shutterstock_1431069410

the iaforjournal of cultural studies
Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021
Editor-in-Chief: Holger Briel

ISSN: 2187-4905

iafor
The IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies
Volume 6 – Issue – 1

IAFOR Publications
IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Editor-in-Chief
Holger Briel
Beijing Normal University-Hong Kong Baptist University United International
College (UIC)
Editorial Board
Senka Anastasova, Ss. Cyril and Methodius University, Republic of Macedonia
Yasue Arimitsu, Doshisha University, Kyoto, JapanSue Ballyn, University of Barcelona, Spain
Gaurav Desai, University of Michigan, USA
Gerard Goggin, University of Sydney, Australia
Florence Graezer-Bideau, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne,
Switzerland Donald E. Hall, Lehigh University, USA
Stephen Hutchings, University of Manchester, UK
Eirini Kapsidou, Independent Scholar, Belgium
Graham Matthews, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
Baden Offord, Curtin University, Australia
Tace Hedrick, University of Florida, USA
Christiaan De Beukelaer, University of Melbourne, Australia
Katy Khan, University of South Africa, South Africa
Production Assistant
Nelson Omenugha
Published by The International Academic Forum (IAFOR), Japan
Executive Editor: Joseph Haldane
Publications Manager: Nick Potts
IAFOR Publications
Sakae 1-16-26 – 201, Naka Ward, Aichi, Japan 460-0008
IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies
Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021
IAFOR Publications © Copyright 2021
ISSN: 2187-4905
Online: jocs.iafor.org

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies
Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021
Edited by: Holger BrielTable of Contents
Notes on Contributors

1

From the Editor

3

Making Sovereignty Mean Something: Native Nations andCreative Adaptation
Michelle Watts

5

The Influence of National Cultural Attributes on Locally Produced Designs:
A Case Study of Malaysian Design
Hwee Ling (Perline) Siek
Cheng Ean (Catherine) Lee

23

Does an Upcycling Kimono Practice Support Recycle-Oriented
Cultural Sustainability? Japanese College Students’ Perspectives
Minako McCarthy

45

The Ancestors of a New Society: The Tribes (Buzoku) and their Journey
through the Misunderstandings of the Japanese Countercultural Scene
Yaxkin Melchy

69

The Three Epochs of Hong Kong Lolita Subculture: Cultural Hybridization
and Identity Construction
Shuk-fan Fanny Wong
Wai-sum Amy Lee

87

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Notes on Contributors
Article 1: Making Sovereignty Mean Something: Native Nations and Creative Adaptation
Michelle Watts is a faculty director for the American Public University System where sheteaches in the doctoral program. She has a degree in International Studies from the American
University, a Master's degree in Latin American Studies from the University of Arizona, and a
PhD in International Development from the University of Southern Mississippi’s International
Development Doctoral program. She has collaborated with colleagues on nine research grants
encompassing a wide range of topics. Some of her co-authored articles include “Choices ofLesser Importance? Conflicting Values Shaping Perceptions of Community Security and
Women’s Health Security;” “Exploring the Digital Divide: Information Technology
Governance and Native Nations” (research note); “Drugs, Thugs, and the Diablos Rojos: Perils
and Progress in Panama;” “Seguridad del Canal de Panamá: Una Década Después de la
Salida de Estados Unidos” (Security of the Panama Canal: One Decade after US Departure);and “Game of Norms: Panama, the International Community, and Indigenous Rights.”
Article 2: The Influence of National Cultural Attributes on Locally Produced Designs: A
Case Study of Malaysian Design
Hwee Ling (Perline) Siek is a Design Lecturer at Sunway University Malaysia. Prior tojoining Sunway University, she ran a design college in Kuala Lumpur for twenty years. Perline
believes in learning from culture and design of both East and West; henceforth, she completed
her studies at Nanyang Academy of Arts, Singapore, New South Wales University, Australia
and the National Taipei University of Technology, Taiwan. Her research focuses on Design
Education and Cultural Design. She has presented at several conferences and has publishedarticles in national and international journals, besides spending time doing research. In her
leisure time, she likes sketching and watercolour painting. She has also participated in manyart exhibitions in Southeast Asia.
Cheng Ean (Catherine) Lee is a Senior Lecturer and a programme leader (postgraduate) in
the Department of Communication, School of Arts, Sunway University, Malaysia. She holds a
PhD in Educational Research from Lancaster University, United Kingdom, a Master of Arts in
Communication Studies from Sheffield Hallam University, United Kingdom, and a Bachelorof Arts (Hons) in Media Studies from The University of Malaya, Malaysia. Her researchinterests are social media, public relations, internal communication, organisational
communication and cultural studies. She has presented at local, regional and international
conferences, and has published in Web of Science and Scopus-indexed journals. She is also a
reviewer for more than ten national and international Scopus-indexed journals.
Article 3: Does an Upcycling Kimono Practice Support Recycle-Oriented Cultural
Sustainability? Japanese College Students’ Perspectives
Minako McCarthy is a fashion design instructor in the Fashion Design and Merchandisingprogram at the Department of Family and Consumer Sciences at the University of Hawaiʻi at
Mānoa (UHM). She worked in various markets in the fashion industry in Japan and the UnitedStates before she started teaching applied and hands-on design courses. She began her
academic journey from Bunka Fashion College, where Yohji Yamamoto and other well-known
designers are from. She earned her Master’s in Educational Foundations at UHM and is a PhD
candidate working on her dissertation regarding students’ biased perceptions, experiences, and1

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

future transformation in multicultural education courses. Her research interests include
sustainability and culture, multicultural education pedagogy, and bias reduction.
Article 4: The Ancestors of a New Society: The Tribes (Buzoku) and their Journey
through the Misunderstandings of the Japanese Countercultural Scene
Yaxkin Melchy is currently a PhD graduate student at the University of Tsukuba in Japan. He
researches ecopoetic currents and designs in Japanese and Latin American arts and poetry. He
is an MA graduate from the Asian and African Studies Program in El Colegio de México andhis Master’s dissertation, entitled “How to live on the Planet Earth: the ecological vision of
Nanao Sakaki’s poetry”, is focused on the ecological vision in the poetry and life of theJapanese transnational poet, wanderer, and activist Nanao Sakaki. Since 2017, he has beentranslating contemporary Japanese poetry to Spanish. He runs the artisanal press “Cactus delviento,” which focuses on ecological and spiritual poetics. As a poet, he also publishes on his
blog “Flor de Amaneceres.”
Article 5: The Three Epochs of Hong Kong Lolita Subculture: Cultural Hybridization
and Identity Construction
Shuk-fan Fanny Wong is a Senior Instructor at the Faculty of Education, University of Macau.
Her research interest includes visual art and culture, art education, youth subculture, gender
identity and body image. She is also a PhD candidate at the Department of Humanities andCreative Writing, Hong Kong Baptist University.
Wai-sum Amy Lee is a Professor and Dean of the School of Education and Languages at theOpen University of Hong Kong (OUHK). Before joining OUHK in early 2021, she was an
Associate Professor at the Department of Humanities and Creative Writing. Hong Kong Baptist
University. Her research interests include educational studies, gender representation inliterature and popular culture, autobiographical writing, representation of solitary experiences,and Buddhist influences on literature.

2

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Editorial
Dear Readers,
Welcome to IJCS Issue 6.1! The Editorial Team of the issue hopes that the articles contained
herein will be as thought-provoking and inspiring as those from previous issues.
While our last issues were written under the continuing threat of COVID-19, this issue hascome together at a time when at least some parts of the world are slowly gaining poise again
and hope of the waning of the virus is gaining pace. The big question is of course, what have
we learned from this sudden and global rearrangement of life circumstances, oftentimes
concomitant with grief, suffering and sorrow? While many are perhaps nostalgically hankering
for life to return to a normalcy experienced before the outbreak, it is becoming increasingly
clear that life post-COVID will not resemble the times of pre-COVID.
Too much has changed in the meantime: travel cultures have undergone re-evaluation with air
travel and cruises not viewed as innocent entertainment anymore, but rather as major
contributors to the climate crisis. Some governments are even considering banning shortdistance air travel altogether, as the positive climate effects of scaled-down economics became
too blatantly obvious to ignore/deny any more.
Another major change has affected the place of science in society. Today, many more people
question the legitimacy of science (and, by extension, of governments and the media) andrefuse to follow sound advice seen as unproblematic before. It seems that while neighbourly
help has boomed during the pandemic, mutual institutional support has rather de- thanincreased. A case in point was the national scrambling for vaccines in the European Union,
with some European ideals quickly and unceremoniously being jettisoned.
This divide was not only evident on an institutional and political level, though; it also engulfed
individuals and economic developments. The rich quickly became richer, the stock markets
sped up their decoupling from the economy, and those precariously employed were most often
the ones stuck in the frontline in the fight against the virus, unable to safely retreat to anoftentimes more comfortable home office or, even better, become a digital nomad and do one’s
influencer work from a villa in Bali. Governments spent billions on crisis management and it
can be rightly feared that the times of laissez-faire economics will be coming to an end.
There is much to do then, and especially so for cultural studies.
The first essay in this issue, Making Sovereignty Mean Something: Native Nations andCreative Adaptation by Michelle Watts studies the reinvention of First Nation Tribes in theUSA. It is based on interviews the author conducted with Native Nations leaders in Alaska andthe lower 48 states, and demonstrates how Native Nations adapt to their unique circumstances
to make sovereignty meaningful. Many of them are purposefully modernizing by creatively
adapting to their circumstances, leveraging economic tools, and integrating their own evolving
cultural practices. Watts succinctly argues that while modernization implies following aWestern developmental path, purposeful modernization is driven by the choices of the people
instead.
The second article by Hwee Ling Perline Siek and Cheng Ean Catherine Lee, is entitled The
Influence of National Cultural Attributes on Locally Produced Designs: Case Study of3

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Malaysian Design and analyses design practices in Malaysia. The state of Malaysia is amulticultural state and while there have been majority and majority religion-driven guidelines
on national cultural design since the 1970s, actual practice finds the design scene thriving
throughout the country. This vibrancy cuts across all areas of design such as comics, animation,commercial advertisements, printed materials and graphics. The study adopts a quantitative
research approach with results derived from the content-analysis of 18 Malaysian designs using
a visual preference survey by Malaysian experts from the design industry. The results anddiscussion from this study are then able to shed light on cultural production in multicultural
times and are poised to become best practice examples for a more and more globalised society
at large.
The next article, Does an Upcycling Kimono Practice Support Recycle-oriented Cultural
Sustainability? Japanese College Students’ Perspectives by Minako McCarthy discusses
issues with upcycling old kimonos in Japan. Its theme corresponds with the previous article inthat design plays an important role in it, a design that is based on modern-day fashion axioms,
but that is also aware of recycling issues and cultural heritage themes. As McCarthy clearly
demonstrates, just because some traditional clothes have been relegated to hyper-formal eventsin Japanese society, this does not mean that the heritage transfer involved, for instance thehanding down of kimonos from mother to daughter, will necessarily discontinue. Fashion
trends can be sustainable and also speak to heritage concerns, if one is so inclined. It seems
that many younger and well-educated Japanese women do see this aspect of fashion as welland react positively to it, thereby acting responsibly without neglecting the heritage andelegance of traditional fashion.
Staying in Japan, The Ancestors of a New Society: The Tribes (Buzoku) and their Journey
through the Misunderstandings of the Japanese Countercultural Scene by Yaxkin Melchy,
tells the story of one part of what is normally referred to as the Hippie movement in Japan
during the late 1960s and 1970s. Buzoku, generally translated as The Tribe (or The Tribes),
was a transnational collective of artists, poets, and activists, who became one of the most vital
Japanese counterculture voices. The author makes it clear that they were at the core of a cultural
renewal in Japan, going beyond mere superficial hippie lore and contributing to an overall
cross-cultural approach to spirituality and arts.
Finally, Shuk-fan Fanny Wong and Wai-sum Amy Lee’s The Three Epochs of Hong Kong
Lolita Subculture: Cultural Hybridization and Identity Construction analyse the femaleoriented Lolita subculture phenomenon born around 1990 in Harajuku, Japan and subsequently
exported to Hong Kong. They explore this development from a thoroughly postmodern
historical and socio-cultural point of view. Based on interviews and material collections, theyfind that there are three major epochs of Lolita subculture development in Hong Kong and that
the Lolita phenomenon has dramatically changed female viewpoints and practices in relation
to it and to society at large, subverting the male gaze in the process. The study also indicatesthat the development of Hong Kong Lolita subculture shows a positive impact of cultural
hybridization, creating an imagined community for the participants to share their beliefs anddreams freely.
Happy reading, please stay healthy and enjoy this issue of the IAFOR Journal of Cultural
Studies!
Holger Briel
Editor-in-Chief

4

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Making Sovereignty Mean Something: Native Nations and Creative
Adaptation
Michelle Watts
American Public University System, United States of America

5

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Abstract
Scholarship regarding Native Nations has often focused on the problems of Native Nations
caused by a brutal history of genocide, repression and forced assimilation. Relatively little
attention has been paid to how Native Nations creatively adapt to their circumstances in acontinual process of reinvention. This article provides insights into Native Nations throughexamples in the lower 48 states and Alaska. This study, based on 16 interviews the author
conducted with Native Nations leaders in Alaska and the lower 48 states, demonstrates how
Native Nations adapt to their unique circumstances to make sovereignty meaningful, becauseof and in spite of federal legislation that seeks to govern Nation Nations. Ultimately, I argue
that many Native Nations today are purposefully modernizing by creatively adapting to theircircumstances, transforming systems of governance, and leveraging economic tools,
integrating their own evolving cultural practices. While modernization implies following aWestern developmental path, purposeful modernization is driven by the choices of the people.
While change was forced upon Native Nations in numerous, often devastating, ways sincecolonization, they have nevertheless asserted agency and formed governments and economic
institutions that reflect and reinforce their own cultural norms. This article highlights examples
of how Native Nations and the lower 48 have adapted given the very different circumstances
created in part by state and federal policies such as the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA)
and Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA).
Keywords: creative adaptation, economic sovereignty, gaming, governance, Harvard Projecton American Indian Development, indigenous, purposeful modernization, the Indian Gaming
Regulatory Act (IGRA) and Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA)

6

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Introduction
For too long, we have read about the difficulties of Native Nations and depredations against
Indigenous people. When scholars have paid attention to Native Nations, it is often to chronicle
atrocities, those that are easily seen when the government sought to exterminate Indigenous
peoples, as well as the less visible ones inflicted through various federal policies sincecolonization. This article explores the way Nation Nations in the United States employ
purposeful modernization, defined as intentional development, and creative adaptation, defined
as reacting to circumstances in inventive ways (Hosmer, 1999) to further integrate cultural
practices into their communities and make sovereignty meaningful. This article explores
examples of Native Nations in the lower 48 and Alaska, discussing how Indian Gaming
Regulatory Act (IGRA) and Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA) have influenced
their development and notions of sovereignty in very different ways, contributing to distinct
ways of reinventing themselves.1
The Meaning of Sovereignty
A brief review of definitions of sovereignty reveals a wide variety of opinions, particularly
concerning Indigenous peoples (Porter 2002). At the most basic level, the National Congressof American Indians (NCAI) (n.d., p.18) defines sovereignty simply as “the authority to selfgovern.” As Krasner (2001) and Waltz (1979) point out, for most, if not all states, sovereignty
is constrained in some way. Ruckstuhl (2017) asserts that sovereignty always falls “within theprescribed conditions dictated by the settler state” (p. 40). The opinions of Supreme Court
Chief Justice John Marshall have had a lasting impact on notions of sovereignty in the UnitedStates; his depiction is echoed over one hundred years later in President William J. Clinton’s
Executive Order 13175, which describes tribes as “domestic dependent nations” with “inherent
sovereign powers over their members and territory” (Clinton, 2000).
Hosmer and Nesper (2013) explain that the sovereignty of Native Nations emerges from thecompeting claims between Indigenous and “colonialist legal/constitutional frameworks” (p.
13–14). Scholars point out that sovereignty is a European rather than Indigenous concept(Ortiz, 2002; Deloria, 1996; Lerma, 2014). Fenelon (2002, p. 134) describes the tension
between Native Nation, state, and federal governments as a form of “dual sovereignty” thatvaries considerably for each Native Nation. Bruyeel explains the notion of a “third space ofsovereignty” on the fringes of the US political system, neither in nor out, continually resisting
the dictates of prevailing powers in “postcolonial conflict” (2007, xvii). For many Native
Nations, power historically was dispersed among many leaders within a Native Nation rather
than centered in a hierarchical system; the ability to formulate their own system of governancehas far-reaching impact on socio-economic conditions as well as culture. Wilkins (2015)
expounds on the all-encompassing nature of sovereignty: “It is about more than politicalboundaries; it defines nothing less than our living, collective power which is generated as
traditions are respectfully developed, sustained, and transformed to confront new conditions”(para. 1). Thus, sovereignty is an underlying force that influences multiple facets of life,
allowing Native Nations to exercise agency in the way their communities develop and change.
1This article developed from a multi-year study conducted in several different states. I have no Indigenous
heritage and am a settler in the United States; my interest in these issues came after years of studying Indigenous
groups in other countries, which brought forth a desire to know more about the rich heritage of Indigenous peoples
in the United States while doing research for my dissertation. This article incorporates Indigenous voices basedon 16 interviews conducted for this study; these interviews were held in Alaska, Arizona, New Mexico, and byphone but does not pretend to be representative of any Native Nation.

