Okiya
Encyclopedia
An is the lodging house in which a maiko
or geisha
lives during the length of her nenki, or contract or career as a geisha.
A young woman's first step toward becoming a geisha is to be accepted into an okiya (boarding house), a geisha house owned by the woman who will pay for her training. The proprietress of the okiya is called okā-san (the Japanese word for "mother"). The okiya normally pays all expenses, including for kimono
and training. The okiya plays a large part in the life of a geiko or maiko, as the women in the okiya become her geisha family, and the Okā-san manages her career in the karyūkai (flower and willow world).
Geiko (Kyoto dialect for geisha) live in a geisha
house (okiya) and work in a teahouse (ochaya), where there are music
, dancing, partying, sometimes food, and always plenty of alcohol
. A geisha pays a percentage
of her earnings
to maintain the house and support all the people living there who are not working geisha, including maiko (apprentice geisha), retired geisha and house maid
s. Kyoto
is the only place where the strict geisha training
continues still and the geiko traditions are handed down.
There may be more than one geisha or maiko living in an okiya at any given point. Inversely, there are houses licensed as okiya but without any geisha
living there. Generally, a geisha who has fulfilled her financial
obligations to the house may choose to live independently, but will remain affiliated with the okiya for the remainder of her career
. Inside the small confines of the geiko communities, it is women, not men, who wield power: everyone hopes for girl children, not boys, so that they can carry on the line of geisha, also if a woman has a boy, she must move out of the Okiya, or give him up, as it is forbidden for men to live in an okiya. For all of their focus on men when they are at work, geiko and maiko live in a matriarchal society. Women run the okiya, women teach girls the skills they need to become a full-fledged geisha, and women introduce new maiko into the teahouses that will be their livelihood. Women run the teahouses too and they can make or break a geisha's career. If a geisha offends the mistress of the main teahouse where she does business, she may lose her livelihood
entirely.
The Okā-san of the okiya may adopt one of the geisha as her daughter (musume) and heiress
(atotori). Henceforth that girl will live in the okiya permanently and all the money she earns will go to that establishment and other various people that help to take care of the geisha's outfits, hairstyles and accessories. Under such an arrangement
, the geisha's debts are absorbed by the okiya.
Maiko
is a Japanese word for dancing girl and is an apprentice geisha. Maiko is also a feminine Japanese given name.-Possible writings:Maiko can be written using different kanji characters and can mean:*舞子 or 舞妓, apprentice geishaas a given name...
or geisha
Geisha
, Geiko or Geigi are traditional, female Japanese entertainers whose skills include performing various Japanese arts such as classical music and dance.-Terms:...
lives during the length of her nenki, or contract or career as a geisha.
A young woman's first step toward becoming a geisha is to be accepted into an okiya (boarding house), a geisha house owned by the woman who will pay for her training. The proprietress of the okiya is called okā-san (the Japanese word for "mother"). The okiya normally pays all expenses, including for kimono
Kimono
The is a Japanese traditional garment worn by men, women and children. The word "kimono", which literally means a "thing to wear" , has come to denote these full-length robes...
and training. The okiya plays a large part in the life of a geiko or maiko, as the women in the okiya become her geisha family, and the Okā-san manages her career in the karyūkai (flower and willow world).
Geiko (Kyoto dialect for geisha) live in a geisha
Geisha
, Geiko or Geigi are traditional, female Japanese entertainers whose skills include performing various Japanese arts such as classical music and dance.-Terms:...
house (okiya) and work in a teahouse (ochaya), where there are music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
, dancing, partying, sometimes food, and always plenty of alcohol
Alcohol
In chemistry, an alcohol is an organic compound in which the hydroxy functional group is bound to a carbon atom. In particular, this carbon center should be saturated, having single bonds to three other atoms....
. A geisha pays a percentage
Percentage
In mathematics, a percentage is a way of expressing a number as a fraction of 100 . It is often denoted using the percent sign, “%”, or the abbreviation “pct”. For example, 45% is equal to 45/100, or 0.45.Percentages are used to express how large/small one quantity is, relative to another quantity...
of her earnings
Earnings
Earnings are the net benefits of a Corporation's operation. Earnings is also the amount on which corporate tax is due. For an analysis of specific aspects of corporate operations several more specific terms are used as EBIT -- earnings before interest and taxes, EBITDA - earnings before...
to maintain the house and support all the people living there who are not working geisha, including maiko (apprentice geisha), retired geisha and house maid
Maid
A maidservant or in current usage housemaid or maid is a female employed in domestic service.-Description:Once part of an elaborate hierarchy in great houses, today a single maid may be the only domestic worker that upper and even middle-income households can afford, as was historically the case...
s. Kyoto
Kyoto
is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...
is the only place where the strict geisha training
Training
The term training refers to the acquisition of knowledge, skills, and competencies as a result of the teaching of vocational or practical skills and knowledge that relate to specific useful competencies. It forms the core of apprenticeships and provides the backbone of content at institutes of...
continues still and the geiko traditions are handed down.
There may be more than one geisha or maiko living in an okiya at any given point. Inversely, there are houses licensed as okiya but without any geisha
Geisha
, Geiko or Geigi are traditional, female Japanese entertainers whose skills include performing various Japanese arts such as classical music and dance.-Terms:...
living there. Generally, a geisha who has fulfilled her financial
FINANCIAL
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obligations to the house may choose to live independently, but will remain affiliated with the okiya for the remainder of her career
Career
Career is defined by the Oxford English Dictionary as a person's "course or progress through life ". It is usually considered to pertain to remunerative work ....
. Inside the small confines of the geiko communities, it is women, not men, who wield power: everyone hopes for girl children, not boys, so that they can carry on the line of geisha, also if a woman has a boy, she must move out of the Okiya, or give him up, as it is forbidden for men to live in an okiya. For all of their focus on men when they are at work, geiko and maiko live in a matriarchal society. Women run the okiya, women teach girls the skills they need to become a full-fledged geisha, and women introduce new maiko into the teahouses that will be their livelihood. Women run the teahouses too and they can make or break a geisha's career. If a geisha offends the mistress of the main teahouse where she does business, she may lose her livelihood
Livelihood
A person's livelihood referers to "means of securing the necessities of life". For instance a fisherman's livelihood depends on the availability and accessibility of fish.- In social sciences :...
entirely.
The Okā-san of the okiya may adopt one of the geisha as her daughter (musume) and heiress
Beneficiary
A beneficiary in the broadest sense is a natural person or other legal entity who receives money or other benefits from a benefactor. For example: The beneficiary of a life insurance policy, is the person who receives the payment of the amount of insurance after the death of the insured...
(atotori). Henceforth that girl will live in the okiya permanently and all the money she earns will go to that establishment and other various people that help to take care of the geisha's outfits, hairstyles and accessories. Under such an arrangement
Arrangement
The American Federation of Musicians defines arranging as "the art of preparing and adapting an already written composition for presentation in other than its original form. An arrangement may include reharmonization, paraphrasing, and/or development of a composition, so that it fully represents...
, the geisha's debts are absorbed by the okiya.