---
node: garment_kimono
type: garment
slug: kimono
title: "Kimono"
lead: "The kimono is the T-shaped, straight-seamed Japanese robe, wrapped left over right and held closed by an obi. Descended from the Edo-period kosode, its very name — thing to wear — came into common use to distinguish native dress from Western clothes."
published: 2026-08-09
updated: 2026-08-09
image_file: kimono.jpg
image_source: "https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kimono_MET_CI41.165_F.jpg"
image_author: "The Metropolitan Museum of Art"
image_license: "CC0"
---

## Overview

A kimono is cut from straight lengths of cloth into a robe with a wide body and sleeves and a deep front overlap. It is worn by all, in grades of formality set by fabric, pattern, and sleeve length, and is secured entirely by wrapping and tying rather than by buttons.

## How it is worn

The left side is always wrapped over the right — right-over-left is reserved for dressing the dead — the excess length is folded up at the waist, and an obi holds everything in place. Formality rises with longer sleeves, more subdued or more auspicious motifs, and a greater number of family crests.

## History

The garment took its mature form from the Edo-period kosode. After the Meiji Restoration brought Western dress, the word kimono spread as the name for traditional clothing as opposed to yōfuku, and today it is worn chiefly for ceremonies, festivals, and other formal occasions.