Tatami mat (mat) - Tatami mat

Japanese: ござ(茣蓙∥御座) - ござ

A mat made of woven rush grass, a type of thin tatami mat. In the past, it was called Goza, and as seen in The Pillow Book, it referred to a thin tatami mat with a Korean border that was laid on the seat of aristocrats, and is related to the modern usubri. Modern tatami mats are woven with rush grass as the weft and cotton thread as the warp, and are used for wooden floors and as tatami mats. Most are plain, but there are also flower tatami mats with colorful patterns. The dimensions of tatami mats differ between Kansai and Kanto, and are based on the size of the tatami mats in each region. Tatami mats are also used as bedding. Until the early modern period, ordinary farmers would cover their bedrooms with straw or rice husks, and then lay a tatami mat or straw mat on top of that.

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

イグサを編んだ敷物で薄畳の一種。古くは御座といい高貴な人の席に敷いた高麗縁の薄い畳を指したことが《枕草子》に見え，現在の薄縁（うすべり）に連なる。現代の茣蓙はイ(藺)を緯（よこ）にし，経（たて）に綿糸を用いて織られ，板の間や畳の上敷などに用いる。一般に無地のものが多いが，色模様をつけた花茣蓙もある。茣蓙の寸法は関西と関東で異なりそれぞれの畳の大きさを基準とする。茣蓙は寝具としても用いられる。一般農民は近世まで寝所にわらやもみがらを敷きつめ，その上に茣蓙や筵（むしろ）を敷いていた。

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