7

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Indigenous Themes in the Social Sciences
Scholars observe the gaps in past research involving the Indigenous and governance acrossdisciplines. Aufrecht (1999) documents that for many years tribal governments were rarely
featured in the field of public administration. He speculates that this paucity is due toassumptions that Native American governance systems do not fit into “our models of theworld” (Aufrecht, 1999, p. 375). Cornell opines that Indigenous governments were often
viewed as “poor facsimiles” of governments, not worthy of scholarly attention (2020, personalcommunication). While Ronquillo (2011) counters that by casting a wider net outside of whatis strictly considered public administration, neglect of Indigenous themes is less evident,
Mason (2000) asserts that “for most Americans and even most elected officials, what happens
in Indian Country might as well be happening in Antarctica” (p. 7). Nonetheless, change is on
the horizon. Post-colonial theorists and Indigenous scholars challenge Western assumptions
about social science concepts, such as the focus on the state as well as the nature of sovereignty(Lightfoot, 2016). Moving away from “intellectual hegemony” (Wilmer, 2016, p. 2) means
including Indigenous issues and scholars in all disciplines.
The Harvard Project
The Harvard Project on American Indian Economic Development (HPAIED), in conjunction
with the Native Nations Institute for Leadership, Management and Policy of the University of
Arizona, has been a prolific producer of works relevant to Native Nations. Cornell and Kalt
(2003) argue for a nation-building approach that incorporates sovereignty, institutions, and adevelopment strategy that fits the culture of the Native Nation. In this and other HPAIED
scholarship (Cornell and Kalt; 1998; 2000; 2003; 2006; Jorgensen & Taylor, 2000), the central
findings are reiterated that sovereignty, institutions, leadership and cultural fit, matter informing and maintaining effective Native Nation governments. The Harvard Project’s work
has been criticized by some scholars for being overly simplistic and prescriptive (Mowbray,
2005; Mowbray, 2006; Sullivan, 2006). Mowbray (2006) objects to the uncritical acceptanceand application of the Harvard precepts in Australia, which he argues are not justified by theevidence presented. Sullivan (2006) alleges that the Harvard program has become a “productand brand, sold by and selling the Harvard Project itself” (p. 4). Perhaps this critique isreflective of the ways that it is adopted by some rather than the work itself. I argue that
Harvard’s work has a significant place in highlighting issues critical to the success of Native
Nations that have a practical application for Native Nations, but that more scholarship about
Native Nations is needed; in particular, the contribution Indigenous scholars will be invaluable
in the academic literature across disciplines.
Modernization, Purposeful Modernization, and Creative Adaptation
Theories of modernization shed light on how the policies of the United States government
historically have contributed to the creation of tribal governments that reflect Western norms
and structure. Rostow’s (1960) stages of growth provided a foundation for modernization
theory; he predicted that countries would pass through five stages as each became a mature
capitalist economy, thought to go naturally with a Western-style democracy (Mazrui, 1968).
O’Neill (2004) professes, “Clearly ethnocentric and, at best, paternalistic, modernization
theory shaped the foundations of American Indian policy from the development of the first
boarding schools and reservation land allotments to the Indian New Deal and Termination” (p.
5). Hosmer (1999) adds, “modernization theory argues for the inevitability of assimilation” (p.
8); cultural change was seen as a necessary step in achieving true development defined byWestern standards (Hosmer & O’Neill, 2004). While modernization theory is no longer

8

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

accepted uncritically, ideas about cultural change and development still favor Western models
without adequately accounting for difference (Hosmer & O’Neill, 2004). Purposefulmodernization incorporates the idea of agency; development does not have to occur from the
top down. Hosmer (1999), through a close examination of two Native Nations, advances thenotion of purposeful modernization and creative adaptation. He holds up the examples of thesuccessful transformation of the Metlakatlan and Menominee economies as adaptations
without sacrificing culture. This is not to say that cultural change and loss do not occur, butrather to acknowledge the role of Native Nations in influencing transformation.
Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA): Background
The Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA) brought important changes and opportunities for
Native Nations in the lower 48 (casinos are not legal in Alaska, with just a couple ofexceptions). Gaming on reservations began to gain traction in 1987 after the Supreme Court’s
decision in California v. Cabazon Band of Mission Indians sanctioned Indigenous rights tooperate casinos without state interference. To increase regulation of gaming, Congress passed
IGRA in 1988 (Meister, Rand, & Light, 2009). IGRA has transformed the relationship between
the federal government and Native Nations by requiring a compact between the state andNative Nation, forcing Native Nations to negotiate with the state over the terms of gaming,
what Corntassel and Witmer (2008) refer to as “forced federalism.” States gain leverage over
Native Nations by threatening to set up casinos near reservations unless Native Nations pay for
exclusivity rights (Meister, Rand, & Light, 2009; Corntassel & Witmer, 2008; Hansen &Skopek, 2011). Nevertheless, some Native Nations employ gaming and other economic
endeavors as tools of economic sovereignty.
Native Nations consider gaming a sovereign right; several respondents (R. Smith, personalcommunication, July 26, 2017; A. Crotty, personal communication, April 17, 2018; D.
Montoya, personal communication, February 2, 2018) noted that casinos have cultural
foundations in traditional Indian games. Gaming has become an important economic force formany Native Nations; moreover, respondents in the lower 48 mentioned several ways thatgaming has benefited the community, including raising cultural awareness, improving
education and infrastructure, as well as providing public services, such as police and fire
departments. It is important to note that gaming has uneven and often negative effects.2 Below,
this article discusses specific examples of Native Nations in the Lower 48 using gaming as wellas other economic and political tools to purposefully modernize.
Acoma Pueblo
The Acoma Pueblo Tribe of New Mexico was among the first to establish gaming facilities in
the Southwest; leaders have used the profits to benefit community and culture. Acoma
members were able to purchase back lands taken away during colonization. While casino
profits have diminished considerably as competition has increased, the Acoma continue tomove forward with cultural initiatives, such as a project with the Language Conservancy todevelop an 11,000-word Karis electronic dictionary, workbooks and a language app to preserveand spread knowledge of the language (R. Concho, personal communication, April 18, 2018).

2

These effects are not the focus of this current study but are discussed in depth in sources such as Cornell (2008)
Corntassel and Witmer (2008), Light (2008), Lee (2014), Akee, Spilde and Taylor (2015), Wilkins and Wilkins(2017) and Hansen (2010; 2020). In addition, discrepancies in earnings from gaming between Native Nations arewell documented by the American Gaming Association.

9

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

The Acoma realized that cultural loss was likely to occur because so many of their children left
the Pueblo to go to school. The quality of the Bureau of Indian Affairs School spurred many totravel away from the Pueblo daily, some even going to boarding schools. To reverse this trend
and afford children better opportunities on Acoma territory, the Acoma people opened a newschool in July 2018 with a focus on STEM and Native language immersion (R. Concho,
personal communication, April 18, 2018).
The Acoma Pueblo form of government does not follow a Western model; instead, its
government follows tradition in several ways. First, there are no elections; government
positions, including governor, lieutenant governor, a 12-member tribal council, and sheriffs areappointed by caciques, the traditional tribal leaders. Appointments are often a surprise to those
appointed. Second, women do not hold office. Third, there is no separation between churchand state in their government. Finally, those in government participate in almost all aspects ofthe community—Lt. Gov. Concho might be sitting in an office on one day; on another, he isperforming a traditional duty (many of which are secret to those outside the community) or
helping to dig an irrigation ditch (R. Concho, personal communication, April 18, 2018). The
Acoma Pueblo’s style of governance falls outside of the Western model but is not unusual forthe pueblos of New Mexico; most do not allow women to hold political positions (Gilbert,
Muller, Day, & Sanchez,. 1999; Prindeville, 2004). Thus, even while they are runningbusinesses such as casinos, hotels, and travel stops, and becoming increasingly connected tothe outside world through the Internet, they are closely guarding and nurturing their own
traditional values.
The Navajo Nation
In relatively proximity to Acoma Pueblo, the Navajo Nation is strikingly different, in size andcultural adaptations. The Navajo is the largest tribe in the United States, with over 300,000
enrolled members spread over territory in Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah that stretches over
27,000 miles. A brief look at history sheds light on how the Navajo are adapting despite
historical repression.
The Navajo Nation has a tribal court system that it considers a cornerstone of culturalpreservation (A. Crotty, personal communication, April 17, 2018); this system was establishedafter many decades of battles with the federal government. Historically, Navajo cultural norms
were actively repressed by the military and federal government. The Navajo people were heldat Bosque Redondo in the mid-1860s; there the U.S. army divided them into villages and set
up a system of justice with the commander of Fort Sumner as judge. In 1883, the Commissionof Indian Affairs set up “Courts of Indian Offenses” that allowed Navajo judges, but only ifthey followed Western cultural norms and styles of dress. Some traditional practices, such as
polygamy, acting as or seeing a medicine man or woman, and even giving wedding gifts wereclassified as crimes (Yazzie, 2003). Nonetheless, the courts began to shift toward Navajo
customs in the 1890s, with courts conducting proceedings in a manner more similar to tribal
meetings. The Navajo Nation worked against federal attempts to exert greater control over the
Navajo by creating its own court system, modeled after the state court system, essentially coopting the dominant system as a way of warding off federal control. In the 1980s, the Navajo
reintroduced Navajo methods and conceptions of justice, including “peacemaking” and the“Fundamental Laws of the Dine” (Yazzie, 2003, para. 10). This system incorporating
traditional values has thrived: Navajo Nation Supreme Court Raymond Austin explains that
the Navajo Nation has been on the forefront of the tribal legislative movement, establishingtribal laws and courts that reflect Navajo culture (Austin, 2009).

10IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

The Navajo face significant economic challenges, suffering from a brain drain and economic
drain; 80 cents of every dollar leaves Navajo territory to be spent outside the reservation (A.
Peterman, personal communication, April 16, 2018). To change this, Navajo leaders are
exploring many options, including bringing data centers to Navajo land, training Navajo youth
as tour guides and engaging in ethnotourism. Synthesizing definitions from Ethnotourism.org,
this term refers to travel in which tourists participate in the activities and culture of distinct
tribal or ethnic communities (2016). Some Navajo offer tourism experiences that takeadvantage of the lack of electricity and communications in some areas to allow tourists toexperience views unobstructed by power lines, a chance to get away from electronic
distractions, and the opportunity to stay in traditional Navajo Hogan (A. Crotty, personalcommunication, April 17, 2018). An example of a Hogan offered on the Air BnB website how
the lack of infrastructure is turned into an asset, rather than a deficit, while bringing up
questions of cultural appropriation:
The Hogan is a traditional Navajo dwelling. First and foremost a home, a
traditional Navajo Hogan is also the center of Navajo ceremonial activity. It isconsidered sacred. A stay here is an experience. This experience will offer one
an insight as to how the Navajo lived not terribly long ago... It is a place of quiet
positivity. A lovely place to rest and experience life, if for a brief while as theNavajo did. Again, it is an experience. An interaction with Navajo culture. A
place of learning. It is not the Marriot. It is not a five star hotel. It is a five billion
star in the sky hotel. (Hogan 2 Glamping on Navajoland)
Ethnotourism is a form of creative adaptation to the Western model of economic development.
On one hand, it takes the traditional model of Western tourism, often well-insulated from local
culture, and transforms it into a potentially mutually beneficial cultural exchange. Delegate
Crotty points out, it is a way for tourists to learn about the Navajo and find out they are not“the stoic peoples that live in teepees or whatever they have watched in movies” (A. Crotty,
personal communication, April 17, 2018). In a 2005 Master’s thesis, Malecki argues that thecommoditization of culture can promote cross-cultural exchange. This kind of economic
development, while not without drawbacks, presents an alternative for local communities who
might not be able to sustain other types of enterprises and discourages development that mightalter the landscape. On the other hand, it must be acknowledged that renting a Hogan to tourists
could be seen as harmful to culture, monetizing it and sharing it with those who lack a fullcomprehension of it.3
Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe
The Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe of Washington State has struggled historically after losing
an estimated 90% of the tribe during colonization, according to its website. The tribe obtainedfederal recognition and reservation land in the 1930s. It was one of the first 10 tribes to be selfgoverning (W. R. Allen, personal communication, August 9, 2017). Moreover, they, along with
26 other tribes in Washington State, forged an agreement with the governor, providing foryearly meetings, facilitating a closer relationship and greater potential to work out mutually
beneficial solutions to issues facing the Native Nation and the community at large (W. R. Allen,
personal communication, August 9, 2017).

3

Unfortunately, at the current time in the Fall of 2020, tourism on the Navajo reservation, like many economic
endeavors, is simply not possible during the pandemic.

11

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

To facilitate economic development, they created an Economic Development Authority, theNoo-Kayet Development Corporation (NKDC), that facilitates Native Nation enterprises.
Currently, the tribe is one of the largest employers in its area. It has leveraged casino revenue
to diversify its own economic activities, as well as to leverage federal, state, or non-profit
resources. This has been a boon for infrastructure (on and off the reservation), community
services, and cultural programs. They invest in their youth through a strong educational support
system that includes a scholarship program.
Pala Band of Mission Indians in California
Likewise, the Pala Band of Mission Indians in California have used their political andeconomic resources to empower their people and create economic sovereignty. It has leveraged
casino funds and other business endeavors, such as a quarry, to produce opportunities for thetribe and local community. They contribute substantially to local infrastructure projects that
benefit communities off the reservation: they run a charter school open to non-natives and havestarted Native language programs in the elementary schools as well as online (R. Smith,personal communication, July 26, 2017).
The Pala Band of Mission Indians use casinos to highlight culture and advance education. Theircasinos have displays that draw attention to the cultural sites casino visitors might not be awareof. Their website emphasizes the “Planet Pala” approach to conservation and explains thecasino’s sustainable practices and “green culture” (Pala Casino website, accessed 6/26/20).
According to Chairman Robert Smith, casino funds allow all of their young people who want
to attend college to do so, funding the majority of their education and only requiring some
contribution by the student to ensure the student is invested in completing their education.
Moreover, gaming funds have been used to build traditional structures, such as sweat lodges(R. Smith, personal communication, July 26, 2017). Thus, the funds from casinos not only
make Pala Band a powerful economic force locally, they also allow for cultural revitalization.
Wyandotte Nation
Lacking a land base, the Wyandotte Nation has forged its own economic path by forming a
corporation, the Wyandotte Tribe of Oklahoma (WTOK) to handle economic development andsharing the fruits of its labor with the local community. The tribe owns three casinos, inaddition to enterprises in the food and entertainment industry. The Wyandotte provide
considerable revenue to the state through casinos and taxes. Moreover, when the town could
no longer afford a local police force, the tribe took on this responsibility- their police
department serves both the town of Wyandotte as well as the Wyandotte Nation. ThroughWyandotte enterprises, the tribe has been able to provide health care funds for every member
each year, scholarships for all who attend college, and funds toward masters’ degrees as well
(Chief Friend, personal communication, June 13, 2018; Wyandotte Nation website).
The Wyandotte Nation proactively promotes culture and education, such as through aninnovative internship program students gain experience in Wyandotte enterprises. Moreover,the students are given an orientation to the Wyandotte culture, which includes traveling toimportant historic sites to learn about their ancestors (Chief Friend, personal communication,
June 13, 2018). In fact, according to the Wyandotte’s website, WTOK developed “Wyandotte
YOUniversity’s Leadership Development Program” a 4-year program to develop leadershipskills that was awarded a bronze achievement medal in August 2020 by the Brandon HallGroup.

12

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

The examples above show how Native Nations are forging their own paths, seeking tomodernize in ways that often incorporate tribal values. The circumstances that each Native
Nation faces are influenced by a long history of depredations and problematic federal policies
that have sought to forcibly incorporate the Indigenous into mainstream society. As it became
clear that neither trying to force Native Nations to remain on reservations or force them toassimilate into mainstream society were successful, Congress, in coordination with a small
group of Alaska Native leaders, attempted a profoundly different system in Alaska. Below, thearticle explores the unique circumstances in Alaska that have influenced Native Nation
adaptation.
Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA)
Alaska’s history and its late entry to the United States has meant different paths for Alaska
Natives than the Indigenous peoples in the lower 48 states. Alaska’s system is unique in that
Alaskan Native land claims were settled by the formation of native corporations mandated by
the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA) of 1971, an experiment that remains
controversial. One reason for this is the corporate, for-profit culture, which necessitates
responsiveness to shareholders, many of whom no longer reside in the community which thecorporation purports to serve (Blatchford, 2013). Tribes who chose to participate in ANCSA,
which the vast majority of Alaskan tribes did, renounced claims to land and were required toform regional and village corporations to manage the land and economic activities(Dombrowski, 2007). Only Alaskan Natives born by December 18, 1971, received shares in
the corporations. The corporations gained title to 45.5 million acres of land and the gradualtransfer of $962.5 million. In exchange, Alaskan Natives gave up claims on 360 million acresof land—all of Alaska (Chaffee, 2008; Blatchford, 2013). ANCSA has shaped the Alaska
Native experience in many ways, including making recognition of sovereignty and the very
existence of tribes in Alaska a contested issue, demonstrated by varying legal opinions anddecrees from Alaskan governors over the years. In 1988 the state Supreme Court Alaska ruledthat tribes do not exist in Alaska; it held that Stevens Village, “like most native groups in
Alaska, is not self-governing or in any meaningful sense sovereign… there are not now andnever have been tribes of Indians in Alaska as that term is used in federal Indian law” (Native
Village of Stevens v. AMP 2d 32, Alaska 1988). Subsequent orders from the governor’s office
did little to clarify the situation, such as Governor Steve Cowper’s vague acknowledgment that
“We contend that many Native Alaskan groups could qualify for tribal recognition underfederal law, although some would not” (Cowper, 1990, para. 3). Governor Walter Hickel
argued that recognition was incompatible with the policy “that Alaska is one country, one
people. The state of Alaska opposes expansion of tribal governmental powers and the creationof ‘Indian Country’ in Alaska” (Hickel, 1991). In 2000, Governor Tony Knowles pointed outthat “Tribes existed in Alaska before the formation of the United States and the State of Alaska.
The existence of tribes in Alaska, and their inherent sovereignty, has been recognized by all
three branches of the federal government” (Knowles, 2000, para. 3). It was not until 2017 that
Alaska State Attorney General Lindemuth issued a definitive opinion; she elucidates that tribes
have always existed and have the full recognition of all level of the U.S. government “The law
is clear. There are 229 Alaska Tribes and they are separate sovereigns with inherent sovereignty
and subject matter jurisdiction over certain matters” (Lindemuth, 2017, p. 16). Lindemuth’s
opinion is a milestone for Native Nations in Alaska in terms of legal recognition that may help
tribes struggling for political power and resources (R. Peterson, personal communication,
February 23, 2018). The fact that the very existence of tribes in Alaska was still in question in2017 is emblematic of the struggle of Native Nations in Alaska. Some Native Nations havethrived in conjunction with Alaska Native corporations; others have thrived despite them.

