Nogoya obi (名古屋帯)
The Nagoya obi is a kind of Japanese woman's obi (sash). It has become popular since the Meiji period. This name derived from the fact that a geisha (Japanese professional female entertainer at drinking party) in Nogoya who was an old friend of gofukuya (kimono shop), the designer, wore it.
However, some say it was designed by Haruko KOSHIHARA, the founder of Nagoya Girls' School (currently, Nagoya Women's University).
As there are various views on the origin of the name, it is also written 'なごや帯' instead of '名古屋帯.'
Under such circumstances, the Yahoo Auction uses 'なごや帯' for its category title.
Its characteristic is that a part of obi which is tied around the body (mae obi) has been made from the beginning by sewing a folded textile like the hanhaba obi (half-width sash). When it is fastened in otaiko knot (drum knot), it is hardly distinguished from the fukuro obi (double-woven obi) from a distance. Nishiki (brocade) is also used as material, and such products are used for street clothes and semi formal dresses. Due to its shape, it lacks flexibility in tying an obi compared with the fukuro obi (double woven obi).
As shown below, the Nagoya obi is roughly categorized into two types based on the width of textiles.
Kyusun (27.27 cm) Nagoya obi (sewn with an obishin [padding of obi] made of sail cloth)
Hassun (24.24 cm) Nagoya obi (simply folded over and sewn together without an obishin)
(the width of the portion of otaiko is hassun, measured by kujirajaku (a measure used in kimono-making), for both types.)