Kokeshi

Kokeshi (こけし, 小芥子) are simple wooden Japanese dolls with no arms or legs that have been crafted for more than 150 years as a toy for children. Originally from the Tohoku region in northern Honshu, kokeshi are handmade from wood, having a simple trunk and head with a few thin, painted lines to define the face. The body often has floral and/or ring designs painted in red, black, and sometimes green, purple, blue, or yellow inks, and covered with a layer of wax. Since the 1950s, kokeshi makers have signed their work, usually on the bottom and sometimes on the back.

History and etymology

The origin and naming of kokeshi is unclear, with historical ateji spellings including 小芥子, 木牌子, 木形子, and 木芥子. The hiragana spelling こけし was agreed on at the All-Japan Kokeshi Exhibition (全国こけし大会) at Naruko Onsen in August 1939.

A popular theory suggests that kokeshi may be fetish substitutes for unwanted babies killed after birth and the characters can be understood as 子消し made up of child (子, ko) and erasing, extinguishing (消し, keshi). While infanticide was commonly practiced in Japan until the 20th century, there is little if any evidence to support the theory that kokeshi have anything to do with the practice, with the earliest references in literature dating only from 1965. The word kokeshi itself is originally of the Sendai dialect, with the dolls being known as, for example, deko, kideko, dekoroko; in Fukushima as kibako, kihohoko; in Miyagi as obokko; and in Naruko as hangyo and kiningyō, none of which supports the theory.

Kokeshi were first produced by kijishi (木地師), artisans proficient with a lathe, at the Shinchi Shuraku, near the Tōgatta Onsen in Zaō from where kokeshi-making techniques spread to other spa areas in the Tōhoku region.