13

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Cook Inlet Region
Greg Razo, a lawyer and Vice President for the Government Contracting for the Cook Inlet
Region, Inc. (CIRI), an Alaska Native Corporation, opines that federal Indian policy toward
Alaska has created “some amazing institutions” (G. Razo, personal communication, July 6,2017). Many of these institutions have generated resources used to benefit Native Nation
members and promote cultural preservation. For instance, CIRI is a hugely profitablecorporation; CIRI’s website points out that as of 2013, CIRI has distributed over $1 billion toshareholders, more than the total awarded to all corporations in Alaska with the ANCSA
settlement, $962.5 million. In 2003, CIRI set up an Elders’ Trust, which confers $450 per
quarter to elders deemed eligible as long as trust money remains. The CIRI Foundation,according to their website, has given away over $30 million in grants and scholarships tofurther Alaska Native education.
Razo notes that ANCSA did, in effect, stop the development of tribes in many ways and takeaway their source of revenue by giving corporations the land. Rick Harrison, Co-Chairman of
the of the Chickaloon Village Traditional Council, explains that from his perspective,
corporations have diminished the status of tribes by taking away their traditional land base andcreating a divide between those born before 1971 and those born after 1971 (the “after-borns”)
that were not part of the ANCSA settlement. In his view, some corporations do not “play wellwith the tribes” (R. Harrison, personal communication, July 27, 2017). Despite this tension,
the Chickaloon Village has found ways to bridge some of the gaps they encounter such as byfinding funding, and working with one of the CIRI non-profits, to establish a clinic that is open
not only to tribal members but also the community around them. Moreover, the Chickaloon
Nation has established a tribal court, an Elder’s Council as a local dispute mechanism, and apeace officer program to provide tribal policing, allowing for the insertion of culturally
appropriate resolutions to conflicts. The tribe negotiated a memorandum of understanding withthe state court so that when possible the tribe is given an opportunity to be part of thesentencing, a relatively unusual relationship with state courts. Their tribe has also establisheda school that is open to non-native children, one of the few tribal schools that goes all the way
from kindergarten to twelfth grade (R. Harrison, personal communication, July 27, 2017). The
Ya Ne Dah Ah School ”Ancient Teachings School” was singled out for an award by Harvard
Project in 2002 (Venegas 2005).
Southeastern Alaska
The Central Council of Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska (CCTHITA) is the tribal
governing council located in southeastern Alaska. CCTHITA is not affiliated with the Alaska
Native Corporation of the area, Sealaska Corporation, but it does collaborate with it on
economic and cultural initiatives to benefit Alaska Natives in the region. In a phone interview,
the President of the CCTHITA, Richard Peterson, notes that tribes in Alaska have empowered
themselves in a struggle has been shaped in many ways by ANCSA. President Peterson
explained that the council’s structure was modeled after Western constructs, with cultural
adaptations over time (R. Peterson, personal communication, February 2018). CCTHITA has
developed a legal system based on traditional values and norms. Moreover, CCTHITA has its
own enterprises through the Tlingit-Haida Tribal Business Corporation (THTBC). Through
THTBC, CCTHITA acquired KIRA, a Colorado-based federal contracting firm that has
administered over one billion dollars’ worth of government contracts; President Peterson
described KIRA as “a major force in government contracting. KIRA is the vehicle the tribe
needs to generate unrestricted revenue to eventually give us the ability to expand service to ourtribal citizens regardless of service area” (Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Indian
Tribes of Alaska [CCTHITA], 2018, para 2). In other words, these resources facilitate the14

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

provision of services for its geographically dispersed population. CCTHITA is striving for“economic sovereignty” (Schoenfeld, 2017, para. 2), which in turn allows for greater culturalsalience, such as the construction of a cultural immersion park in Juneau Alaska (R. Peterson,
personal communication, February 23, 2018).
Metlakatla
The Metlakatla Indian Community resides on the Annette Islands Reserve and provides adifferent perspective on the impact of ANCSA and how it has shaped Native Nations’ ability
to forge their own destiny. The people of Metlakatla opted out of ANCSA; their territory ismore akin to reservations in the lower 48 than the situation of the majority of Alaska Natives.
Respondents in Metlakatla took clear pride in the choice their community made to not join the
ANCSA settlement and become the only reserve in Alaska. Gavin Hudson, a member of thetribal council, asserts that this path was chosen in order “to maintain sovereignty over our land,
water, and people. We determine our future. No amount of money can compensate us for those
things, which are priceless” (G. Hudson, personal communication, June 13, 2017). A longserving tribal council member explained that, by declining to join ANCSA, those in Metlakatla
did not “extinguish our right to subsist or our sovereignty,” whereas tribes who are part of
ANCSA have to fight for sovereign rights (Anonymous, personal communication, June 12,2017). Metlakatlans operate the “largest tribally-managed fishery in the United States”(Department of Fish and Wildlife Metlakatla Indian Community, 2017, p. 9). The wealth oftheir salmon hatchery is shared on feast days when possiblel, with food provided for the wholecommunity (G. Hudson, personal communication, June 13, 2017). Metlakatlans forge theirown path on an island, geographically isolated but increasingly connected to the world throughcommerce and the Internet.
It is fascinating to note that among those interviewed, those in Metlakatla were passionate
about the benefits of not partaking in ANCSA, while many of those interviewed on themainland appear to be feel just as strongly that ANCSA had allowed them to pursue sovereign
development (G. Razo, personal communication, July 6, 2017, R. Worl, personalcommunication June 15, 2017). It is somewhat ironic that leaders Alaska’s only reserve sees
itself as a better alternative to the system set up to avoid historical issues of reservations in thelower 48. Of course, it’s important to bear in mind that Metlakatla has a unique historical path,and it cannot be easily compared either to reservations in the lower 48 or the situation of Native
Nations in Alaska. Outcomes have been shaped by unique circumstances as well as the choices
leaders have made.
Policy and Culture
Federal policies that affect Native Nations have contributed to what one respondent
characterized as a pendulum-relationship, as policies and relations swing back and forth overtime (A. Crotty, personal communication, April 17, 2018). These changing policies have often
made traditional practices more challenging. For example, in 1871, the young United States
ended the policy of making treaties with Native Nations and began policies that encouraged
assimilation, dislocation, and termination of Native Nation tribes before swerving into an era
self-governance and self-determination, later tempered by the forced federalism wrought by
IGRA (Corntassel & Witmer, 2008). Under the Trump administration, there have been
numerous obstacles. Many positions at the BIA have gone unfilled or only briefly occupied,creating obstacles for Native Nations seeking to work with the BIA on projects and goals, suchas converting land to trust (R. Peterson, personal communication, February 23, 2018).

15

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Moreover, a former Trump-appointed Bureau of American Indian Affairs official, Gavin
Clarkson, lectured tribal delegates at the Tribal Interior Budget Council meeting in 2017 on
how privileges, such as the subsistence rights considered essential by Native Nations, constitutespecial privileges and added that special considerations are racist (G. Clarkson, personalcommunication, July 27, 2017). It is this very notion, that achieving equality means that Native
Americans and Alaska Natives be denied the right to exclusive practices such as hunting andfishing on their lands, which jeopardizes their ability to live a traditional life. These rights are
not “equal” in the sense that they are not the same rights as everyone else- for instance, giving
everyone the same rights to traditional Indigenous hunting grounds means that Indigenous
inhabitants have to compete with the larger populace of residents and tourists. Respecting
cultural norms and ancestral lands is not a matter of seeking equality, but gaining or preserving
certain traditional ways of life. This cannot be achieved by seeking to make everyone the same,
but rather by recognizing difference.
In 2017, the Alaska Governor’s office reached an agreement with 17 Native Nations allowing
them to begin the process of taking over child protection services. The Alaska Tribal Child
Welfare Compact, put into force in 2017, gradually transfers much of responsibility for childwelfare to 18 Native Nations in Alaska with the possibility of tribes eventually assuming
control of all of the child welfare services. The compact recognizes the capacity of Native
Nations to handle child welfare situations, reduces the workload for the Office of Child
Services, and results in better, more culturally appropriate outcomes for Indigenous children(Alaska Tribal Child Welfare Compact, 2017, p. 2). This agreement is unprecedented in the
United States; the vice president of the Alaska Federation of Natives noted that it will “change
the trajectory of our future” (Borromeo quoted in Tiano, 2018); in other words, this is atransformative agreement likely to lead to more such accords. Transitioning duties to Native
Nations fosters better relations and likely more efficient services (Cornell & Kalt, 2003). Suchaccords are essential in enabling Native Nations to follow their own cultural norms andpractices while increasing the likelihood that Indigenous children can remain in theircommunities. This act is not without controversy; when challenged in court a U.S. District has
ruled that the law is based on race and therefore parts of it are unconstitutional (Kelly 2018).
Nonetheless, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the constitutionality of the ICWA in
its 2019 ruling deciding Brackeen v. Bernhardt.
Conclusions
In spite of the obstacles of state and federal policies, Native Nations today are asserting theirculture and political power, often modifying governance structures to combine elements ofWestern and traditional Native American systems. As Cornell and Jorgensen (2020, p. 13)
point out, Indigenous Peoples are involved in “nation rebuilding, a return to the tradition ofcollective self-government that sustained those peoples for many generations before European
arrival on the North American continent, revitalized and revamped to serve Indigenous
purposes in today’s very different circumstances.” Moreover, Native Nations are transforming
their positions vis-à-vis colonizing powers through economic sovereignty (Schoenfeld, 2017).
Economic power is not just coming from gaming and Alaska Native corporations; while bothare sources of increased economic and political power, a subtler and less studied force is thatof Native Nation leaders as entrepreneurs and chief financial officers of their economic
resources through a diverse array of economic initiatives.
While this article seeks to highlight the positive developments of Native Nations in the UnitedStates, it cannot be denied that modernization has been historically forced upon Native Nations,16

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

and that if colonization had not taken place, their paths would have likely been completely
different (Johnson 2010). One can question whether or not purposeful modernization ispossible in this historical context. This article argues that within the context of a history of
exploitation and dominance, creative adaptation leads to intentional development, allowing
some Native Nations to change in the way they see fit, implementing cultural practices in theirown way. Native Nations have overcome tremendous obstacles to continue to care for theircommunities and self-govern. Sovereignty has many meanings; it is not merely the ability to
govern without interference from other government entities but rather to operate in one’s
interests with the constraints imposed by other powers in a continual give and take. Sovereignty
is the right of Native Nations to express their own distinct cultures and traditions in the waythat they choose. It is part of the way Native Nations continue to reinvent themselves, forming
new institutions that reflect an evolving culture that remembers the past while adapting andinnovating for the future.
Acknowledgments
I would like to thank all those referenced in the article who generously gave me their time forinterviews and follow up questions. Thank you to Dr Stephen Cornell, who provided commentson drafts of this paper. I would like to acknowledge the assistance of my dissertation committee
in conducting the initial research, Dr Kenneth Hansen, Dr Robert Pauly and Dr St. Marie. Allerrors and omissions are my responsibility.

17

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

References
Air BNB Website (n.d.). Hogan 2 glamping on Navajoland-Earth houses for rent in page.
https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/15389211?guests=1&adults=1
Alaska Department of Health and Social Services (2017, December 12). Alaska tribal childwelfare compact.
http://dhss.alaska.gov/ocs/Documents/Publications/pdf/TribalCompact.pdf
American Gaming Association. (2018). The economic impact of tribal gaming: A state-byState analysis. https://www.americangaming.org/research/reports/economic-impacttribal-gaming-state-state-analysis-0
Aufrecht, S. E. (1999). Missing: Native American governance in American public
administration literature. The American Review of Public Administration, 29(4), 370–
390. https://doi.org/10.1177/02750749922064481
Austin, R. D. (2009). Navajo courts and Navajo common law: a tradition of tribal selfgovernance. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.
Blatchford, E. (2013). Alaska Native claims settlement act and the unresolved issues of profit
sharing, corporate democracy, and the new generations of Alaska Natives. PhD diss.,
University of Alaska Fairbanks.
Bruyneel, K. (2007). The third space of sovereignty: The postcolonial politics of USIndigenous relations. U of Minnesota Press.
Chaffee, E. C. (2008). Business organizations and tribal self-determination: A criticalreexamination of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act. Alaska Law Review, 25,
107–55.
Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska. (2018). Tribe’s property
management department transferred to KIRA services. March 5th office of thepresident.
http://www.ccthita.org/info/press/releases/2018releases/PR03052018_Tribe’sProperty
ManagementDepartmentTransferredtoKIRA.pdf
Clinton, W. J. (2000). Executive order 13175-Consultation and Coordination with Indian
Tribal Governments. November 6, 2000. The American Presidency Project.
http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=61665%23axzz1LRLPHEvH
Cornell, Stephen, and Miriam Jorgensen. (2020). Indigenous nations in postracial America:
Rethinking social inclusion. The Review of Black Political Economy, 47.
https://doi.org/10.1177/0034644620966033
Cornell, S. & Kalt J. (1998). Sovereignty and nation-building: The development challenge inIndian country today. American Indian Culture and Research Journal 22(3), 187–
214. https://doi.org/10.17953/aicr.22.3.lv45536553vn7j78
Cornell, S., & Kalt J. (2000). Where’s the glue: Institutional and cultural foundations ofAmerican Indian economic development.” Journal of Socio-Economics, 29, 443–70.
https://doi.org/10.1016/S1053-5357(00)00080-9
Cornell, S. & Kalt J. (2003). Reloading the dice: Improving the chances for economic
development on American Indian reservations. The Harvard Project on American
Indian Economic Development Working Paper Series (2).

18

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Cornell, S. & Kalt J.P. (2006). Two approaches to the development of Native nations: Oneworks, the other doesn’t. Rebuilding Native nations: strategies for governance anddevelopment, 3(6), 3–33.
Cornell, S. (2008). The political economy of American Indian gaming. Annual Review of Law
and Social Science, 4, 63–82.
https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.lawsocsci.4.110707.172343
Corntassel, J. & Witmer, R.C. (2008). Forced federalism: Contemporary challenges to
Indigenous nationhood. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press.
Cowper, S. J. (1990). Administrative Order No. 123. September 10, 1990. Office of theGovernor. https://gov.alaska.gov/admin-orders/123.html
Deloria Jr. V. (1996). Reserving to themselves: Treaties and the powers of Indian tribes.
Arizona Law Review 38, 963-980.
Department of Fish and Wildlife Metlakatla Indian Community. (2017). 2017 Salmon
Fishery Management Plan.
http://www.metlakatla.com/assets/documents/fish_management.pdf
Dombrowski, K. (2007). Subsistence livelihood, native identity and internal differentiation inSoutheast Alaska. Anthropologica, 49(2), 211–229.
Ethnotourism.org. (2016). What is ETHNO TOURISM? http://www.ethnotourism.org/#/
Fenelon, J. V. (2002). Dual sovereignty of native nations, the United States, &traditionalists. Humboldt Journal of Social Relations, 106–145.
Ferguson, K. (2016). Why does political science hate American Indians?” Perspectives on
Politics 14(4), 1029–1038.
Friedman, L. (2020, March 25). Standing Rock Sioux Tribe wins a victory in Dakota Access
Pipeline case. The New York Times.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/25/climate/dakota-access-pipeline-sioux.html
Gilbert, R., Muller, H. J., Boone, E., Day, C., & Sanchez, A. (1999). The business of culture
at Acoma Pueblo: Case study and teaching notes.
fromhttp://www.unm.edu/~hmuller/The%20Business%20of%20Culture%20at%20Ac
oma%20Pueblo.htm
Hansen, K. N., & Skopek, T.A. (2011). The new politics of Indian gaming: The rise ofreservation interest groups. Reno, NV: University of Nevada Press.
Hansen, K. N. (2020). Uncivil Rights: The abuse of tribal sovereignty and the termination ofAmerican Indian tribal citizenship. IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies, 5(1).
https://doi.org/10.22492/ijcs.5.1.03
Hickel, W. J. (1991). Administrative Order No. 125. July 1, 2015. Office of the Governor.
Retrieved from https://gov.alaska.gov/admin-orders/125.html
Hosmer, B. C. (1999). American Indians in the marketplace: Persistence and innovation
among the Menominees and Metlakatlans, 1870-1920. Lawrence, KS: University
Press of Kansas.
Hosmer, B.C., & O’Neill, C. Eds. (2004). Native pathways: American Indian culture andeconomic development in the twentieth century. Boulder, CO: University Press ofColorado.

