Topknot - Mage

This part of Japanese hairstyle. It is the most important part of Japanese hairstyle and can be said to represent beauty. In the era of hanging hair, this kind of beauty was not seen, but in the Edo period, the front hair was taken, the side hairs on both sides were taken, and the topknot was left at the back, and all of the hair was gathered together to create a unique hairstyle on the top of the head, which is called a topknot. The quality of this topknot is the lifeblood of a woman's hairstyle. Topknots became more complex, and various hair accessories such as combs, hairpins, and kanzashi were used, making Japanese hairstyles even more beautiful. From the end of the Edo period to around 1877 (Meiji 10), there were more than 280 types of topknots. After 1885, the beauty of topknots was overshadowed by Western hairstyles due to their disadvantages of being uneconomical, unhygienic, and not allowing a good night's sleep, and after the Taisho period, the number of people wearing topknots decreased.

[Takeshi Endo]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

日本髪の部分。日本髪をつくるうえでもっとも重要で、美しさを表す部分といえる。下げ髪の時代には、このような美しさはなかったが、江戸時代に入って、前髪をとり、左右の鬢(びん)をとり、さらに背後に髱(たぼ)を出し、それらの頭髪を一つにまとめあげて、百会(ひゃくえ)（脳天）の上に独自な髪形をつくるのが髷である。この髷の部分のよしあしが女性の髪形の生命である。髷が複雑化し、これに櫛(くし)、笄(こうがい)、かんざしなど髪飾りがいろいろに用いられて、日本髪はさらに美しくなり、幕末から1877年（明治10）ごろにかけて、その数280余種となった。1885年以降、その髷の美しさも、不経済、不衛生、安眠がとれないという欠点から西洋の束髪に押され、大正を最後に、髷を結う人は少なくなっていった。

［遠藤　武］

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