change into adult clothing – and a new
haircut. Twenty was declared the age
standard marking adulthood for both
genders in 1876.
Where once the formal coming-of-
age ceremony was a very traditional
rite of passage practised by ancient
samurai families (rumoured to have
been started by a young prince in
714 AD), today, Japanese youth
welcome their newfound freedom with
extravagant splurging.before March 31 in the current year) to
celebrate as they are officially declared
“adults”, with the right to drink and
smoke (and formerly, to vote, until the
legislation was changed to age 18 in
June 2016). The certified age marking
adulthood has varied at different
stages of Japanese history. During the
Edo period (1603–1868), for example,
boys became men in a ceremony called
genpuku at age 15, and girls during the
mogi ritual at age 13, marked by theEvery year, groups of young
Japanese men clad in designer
business suits and women donning
traditional furisode (kimonos worn by
single women) gather to celebrate their
coming of age through a riotous – and
opulent – day of celebration.
Held annually on the second
Monday in January, the Coming of
Age Day – also called Seijin-no-Hi –
allows young adults who turned 20 in
the previous year (or who will do soTh e Taste of Freedom
COMING OF AGE IN JAPAN HAS EVOLVED FROM AN ANCIENT
RITE OF PASSAGE TO A RAUCOUS FESTIVAL
Text Alex Campbellbelow Japanese women wearing
kimonos during the Coming of Age
Day ceremony at an amusement
park in Tokyo
bottom right An archery
competition at Sanjusangendo
Temple in Kyoto forms part of
the celebrationsIMAGE © GETTY IMAGESreVeAleD