19

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Hosmer, B. C., & Nesper, L. Eds. (2013). Tribal worlds: Critical studies in American Indian
nation building. New York, NY: Suny Press.
Jorgensen, M., & Taylor, J. B. (2000). What Determines Indian Economic Success?:
Evidence from Tribal and Individual Indian Enterprises. Cambridge, MA: Harvard
University.
Kelly, J. (2018, November 21). Tribes Appeal, Seek Stay on Indian Child Welfare Act
Ruling; Feds Yet to Act. The Chronicle of Social Change. Retrieved
fromhttps://chronicleofsocialchange.org/adoption/tribes-appeal-seek-stay-indianchild-welfare-act
Knowles, T. (2000). Administrative Order No. 186. September 29, 2000. Office of theGovernor. Retrieved from https://gov.alaska.gov/admin-orders/186.html
Krasner, S. D. (2001). Sovereignty. Foreign Policy, 122 (January-February), 20–29.
https://doi.org/10.2307/3183223
Lee, L. L., Ed. (2014). Diné Perspectives: Revitalizing and reclaiming Navajo thought.
Tucson, AZ: The University of Arizona Press.
Lerma, M. (2014). Indigenous sovereignty in the 21st century: Knowledge for the Indigenous
spring. Gainesville, FL: Florida Academic Press.
Lightfoot, S. (2016). Global indigenous politics: A subtle revolution. New York, NY:
Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315670669
Lindemuth, J. (2017). Legal status of tribal governments in Alaska. Letter from the Attorney
General of Alaska to Governor Bill Walker October. 19, 2017. Retrieved fromhttps://s3.amazonaws.com/arc-wordpress-client-uploads/adn/wpcontent/uploads/2017/10/21021026/AG-Opinion-re-Tribal-Government-in-Alaska.pdf
Malecki, J. D. (2005). Tourism and native American culture in the American Southwest.
California State University, Fullerton, ProQuest Dissertations Publishing.
Mason, W. D. (2000). Indian gaming: Tribal sovereignty and American politics. Norman,
OK: University of Oklahoma Press.
Mazrui, A. A. (1968). From social Darwinism to Current Theories of Modernization: A
Tradition of Analysis. World Politics, 21(1),69–83. https://doi.org/10.2307/2009746
Meister, A. P., Rand, K. R. L, & Light, S .A. (2009). Indian gaming and beyond: Tribal
economic development and diversification. South Dakota Law Review 54 (3), 375–
396.
Mowbray, M. (2005). What matters? Policy driven evidence, Indigenous government and theHarvard Project. Australian Social Policy Conference, University of New South
Wales.
Mowbray, M. (2006). Localising responsibility: The application of the Harvard project on
American Indian economic development to Australia. Australian Journal of Social
Issues 41(1), 87–103. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.1839-4655.2006.tb00012.x
National Congress of American Indians. (n.d.). Tribal Nationals & the United States: An
Introduction Washington, D.C. Embassy of Tribal Nations.
http://www.ncai.org/tribalnations/introduction/Tribal_Nations_and_the_United_State
s_An_Introduction-web-.pdf

20

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

O’Neill, C., & Hosmer, B. C. (Eds.). (2004). Native pathways: American Indian culture andeconomic development in the twentieth century (Introduction). Boulder, CO:
University Press of Colorado.
Ortiz, J. (2002). Tribal governance and public administration. Administration & Society,34(5), 459–481. https://doi.org/10.1177/009539902237271
Porter, R. B. (2002). The meaning of indigenous sovereignty. Arizona State Law Journal, 34,
76–112.
Prindeville, D. M. (2004). Feminist nations? A study of native American women insouthwestern tribal politics. Political Research Quarterly, 57(1), 101–112.
https://doi.org/10.2307/3219837
Ronquillo, J. C. (2011). American Indian tribal governance and management: Public
administration promise or pretense? Public Administration Review, 71(2), 285–292.
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6210.2011.02340.x
Rostow, W. W. (1960). The Stages of Economic Growth: a non-Communist Manifesto
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
Ruckstuhl, K. (2017). A shift in the playing field: Indigenous sovereignty and the philosophyof Jacques Ranciere. AlterNative: An International Journal of Indigenous Peoples,13(1), 35–42. https://doi.org/10.1177/1177180116689024
Schoenfeld, E. (2017, April 28). Southeast Alaska tribal government moves into defense
contracts. Alaska Public Media. https://www.alaskapublic.org/2017/04/28/southeastalaska-tribal-government-moves-into-defense-contracts/
Speier, M. (2019, updated July 18). Trump removed the only native American member fromthe Cultural Property Advisory Committee. Pacific Standard. Retrieved fromhttps://psmag.com/news/trump-removed-the-only-native-american-member-from-thecultural-property-advisory-committee
Sullivan, P. (2006). Indigenous governance: The Harvard Project on Native American
Economic Development and appropriate principles of governance for AboriginalAustralia. Research Discussion Paper. Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres
Islander Studies, Australia.
Tiano, S. (2018). Alaska transfers child welfare services for native Alaskans to tribes.
Chronicle of Social Change. https://chronicleofsocialchange.org/child-welfare2/alaska-transfers-child-welfare-services-for-native-alaskans-to-tribes
Venegas, K. (2005). The Ya Na Da Eh school: Melding traditional teachings with modern
curricula. Excellence in Tribal Governance: An Honoring Nations Case Study. The
Harvard Project
Waltz, K. N. (1979). Theory of International Politics. Long Grove, Illinois: Waveland Press
Inc. Kindle.
Wilkins, D. E. (2015, May 12). The sovereignty of everything, the power of nothing. IndianCountry Today. https://indiancountrymedianetwork.com/news/opinions/thesovereignty-of-everything-the-power-of-nothing/
Wilkins, D., & Wilkins, S. H. (2017). Dismembered: Native disenrollment and the battle forhuman rights (Indigenous confluences). University of Washington Press.

21

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Wilmer, F. (2016). Indigenizing Political Science or Decolonizing Political Scientists?
Perspectives on Politics, 14(4), 1050–1051.
https://doi.org/10.1017/S1537592716002966
Ya Ne Dah Ah School | Government Innovators Network. (n.d.). Retrieved October 16, 2020,
from https://www.innovations.harvard.edu/ya-ne-dah-ah-school
Yazzie, R. (2003, February 11). History of the Courts of the Navajo Nation. Prepared for the
Orientation of the Judiciary Committee of the Navajo Nation.
fromhttp://www.navajocourts.org/history.htm
Corresponding author: Michelle A. Watts
Contact email: Mwatts@apus.edu

22

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

The Influence of National Cultural Attributes on Locally Produced
Designs: Case Study of Malaysian Design

Hwee Ling Siek
Sunway University, Malaysia
Cheng Ean Lee
Sunway University, Malaysia

23

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Abstract
This paper examines the influence of national cultural attributes on locally produced designs(i.e. comics, animation, commercial advertisements, printed materials and graphics). Drawing
from the inconsistent results of past literature on influences of national cultural attributes ondesign; it is considered an under-researched area of the important role of cultural values ondesigns, specifically in the Malaysia context, in which cultural differences among different
ethnic groups exist. Because of the paucity of research in this area, this study adopted aquantitative research approach with results derived from the content-analysis of 18 Malaysiandesigns using a visual preference survey by six experts from the design industry in Malaysia.
This study incorporates two stages of sample screenings of a visual preference survey withbrief interviews; results show that Malaysian designs need to adhere strictly to requirements
and specifications set by the Malaysian authorities; incorporation of Islamic values and codeof conduct to reflect the racial harmony and national ideology; and some unique characteristicsof the respective ethnic groups in Malaysia were not upheld, thus, they gradually disappeared
and/or were blended in the designs. The results and discussion from this study extend theliterature on Malaysian design and provide practical implications on how local designindustries could produce designs which abide by the boundaries of a Malaysian pluralistic
society.
Keywords: national cultural attributes, Malaysian design, multicultural society

24

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Introduction
Malaysia is a multi-religious, multi-ethnic, multilingual and multi-cultural society (Haji Ishak,2010) which consist of various groups of ethnicities such as Malay, Chinese, Indian, Kadazan,
Iban, and Baba Nyonya for example. In 2020, it had an estimated population of 32.73 million(Department of Statistics Malaysia, 2020). A moderate Islamic country, 67.4% of the
population are “Bumiputera”, known as indigenous group (Malays and aboriginals), 24.6% ofthem are Chinese, 7.3% of them are Indians and 0.7% of them are of other ethnicities(Department of Statistics Malaysia, 2010). In 1971, the Malaysian government defined the
Malaysian culture through the formulation of a National Culture Policy, which has been serving
as guidelines for designing, formulating and sustaining a common national identity. The threeprinciples of the national culture are: it must be based on the indigenous culture of this region;
suitable elements from other cultures may be accepted as part of the national culture; and Islamis an important component in the formulation of the national culture (National Department for
Culture and Arts, 2020).
Culture, a social construct is part of the human development and it contributes to the expansionof identity of individual and a group of people through cultural traits (Mohd Khalis andMustaffa, 2017). Very few studies have researched this topic within a Malaysian context. Eventhese studies come to varying results. Thus, one study claims that cultural values do exert an
influence on design, as proven by a systematic review of 15 years of research related to culture
and website design. This research supported the thesis of a localisation of cultural values andcultural markers on website design. Moura, Singh and Chun (2016) concluded that the role ofculture, in particular cultural values of countries, continues to be an important factor reflected
on website designs. Tong and Robertson (2008) scrutinised a power distance culture, namely
the Malaysian one, analysing language, layout, colour, pattern and images of existing
Malaysian websites and found that it is not easy for designers to develop a sophisticatedunderstanding of the culturally sensitive visual interface design for websites. The study
concluded that the lack of supporting guidelines and the differences in representation of a multicultural society like the Malaysian one has made it more difficult for designers to identify anappropriate model for website design (Tong and Robertson, 2008). On the other hand, one
study claimed that there is no evidence of the generalisability of characteristics of productdesign identity and the agreement and preference of a multi-ethnic society (Zainal Abidin et al.
2015). Another report revealed that visual images and symbols in locally produced designs
might give the markets an impression of Malaysia as being increasingly conservative andreligious, worrying at least some (Cheong and Fernandez, 2014). Hence, due to the limited
studies on the influences of national attributes and cultural values on designs, this is considered
an under-researched area, specifically in the Malaysia context.
In addition, Malaysian designers are using innovative processes and creative flair for theirdesigns while working within the constraints of cost, time, and close deadlines. The designers
are also facing challenges of creating designs which take into consideration religious sensitivity
and abide by policies set by relevant authorities in Malaysia. Due to these constraints faced by
Malaysian local designers, it has been a challenging issue for them to create a Malaysia-lookdesign based on characteristics of Malaysia national culture. This study sets out to address thisunder-researched area by examining the extent of influence of national cultural attributes on
locally produced designs (i.e. comics, animation, commercial advertisements, printed materials
and graphics). The results of this quantitative content-analysis (18 Malaysian designs, reviewed
by six design experts within in Malaysia) will contribute to the literature on Malaysian design,25

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

and provide additional insight and understanding as to how the local design industries could
act within the boundaries of a pluralistic society such as Malaysia.
Literature Review
Elements of Design
A design element has a basic symbolic equivalence which carries the designs meanings, this
could for example include points, lines and area. For instance, a triangle, visually can be seenas three dots, or three lines joined together, or it could carry the areas (triangle in blue). Whenthe size or shape or colour of a design changes, it carries a different concept and explanation(see Figure 1).
Figure 1
Basic Design Means

The classification of design elements can be from nature, such as clouds, lightning, the ocean,
flowers, people, and animals; from man-made items, such as a factory, buildings, equipment
and transportation vehicles; from the arts, including dance, cartoons, paintings, sculptures,
patterns and photographs; or from our daily lives, using all kinds of daily necessities such as
electrical appliances, toys, stationery and furniture. The elements of design serve as a strong
visual expression and have an inherent impact on the construction or reconstruction of dots,lines or areas and divisions, alongside the arrangement, layout and colour (Landa 2005; White
2011).
Graphic design characteristics and its attributes such as colours, photography images,
illustration, typography, size and materials may enhance the product recognition and often leadto consumer actions in purchasing a product (Abdul Rahman, Bidin and Lim 2017). Past studies
revealed colours, photographic images and technology, illustrations, typography, size andshape, materials, orientation of the design and image, as well as ratios from the principles ofart and design are among the design attributes that convey meaning and also drive purchasing
behaviour (Silayoi and Speece 2007; Aday and Yener 2010; Clement and Kristensen 2013;
Adam and Ali 2014). In particular, visual attributes on any package design act as a visualcommunication which “produce different meanings to a certain culture, age, gender, special
promotions and others” (Abdul Rahman, Bidin and Lim 2017, p. 145).
Design also plays a crucial role in understanding cultural practices. Therefore, it is importantthat designers should know the technical part of design such as the elements and characteristic
in creating comics, animation, commercial advertisements, printed materials or graphics; oneof the essential factors is to understand the matter from within the culture of Malaysian society.
Malaysian Culture and Design
Culture is equivalent to a nation’s “soul” or “spirit” and can be displayed in the forms of arts,
literature, tradition, belief and lifestyle. Culture is a cultivated behaviour which comprises of
distinct spiritual, emotional and intellectual patterns, or it is the way of life that is followed bya certain group of people. According to Idilfitri (2016), culture is intangible and discovered

26

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

only when the meaning of culture is practiced by insiders through symbols, pictures, objects,
words, or gestures. Scholars have identified five basic characteristics of culture: learned,
shared, based on symbols, integrated and dynamic (O’Neil 2007; Bueno 2012). First of all,culture is not genetically inherited but it is learned subconsciously from families, peers,
institutions and mass media through the process of enculturation. Secondly, culture is shared
between members of a group. Thirdly, culture is based on symbols which have meaning whenpeople in a culture agree on their usage. For example, language is a symbolic component of aculture. Fourthly, all aspects of culture are related to one another because culture isinterconnected, hence, culture is integrated. Lastly, culture is not constant and if one component
in a culture changes, it is likely that the entire culture will change, therefore, proving its
dynamism.
Malaysia is practicing multiculturalism, which is defined as “a system of beliefs and behaviours
that recognises and respects the presence of all diverse groups in an organisation or society,acknowledges and values their socio-cultural differences, and encourages and enables theircontinued contribution within an inclusive cultural context which empowers all within theorganisation or society” (Rosado 1997, p. 3). As a moderate Islamic society since its
independence in 1957; most Malays are Muslims while other ethnic groups such as Chineseand Indians have the freedom to choose their religion and have the right to practice their culture.
Due to the preponderance of Malays in the country, Islam is central to and dominant in the
Malay culture. To discuss a religion or ethnic group with design, for example, Islam forbids
the use of animal imagery in decorations, especially creatures that have been forbidden or
proscribed by the Islamic law such as pigs and dogs. The acceptable decorative imageries for
Malays are flowers, leaves, geometric patterns, “Quranic” scripture, as well as the crescentmoon, which is a traditional symbol of Islam also found on the Malaysia national flag (Siekand Chen 2012). In addition, the symbol of “ketupat” (glutinous rice) is based on a plaited
diamond shaped rice dumpling which uses coconut leaves and is also commonly seen in Malaygraphic print. Oil lamps, which are known as “pelita” or “panjuti”, are also an example of
Malay design in which oil lamps are lit during the days before the “Hari Raya” celebration to
attract spirits and angels to descend and bring blessings to Malay homes.
The Chinese and Indians are Malaysia’s other two ethnic groups. Chinese are the second largest
population in Malaysia, after the Malays. The majority of Chinese people practice Buddhism;
other religions such as Confucianism and Taoism are also practiced. They prefer images or
shapes that symbolise wealth and good fortune, such as the dragon and phoenix. The dragon
symbolises the son of heaven, ultimate abundance, prosperity, and good fortune, and it is also
a symbol for the Chinese emperor. The phoenix, on the other hand, symbolises the empress,
represents strength and is considered the most important of the winged animals. Anothersymbol which is relevant to Chinese culture and design is the golden pineapple, which
symbolises gambling luck (Giacchino-Baker 1996; Siek and Chen 2013). Lastly, Indians are
the third largest ethnic population within Malaysia, and they are known for their fascination
with bright hues. They tend to use peacocks, a national animal of India, as well as swans, lotus
flowers, mangoes, mango leaves and sun rays as patterns in their drawings, greeting cards, andfabrics.
National Culture Policies and Design
The National Culture Policy (1971) serves as a guideline in designing, formulating andsustaining the national identity of Malaysia. For example, on 16 September 2010, the “1
Malaysia” campaign had the goal of preserving and enhancing the unity of the nation andhighlighted ethnic tolerance with guidelines stating that national culture must be based on the27

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

indigenous or Malay culture, although suitable elements from other cultures may be accepted
as part of the national culture (Latif et al. 2012). The authors further claimed that Islam istreated as a key component in moulding the national culture of Malaysia (Latif et al. 2012).
Given the unique Malaysian aspect of a mixture of religions in an Islamic country, thegovernment promotes Islam above all other religions (Razali and Hands 2017).
The Printing Presses and Publications Act of 1984 (PPPA) is another policy which also has had
an influence on Malaysian designs. This Act governs the use of printing presses, as well as
printing, importation, production, reproduction, publishing, and distribution of publications in
Malaysia (as according to PPPA Act 301 section 3(1): 7). Under the PPPA, the Ministry ofHome Affairs Malaysia monitors all publications which include articles, notes, report, writing,statement, sound, music, caricatures, and photographs. The Minister reserves an absolute
discretion for him/herself in granting or revoking printing licenses, restricting or outrightbanning publications that are likely to endanger the national security interest or those which
could create social unrest. All content and service providers are responsible for ensuring theircontent development, production, commercial messages, and news production follow this Act.
All printing presses such as printing, importing, selling, circulating and distribution that offerto do any of these things require a license which must be granted and renewed on an annual
basis. Failure to apply for a license may result in a jail sentence of up to three years and fines
up to MYR20,000 (US$4,906) (as according to PPPA Act 301, section 5(1): 9).
When the Internet and social media became popular, in 2001 an industrial self-regulatory
association known as the Communications and Multimedia Content Forum of Malaysia(CMCF) was set up to regulate the electronic content in Malaysia, including broadcasting,mobile, and Internet. The association enforces the “content code” to ensure that digital content
reflects the national interest. It supports the national policy objectives set out in theCommunication and Multimedia Act (1998). If the content breaks the provisions of the“content code”, a fine not exceeding MYR50,000 (US$12,265) will be imposed, and/or theoffending party will be asked to remove the content or cease offering the content (as according
to CMA’98, DA’57 Revised’83). A local council in Malaysia, for example, Kuala Lumpur City
Hall, known as DBKL, enforces the laws and terms of licenses issued by the Licensing andPetty Traders Development Department for creative activities and business community. The
local council by-laws stipulate that the national language, Malay language, must be used for all
public signboards but other languages are permitted if they are not as noticeable (Ariffin, Husin
and Melaka 2013). Under the by-law 5(1), the display of words and texts on a signboard or
banner must be either in the Malay language (national language) by itself, or together withother languages. The letters of the words of a signage in the Malay language must be given
priority and have a larger size than other languages (see example of Malaysia signage in Figure 2).

28

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Figure 2
A Sample of Visual Advertising Signage by DBKL

(Adopted from: Guidelines sample from City Hall)
Therefore, the national culture policies such as the National Culture Policy (1971), the Printing
Presses and Publications Act of 1984 (PPPA) as well as guidelines from the Communications
and Multimedia Content Forum of Malaysia (CMCF) in 2001, the Licensing and Petty Traders
Development and the by-law 5(1) by local councils greatly influence local designs. Malaysiandesigners have begun to explore their indigenous identity and incorporated local culture andtradition into design work as the way forward in creating an identity for Malaysian designs(The Star Online, 11, September, 2017). “Integrating these traditional design elements into
contemporary design is seen as an approach towards sustaining the nation’s heritage values as
genius loci” (Shuaib and Enoch 2014: 59).
Identification of Malaysian National Culture Attributes
The development of Malaysian national culture comprises three key principles (Suhaili et al.
2019: 408): “archipelago cultures are the core of national culture, while the second principle
includes other appropriate and reasonably acceptable cultures through a continuous
assimilation and adaptation process. In the third principle, Islam is considered an importantelement in the national religious culture”. Malaysia is a multi-ethnics nation encourages amultitude of cultures to coexist in the country. “The three ethnic groups in Malaysia – Malay,
Chinese and Indian, are ‘treated pluralistically by the government, and each ethnic group has
been able to retain its cultural identity through the maintenance of individual languages,
religions and traditions” (Tong and Robertson 2008: 1). As shown in Figure 3a, the threecongruent circles representing the three ethnic groups, are intersecting each other, characterise
the interaction among the Malays, Chinese and Indians. The interaction and integration
processes between these multicultural groups in Malaysia have been ongoing since before
Malaysia gained its independence in 1957 through both daily interactions and government
policies and as a result “the diverse cultures in Malaysian society have been preserved, making
Malaysia a nation rich with a variety of cultures” (Suhaili et al. 2019: 408-409).
On another note, the Malaysian national culture has layers and attributes that are identified andcategorised into four levels: (1) individual attribution, (2) cultural attribution, (3) social
attribution, and (4) national attribution. Figure 3b shows that the basis of the Malaysian national
culture lies in the national attribution, followed by social, cultural and lastly individual
attribution. In order to achieve national unity, it is crucial for the nation to engage as a unitedand progressive unit through the policies and initiatives to achieve unity, integrity, and social
cohesion among its citizens. The following discussion of the four categories of national culture
attributes (see Figure 3b) was adopted from past literature (Nuechterlein 1979; Trowler 1988;
Liau 2007).

