By Rafe Calder
Tabi are socks with the big toe in one pocket and the other four in another. The reason is plain: the sandals they were made for have a strap that passes between the first and second toes. That much all four sources accept. When the shape appeared, and what it was made of first, they do not.
What a tabi is
Nippon.com, a news magazine, says tabi are traditional socks with a split between the big toe and the other toes, which suits footwear with a central thong, such as geta and zori. Some tabi fasten at the back with metal clasps called kohaze. White is the commonest colour, it says, especially on formal occasions. Jika-tabi, it adds, have the same split-toe shape but are worn as shoes: rubber soles, used by construction workers and gardeners for sturdy, flexible footing.
Dates, from four directions
A travel-objects site says tabi were likely introduced around the Kofun period (250 to 538), and describes earlier footwear called shitouzu that enclosed all the toes and was made of hemp or silk. A craft-supplier blog gives a similar prehistory: shitouzu, a toe-enclosing footwear believed to have reached Japan around the fifth century, tied at the ankle with a string. Neither says where it came from beyond “from abroad”, and we do not name a place.
Wikipedia puts the split-toe shape later. It says tabi date to at least the 15th century and that the split-toe design emerged around the late Heian period (794 to 1185), so the wearer could fit the thong of sandals. The craft-supplier blog says the Kamakura-period Uji Shui Monogatari mentions tabi, which would put the word in use by the 11th century, and that early tabi had no separate big-toe section: that shape came in the Muromachi period (1336 to 1573). The travel-objects site agrees that leather tabi became popular among samurai in the Muromachi era.
Our reading: the sources are not describing the same thing. One is about the sock-like descendants of a toe-enclosing boot, one is about the word, one is about the split. A single date is not on offer.
Leather to cotton
The sources agree on the direction. Nippon.com says leather tabi were common at first and cotton became dominant in the Edo period (1603 to 1868). The travel-objects site says advances in cotton production in the Edo period made split-toe socks more accessible, and that by the late 1500s white leather was customary for men and purple for women. The blog adds a reason with a date: after the Great Fire of Meireki in 1657, demand for leather for fire-protection garments pushed leather prices up, and inexpensive cotton tabi replaced leather and became popular for their soft feel. Our reading: cotton won on price as much as comfort. The blog says white, black and navy became the mainstream colours, and that white was favoured for formal wear while townspeople wore navy. The travel-objects site agrees that townspeople favoured darker shades such as navy.
Kohaze: the clasp
The blog says tabi fastened with kohaze were developed during the Genroku period (1688 to 1704). It says the clasps were adapted from claws on imported wallets, which it calls the prototype of modern tabi. We present that as the blog’s claim only; no other source repeats it. The same blog says that until the Meiji period two kohaze was the norm, that today tabi have three to six, and that four is the most common. String-tied tabi stayed common among ordinary people, especially in rural areas, according to the blog. The travel-objects site notes that newer styles use elastic bands, buttons, ties or clasps at the ankle.
Wikipedia says modern versions may use hook-and-loop fasteners or stretch material with no fasteners at all, and that traditional tabi are open at the back and close with kohaze.
Jika-tabi, and who made them
The travel-objects site describes the work version as having a thick rubber sole, steel toe guards and reinforced fabric, worn by builders, rickshaw drivers and gardeners. It adds that the festival version is softer, with no toe guards and no hook-and-loop strips, and uses kohaze. Wikipedia credits the invention of rubber-soled jika-tabi to two brothers in 1922; the blog says nothing about rubber soles. We pass on the date as Wikipedia’s.
Wikipedia calls jika-tabi heavier, with tough material and often rubber soles, and says they are now the dominant outdoor form. It says tabi in the indoor sense, worn as socks, are the usual meaning of the word today.
When you wear them
For formal wear, white. Wikipedia says white is the most common colour, symbolises purity and is worn in formal settings such as tea ceremonies; men sometimes wear blue or black tabi for travel. The travel-objects site says that in tea ceremonies they stay white to mark the importance of the event. Wikipedia adds that tabi are required in traditional venues such as Noh theatres and teahouses, where shoes are not worn indoors.
For cold weather, kimono and sandals. The travel-objects site says that with kimono, tabi add warmth in winter when worn with zori, geta or setta. That is the winter hook, and it is the only one the sources give; none discusses fabric weight or lining.
After the war, the blog says, everyday wear declined except for certain trades such as construction, while tabi remained for traditional events such as martial arts, flower arranging and tea ceremony. It also says they are now valued for the space they create between the toes, which can reduce foot fatigue, and that casual patterned designs have made them a fashion item for young people.
Dates in order
- 250 to 538: possible arrival of toe-enclosing footwear, according to the travel-objects site.
- Late Heian period: split-toe design, according to Wikipedia.
- 1336 to 1573: leather tabi spread among samurai, according to the travel-objects site and the blog.
- 1592 to 1596: men’s white and patterned leather, women’s purple, according to the blog.
- 1657: Great Fire of Meireki, then cotton replaces leather, according to the blog.
- 1688 to 1704: kohaze fastening developed, according to the blog.
- 1922: rubber-soled jika-tabi, according to Wikipedia.
Side by side
Start of the split toe: late Heian (Wikipedia), Muromachi (blog), Kofun-period ancestor (travel-objects site). Leather-to-cotton: all agree on Edo. Kohaze: Genroku (blog), no date in the others. Jika-tabi: 1922 (Wikipedia), undated elsewhere.
What kind of sources these are
A news magazine; a travel-objects site; a craft-supplier blog, which is promotional; and Wikipedia. We read no museum, no maker and no heritage body, and no source gives sizing, which we leave out.
What we left out
We left out sizing advice, care instructions, brand and maker names, the maker credited with jika-tabi, a fashion house named by Wikipedia, and the military use that one blog mentions.
Quick answers
What are tabi? According to nippon.com, tabi are traditional Japanese socks with a split between the big toe and the other toes, suited to thonged sandals such as geta and zori.
What are kohaze? Nippon.com says they are the metal clasps that fasten some tabi at the back. A craft blog says today’s tabi usually have three to six, most often four.
Why are tabi white? According to Wikipedia, white is the most common colour and symbolises purity; it is worn in formal settings such as tea ceremonies.
Related on this site: ginzan-onsen-snow-gas-lamps-timber-inns, nengajo-new-year-cards-posting-dates, hanko-inkan-japanese-seal-types
Roam first. Shop later.