A young Japanese woman waving her bobbed hairstyle.
The bob was first started in the USA in 1915 by celebrated ballroom dancer Irene Castle (1893-1969).
It was perfect for the free-spirited youth of the time and turned into a controversial craze during the 1920s. The bob became the signature look of the flapper.
It didn’t take long for young Japanese women with modern ideas to take to the new hairstyle. Compared to the traditional Japanese styles it was extremely easy to care for, as well as liberating.
For more information about the modernizing Japanese woman during the 1920s and 1930s, see 1930s • Woman with Modern Hairdo.
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Old Photos of Japan aims to be your personal museum for Japan's visual heritage and to bring the experiences of everyday life in old Japan to you.
To enhance our understanding of Japanese culture and society I track down, acquire, archive, and research images of everyday life, and give them context.
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Kjeld Duits
Reference for Citations
Duits, Kjeld (). 1920s: Woman Curling Hair, OLD PHOTOS of JAPAN. Retrieved on May 5, 2024 (GMT) from https://www.oldphotosjapan.com/photos/269/woman-curling-hair
Mr. T
Japanese women have such lovely hair. It’s almost a shame to see this done but it was a fad. Compared to what women do to their hair today, this is nothing.
#000076 ·
freakout
this is gross looking
#000258 ·
Japanese words
Great picture. That looks like quite the dangerous contraption.
#000377 ·
Vina
I was looking for 1920’s hairstyles for longer hair and found this. That contraption looks amazing! My mother is a hairdresser, as was my grandmother, and I often get roped in to help so this is quite fascinating. And I’m sure this young woman took better care of her hair than a lot of young women and men today.
#000458 ·