29

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

1.
2.
3.
4.

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Individual attribution – self-esteem and appearance/image.
Cultural attribution – language, custom, religions, ethnicity and values.
Social attribution – manipulation, hegemony and pluralist.
National attribution – defence of interest, moral values, and national order.

Figure 3a
The Structure of the Three Main Ethnic Groups in Malaysia

Malay

ChineseIndianFigure 3b

Attribution Consists of Four levels: Individual, Cultural, Social, and National

Individual attribution
Cultural attribution

Social attribution
National attribution

1. Individual attribution: Individual attribution relates to individual’s personal traits. This
attribute is defined in two parts: (1) self-esteem: the feeling of having respect for oneselfand confidence in one’s ability; and (2) appearance: the ability to present oneself freely
in public.
2. Cultural attribution: Culture is the way of life of a group of people. Language,
customs/norms, beliefs, races, and values are all part of culture. Language refers to thepreferred text, customs/norms, and religions that bear relevance or similarity between
ethnic groups. For example, Malays and Indians use their right hand to eat mixed rice
while Hindus and Taoists avoid the consumption of beef. Race refers to the ethnic
groups in the country, whereby intermarriage between people of different races groups
are considered “mixed” culture. Values refer to one’s judgement of what is importantin terms of self-significance, family, or good moral values.
3. Social attribution: It is based on three theoretical models of media bias, which are theManipulation model, Hegemonic model and Pluralist model (Trowler 1988). The
Manipulation model refers to media as being co-manipulated by capitalists, wealthy,
powerful social classes, and the government. The Hegemonic model refers tounintentionally adopted ideology which is being manipulated by social players, and30

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

results in the populace being dominated. The Pluralist model indicates that power isdistributed among many groups which allows one to self-determination.
4. National attribution: Based on the study of the classification of Nuechterlein (1979),
national interests are classified as survival interest, vital interest, major interest andperipheral interest. Other scholars have further concluded that the classification of
Nuechterlein’s survival interest is similar to a defensive interest, which comprises ofnational sovereignty, territorial integrity, national defence, and ethnic status. Vitalinterest encompasses interests involving the economy and trading, which include
national image, foreign trade, industrial raw materials and energy. Major interest andperipheral interest can be seen in the World Order as exchange programmes, financial
assistance, investment, sports activities, and cultural activities (Liao 2007).
Research Questions
Drawing on this literature, the two research questions (RQ) guiding this study are:
RQ1: What are the key elements in the design produced by local designers in Malaysia?
RQ2: How do Malaysian national cultural attributes influence locally produced design?
Methodology
Research Approach and Procedure
The purpose of this paper is to examine the influence of Malaysian national cultural attributes
on locally produced designs. A quantitative research approach was adopted with data collected
through quantitative content analysis of a final 18 sampled designs by six experts who have arange of 5 to 22 years of working experience in the Malaysian design industry. A content
analysis was carried out to identify the message characteristics embedded in the design samples
that represent Malaysian national culture through sample screening based on a visual
preference survey (Lindkvist 1981; Tesch 1990). A total of 120 design samples were randomly
collected from magazines, newspapers, social media, product branding advertisements,
recruitment advertisements, greeting advertisements, fashion, comics, cartoons, animations,symbols, and business signages, all produced during 2014 (see Appendix 1). These designs
were locally produced and varied in different categories of design, in which some are still in
use at the time of the writing of this paper. The selected samples are divided into four categories:
commercial advertisements; symbol and signage design; textile and fabric design; as well as
cartoons, animations and comics.
Through the filtration of samples by the industry experts, two stages of sample screenings werecarried out. In the first stage, the 120 design samples were pinned onto six pieces of A2-sized
soft form board with each soft form board carrying 20 designs. Through this process, 53
samples were filtered out, based on a visual preference survey, aimed at gauging the opinionsof the experts in selecting the designs which contain elements of Malaysian national culture.
Each expert was individually asked to rate the sample based on the representation of cultural
imagery of Malaysia in the design and only designs that received >50% of the votes wereretained. At the end of the first stage, 67 designs were selected to undergo the second stage
screening. In the second stage, 49 out of 67 samples were filtered out through a rating selection,using a five-point Likert scale, on the level of representation of Malaysian cultural imagery.
Only samples with a mean score of 3.5 and above were retained as the final samples for the31

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

content analysis; therefore, after the second stage of screening, the final sample for the content
analysis became 18.
Data Analysis
The quantitative content analysis of these 18 local design samples was carried out with six
Malaysian design industry experts in Malaysia together with one of the authors of this paper.
These industry experts were: (A) an Art Director in an advertising agency, (B) the Head of
Department and Lecturer for the visual communications programme in a private college, (C) acomic artist, (D) a graphic designer, (E) a Programme Leader and Lecturer for the designcommunications programme in a private university, and (F) a Lecturer for a designcommunications programme in a private university. The experts were comprised of three
Chinese, two Malays and one of mixed parentage (Indian and Chinese). Table 1 reveals the
background information of the six industry experts.
Table 1
Backgrounds of Six Industry Experts
Industry
Experts
A

Years of working
experience in the
Design field
19

B

17

C
D

17
22

E

18

F

5

Design Profession and Nationality
Art Director, in charge of above-the-line
advertisements and handling a medium size design
studio (Chinese)
Head of Department for graphic design in a private
higher educational institution (Chinese)
Full time comic and animation artist (Chinese)
Senior graphic designer in a design studio (mixed
parentage of Indian and Chinese)
Programme Leader for graphic design in a private
higher educational institution (Malay)
Lecturer for graphic design in a private higher
education institution (Malay)

Development of Coding Scheme
A coding scheme was developed to identify the four categories of attributions of Malaysiannational culture. The aim of the coding scheme was to comb the data for themes, ideas andcategories, as well as to mark similar passages of text with code labels for easy retrieval at alater stage for further comparison and analysis. The scale measurements for the coding scheme
are mainly grouped under “yes” or “no”. The numerical code “0” was assigned if there wereno or inconspicuous attributes of the specific description of the local designs, and “1” wasassigned if the answer was “yes”. Coding was applicable to the three categories – individual,social and national attributions. Under the cultural attribution, the customs/norms and religions
were coded as yes/no, except language, race and values. For language, the numerical code “0”is assigned if there is no language involved, “1” is Malay; “2” is English; “3” is Chinese; and“4” is mixed languages. For races: “1” is Malay; “2” is Chinese; “3” is Indian; “4” is others;
and “5” is mixed races. For values: “0” is assigned if there is no significant value; “1” ispresenting good moral values; “2” is having the same value towards family; “3” is having the32

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

same value towards self-significance, and self-worth; and “4” is toward other values. See Table
2 for the coding scheme.
Table 2
Coding Scheme
CategoricalScalevariables
Measurement
Individual self esteem 1 = Yes
attribution
0 = Noappearance 1 = Yes
0 = NoCategory

Culturallanguages
attribution

1 = Malay
2 = English
3 = Chinese

customs/
norms

4 = Mix
0 = No1=Yesreligions

0 = No
1=Yes

races

0 = No
1 = Malay
2 = Chinese
3 = Indian
4 = Othervalues

5 = Mixed
1 = moralvalue
2= familyvalue
3= self-value
4 = other
value

Description
Confidence, achievement, respected byothers, respects others
Lack of confidence, not respected by others
Able to present oneself freely in appearance
Not able to present oneself freely inappearance
Malay preferred for text
Free to use other languages to present text,
prefers English
Free to use other languages to present text,
prefers ChineseFree to mix languages
No languages involved
Present customs that are relevant or similar
to other ethnic group
No relevant custom
Present in relevant or similar religion withother races
Not present with religion
Particular about whether one is the same
ethnicity: Malay
Particular about whether one is the same
ethnicity: ChineseParticular about whether one is the same
ethnicity: Indian
Identified and grouped as non-Malay, nonChinese, or non-Indian
Mixed races/parentage
Present good moral values
Having the same value towards family
Having the same value towards selfsignificance, self-worth
Toward other values

33

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

0 = NoSocialmanipulation 1=Yes
attribution model
0 = Nohegemony
1=Yes
model

pluralist
model

0 = No1= Yes0 = NoNational defence of
1=Yes
attribution nation
0 = Nointerest
moral values 1=Yes
0 = Nonational
1=Yes
order
0 = NoNo significant values
Controlled by wealthy and powerful social
class
No significant values
Unintentionally adopted the ideology or was
being manipulated by social players andbeing dominated.
No significant values
Self determination
No personal voice, personal opinion notheard by society
Defends against potential sub-cultures fromforeign institutions
No personal vice or opinion
Benefits and protects the Malaysian public
No significant values
Establishes a peaceful national system,without resorting to conflict
Unrestricted

Composite Reliability Test (reliability test among experts’ selection for the content
analysis)
To identify the relationship between the four categories of local designs, a composite reliability
analysis was conducted. The aim of the coding was to comb the data for themes, ideas, andcategories; similar passages of text were marked with a code label for easy retrieval at a laterstage for further comparison and analysis. One author coded the direction of treatment of thesymbolic meaning contained in the visual data of the samples by identifying relationships
between the categories (Holsti 1969), exploring the properties and dimensions of categories,
and uncovering patterns and testing against all the sample designs (Bradley 1993). In addition
to the author, two informants were recruited as independent coders to analyse the 18 sample
designs. A total of three coders agreed to independently code the sample and to check the intercoder agreement following the formula by Holsti (1969) as stated below:
Reliability: 2M / (N1 +N2), where M is the number of coding decisions in which two coders
agree about.
N1 & N2 are the total number of judgments made by both coders.
Whereas the Composite Reliability (CR) is:
The results of composite reliability would show the consistency with which the three coders
agreed on the symbolic meaning contained in the visual data of the samples; CR is related tothe properties of its components, but is also affected by weighting, and the extent to which thecomponents themselves are correlated with each other. A high composite reliability is indicatedby a value of ≥0.90, whereby the data is considered to be relatively reliable due to the lack oferrors. However, a low composite reliability that corresponds to values of ≤0.50 would indicatethat the scheme is not acceptable, and the coding scheme needs to be revised. Wimmer and34

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Dominick (1983) suggested that if the reliability coefficient of the content analysis reaches 0.9,
then it fulfils the minimum requirement. Kassarjian (1997) indicated that a value of 0.85 is
acceptable. The dependability of the research findings in this paper was established by thetransparent coding process, and whenever the percentage of agreement did not reach 0.85, thecoding scheme was revised (Schamber 2000).
Results and Analysis
The analysis was based on the 18 samples that were said to be designs representative of
Malaysian national culture. These samples were recruitment advertisements in newspapers,
commercial advertisements in magazines, urban roadway billboards, business signage inbusiness districts, signage along the motor highways and office buildings, textile and fabricdesign on costumes, cartoons broadcasted on national television (TV) stations, 2D animation
screened in cinemas, as well as comics which had been approved for sale in all primary schools.
Table 3 reveals the observed key elements of the 18 samples identified by the six industry
experts. These results answered the research questions on the key elements found in the designs
produced by local designers in Malaysia as well as addressed the influence of Malaysiannational cultural attributes on locally produced designs.
Table 3
Key Elements of Design Sample (18 designs)
Samples
Sample 1Keyelements

Porcelain store
signage. The
business is owned
and run by ethnic
Chinese.
Malay language
must be given
priority in thedisplay in thesignage.

Sample 7
Bola Kampung - a
Malaysian animated TV
series about ‘kampung’(village) boys who are
crazy about football.
Endorsed the national
ideology.
Aired on national TV
channel, must be in the
Malay language. Movie
launched with English
and Chinese subtitles.

Sample 13
Cosmetic
advertisement with
Malay target customers.
Applied a full-facemask (except for theeyes), did not violate theofficial injunction.

SamplesKeyelements

Sample 2
Chinese stationery
shop.
Malay words
describing thefunction of the

Sample 8
The most popular comic
among Chinese primary
students and parents in
Malaysia with two main
characters.

35

Sample 14
The image design has alonger skirt than thestandard female toilet
signage. A typicalwomen toilet sign symbol

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

business are bigger
than the company
name in English andChinese.
Malay language isused to describe thefunction of thisbusiness entity.

All five fingers must be
drawn, regardless of the
proportions of the body,arm, leg, feet, and headof the characters. All
cartoon characters must
be drawn with the fullcomplement of fivefingers, as it might kill
the creativity andinspiration ofyoungsters.
Teaches the audiences
and readers to havepositive thinking, good
moral values, and live inharmony with different
ethnic groups.

displayed at the public
toilet in the expressway’s
rest area.
Implements the Malay
women dress code.

Sample 3
Business signage formoney exchange andremittance services
for individuals tosend and receive
money worldwide
through theInternational Money
Express.
Malay words have tobe the most visible inthe signage.

Sample 9
A very popularcomedy superhero
cartoon series from 1998
to 2002 on the national,
government-owned TV
Channel 2.
The series shows
violence but gained
popularity because of
the typical Malay
language accent spoken
by the main character, aSikh policeman.
Continuous
enforcement of good
moral values andnational ideology tocreate generations ofpeople with moral
values, good deeds
towards personal,

Sample 15
The image of anelevator signage withfemale passenger in
Malay traditional
costume.
The elevatorsignage in a local bank,a passenger elevatorsignage indicating thelocation of the elevator.
Implement a
common code of
conduct.

SamplesKeyelements

36

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

family, social, andnation.
SamplesKeyelements

Sample 4
The image ofharmony among
different ethnicities(Malays, Indian, andChinese).
Various ethnic
groups cometogether in harmonyby sharing one
language.
Portrays various
ethnic groups living
together in harmony.

Sample 10
A Hong Kong movie
promotional billboard
advertisement for The
Monkey King: Journeyto the West.
The pig was not
welcome by theauthorities due to Malay
cultural sensitivity.
Majority of Malays
disputed the image of apig due to Islamic
norms.
Icon of pig was omitted
from the advertisement.

Sample 16
Malay traditional
costume, in accordancewith Islamic norms thatforbid animal imagery as
decoration.
Portrays successful
woman dressed with along, loose two-piece
dress which are often
colour-coordinated andhave nice textures.

Sample 5
Financial sector
talent enrichment
programme which
prepares graduates todevelop their careerin the financial
service industry,
supported by the
Association of Banksin Malaysia.
Equal
opportunity is given
to various races.

Sample 11
Australia-based
company Servcorp
presented a festival
greeting via thecompany’s mascot, awombat wearing Malay
traditional costume, but
it was retracted becausesome Muslims mistook
the wombat for a pig.
The advertisement was
retracted from thebillboard.
The majority of Malays
reported the image‘looks like’ a pig.

Sample 17
Kebaya – a tight-fitting
two-piece dress madefrom sheer materials,
adorned with brocade orfloral pattern embroidery.
A traditional costume,
worn with batik wraparound skirt, for Straitsborn Chinese,descendants of Chinese
immigrants having cometo the Malay
Archipelago.
Gradually disappeared
and merged into the
Malay society.

Sample 6

Sample 12

Sample 18

SamplesKeyelements

Samples37

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Keyelements

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Job vacancy
advertisement must
project all ethnicities
to avoid penalty
under racial
discrimination.
Portrays various
ethnic groups
happily working
together.

A popular advertisementin Malaysia that wasawarded the Best Use of
Branded Content in2014 by the MalaysianMedia Specialists
Association (Creative
Greats, 2014).
Institute of Islamic
Understanding Malaysia(IKIM) portrays featuresof successful women
usually dressed with aheadscarf.

Malaysian Cheongsam,
worn during formal
gatherings. Batik in
Malaysia depicting
humans or animals arerare because of Islamic
norms. Worn during
festival occasions.
More baggy and did not
follow the typical symbolof image preferred by the
Chinese.

