Fashion in the Taisho era

Published: July 27, 2026 · Updated: July 28, 2026

Taisho was the age of Taisho Roman and the modern girl: city youth took up Western fashion, boldly patterned meisen silk kimono became everyday wear, and the sailor-style school uniform appeared around 1920.

Fashion in the Taisho era — Author: Takehisa Yumeji Public domain Source

Overview

Urban culture turned cosmopolitan. The moga (modern girl) and mobo (modern boy) wore Western dresses, suits, cloche hats and short hair, and cafes and department stores spread the new looks.

Key garments and style

For women’s daily wear, affordable meisen — silk woven from pre-dyed threads in vivid Art Nouveau and Art Deco patterns — was hugely popular. Schoolgirls wore hakama with boots in the haikara style, and the sailor-collar uniform (sailor fuku) entered girls’ schools from around 1920.

Transition

The Showa era that followed would swing from this modern exuberance to wartime austerity and then to full Westernization.

History of this period

Taisho era 1912–1926