Hanamachi
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A hanamachi (花街) is a Japanese geisha district. The word's literal meaning is "flower town", which used to refer to a certain class of red-light districts in Japan. Such districts should be host various Geiko-ya (Houses of Geisha) and Yujo-ya (Houses of courtesans). Nowadays, the term "hanamachi" refers to the areas that modern-day Geisha are still operating within as Yujo-ya (Houses of courtesans) has become obsolete. Originally, such areas were called kagai (花街), however the term Hanamachi (花街) is more commonly used in modern Japan. In Kyoto's Gion (or Gion Kobu) district, however, the older term "Kagai" (花街) is still being used. Alternatively, "kagai" is used to referred to as Sangyochi, as it hosted Ryoutei (restaurant), Geisha-Okiya (Geisha's 'family' houses), and Machiai (houses where customers can reserve a room to be entertained by Geisha and other entertainers with various cooked food brought in by neibouring caterers).
Each hanamachi usually has okiya (the geisha families' houses), ochaya (tea houses, where geisha do most of their entertaining), a kaburenjo (a meeting place for geisha, usually with a theatre, rooms where geisha classes can be held, and the kemban offices, which deal with geishas' pay, regulation and similar matters).
Hanamachi
Kyoto hanamachi:Shimabara is sometimes referred to as a hanamachi, although it was home to prostitutes, not geisha.
Tokyo hanamachi:
Hanamachi near Tokyo Areas historically renowned as "hanamachi/kagai":- Torimori
- Shintomicho
- Fukagawa
- Maruyamacho
- Yanagibashi
- Nakano Shinbashi
Yoshiwara was the Tokyo courtesans' district; again, it can
"Hanamachi" in Osaka
"Hanamachi" in Kanazawa
"Hanamachi" in Hakata
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