1What does the word kimono mean? Ki means to wear, and mono means a thing. So a kimono is simply a thing to wear. That is a very plain name for such beautiful clothes. Long ago, it was the word for all clothes in Japan. After Western clothes came to Japan, it began to mean Japanese clothes only.

2November 15 is Kimono Day in Japan. A kimono group in Kyoto chose this day in 1966. It is also the day of Shichi-Go-San. Families take young children to a shrine and pray for their health. Many of the children wear beautiful kimono. So the group hoped whole families would wear kimono on that day.

3There is one important rule. You always put the left side over the right side. Many people remember it with a small trick. From the front, the collar looks like the small letter y. This rule in Japan goes back to the year 719. The opposite way is only for people who have died. So be careful when you try one on!

4The word kimono traveled far. People in Europe knew it by the 1500s. Today, people all over the world use the same word. In 2019, a famous American star named her underwear brand Kimono. Many people in Japan were upset, and the mayor of Kyoto wrote her a letter. Soon, the brand got a new name. A kimono is not just clothing. It is a part of Japanese culture.