In 90% of school anime, it doesn't matter if it's ecchi or one shoujo, you always find girls with very short skirts above the knee. Have you ever wondered why? Do girls in schools in Japan really wear short skirts like that?
Do Japanese uniforms change a lot from one region to another? What are the rules regarding school uniforms? In this article we will see curiosities related to Japanese uniforms and the skirts of Japanese schoolgirls.
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What is the Japanese School Uniform?
The Japanese uniform is called seifuku [制服], it is mandatory starting in high school (chuugakou -中学校) and attracts a lot of attention in high school (koukou -高校). Many of the Japanese uniforms are based on the sailors' uniforms.
For boys, it's usually a simple social outfit with a suit or vest, for women it's something similar, but with the famous skirt that catches everyone's attention.
Uniforms have been around in Japan for over 100 years, it started with something formal like kimono, then advanced to military-style uniforms. Until around 1920 a women's school in Fukuoka started using a different model based on the British navy.
The famous pleated skirts, triangular collar and bow at the neck became a trend and trademark of many uniforms in Japan. Japanese schools are full of rules regarding uniforms.
The schools define the size, color and model of the clothes, going out of the standard goes against the school rules. Some schools even forbid wearing shirts and accessories.
Are the skirts of Japanese uniforms short?
In most anime the girls have short skirts above the knee showing their thighs. The skirts are so short that it ends up being an easy occasion where you can see your panties.
This is not just in anime, during my stay in Japan I noticed that most high school girls were walking around with very short skirts on trains and on the street, you could even see...
Contrary to what people might imagine, most schools have a skirt below the knee. What happens is that the Japanese themselves roll up their skirts in order to shorten it, for the same reasons that Western girls wear short clothes, for comfort, fashion and presentation.
Some schools are strict on this matter, do not usually allow certain changes in uniform and even in appearance. That's why you find students with short skirts most of the time outside of schools.
Some schools end up having or allowing above-the-knee skirts. Of course, many girls wear tights and shorts under their skirts to avoid perverts. Unfortunately some girls don't care about perverts. It is common for a schoolgirl to sit in front of you on a train and spread her legs showing everything.
Differences in Japanese school clothes and skirts
Japanese skirts and uniforms were largely responsible for the street fashion that emerged in Japan in the 1980s. Because of this, many schoolgirls end up being misunderstood, especially by Westerners.
That's because some girls wear skirts so short that they spark and stoke the male imagination. Some girls do this in order to generate some income from (non-sexual) services called Sick Kosai.
Among the Japanese prefectures, the ones known for having the shortest uniforms are Niigata which can reach up to 18 centimeters. Sendai, Mito and Tokyo are also very short. Sapporo, Fukuoka and Okinawa skirt sizes are medium. And the longest are in Osaka and Kobe.
Skirts are so widespread in schools in Japan that even in winter the girls wear short skirts to school. Some are not stupid and wear thermal pants until the entrance to the school and then take them off.
Even though there are pantyhose, some prefer to wear a short summer sock to present their legs. Despite the desire of Japanese women to wear short skirts, several campaigns and rules against uniform modification take place in Japan.
So, the fact of Anime having several girls in short skirts is based on the reality of Japan. Of course, anime exaggerate the uniforms and make them super short in order to attract the attention of the male audience.
The uniform is just one more click like the gigantic breasts of japanese in anime. What do you think about Japanese uniforms? Do you think the salts are too short? Do you think you have a problem? We'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments and your sharing.
