Katsuhiko Suganuma Introduction When the topic of modern sexualities is discussed in the Japanese context, one must take into consideration their cross-cultural dimensions. For example, during the process of Japan’s mod­ernisation in the Meiji period (1868—1912), the Western concept of homosexuality as a deviant identity was first introduced and constructed within a Japanese context (see […]

With a lack of overt anti-homosexual laws, a history of intergenerational male-male sex in areas of pre-modern society (Chalmers 2002; Ihara 1990 [1687]; Leupp 1995; McLelland 2004; Pflugfelder 1999; Hiratsuka 1983), and the GID Act (2003/2004), Japan as a nation is often perceived as being tolerant to sexual minorities. Furthermore, given the existence of the […]

As the Internet became all pervasive, the terrain and politics of LGBT women’s cultures shifted. Kamira (Carmilla; 2001-5), and Internet sites such as Bravissma (Bravissima; 1998-), Tokyo Wrestling (2006-), and Novia Novia Magazine (2010-) began to replace the more traditional print media such as mini-komi and magazines. Nomenclature for film festivals and pride marches held […]

Lesbian feminists have looked back to the early twentieth-century women’s movement, and to relationships between women such as that between the founder of the feminist literary magazine Seito, Hiratsuka Raicho (1886—1971), and Otake Kazue (also known as Kokichi) (1893—1966), to create a sense of lesbian herstory (Izumo, 1993 [2000]; Bessatsu 1987; see also Watanabe 2001). […]

The 1990s is often referred to as the ‘gay boom’ period of contemporary Japanese culture. Sparked by the publication of a ‘Gay Renaissance’ issue of glossy women’s magazine CREA in December 1991, lesbian culture was also central in the form of writing, activism and cultural production (Gei runessannsu 1991). The publishing boom was prefigured by […]

The 1980s saw an increase in commercial venues catering for women loving women. Onabe bars catering mainly to male clientele had been in operation for decades in areas of Tokyo known for their nightlife cultures (McLelland 2004: 3-26; Bessatsu Takarajima 1987: 102). In the 1980s lesbian bars began to appear in the so-called gay area […]

In her overview of lesbian culture in Japan, writer Sawabe Hitomi posits the period from 1971 to 1980 as the time when ‘the seeds’ of lesbian and queer women’s communities emerged (Sawabe 2008: 6-10). Wakakusa no kai (Young Grass Club), formed by Suzuki Michiko in 1971, is the first documented lesbian group in modern Japan. […]

Terminology for female-same-sex desires and identities is varied and diverse. The pathologising discourse of same-sex desire began to enter medical literature in the late nineteenth century and entered the public domain in the early twentieth century (Driscoll 2005: 191—225; Fruhstuck 2003). The birth of the female homosexual in Japan as an intelligible category can be […]

Claire Maree Japan has a rich women’s culture stretching back over time and encompassing community organisations, activism, commercial publishing, art and literature. The negotiation of terms for female-female desire is indicative of the political and creative forces shaping queer women’s history and culture in Japan. In the post-Second World War period, this has led to […]

The importance of lesbian bar culture in various countries has long been discussed by scholars of sexual cultures and gay and lesbian histories alike (Jeffreys 1989; Kennedy and Davis 1993; Valentine 2000; Wolfe 1997). Anthropologist Antonia Chao conducted longitudinal research into the T/Po communities (similar to Hong Kong’s TB and TBG) in Taiwan by immersing […]