Bijin

src: i.ytimg.com

Bijin (??) is a Japanese term which literally means "a beautiful person" and is synonymous with bijyo (??, "beautiful woman"). Girls are usually called bish?jo (???), while men are bidanshi (???) and boys are bish?nen (???). The term originally derives from Chinese word ??, the word ?? is used widely in several Asian countries including China, South Korea, North Korea, and Vietnam.

Video Bijin

Meaning

In practice the term bijin means "beautiful woman" because the first kanji character, bi (?), has a feminine connotation. Bijin can also be translated as "a beauty"; in a modern and informal context it means "a doll". People who are called a bijin are usually beautiful, charming and harmonious women, who wear pretty clothes.

In Mandarin Chinese, ?? (Pinyin: m?irén) also means "a beautiful woman". Like Mandarin Chinese, in Korean language, ?? (Hangul: ??; RR: Miin) means "a beautiful woman".

Maps Bijin

In Japanese art

Pictures of bijin in Japanese art are called bijin-ga. Bijin-ga is described as a genre of ukiyo-e paintings. Some of the greatest bijinga artists are Utamaro, Suzuki Harunobu and Torii Kiyonaga. Until the beginning of the 20th century, bijin-ga were very popular.

src: oi64.tinypic.com

Famous bijin

Akita, located on Honshu, in northern Japan, is famous for its "bijin of Akita" which are characterized by their round face, clear skin and high-pitched voice. Ono no Komachi, one of the Thirty-six Immortals of Poetry, was a beauty from Akita.

Fukuoka, the largest city of Kyushu island in southern Japan, is also known for a large population of bijins.

Some of Utamaro's favourite models have remained famous as bijin; for example Naniwaya Okita (fr), a courtesan Hana?gi (fr), Tomimoto Toyohina (fr) and Takashima Ohisa.

src: i.ytimg.com

Average Beauty Theory

Judith Langlois and Lori Roggman's cross-cultural study on beauty used composite faces suggests that attractive faces are those that represent the central tendency or average. Composite images were created by layering digital photographs of faces. Each image was smoothed, meaning that each pixel in the matrix was adjusted to the average value of the pixels immediately surrounding it.

src: i7.mangareader.net

See also

• Bijin-ga
• Bihaku
• Bishoujo

src: i.ytimg.com

References

Notes

Bibliography

• Images du Monde Flottant - Peintures et estampes japonaises XVIIe - XVIIIe siècles. (Septembre 2004) (ISBN 2-7118-4821-3)

Source of the article : Wikipedia