A study on the evolution of Japanese fashion

Preamble

'Japan' the word brings to mind leadership in technology and machinery. The country has emerged over time to become a brand name in quality engineering. The wondrous archipelago, popularly known as 'The land of the rising sun', is called 'Nippon' by the local people. In spite of Japan being home to a number of minority groups, there is a considerable homogeneity found here in culture. This report aims to study the evolution of the garments worn in this beautiful country over time. Beginning with an introduction of this beautiful country, the report goes on to describe traditional Japanese dresses, as well as footwear and other accessories. It then explains the process of evolution of the same, coming to the dresses preferred by the Japanese in today's times. This extensive report has been compiled using a number of sources of secondary data. An attempt has been made to provide as comprehensive an account as possible.

Table of Contents

* Section 1 - Gateway to Japan
* Section 2 - Traditional dresses in Japan
* Section 3 - Footwear and other accessories
* Section 4 - Evolution over the years
* Section 5 - Modern Japanese dressing
* Section 6 - References

Section 1 - Gateway to Japan

Japan is situated to the north of Asia's eastern coast. It is an archipelago, made up of thousands of islands, the major ones among them being Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku and Kyushu. The country has a population of about 130 million, consisting of people from different ethnic groups. This makes it the 10th highest populated country in the world. The major groups that Japan is home to are Koreans, Chinese, Ryukyuan, Burakumin, and Ainu. In spite of this, it is one of the most culturally homogenous country in the world. The major languages spoken here are Japanese, Ryukyuan, and Ainu, with Shinto and Buddhism being the major religions that are followed here.

The capital of Japan is Tokyo. In spite of being highly prone to volcanoes and earthquakes, Japan has emerged as the 2nd largest economy in the world in terms of nominal GDP (recorded at $4.886 trillion in the year 2007). It is the world leader in the spheres of technology and machinery. Japan has a number of world-famous companies, namely Toyota Motor, Canon, Honda, Nippon Steel, Sony and Mitsubishi Estate, among others. It is the 4th largest exporter and the 6th largest importer in the world. The present Emperor of Japan is Mr. Akihito and the Prime Minister is Mr. Yasuo Fukuda.