芸子

Japanese

Kanji in this term
芸 子
げい
Grade: 4		 こ
Grade: 1
jūbakoyomi
芸子 (geiko): a geiko or geisha in Kyoto.

Etymology

Compound of 芸 (gei, “art, arts, especially performing arts”) +‎ 子 (ko, “child, small thing, junior”).

Pronunciation

Noun

芸子 (hiragana げいこ, rōmaji geiko)

  1. a geisha, especially a young geisha
  2. a young kabuki actor, especially one still in training
  3. a talented person, especially with regard to performing
  4. short for 芸子髷 (​geiko mage): a special kind of hairstyle traditionally worn by geisha

Usage notes

For the sense of a woman employed to wear traditional dress and entertain using traditional song, dance, music, and storytelling:[2]

  • geisha is the most general term.
  • geigi is most often used in writing, typically more formal writing.
  • geiko is more common in the Kansai region of Japan.
  • kirei-dokoro can be used to mean a beautifully dressed woman, but more often refers to a woman working as an entertainer in a red-light district.
  • hidarizuma is a somewhat old-fashioned epithet for a geisha, referring to the way that geisha hold onto the left (hidari) edge below the collar portion (tsuma) of their kimono while walking.

Synonyms

  • (geisha):
    • 芸者 (げいしゃ, ​geisha)
    • 芸妓 (げいぎ, ​geigi)
    • 綺麗所, 綺麗どころ, 奇麗どころ (きれいどころ, ​kirei-dokoro)
    • 左褄 (ひだりづま, ​hidarizuma)
  • (kabuki actor): 舞台子 (ぶたいこ, ​butaiko)
  • (talented person): 芸人 (げいにん, ​geinin)
  • (hairstyle): 芸子髷 (げいこまげ, ​geiko mage)

References

  1. ↑ 2006, 大辞林 (Daijirin), Third Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN
  2. ↑ 1988, 国語大辞典（新装版） (Kokugo Dai Jiten, Revised Edition) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan
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