Composite Reliability Analysis
There were 18 design samples with a total of 234 elements (18*13 analysed elements). Basedon the data analysis, the reliability test results reached 0.9, which was an acceptable threshold
number. Overall, the results of the analysis for reliability test for all variables had a moderate
to excellent reliability (0.70 ≤ samples ≤ 0.91). Reliability coefficients were moderate ranged
from 0.50-0.74; good/substantial 0.75-0.9; and excellent/almost perfect >0.90. The final
results presented by all three coders (identified as A, B and C) were >0.91-0.99, therefore
showing an excellent reliability score. For example, the CR for individual attribution had
excellent reliability score of self-esteem=0.97 and appearance=0.99. The composite
reliability analysis for all four categories and among coders is shown in Table 4.
Table 4
Reliability Test
Category
Individual attribution

Cultural attribution

Social attribution

National attribution

Information indication
Self -esteem
Appearance
Language
Custom/norms
Religions
Ethnicities
ValuesManipulation model
Hegemony model
Pluralist model
Defence of interest
Moral values
National order

38

A&B
0.90
0.97
0.9
0.83
0.90
0.80
0.77
0.70
0.90
0.73
0.93
0.93
0.97

B&C
0.90
1.00
0.93
0.77
0.93
0.77
0.77
0.70
0.87
0.70
0.87
0.93
0.97

A&C
0.93
0.97
0.90
0.70
0.93
0.83
0.87
0.93
0.93
0.8
0.93
0.93
1.00

CR
0.97
0.99
0.97
0.91
0.97
0.92
0.92
0.91
0.96
0.90
0.97
0.98
0.99

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Discussion and Conclusion
From the results, the portrayal of good moral values, national ideology, and national unity is amust for the nation. Although Malaysia is considered a moderate Islamic society, it is verymuch Islamic-oriented. This can be seen in sample designs 12, 13 and 14, which concur with
Razali and Hands (2017), that is, that the Malaysian government promotes Islam above allother religions. Hence, any national order is geared towards defending the nation’s interest. In
this matter, it is obvious that having good moral values is the key element in establishing apeaceful system to ensure that all the ethnic groups of different religions can live in harmony(Shuaib and Enoch 2014). This element is evident in the sample designs. Through the
integration of national ideology, some sample designs reflected the harmonious multi-racialcharacter of the people, without stereotyping a particular racial group or gender; the traditional
values and backgrounds of the people are being preserved and upheld (see sample designs 4, 5
and 6).
Meanwhile, the social, cultural and individual attributes are key influences on designers. These
influences can be seen from design contents that give prominence to the Malay language by
the way of allocating more text, brighter colours, larger fonts, outstanding displays, as well as
in local commercials and movies, which are recorded in Malay with other languages ascomplementary text (Latif et al. 2012; Ariffin, Husin and Melaka 2013). The prominence ofthe national language is apparent in sample designs 1, 2 and 3. In addition, there is also a
harmonious blend of norms in the design elements, followed by sensitivity towards cultural
habits such as avoiding the usage of forbidden images, and modest dress codes for Malay
women in their daily life or for non-Muslim women in official gatherings and events as
according to the guidelines provided by the National Culture Policy (1971), PPPA (1984) Act
301, and Communication and Multimedia Act (1998). We can view this national culture
attribute embodied in the sample designs 10, 11, 12 and 13.
The unique characteristics and regulations in Malaysia might give viewers the impression thatit constrains creativity; yet, the positive side of having such characteristics and regulations help
Malaysian designers to be more strategic when expressing their creativity, and to develop waysthat accommodate the national cultural attributes as stipulated in the National Culture Policy(1971). The results indicated that design characteristics in Malaysia are strongly influenced by
a Malaysian national culture. Although Islam and Malay culture form an important part of thenational culture, elements from other cultures (such as Chinese and Indian) may be accepted
as part of the national culture. The acceptance of other cultures in design should be alignedwith the policies and guidelines set by the Malaysian government and local councils. The
integration of national, social, cultural and individual attributes within the Malaysian national
culture framework enables Malaysian designers to produce designs which symbolise racial
harmony, national ideology, and Islamic norms. In addition, local designers are able torecognise and respect cultural and religious differences for peaceful coexistence between thepeople in Malaysia, given that Malaysia is recognised as a multi-religious, multi-ethnic,
multilingual and multi-cultural society.
Figure 4 illustrates the formation of Malaysia’s social order in the identification of national
cultural attributes. The three congruent circles intersecting each other represent the three main
ethnic groups in Malaysia which interact with each other frequently in their own way. The key
intersection of the three circles is reflected as individual attribution; while the four tangent
circles are placed and grouped with the circle labelled as “Malay” indicated Islam, a religion
practiced mainly by the Malays, is an important element in the national religious culture. The

39

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

structure of the social order begins at the individual attribution and gradually progresses to thefurthest outer circle labelled as “national attribution”. The basis of the Malaysian national
culture lies in the national attribution, followed by social, cultural and lastly individual
attribution as shown in Figure 3b. Hence, the social order in Figure 4 reflects the influence ofthe four categories of national culture attributes on local produced designs discussed in the
result and analysis section.
Figure 4
The Social Structure of Malaysian National Culture

Drawing on the result analysis, we conclude that: (1) Malaysian designers need to learn andfulfil the requirements and specifications set by the Malaysian authorities in their design to
avoid any issues of racial discrimination and conflict, but at the same time produce designs
which reflect the harmony of the nation; (2) designers are to incorporate in their design theIslamic values and code of conduct determined by the Malaysian government; (3) designs thatsymbolise racial harmony, national ideology, and Islamic norms are gradually appearing; (4)different ethnic groups who have lived together for a long period of time have adapted to eachother and appreciate each other’s merits due to the indirect influence of the designs; and (5)when unique characteristics of the respective ethnic groups are not upheld, they will graduallydisappear or are assimilated.
The present study was an attempt to examine the influence of national cultural attributes on 18
samples of locally produced designs through a visual preference survey of six design industry
experts in Malaysia. The framework of national cultural attributes was derived from the review
of literature on design and cultural studies in Malaysia as well as with reference to the national
culture policies and guidelines of the Malaysian government and local councils. We believe
future studies could carry out interviews with government authorities in order to further
strengthen and elucidate the validation of Malaysian culture through the formulation of the
National Culture Policy in 1971 and its influence on locally produced designs. It is the intentionof this study to ultimately contribute to the expansion of literature on Malaysian design, as wellas to provide practical insight into how the local design industries can react within theboundaries of a pluralistic society such as the Malaysian one in the process of creating creative
designs.

40

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

References
Abdul Rahman, R. I. S. R., Bidin, A., & Lim, F. Y. P. (2017). Design methodology:
Identification of food packaging visual design elements in Malaysia. Paper presented
at the 3rd International Conference on Advanced Research in Business and Social
Sciences, 29 – 30 March 2017, Langkawi, Malaysia.
Adam, M. A., & Ali, K. (2014). Impact of verbal elements of packaging of packaged milk on
consumers buying behavior. International Journal of Business and Social Science,5(11), 94–106.
Aday, M. S., & Yener, U. (2010). Understanding the buying behaviour of young consumers
regarding packaging attributes and labels. International Journal of Consumer Studies
38(4), 385–393. http://doi.org/10.1111/ijcs.12105
Ariffin, K., Husin, M. S., & Melaka, M. (2013). Patterns of language use in shop signs in
Malaysian towns. International Refereed Research Journal, IV(3), 12–20.
Bradley, J. (1993). Methodological issues and practices in qualitative research. Library
Quarterly, 63(4), 431–449. https://doi.org/10.1086/602620
Bueno, C. F. (2012). Socio-Anthro: Sociology and Anthropology. USA: Create Space
Independent Publishing Platform.
Cheong B., & Fernandez, N. 31 August 2014. Fabulous fifties: Celebrating Malaysia’s classic
style icons. The Star online. Retrieved from:http://www.thestar.com.my/lifstyle/people/2014/08/31/fabulous-fifties/
Clement, J., & Kristensen, T. (2013). Understanding Consumers’ In-store Visual Perception:
The Influence of Package Design Features on Visual Attention. Journal of Retailingand Consumer Services 20(2), 234–239.
http://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2013.01.003
Communications and Multimedia Act (CMA) Malaysia Statutes. 1998. Accessed 20 August
2019 from http://www.skmm.gov.my/Legal/Acts/Communications-and-MultimediaAct-1998-Reprint-200.aspx
Department of Statistics Malaysia. 2010. Ethnic composition. Accessed 20 August 2019 fromhttps://www.dosm.gov.my/v1/index.php?r=column/ctheme&menu_id=L0pheU43NWJwRWVSZklWdzQ4TlhUUT09&bul_id=MDMxdHZjWTk1SjFzTzNkRXYzcVZjdz
09
Department of Statistics Malaysia. (2020). Demographic statistics. Accessed 20 March 2020
fromhttps://www.dosm.gov.my/v1/index.php?r=column/cthemeByCat&cat=430&bul_id=a
FYzVjJ3anNyQytHZGxzcUZxTG9Ydz09&menu_id=L0pheU43NWJwRWVSZklW
dzQ4TlhUUT09
Giacchino-Baker, R. (1996). New perspectives on diversity: Multicultural metaphors for
Malaysia. Multicultural Perspectives 2, 20–22.
https://doi.org/10.1207/S15327892MCP0201_3
Haji Ishak, M. S. (2010). Cultural and religious festivals: The Malaysian experience. JATI Journal of Southeast Asian Studies 15, 97–111.
Holsti, O. R. 1969. Content Analysis for the Social Sciences and Humanities. Reading, MA:
Addison-Wesley.

41

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Idilfitri, S. (2016). Understanding the significance of cultural attribution. Anthropology 4(1),1–5. https://doi.org/10.4172/2332-0915.1000163
Kassarjian, H. H. (1997). Content analysis in consumer research. Journal of Consumer
Research 4(3), 8–18. https://doi.org/10.1086/208674
Landa, R. (2005). Graphic Design Solutions. Boston.US: Wadsworth.
Latif, T., Abu Bakar, A. R., Thangavelu, M., & Ibrahim, I. M. (2012). National Cultural
Policy: Challenges in Nation Building. Paper presented at the Seminar on National
Resilience (SNAR) III, 3-5 December 2012, Puteri Resort, Ayer Keroh, Melaka.
Liao, P. W. (2007). Does the Benefit of the Country Come First? The role of Singapore andMalaysia’s Media Together with the Bilateral Issues. Paper presented at the fifthInternational Conference on Chinese Media and Chinese Civilization, 2007, Taipei.
Lindkvist, K. (1981). Approaches to textual analysis. In: K. E. Rosengren (Ed.) Advances inContent Analysis, 23–41. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage.
Mohd Khalis, F., & Mustaffa, N. (2017). Cultural inspirations towards Malaysian animation
character design. Malaysian Journal of Communication 33(1), 487–501.
https://doi.org/10.17576/JKMJC-2017-3301-32
Moura, F. T., Singh, N., & Chun, W. (2016). The influence of culture in website design andusers’ perceptions: Three systematic reviews. Journal of Electronic Commerce
Research 17(4), 312–339.
National Department for Culture and Arts. (2020). National Culture Policy. Accessed 2
March 2020 from http://www. jkkn.gov.my/en/national-culture-policy.
Nuechterlein, D. 1979. The concept of National Interest: A Time for New Approach. Orbis
23 (1): 73-92.
O’Neil, D. (2007). An Introduction to the Characteristics of Cultures and the Methods Usedby Anthologists to Study Human Culture. San Marcos, California: Behavioral
Sciences Department, Palomar College.
Printing Press and Publications Act 1984 (ACT 301) Malaysia. Accessed 20 August 2019from
http://www.agc.gov.my/agcportal/uploads/files/Publications/LOM/EN/Act%20301%2
0-%20Printing%20Presses%20And%20Publications%20Act%201984.pdf .
Razali, A.F., & Hands, D. (2017). Malaysian product design identity: Review on the‘keywords’. European Journal of Economics and Business Studies, 8(1), 156–175.
Rosado, C. (1997). Toward a Definition of Multiculturalism. Rosado Consulting for Change
in Human Systems. Accessed 20 January 2019 fromhttp://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.564.5910&rep=rep1&type=pdf
Schamber, L. (2000). Time-line interviews and inductive content analysis: Their
effectiveness for exploring cognitive behaviors. Journal of the American Society for
Information Science 51(8), 734–744.
https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1097-4571(2000)51:8<734::AID-ASI60>3.0.CO;2-3
Shuaib, A. A., & Enoch, O. F. (2014). Integrating the Malay traditional design elements into
contemporary design: An approach towards sustainable innovation. Procedia - Social
and Behavioral Sciences, 129, 59 – 67. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.03.648

42

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Siek, H. L., & Chen, T. B. (2012). Strike a Balance between Practical, Spiritual, Ecologicaland Aesthetical in Design. Paper presented at the Art & Design International
Conference 2012 (AnDIC 2012), University of Technology Mara, Shah Alam,
Malaysia.
Siek, H. L.,& Chen, T. L. (2013). Green Ang Pow and Purple Ang Pow in Malaysian Daily
Life Practice. Paper presented at the International Association of Societies of Design
Research, 4262–4271.
Silayoi, P., & Speece, M. (2007). The importance of packaging attributes: A conjoint analysis
approach. European Journal of Marketing 41(11/12), 1495–1517.
http://doi.org/10.1108/03090560710821279
Suhaili, S., Mahat, H., Hashim, M., Saleh, Y., Nayan, N., & Lukmanulhakim, N. N. 2019.
Hierarchy of multicultural criteria among public university students in Malaysia.
International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 9(5),406–419. https://doi.org/10.6007/IJARBSS/v9-i5/5880
Tesch, R. 1990. Qualitative Research: Analysis Types and Software Tools. Bristol, PA:
Falmer.
The Star Online (2017, September 11). Design Malaysia: We Can’t Forget Our Traditions
and culture. Accessed 20 August 2019 fromhttps://www.thestar.com.my/lifestyle/culture/2017/09/11/design-malaysia-no-forgettraditions-culture.
Tong, M. C., & Robertson, K. (2008). Political and cultural representation in Malaysian
websites. International Journal of Design, 2(2).
http://www.ijdesign.org/index.php/IJDesign/article/view/286/167
Trowler, P. (1988). Investigating the Media. London: Unmin Hyman.
White, A. W. (2011). The Element of Graphic Design, Second Edition. US: Allworth Press.
Wimmer, R. D., & Dominick, J. R. (1983). Mass Media Research: An Introduction. Belmont,
California: Wadsworth Publishing Co.
Zainal Abidin, S., Othman, A., Shamsuddin, Z., Samsudin, Z., Hassan, H., & Wan Mohamed,
W. A. 2015. Malaysian Product Design Identity: Issues, Transformation, andChallenges. Paper presented at The 2nd International Colloquium of Art and Design
Education Research (i-CADER 2015), 305–318.
Corresponding author: Siek Hwee Ling
Email : perlines@sunway.edu.my

43

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

44

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Does an Upcycling Kimono Practice Support Recycle-Oriented Cultural
Sustainability? Japanese College Students’ Perspectives
Minako McCarthy
The University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, USA

45

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Abstract
Kimono (a traditional Japanese garment worn by women) has played an important role inJapanese indigenous cultural origins. Ecological and sustainable ideas have inherently existed
in kimono culture within this lifestyle. Since the United Nations announced the Sustainable
Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015, the Japanese government has focused on creating healthy
spaces with a sustainable direction in mind. However, textile-related product recycling rates
were relatively low in Japan at the time. This empirical study used SDGs as a conceptual
framework to examine Japanese college students’ perceptions of kimono upcycling practices
and challenges. A mixed method was used to analyze the data. An open-ended questionnaire
was distributed to college students in June 2019 in Liberal Arts at a national women’s
university (n=155). The findings showed that interest in kimono upcycling moderately
correlated to those and an interest in western garments upcycling (.578; p<.01). The
relationship between these variables was significant (Chi-square: 48.471; p <.001). In thequalitative analysis, a coding method was used to explore common themes of students’awareness and knowledge of upcycling kimono practices and found four strong themes to bepresent. The students perceived that upcycled kimono items connected to preserving family
memories, whereas others noted upcycled items were used for sustainable resources. Also,
three common challenges were found: practicality, technical issues, and people’s awareness.
Some students also associated items with Japanese cultural preservation. College students’attitudes and perceptions towards cultural sustainability engagement could therefore be a
crucial mediator during sustainable development drives.
Keywords: college student, Japan, Kimono, recycling, sustainable development, upcycling46

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Introduction
Since the rapid adaptation of western clothing during the postwar period, the Japanese kimono
has gradually been disappearing from daily usage in contemporary society (Assmann, 2008).
Japanese people’s lifestyles have been transformed into adapting western clothes; people wear
kimonos to only formal events, such as weddings and graduations (Valk, 2018). Similarly,
yukata, a kimono-style casualwear, has also seen declining usage. Shimizu (2008) explainedthat yukata was worn as a bathrobe or casual daily wear before the western garments became
popular. Today, yukata is still worn by different age groups and genders but mainly as summer
festival attire.
Along with the social transformation, a kimono recycling practice has become popular in Japandue to the scarcity of fiber production and supply during the early postwar period (Ogata,2013). Since western clothes were introduced, people stored their unused kimonos. As a result,individual households still have large quantities of high-quality silk kimono materials in theirclosets. These kimonos have been sold at second-hand kimono shops, which became popularin the late twentieth century (Valk, 2018). Today, kimono and obi (sashes) are used to reinvent
fashionable accessories, such as scarves, gloves, shoes, and handbags (Assmann, 2008; Valk,
2008). Creating new products from reusable clothes is called upcycling, defined as “uniquenessof bespoke production, scarcity and preciousness of material, emotional engagement with pastexperiences and memories and craft skills of making” (Fletcher, 2014, p.118). The sustainableupcycling concept can be applied to used and unneeded kimonos to remake distinguishedstylish garments and accessories. Although an upcycling practice contains the idea ofpreserving the material along with users’ precious memories, it has not become a leading
practice. This empirical study investigates Japanese college students’ recycling-orientatedcultural sustainability awareness and interests and their perceptions of kimono upcycling
implementation challenges.
Overviews of Textile Recycling and Sustainability in Japan
Since the United Nations announced its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015, theaim has become popular among different industries worldwide (UNESCO, 2017). Eachcountry and society, business, educational institution, group, or individual focuses on creating
healthy spaces aiming in a sustainability direction. In May 2016, the government of Japanestablished its SDGs Promotion Headquarters in order to set its own goals along with the SDGs
(Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2016). One emphasis area was creating a recycling-based society(Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2016). Although the agenda discussed waste management indifferent ministries, textile waste and recycling were not noted in the white paper.
Prior to the SDGs promotion, the Japanese government has focused on the 3Rs, reducing,reusing, and recycling. In 2009, Japan hosted the Regional 3R Forum in Asia and establishedsimilar for promoting the 3Rs while waste issues have become a social and world problem(Minister of the Environment, 2010). The reducing concept is connected to waste management,
whereas the reuse approach helps extend the products’ life cycle (Fletcher, 2014). The concept
of 3Rs has received much social attention. Dr. Wangari Muta Maathai of Kenya, a 2004 Nobel
Peace Prize winner, has promoted the concept of mottainai, which incorporates the 3Rs(Wangari, 2011). The expression using the Japanese word, mottainai (what a waste), contains
the meaning of avoiding having waste; it illustrates the motivation behind Japanese people’s
cultural behaviors, such as storing used or unused kimonos in their closets for generations andrecycling them by donating them to second-hand stores.

