Countries and cultures - Languages and scripts - Kimono - Japanese clothing - Japan
What does the Japanese word “kimono” literally mean?
Correct!
The word kimono (着物) literally means roughly “thing to wear” or simply “clothing”. It is made up of kiru, meaning “to wear” or “to put on”, and mono, meaning “thing”. The Japan National Tourism Organization translates the term accordingly as “a thing to wear”. Today, “kimono” mainly refers to the characteristic traditional Japanese garment with a straight cut and a broad sash, the obi. Its present form developed from older types of clothing such as the kosode, which was widely worn as outerwear especially during the Edo period. While kimono once belonged much more strongly to everyday life, today they are often worn for weddings, ceremonies, festivals and other special occasions.
Kimono literally means something like “thing to wear” and today mainly refers to the traditional Japanese garment.
