If you live together with Japanese people, you may notice that most women tend to cover their mouths when laughing or even taking pictures. It seems that they are ashamed of their smile. There is a historical reason behind this, in this article we will try to understand it.
Today, Japanese women believe that this practice is polite, good etiquette. Of course, some do this just to hide their teeth, because in Japan people don't care about taking care of their teeth and having a beautiful smile, many are scruffy or crooked. This is so common that some girls even pay to crook the tooth. Some Japanese girls claim that they hide their smile because Japanese society disapproves of scandalous women.
Another thing that influences this practice is the fact that laughter in Japan is in a low voice. Japanese people don't usually scream or laugh out loud, this can be frowned upon among women, so they cover their mouths. Japan is a collective country, some Japanese had this practice, and other Japanese ended up imitating it and it ended up becoming a pattern. Nowadays, putting your hand over your mouth when smiling is seen as something graceful and cute.
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Historical reasons to cover your mouth
Some claim that the custom of putting one's hand over one's mouth when laughing dates back to the Kofun period (250-538). We don't know exactly when it appeared, but a common practice at the time in several Asian countries was to dye teeth black to strengthen teeth and protect them against cavities and periodontitis. Because of this, many women were ashamed to show their black smile. Another ancient custom is that showing the inside of the mouth was not polite, it was normal to just show a smile.
This custom of dyeing the teeth black was called Ohaguro (お歯黒). This was nothing to be ashamed of, many did it to hide their yellow teeth, as the white makeup on their face highlighted the yellow of their teeth. Having black teeth was fashionable in the Nara Period (710-794), but it would not be unusual for some girls not to like it and end up creating this custom of covering their mouths that infected most Japanese women.
Other reasons and facts about covering your mouth
Covering your mouth when smiling can also be a natural thing for women. A universal custom is to put the hand to the face or mouth when the person is surprised or embarrassed. There are many similarities regardless of cultural background. Nowadays it's common for Western women to be embarrassed to open their mouths or laugh out loud, or they just find it cute and graceful for girls to put their hand over their mouth when smiling.
Shame and shyness also end up having a great effect on this custom. We can see that many Japanese women like to post pictures on Instagram covering their faces. Some even have the habit of wear masks without even being sick. Other people are just embarrassed to laugh and put their hand to their face. You can see that even putting your hand on your mouth you can see the person's beautiful smile.
Do men also cover their mouths when laughing? Yes, the problem is that women are more sensitive, polite and more afraid of offending than men. It is worth remembering that this is not a Japanese custom, it is just more common in Japan! People who cover their mouths while laughing are found all over the world. Often it will depend on the situation and subject. Some find it rude to laugh openly in public, while some Japanese women don't even adhere to this custom.
Is that you? What do you think about this matter? Do you think it's polite? Weird? Do you usually cover your mouth? Do you find it attractive and graceful? We would like to hear your opinion in the comment. Thanks in advance for reading, sharing and commenting.
