Uniform - Seifuku

Japanese: 制服 - せいふく

A general term for clothing that has been specifically established. It refers to a uniform. It has the function of expressing the character of a certain group or organization, and is intended to increase a sense of solidarity within the group and to clearly indicate occupation, rank, role, etc. externally. Although the degree of regulation and the scale may vary, any uniformly prescribed clothing falls under the category of a uniform. In that sense, it also includes clothing systems (dress regulations) that have emerged throughout history to rank status and class.

Modern professional uniforms began in the Meiji period. In order to quickly realize Western clothing, the Meiji government first adopted Western clothing for military and government official uniforms, which became the basis of the current uniforms. The army uniform (French style, later changed to German style) and navy uniform (British style) enacted in 1870 (Meiji 3) were maintained until the end of World War II, with repeated revisions. The following year, uniforms for postmen and police officers were established, and in 1872, uniforms for railway workers were established, all of which have been passed down to the current official uniforms. There were few workplaces for women, and Japanese clothing with an apron was also considered workwear, so the only professional uniforms available in the Meiji period were nurse uniforms. Nurse uniforms were first established by the Japanese Red Cross Society in 1894. From the Taisho period to the beginning of the Showa period, when women began to have more jobs, uniforms were adopted for bus conductors and department store clerks, encouraging the general public to wear Western clothing. After World War II, office and work clothes were merely a formality, but in the 1960s, with the development of synthetic fibers and the growth of the ready-made clothing industry, new uniforms that not only took into consideration materials and functionality, but also fashionability appeared and were adopted by various companies, including banks, department stores, and mass retailers.

[Masumi Tsuji]

About the uniform

In Japan, the first system was the Twelve Ranks and Ranks system of the Asuka period, followed by the Yoro Clothing Ordinance, and the dress code for the nobles developed into the Yusoku Kojitsu system of the Heian period. The dress code for the samurai class that began in the Kamakura period was maintained until the Edo period, but the repeated bans on luxury in the mid-Edo period indicate the growing wealth of the townspeople class. The Meiji government established the peerage system and stipulated ceremonial attire, but this was abolished in the current constitution, and dress codes remain only for special professions (law robes, monk's robes, etc.).

In Europe, there were dress codes in ancient Rome, and detailed restrictions based on social status were in place throughout the Middle Ages and early modern times, with prohibitions already in place from the 12th century when the fashion phenomenon first appeared. For the rulers who enacted dress codes, they were a means of maintaining power and order, and the new classes that rose to power effectively demonstrated their power by disrupting them.

[Masumi Tsuji]

School uniform

Some companies and other institutions have uniforms, but here we will discuss school uniforms. Gakushuin was the first to adopt uniforms for boys in 1879 (Meiji 12). For girls, the Tokyo Women's Normal School, a public school, adopted them in 1885, and Yamawaki Gakuen, a private school, adopted them in 1919 (Taisho 8). After that, they quickly spread from kindergarten to university, due to the convenience of implementing military-style exercises in junior high schools. After World War II, universities were the first to abolish uniforms, and in the high school protests of the 1960s, students called for the abolition of uniforms, so the number of uniforms at high schools has gradually decreased. Public junior high schools often have "standard clothing" that is not as strict as uniforms in terms of style and wearing. There are few cases where elementary schools generally require uniforms. However, most private schools maintain their uniforms.

Some argue that prescribing uniforms and forcing students to wear them weakens the development of a sense of color and fashion, but the effects of uniforms cannot be ignored, such as encouraging students to become aware of themselves as members of the school and feel a sense of solidarity, fostering a sense of discipline, and preventing them from competing in flashy clothing or imitating the clothing of delinquent groups.

[Genichiro Saegusa]

[Reference] | Uniform

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

Japanese:

とくに制定された被服の総称。ユニフォームのこと。一定の集団や団体の性格を表す機能をもち、集団内では連帯意識を高めること、外的には職業や階級や役割などを明示することを目的としている。規制の強弱や規模の大小はあるが、画一に定められた服装はすべて制服の範囲に入る。その意味から、歴史上現れた、身分や階級を序列化した服装制度（服制）もこれに含まれる。

　現代の職業服としての制服は明治に始まる。洋装化を早急に実現させるために、明治政府が軍服や官公吏服にまず洋服を採用したが、それが現在の制服の基礎となっている。1870年（明治3）に制定された陸軍服（フランス式、のちにドイツ式に改正）と海軍服（イギリス式）は、改正を繰り返しながら第二次世界大戦終了まで維持された。また翌71年には郵便夫と邏卒(らそつ)（警官）、72年には鉄道員の制服が定められ、いずれも現在の官公服に受け継がれている。女子の職業服は、職場が少なかったことと、和服にエプロン姿が作業衣でもあったため、明治の制服としては看護服しか存在しなかった。看護服は94年に日本赤十字社によって初めて制定されている。女性の職場が広がり始めた大正から昭和の初めにかけて、バスの車掌や百貨店の店員などに制服が採用され、一般女性の洋装化を促すことになった。第二次大戦後は上っ張り程度にすぎなかった事務服や作業衣は、合繊の開発が進み、既製服産業も成長した昭和40年代から、素材や機能への配慮はもとより、ファッション性も加味された新しい制服が出現し、銀行、百貨店、量販店をはじめ各企業に採用されていった。

［辻ますみ］

服制について

日本では飛鳥(あすか)時代の冠位十二階制が最初であり、養老(ようろう)の衣服令を経て、公家(くげ)の服制は平安時代の有職故実(ゆうそくこじつ)に発展する。鎌倉時代に始まる武家の服制は江戸時代まで維持されるが、江戸中期のたび重なる奢侈(しゃし)禁止令は、町人階級の富裕化を語っている。明治政府は華族制度を設けて礼服などの規定を行ったが、現憲法では廃止され、服制は特殊な職業にのみ残存している（法服、僧服など）。

　ヨーロッパにおいても、古代ローマに服制があり、中世・近世を通じて身分による規制は細部に及び、モード現象が現れた12世紀よりすでに禁止令がある。服制は、制定する支配者にとっては、権力と秩序を維持する手段であり、台頭する新興階級はそれを錯乱させることで、自らの勢力を効果的に示してきた。

［辻ますみ］

学校での制服

企業などで制服を定めている場合もあるが、ここでは学校の制服について述べる。男子は、1879年（明治12）学習院で採用したのが最初である。女子は、官立では東京女子師範学校が85年に、私立では山脇(やまわき)学園が1919年（大正8）に採用している。その後、中学校の兵式体操を実施する便宜から急速に普及し、幼稚園から大学にまで及んだ。第二次大戦後、まず大学で制服を廃止し、昭和40年代の高校学園紛争では、生徒が制服廃止を叫んだこともあり、高校でもしだいに制服が減少している。公立中学校では、制服ほど型式や着用に関する規制の強くない「標準服」を定めている場合が多い。小学校では一般に制服を定めている例は少ない。しかし、大部分の私立学校では制服を維持している。

　制服を定め、児童・生徒に着用させることは、色彩感覚や服装に関するセンスの発達を弱めるという意見もあるが、児童・生徒に学校の一員であるという自覚や連帯感を促し、規律心を育てるだけでなく、華美な服装を競ったり、非行集団の服装をまねたりすることを防ぐなどの効果は無視できない。

［三枝源一郎］

[参照項目] | ユニフォーム

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