Shinsaibashi, and west of Mido-suji street, is...
(心斎橋) areas are popular places for gyaruo to hang around.
In 2005, Tokyu Hands opened up a second branch of their popular girl's gyaru fashion shopping complex, 109
109
Year 109 was a common year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Palma and Tullus...
, called 109-②. Two floors of the Shibuya
Shibuya, Tokyo
is one of the 23 special wards of Tokyo, Japan. As of 2008, it has an estimated population of 208,371 and a population density of 13,540 persons per km². The total area is 15.11 km²....
located 109-② store are dedicated to gyaruo brands such as Vanquish, Jack Rose, Varosh, Diavlo, Roi Franc, and Gennaro. The rise in gyaruo fashion has led to openings of other 109-② stores featuring male brands in Fukuoka
Fukuoka, Fukuoka
is the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture and is situated on the northern shore of the island of Kyushu in Japan.Voted number 14 in a 2010 poll of the World's Most Livable Cities, Fukuoka is praised for its green spaces in a metropolitan setting. It is the most populous city in Kyushu, followed by...
, Machida, Shizuoka
Shizuoka, Shizuoka
is the capital city of Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan, and the prefecture's second-largest city in terms of both population and area. It became one of Japan's 19 "designated cities" in 2005.-Geography:...
and Nagoya.
Fashion
Within the gyaruo fashion There are a number of sub fashions, which can roughly broken down into the following groups:- Military (ミリタリー系)
- Rock (ロック系)
- Biker (バイカー系)
- American Casual (アメカジ系)
- Surfer (サーファー系)
- Adult (お兄系)