Japanese women celebrate '' The Coming of Age '' Monday Jan 12,2015

 

The Coming of Age is an annual holiday, held on the second Monday of January, that marks teenagers turning 20 and so reaching official adulthood inJapan

Thousands of Japanese women dressed up on Monday in dazzling kimonos for the country’s annual Coming of Age Day – with some planning their look a year in advance.

 

 

The age of 20 is significant in Japan because that’s the age at which it becomes legal to drink, smoke and vote, so the day is seen as a threshold between youth and becoming a responsible adult.

 

Women have been known to book appointments a year in advance to have their hair and make-up done and to have a kimono fitted – a notoriously fiddly task.

Beauty parlours stay open all night in order to handle the rush for styling.

While most women wear kimonos, men tend to wear business suits.

 Ceremonies are held nationwide at local town halls and offices, with many attending parties afterwards with family and friends. 

The Coming of Age tradition - a celebration for those who turned 20 in the past year - dates back to 714 when a young prince kitted himself out in new robes and had a fresh haircut to celebrate leaving his teen years behind.

The number of people who celebrated their coming of age was 1.26 million this year, an increase of 50,000 from 2014