47

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

The Japanese government swiftly reacted to the SDGs, establishing action platforms andsharing the objectives with different ministries. Generally speaking, Japan is known as one of
the leading nations for recycling sources. People strictly separate reusable portions from waste
in their daily practices. Their sustainable behavior particularly helped enhance the current
plastic waste recycle rate, which was 84% in 2019 (Brasor, 2019). However, Oba (2019)
explained that the rates could be misread that the 84% can be classified into three categorical
processes: 56% by a thermal process, 23% by material recycled, and 4% by chemicals recycled.
Although the recycling rate appears to be successful, some procedures could severely impact
environmental and societal issues during the process. By the late 2010s, the government has
enforced various recycling regulations and laws, such as those for food, containers, vehicles,
and home appliances (Ministry of the Environment, 2018); however, textiles or garmentsrelated regulations have not been issued nor discussed as environmental issues.
In the annual report from the Ministry of the Environment Government of Japan (2016), theoverall recycled rate for all reusable resources (e.g., paper, home appliances, plastics, food, andtextiles) has increased from 7.4 % (1990) to 16.3 % (2013). The statistics showed that people’s
awareness of and attitudes towards recycling have been improving. However, textile-recycling
rates remained relatively low in Japan. 766,000 tons of textile and garment waste weregenerated in 2007 and 836,000 tons in 2014. Both years’ recycled rates were only 0.2 %(Minister of the Environment, 2017). The rest of the waste could have been piled up in a landfill.
Uchimaru, Kimura, and Sato (2013) speculated that the technical reason for textile recycling
has to do with the fact that in order to reuse the fiber sources, a garment needs to be separated
into each fiber type; however, many clothes consist of various types of fibers, which makes itchallenging. Nowadays, advanced technology is widely known to produce recycled fibers
using polyester and nylon fiber waste and products; polyester and nylon zippers, buttons, andother notions can be processed to become granulated, decolorized, and then be used as raw
materials and then fibers (iTextiles, 2014). This technology seems to contribute to waste
management. For example, in order to recycle cotton and polyester blended fabrics, these two
fibers require to be separated into pure components; however, the separation process is quite
challenging; therefore, various cotton/polyester-blended garments were widely produced andcould after usage be disposed of in waste containers (Hou, Ling, Shi, Yan, Zhang, Zhang, &Dai, 2018; Kimura, Hanamitsu, Kurahashi, & Kimura, 2010; Zou, Reddy, & Yang, 2011).
Moreover, various leading companies have been involved in recycling. For example, anautomobile interior manufacturer, Howa Textile company (n.d.) has implemented reusing offcut waste fabric to create felt top mats. Another leading textile manufacturer, Teijin, in 2002
introduced chemical recycling technology using polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles tocreate recycled polyester (Teijin CRS, 2007; Bettin, 2014). Since then, the government hasendorsed recycling bottle technology to transform them into flakes and then pellets and create
various recycled polyester garments and other related products (Minister of the Environment,2012). This technology may have contributed to the PET bottle recycled rate. It might therefore
be speculated that people’s recycling and sustainability mindsets may have improved becauseof the various textile manufacturers’ efforts.
Textile Recycling in Apparel Sector in Overseas
In the apparel and textiles sectors overseas, various manufacturers and companies also aim fordifferent sustainability improvements to reduce environmental impact: sustainableconsumptions and productions (Jørgensen & Jensen, 2012; Fletcher, 2014), reducing
environmental waste through pattern making approaches (McKinney, Cho, Zhang, Eike, &48

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Sanders, 2020; Rissanne, 2008), utilizing the innovative technology to recycle fibers (He, Wei,
Liu, & Xue, 2015; Teijin CRS, 2007), and educating consumers about the lifecycle of cotton
products (Blue Jeans Go Green ™, 2006). In 2016, the United States recycling rate was lessthan 20 % of overall clothing waste, approximately 12.8 million tons. For example, in 2017,from all the footwear waste generated, 13.6 % was recycled, 16.9 % was burnt with someenergy recovery, and 69.5 % ended up in landfills (The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency,2017). Although the textile recycling rates were different between Japan and the United States,
the latter’s textile waste has been increasing for years. The majority of the textile waste ended
up in piles in the landfill, which is a universal tendency because of the popularity of fast
fashion, which is known as a rapid production with inexpensive and trendy clothes (Fletcher,2014) in quick succession.
In general, due to the large amount of recyclable material, a donation or reusing concept could
become a widespread practice along with sustainable development. Regardless of people’s
environmental interests and mindfulness, most consumers donate their used textile products tocharities; however, at the same time, those people also dispose of their goods through regular
traditional disposal mechanisms (Weber, Lynes, & Young, 2016). Over the last 10 years or so,
upcycling has increased in popularity among various eco-conscious designers, fashion
students, and other professionals (Alegria, 2009; Stewart, 2014). The apparel industry in
different countries and regions also makes an effort to become more sustainable; however, at
the moment recycling rates continue to remain fairly small.
Cultural Resources into Sustainability
The United Nations implemented 17 sustainable development goals (SDGs) targeted forcompletion by 2030. One goal focuses on “Culture [as] a driver and enabler of sustainable
development and essential for achieving the 2030 Agenda.” (UNESCO, 2017, p. 19) This
agenda could perhaps be improved upon via the cultural characteristics of Japanese people with
their recycle-oriented nature. As already mentioned above, reservation of used kimonos as asustainable practice has inherently existed in Japanese culture for some time due to culturalvalues and mottainai behaviors.
Many second-hand recycled stores sell different textile products and clothes. Exclusive,
expensive vintage clothes are most popular among sophisticated fashion-conscious people indifferent generations in Tokyo (Yagi &Yuasa, 2018). In other words, vintage clothes would
capture people’s attention and sell well, even at a higher price. However, some recycled
clothes, including kimonos, may never have a chance to be sold, as they are not centrally
displayed in these stores. Fletcher (2014) pointed out that recycling is a popular and easy
practice for storeowners and consumers alike because it does not challenge radical innovation
and adjustment. As a result, “[R]ecycling on its own … will never bring big change.” (Fletcher,2014, p. 126) When examining the 3Rs practice, it appears reasonable because an individual
can start and achieve the goals. However, due to its long-range goals, the effectiveness ofsustainability may not have a large impact.
Based on the vintage and recycled product relations, one way to achieve the SDGs is to upcycle
products to make a new, highly valued product from discarded or unwanted items (Flowers &Gorski, 2017). Unlike recycled clothing, the upcycling practice may attract various people’s
attention because its concept is reborn into a new product using various unique used and vintage
pieces of clothing. Recycled kimonos could be the ideal upcycled items because of their
exclusiveness and antique heritage. Who would be the end-users of kimono upcycling

49

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

products? It was noted earlier that eco-conscious people could swiftly and positively react tothis practice. For example, an American fashion designer incorporated pre-used fabrics toremake new garments to maintain her ecological mindset. She was also attracted to kimonosand other vintage textiles’ aesthetic values (Billingsley, 2009). Some fashion professionals
from the U.S. are fascinated to use old kimono materials for upcycling products. This indicatesthat there could be much demand for unique and distinctive products.
Practicability would be the main element for achieving these SDGs. To examine the kimono
construction, the kimono consists of various rectangular panels, which are already intended to
avoid waste. As a result, kimonos can be efficiently recycled; the seams can be easily removed
because kimonos are traditionally hand-sewn. All panels can return to the kimono’s original
rectangular flat pieces, reusing the material to make any western clothing or accessories. When
laying out kimono panels and western dresses side by side, interestingly enough, both thekimono and the basic western dress patterns come to the same length in yardage (Yanagisawa,
Ishida, Ito, Ishige, & Watanabe, 1971). A kimono’s versatility helps producers recreate
different products and lead to a feasible cultural approach.
Although the kimono and other unneeded items in people’s closets could become treasure
resources for upcycling, “Fast Fashion has been a hallmark of the fashion industry for several
years, and it has virtually characterized the market over time” (Štefko & Steffek, 2018, p. 7).
The growth of fast fashion has led to textile waste and negatively affected our environment(Yoo et al., 2021). Many fast-fashion brands are very popular. However, recently at least someof them have begun to cherish different sustainable approaches. For example, UNIQLO
launched a recycling and reusing program (UNIQLO n.d.), while H&M has invokedsustainability endorsements for organic items and recycled materials. Fast fashion andrecycling/upcycling could live together when people’s awareness of sustainability increases
and fast fashion outlets create more sustainability goals for the goods.
Research Methodology
In this study, SDGs were used as a conceptual framework. Three research questions were posed
to analyze students’ perceptions of kimono culture and motivation for sustainability relations.
1. What is college students’ awareness and level of knowledge regarding upcycling
practices using kimono?
2. What are their interests regarding upcycling practices of old kimonos compared to usedwestern garments?
3. What are the challenges of implementing upcycled kimono products in their daily
practices?
Site and Participants
The empirical research piece at hand used a survey method to examine college students’awareness, interests, and challenges in kimono upcycling practices. 155 undergraduate andgraduate students in Liberal Arts at the National Women’s University in Japan participated.
Their age range was from 18 to 25 years old. The university is known as one of the Japaneseelite universities in Liberal Arts education that supports women’s educational developmentwith international relations and helps foster their global leadership. Selecting this university asa research site is beneficial because it can examine the next global leaders’ attitudes andperspectives regarding sustainability issues.

50

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

The questionnaire consisted of dichotomous, multiple-choice, and some open-ended questions(Appendix A). Since the students were Japanese and a few Chinese exchange students, theJapanese version of the questionnaire was distributed (Appendix B). The data collection period
was June 2019. The research involved human subjects. Before conducting the research, theInstitutional Review Board (IRB) of the researcher’s home university reviewed the application
and approved it. Informed consent forms were also handed out to the participants before thesurvey.
Data Analysis
A mixed method was used to analyze the data. The dichotomous questions were analyzed byusing SPSS version 26, a standard statistics software, here to explore students’ awareness andinterests in upcycling kimonos and sustainability practice. A qualitative method was utilized
to further analyze the data. The researcher translated the participants’ answers into English andexamined them to find common themes by counting the frequency of words and phrases
manually.
Findings
In a quantitative analysis, the two items, kimonos possession and understand sustainability, did
not have any relationship with interest in kimono upcycling and interest in western garments
upcycling. The findings showed that interest in kimono upcycling moderately correlated tothose and interest in western garments upcycling (.578; p<0.01). The relationship between
these variables was significant (Chi-square: 48.471; p <.001). In addition, neither of the othervariables, such as major distinctions, age, or class level explained their interests in upcycling
kimonos nor did any previous experiences with upcycling.
Figure 1
Chi-Square Test Between Interest in Kimono Upcycling and Interest in Western Garments
Upcycling

The following figure showed the other overview. 37 % of students have never heard of theword sustainability, nor they know its meaning. 62 % of students possess one or more kimonos.
33.8 % of students noted that they are not interested in upcycling kimono, whereas 66.2 % said
they are interested in upcycling kimono. Moreover, 31.7 % of students answered that they are
not interested in upcycling western garments, while 68.3 % of them noted that they areinterested. Although the results explained that students were more interested in upcycling
western garments, the percentage ratio was quite similar.

51

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Figure 2
Comparison of Students’ Interests in Kimono Upcycling and Western Garments Upcycling

Note: 0= No interest; 1= Interest

Internal reliability can be measured by Cronbach’s Alpha or Kuder-Richardson (KR-20). In
this study, the data were at a dichotomous level. Therefore, KR-20 was used for examining
Cronbach’s Alpha value. The value exceeded .70 between the above two variables. This
indicates that the items fit together and are internally consistent.
Figure 3
Internal Reliability Between Interest in Kimono Upcycling and Interest in Western Garments
Upcycling

Further open-ended questions helped find the details of their knowledge or awareness ofupcycled kimono products and practice. The questions asked, were: When and where did you
see kimono upcycled products; How did you feel about them? (Appendix A). In the survey,
four themes regarding their awareness and knowledge of upcycling kimono practices were
found (Figure 4): to perceive physical attractiveness, to keep family memories, to maintainJapanese kimono culture, and to endorse reusing existing sources.

52

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Figure 4Students’ Knowledge or Awareness of Upcycled Kimono Products and PracticeMany students explained upcycled kimono products’ appearances and physical features; suchvoices descriptions were “neat”, “chic”, “cute”, “soft”, “smooth”, “gorgeous”, “exclusive”,“original”, and “attractive”, because of various colors and motifs. Others expressed: “Designwise, upcycling kimono products are for middle-aged women” and “My grandma may like theitems”. Interestingly, several students already owned upcycled products that were made by
their grandmothers. Their reactions were regarding their product appearances and theirprecious memories of previous kimonos, their grandmother, and their family. Furthermore,another student recalled, “I had memories that my grandma made into a pouch using her old
yukata”. At the same time, another student noted, “A kimono upcycled garment keeps one of
my great family memories”. Many noted that it is a good way to retain Japanese culture andcustoms through upcycling. On the other hand, a student pointed out, “A kimono does not need
to be transformed into a new product,” which means the kimono itself should be kept in its
original form.
Moreover, some students connected upcycled kimonos to sustainable resource practice. A
student pointed out that kimono upcycling is an “innovative idea for reusing kimonos”. Also,
the other participants voiced that it is a “good practice for using a used fabric as a new resource”
and “good for our environment”. Although their responses were varied, and most perceptions
were positive, some students left the answer blank. Some of those students who did not answer
these questions belonged to the group who had also answered that they were not interested inupcycled kimonos.
Kimono Upcycling Implementation Challenges
Compared to the previous responses, many students answered the various challenges of
implementing upcycling kimono practice. Three common challenges were found (Figure 5):practical issues, technical challenges, and awareness of upcycling and sustainability.

53

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Figure 5
Implementation Challenges of Upcycling Kimono Practices

First, practical issues were most visible and dominated. Students noted that the challenges were
the products’ cost and time to remake. Upcycling products tend to be costly because it would
take time to create them. Several students questioned whether in times of the popularity of fast
fashion expensive upcycling products would actually sell. Another student pointed out, “Is old
kimono material strong enough to remake it into a new one?” Moreover, some raised questions
regarding hygiene and sanitation matters because of the age and use of the kimonos. Many
students also linked this major challenge to the practical implementation issues.
The next challenge was related to technical matters. Students noted that the lack of upcycling
skills and knowledge could be the main challenge for implementing the practice. Many pointed
out that they do not know how to use a sewing machine. Some students asked, “Who would be
able to create upcycled products?” Other students suggested that providing how-to videos
through YouTube or using social media to reinforce knowledge based on this concern would
be helpful.
Finally, people’s lack of awareness could also be a serious issue. This challenge had the mostdiverse opinions: Lack of awareness of sustaining the current clothes, awareness of
exclusiveness, awareness of strengths and weaknesses of upcycled fashion, and awareness ofsustainability. People’s lack of awareness could impede kimono upcycling practices. For
example, participants anticipated that “used” and “second-hands” sound less attractive. Somequestioned why people would pay more money for those old clothes. Others explained, “Thechallenge would be people’s attitudes towards our gorgeous kimono culture”. Moreover, astudent pointed out that only a few people making a great effort would not change the entire
lack of awareness culture; thus, it would not be efficient.
One answer noted regarding water conservation; “After gathering all the used kimonos, wewould need to dry clean them all. This process tends to use a large volume of water.”
Sustainable practices may not always lead to a positive impact. The student looked at the larger
picture and rightly predicted the negative consequences of this practice.
Finally, many participants explained challenges but also described practical suggestions. Some
proposed that exposure to practice and products would garner more attention. Others explainedthat we would need to show the advantages of recycling, because “People would not know
about the upcycled kimonos because those people are only interested in new clothes and do nothave a chance to know that upcycled products.” Another practical suggestion is to implement

54

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

a recycling box so that people can donate their old clothes easily. This idea can be implemented
anytime on a micro-level and could expand to other communities and institutions.
Discussion
The findings showed that students who were interested in kimono upcycling and western
garment upcycling had similar profiles; however, slightly fewer students were interested inkimono upcycling than those who were interested in western garment upcycling. Since morethan half of college students possess kimonos, familiarity may not be the major reason that they
were less interested in upcycled kimonos than western garments. The Japanese people’s
lifestyles have changed greatly over the last century. Beginning in 1928, industrialization
allowed society to adapt and produce sewing machines (Gordon, 2011). The dressmaking boom
that began in 1945 led to the rapid spread of home sewing machines. Later, the advanced
development of industrial sewing machines helped to increase the use of ready-to-wear apparel.
Kimono production used only hand-sewn techniques but the increasing use of sewing machines
may have lead people to create western-style clothing instead (Cliffe & Eicher, 2017).
Another prominent transformation was when women’s education started; western-styleuniforms were gradually socially accepted and implemented in schools. In the 1920s, anincreasing number of girls’ schools gradually allowed western-style school uniforms (Namba,2012). Functionality could have been the major reason for schools and society to implement
western-style school uniforms. For example, a kimono wraps around the entire body, whichcomes together at the front and is held together by multiple cords. When the wearer moves
around, the cords can become loose and easily expose the body’s front and impede movement.
On the other hand, a western dress has a zipper or button closure, can easily be taken on andoff and is unlikely to hinder the wearers’ movement. Functionality was a therefore a goodreason that both boys and girls wear western school uniforms in current Japan.
Although many participants noted that they own kimonos, their daily wear is western-style
clothing. Therefore, they would also be more interested in upcycling western clothes and which
would be a natural response. Slightly less than half of the students noted that they had seen
upcycled kimono products. This finding may explain why students’ interest levels in upcycling
kimono products were less prominent than for western garments because their reactions had
been formed based on their experiences seeing the actual products. They may not have been
easily able to visualize the connection between kimonos and upcycled kimono products.
On the other hand, a few students did possess upcycled kimono products, connected to theirfamily memories. Those who currently possessed the products noted their particular sweet andnostalgic memories especially regarding their grandmothers who had made these items. Family
and cultural attachments come into upcycled products. This concept could be similar to a
Japanese family possessing family crests and passing them on form generation to generation.
Family crests are a Japanese tradition and “appear on some formal clothing, and businesses
and organizations have adapted the concert for commercial purposes” (Hornun, 1986, p.1) andsymbolize family ties and close relationships (Family Crests of Japan, 2001). The family crest
culture then explains why some people treasure the cultural artifacts because they relate tofamilies and pass the tradition onto next generations.
Many students also connected items to Japanese cultural preservation. They responded thatupcycled kimono products helped to retain Japanese culture. Many students aligned thetransformation of the kimono as a new product with their positive views. In contrast, a few

