Yamato Nadeshiko

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For the Riyu Kosaka single, see Yamato Nadeshiko (song).

Yamato Nadeshiko (大和撫子, Yamato Nadeshiko^?) is referred to by Japanese as a woman with attributes that were considered traditionally desirable from the perspective of a male dominated society; generally ascribed to people with traditional upbringings. It is an extremely broad, but complicated Japanese aesthetic concept. The name is believed to originate from the willowy Dianthus superbus or the Japanese Nadeshiko flower.

Kenkyūsha's New Japanese-English Dictionary (5th ed., 2003) translates Yamato-nadeshiko: "a Japanese woman (with all the traditional graces); an ideal Japanese woman." Daijirin (3rd ed., 2006) defines it: "1 ナデシコの別名。2 日本女性の清楚な美しさをほめていう語。", "1. another name for Dianthus superbus. 2. A figure of speech for the beauty of Japanese women who are neat and tidy."

Also known as an ideal Japanese woman, it basically revolves around acting for the benefit of the family and following instructions or acting in the best interest of patriarchal authority figures. Virtues include: loyalty, domestic ability, wisdom, and humility.

During World War II, the idea of Yamato Nadeshiko was popularized as a kind of national propaganda by the Japanese government. A Yamato Nadeshiko should be able to endure all the pain and poverty of life for her husband (a soldier) and the country, and should always be ready to fight with naginata or tae yari and to be ready to die at any time, for her country or to keep her chastity.

[edit] Yamato Nadeshiko in popular culture

A Japanese television drama titled やまとなでしこ (, Yamato Nadeshiko^?) cast Matsushima Nanako as a "gōkon queen".
Belldandy in Ah My Goddess and Kasumi Tendo in Ranma 1/2 are portraits of Yamato Nadeshiko. In particular, their voice actress Kikuko Inoue is famous for playing this kind of role.
Aoi Sakuraba in Ai Yori Aoshi is an image of a Yamato Nadeshiko.
Megumi is challenged to a "Yamato Nadeshiko Cup" in Tenshi na Konamaiki.
Mrs. Ramsay from Virginia Woolf's novel To the Lighthouse has the qualities of a Yamato Nadeshiko.
The manga The Wallflower originally bore the Japanese title "Yamato Nadeshiko Shichi Henge" (ヤマトナデシコ七変化, "Yamato Nadeshiko Shichi Henge"^?); its plot deals with a group of young men trying to transform a reclusive girl into a Yamato Nadeshiko.