55

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

other students noted that they could not find a reason for transforming old kimonos into new
garments. A few respondents noted that upcycling kimonos discourages Japanese cultural
heritage; they would rather maintain the kimono’s original form. They may have perceived thekimono as more of a cultural artifact than mere clothing. This answer could be a natural reaction
to the fact that people cherish their cultural heritage and kimono costumes’ legacy (Francks,2015) passed down through generations. Janigo, Juanjuan, and DeLong (2017) pointed out,
“Emotional connection may have played a role in individuals’ decisions to keep upcycled
items” (p. 277). These positive and negative responses explain that they attach to the traditional
form of kimono that sustains their cultural heritages.
The last common theme was that participants related upcycled kimono products to sustainable
resource preservation. Compared to the first three themes, not many students responded that
this practice connects to sustainability. However, several participants pointed out that reusable
resources could help save our environment. As noted earlier, since 2016 the government ofJapan has actively promoted its sustainability platforms (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2016).
The rules and regulations could have influenced the participants’ sustainability behaviors.
Based on the common themes, students’ reactions to the upcycled kimono products were
dominated by the latter’s physical attractiveness, such as colors, patterns, motifs, and textures.
There were also comments that the products were more for older people. These perceptual
differences were unique. Although the students’ responses to questions of sustainability
connected to upcycling were low compared to the other three themes, some examinedsustainability connections were described as implementation challenges. Students noted thatthe challenges for upcycling kimonos appear to lie in practical issues and technical matters, allpart of concerns of remaking new garments and accessories. In this case, collaborating withapparel companies or individuals would enable upcycling practices to become feasible;
however, another issue could be the costs. Unlike massive production, an upcycling productbecomes a one-of-a-kind or exclusive one, which means that the process tends to take time andis costly. However, the participants pointed out that consumers might not want to spend higher
than usual prices for the upcycled products. Some students suggested that promoting theconcept as saving our earth would prompt more people to buy these products.
The results of the upcycling kimono practice survey can also be explained by SDGs sequences.
When people have quality education (SDG #4) to understand that an individual’s action leads
to retaining our environment, the communities and countries help reduce inequality (SDG #10)
by less having a mass production by preventing child labor or eschewing sweatshop conditions(UNESCO, 2017). This improvement helps produce sustainable cities and communities (SDG
# 11) by reasonable consumption using a recycling approach and creating upcycled products(SDG #12). Although the SDG’s 12th goal particularly focuses on water, energy, and food as
responsible consumption and production (United Nation, 2020), including textiles that theywear and purchase, may lead to changing their views and behaviors. Also, the 12th goal
contains the infinity symbol, which entails focusing on recycling and upcycling. Ultimately,
this sequence becomes a positive climate action (SDG #13) because it conserves water andnaturalistic energy when people recycle or upcycle their garments.
The Ministry of Environment (2018) explained the university and other academic institution’srole as “to support the development of a proper international framework for the circulation of
resources and the overseas expansion of waste management and recycling industries” (p. 58).
Innovative interdisciplinary student engagement would help maintain the recycling-based

56

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

society. However, this study’s data showed that students’ awareness and interest in recycling
and upcycling practice might need to be sharpened.
Limitations
The major limitation of this study is that the findings cannot be generalized to college students’
perceptions in Japan. The samples and the site were selected purposely; however, choosing
different colleges for the study could lead to different results due to the make-up of the student
bodies. Since the research location for this study was an elite university whose objective is tofoster globalized initiatives, the students may have been more conscious of sustainability
relations than at other institutions. However, even in this study, over one-third of the students
did not know the meaning of sustainability.
Moreover, exploring male or other gender students’ perceptions, different age groups, andmajors might very well provide different results. Another limitation would be the translationof participants’ answers. Although the researcher is the translator/transcriber and a native
speaker of Japanese, the translations could slightly differ when replicating a similar study.
Cross-checking data with other native speakers in a similar field would ensure that the results
are valid across the board.
Implications and Conclusion
Although recycling practices have improved in Japan, there still exists limited literature andresearch on upcycling practice, products, and consumers’ perceptions. There were nolongitudinal Japanese studies in this area of research. This challenge has not only been seen in
Japan. Likewise, there were only limited studies regarding upcycling products in othercountries, such as Korea, China, and New Zealand (Kim, Jung, & Lee, 2021; Yoo, Jung, & Oh,
2021; Koch, 2019). Lack of research in this area was also the main reason for this study to havebeen undertaken.
Although the kimono has played a central role in the study of the origin Japanese’s indigenous
cultures, after World War II people have moved toward western attire instead. Nevertheless,they do possess knowledge of the legacy of traditional kimono culture (Francks, 2015).
Japanese also have a characteristically recycle-oriented culture. This trait is advantageous forcontributing to upcycling practices. However, further investigation is needed to study thiscultural trait and its existence among the younger generations. In this research, various practicalchallenges were noted by college students. Likewise, Janigo et al. (2017) explained: “[A]primary disadvantage is the labor intensiveness of the work, including careful deconstructionof used clothing. Making a profit could be challenging, considering there seemed to be a limit
to how much people might be willing to pay” (p. 272-273). When the major challenges arereexamined and a way is found to resolve them, upcycling kimonos could become the next
recycling-oriented sustainable practice among Japanese people and others. Unlike massproduced fast-fashion garments, upcycling kimono products could become exclusive andunique properties. Upcycling is tightly connected with slow fashion, which is to “reduceamounts of new clothing purchased from retail stores, slow the cycling of clothing throughone’s wardrobe, and keep clothing out of waste streams by extending its usable life” (Janigo etal., 2017, p. 276). The upcycle concepts and processes could work in different countries andtheir cultural artifacts to sustain their legacies.

57

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

In this study, not many students in a Japan university did connect upcycling kimonos tosustainability in order to reuse their cultural resources. This result would be one of theinteresting findings which seem to suggest that more work needs to be done to safeguard
cultural heritage. Textiles might not have been the center of their foci for this. It would be
stimulating to explore why they tended not to regard their unneeded used clothes for recycling
practices.
Although the SDGs are today’s popular universal concepts the world over, some students still
were not aware of sustainability goals. Some of them had never even heard of sustainability.
Expanding the awareness of upcycling and spreading sustainable concepts would contribute toreusing any and all available cultural resources. Recycle-oriented cultural sustainable
development is neither a burden nor does it negatively affect the environment. Shen, Richards,
and Lui (2013) explained that when consumers do not have sufficient knowledge regarding
sustainable products, they might not realize they are sustainable. Likewise, college students
may lack knowledge of recycling kimonos to be used to make new garments. When people andstudents possess upcycling background knowledge, they can decide whether to recycle usedclothes and update them as upcycling products.
Moreover, the issue could be that usage of sustainability has not been standardized in Japanesesociety or even worldwide despite their inclusion in the SDGs. Park and Kim (2016) pointed
out that there is “no clear consensus on what it means to be “sustainable” for fashion companies
or brands and how sustainability, as it is perceived by consumers, can be measured” (p.1).
Likewise, sustainability is defined literally as “sustain” and “ability” in Japanese. As a result,some Japanese may not think in further detail about these issues, which is evident from many
blank or “Do-not-know” answers.
Lastly, people may face technical challenges to remake clothes; however, this issue can be
successfully approached and alleviated by different industry sectors. Kusakabe (2013)
suggested that sustainability can progress when social capital, such as political and government
support becomes higher, and that citizens will greatly participate in sustainable development.
The Japanese government has already regulated other recycled products; many people actively
seem to preserve useful resources already. Textile and garment recycling regulations could andperhaps should be the next laws and regulations to be implemented in order for people torecognize textile recycling as a major supporting practice for the SDGs to have been achievedby the year 2030.
Acknowledgments
The author deeply acknowledges the support from Professor Tomoko Namba and her students
in the university. All anonymized survey response papers are available from the author.

58

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

References
Alegria, A. (2009). The future looks green for fashion: Woodbury staying ahead. (Special
Report: Fashion and Design). San Fernando Valley Business Journal, 14(9).
Assman, S. (2008). Between tradition and innovation: the reinvention of the kimono in
Japanese consumer culture. Fashion Theory: The Journal of Dress, Body &Culture,12(3), 359–376. http://doi.org/10.2752/175174108X332332.
Bettin, A. (2014). Teijin develops recycled polyester clothes. Japantoday.com. Accessed
August 24, 2020 from https://japantoday.com/category/tech/teijin-develops-recycledpolyester-clothing.
Billingsley, E. (2009). Different approach by valley designer: In forefront of industry trends.
San Fernando Valley Business Journal, 14(9).
Blue Jeans Go Green ™. (2006). Give old denim new purpose. Cotton Incorporated.
Accessed June 16, 2019, from https://bluejeansgogreen.org.
Brasor, P. (2019, July 6). Japan faces an uphill battle to reduce plastic consumption. Japan
Times. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2019/07/06/national/media-national/japanfaces-uphill-battle-reduce-plastic-consumption/
Cliffe, S., & Eicher, J. B. (2017). The social life of kimono: Japanese fashion past andpresent, London: Bloomsbury Publishing.
Family Crests of Japan. (2001). Berkeley: Stone Bridge Press.
Fletcher, K. (2014), Sustainable fashion and textiles: design journeys. (2nd ed.). London:
Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315857930
Flowers, J., & Gorski, A. (2017). Upcycle! Technology & Engineer Teaching, 76(6), 8–12.
Francks, P. (2015). Was fashion a European invention? The kimono and economic
development in Japan. Fashion Theory, 193, 331–362.
https://doi.org/10.2752/175174115X14223685749368
Gordon, A. (2011). Fabricating consumers: The sewing machine in modern Japan. Berkeley:
University of California Press
He, S., Wei, M., Liu, M., & Xue, W. (2015). Characterization of virgin and recycledpoly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) fibers. The Journal of The Textile Institute, 106(8),800–806. https://doi.org/10.1080/00405000.2014.944820
Hornung, C. (1986), Traditional Japanese crest designs. New York: Dover Publications.
Hou, W., Ling, C., Shi, S., Yan, Z., Zhang, M., Zhang, B., & Dai, J. (2018). Separation andcharacterization of waste cotton/polyester blend fabric with hydrothermal method.
Fibers and Polymers, 19(4), 742–750. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12221-018-7735-9
Howa (n.d.). Example of creating a product. Accessed October 2, 2020 fromhttp://www.howatextile.com/english/technology/5rs_case.html
iTextiles™. (2014), TSC Group Inc. Accessed May 20, 2020, fromhttp://www.itextiles.com/v30/index.html
Jørgensen, M. S., & Jensen, C. L. (2012). The shaping of environmental impacts from Danish
production and consumption of clothing Ecological Economics, 83,164–173.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2012.04.002

59

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Kim, I., Jung, H., & Lee, Y. (2021). Consumers’ value and risk perceptions of circular
fashion: Comparison between second-hand, upcycled, and recycled clothing.
Sustainability,13, 1208–1231. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13031208
Kimura, T., Hanamitsu, H., Kurahashi, N., & Kimura, T. (2010). Recycle of polyester/cotton
mixed yarn as reinforcement of hybrid composite material. Journal of Materials
Science and Engineering, 4(11), 8–12.
http://search.proquest.com/docview/855700210/
Koch, K. (2019). Report on a clothing upcycling seminar, Dunedin: Researching clothing
upcycling in Otago. Scope: Arts & Design, pp. 88–99
http://doi.org/10.34074/scop.1017005
Kusakabe, E. (2013). Advancing sustainable development at the local level: The case of
Mochizuki in Japanese cities. Progress in Planning, 80, 1–65.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.progress.2012.06.001
McKinney, E., Cho, E., Zhang, L., Eike, R., & Sanders, E. (2020). Analysis of zero waste
patternmaking approaches application to apparel. In S. S. Muthu, & M. A. Gardetti,(Eds.), Sustainability in the textile and apparel industries: Sustainable textiles,
clothing design and repurposing (pp. 31–51).Cham: Springer.
Ministry of the Environment Government of Japan. (2010). Establishing a sound materialcycle society: Milestone toward a sound material-cycle society through changes inbusiness and lifestyles. Accessed October 4, 2020, fromhttps://www.env.go.jp/en/recycle/smcs/a-rep/2010gs_full.pdf
Ministry of Environment Government of Japan. (2012). Solid waste management andrecycling technology of Japan: Toward a sustainable society. Accessed October 4,2020 from https://www.env.go.jp/en/recycle/smcs/attach/swmrt.pdf
Ministry of the Environment Government of Japan. (2017). Annual report of statistics.
Accessed October 10, 2020, fromhttp://www.env.go.jp/en/statistics/contents/2017/E2017_Ch4.pdf
Ministry of the Environment Government of Japan. (2018). Fundamental plan forestablishing sound material-cycle society. Retrieved October 10, 2020, fromhttps://www.env.go.jp/en/recycle/smcs/4th-f_Plan.pdf
Ministry of Foreign Affairs (2016). Japan: The SDGs implementation guiding principles.
Accessed October 18, 2020, fromhttps://www.mofa.go.jp/mofaj/gaiko/oda/sdgs/pdf/000252819.pdf
Morishita, S. (2018). Spreading implementation of SDGs in Japan. In T. Hasegawa, & M,
Sakurai, (Eds.), Japan Environment Quarterly, 18, 1–11.
Namba, T. (2012). Gakkou seifukuno bunkashi: Nihonkinndai ni okeru jyoshiseitofukusou noHenkan [History of girls’ school uniform in Japan]. Osaka: Sougensha.
Oba, K. (2019, January 10). The fact of off-be the universal standard of the plastic recycled
rate of Japan: Recycled. Forbes Japan.
https://forbesjapan.com/articles/detail/24796/3/1/1
Ogata, M. (2013). Nihon no yosoka ni miru wafukuji no shiyo ni tsuite [On the use ofJapanese-style clothing materials as seen in the westernization of clothing in Japan].
Journal of Bunka Women’s University, 44.

60

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Okazaki, M. (2015), Kimono Now, New York: Prestel Publishing.
Rissanne, T. (2008). Creating fashion without the creation of fabric waste. In L. Henthorn, &C. Ulacewitz (Eds.), Sustainable Fashion: Why now? New York: Fairchild
Publishing.
Shen, D., Richards, J., & Lui, F. (2013). Consumer’s awareness of sustainable fashion.
Marketing Management Journal, 12(2), 134–147.
Shimizu, K. (2008). Yukata--- the various aspects and the development of the design in the
Edo period. Seni Gakkaishi, 64(10), 351–354. https://doi.org/10.2115/fiber.64.P_351
Štefko, R. & Steffek, V. (2018). Key issues in slow fashion: Current challenges and future
perspectives. Sustainability, 10(7), 2270, 1–11. http://doi:10.3390/su10072270
Stewart, B. (2014). Upcycling: The new wave of sustainable fashion. Triple Pundit. Accessed
September 10, 2020, from https://www.triplepundit.com/story/2014/upcycling-newwavesustainable-fashion/58691
Teijin CRS Report. (2007). Aims for a recycling brand society Teijins’s Eco-Circle.
Accessed September 10, 2020, fromhttps://www.teijin.com/csr/vision/pdf/Dialogue_FY2007.pdf
Uchimaru, M., Kimura, T. & Sato, T. (2013). Study on recycling system of waste textiles
based on colour. Journal of Textile Engineering, 59(6), 159–164.
https://doi.org/10.4188/jte.59.159
UNESCO. (2017). UNESCO Moving forward the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable
Development. Accessed September 10, 2020, fromhttp://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0024/002477/247785e.pdf
UNICLO.com. (n. d.). The power of clothing: Re Uniqlo. Retrieved March 24, 2021, fromhttps://www.uniqlo.com/en/re-uniqlo/
United Nations. (2020). Take action for the sustainable development goals. Accessed
December 28, 2020, from https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/sustainabledevelopment-goals/
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. (2017). Nondurable goods: product-specific data.
Retrieved September 10, 2020 from https://www.epa.gov/facts-and-figures-aboutmaterials-waste-and-recycling/nondurable goods-product-specificdata#ClothingandFootwear
Valk, J. (2018). From duty to fashion: the changing role of the kimono in the twenty-first
Century. Fashion Theory: The Journal of Dress, Body & Culture, 22(3), 309–340.
https://doi.org/10.1080/1362704X.2017.1359946
Wangari, M. M. (2011). Mottainai green project. Accessed June 18, 2020, fromhttp://www.mottainai.info/jp/about/Weber, S., Lynes, J., & Young, S. B. (2016). Fashion interest as a driver for consumer textile
waste management: reuse, recycle or disposal. International Journal of Consumer
Studies, 41(4), 207–215. https://doi.org/10.1111/ijcs.12328
Yagi, Y. and Yuasa, T. (2018), Tokyo street style. New York: Abrams.
Yanagisawa, S., Ishida, H., Ito, R., Ishige, F., & Watanabe M. (1971). Hifuku Koseigaku[Study of the Composition of Clothing]. Tokyo, Japan: Kouseikan.

61

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Yoo, F., Jung, H., & Oh, K. (2021). Motivators and barriers for buying intention of upcycled
fashion products in China. Sustainability 13(5), 2584–2603.
https://doi.org/10.3390/su13052584
Zou, Y., Reddy, N., & Yang, Y. (2011). Reusing polyester/cotton blend fabrics forcomposites. Composites Part B-Engineering, 42(4), 763–770.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compositesb.2011.01.022
Corresponding author: [Minako McCarthy]
Contact email: minako@hawaii.edu

62

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Appendix A
University of Hawai’i
Questionnaire in a Research Project
Minako McCarthy, Principal Investigator
Tentative title: Slow Fashion Concept Upcycled Kimonos as Recycle-oriented Cultural Sustainability
Background questions: Please circle MOST applicable for you and fill in the blanka)

Sex: Male, Female, Othersb) Ethnicity: How do you identify yourself? __________________
c)

Age: please specify your age if you don’t mind.

________d) Class level: Freshman, Sophomore, Junior, Senior, or otherse)Major: __________________

f)

First Language you speak: __________________________

Please answer the questions shown below. Choose the best applicable answer
1.

How often do you purchase new clothes?
A)

More than once a year

B)

Once a year

C)

Every two-three months

D)

Once a monthE)

Twice a week

F)

Once a week

G)

Others; please specify ____________

2.

Where do you purchase your clothes?

3.

How do you get rid of your clothes?

4.

A)

Give to siblings or friends

B)

Sell or donate to thrift shops

C)

Leave in your closets

D)

Threw in the trash bin

E)

Others; please specify _________________________

Do you own a Kimono?

Yes

or

(ア) If so, how many kimonos do you own?
5.

Do any of your family members own a kimono?
A)

No________________
Yes

or No

If so, how many and what kind do they own? ________________

63

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

6.

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

How often do you wear kimono?
A)

More than once a year

B)

Once a year

C)

Once in several years

D)On some special occasions/ eventsE)

Never wore

7.

How do your life and kimonos are related together? Any experiences, perceptions, or preferences?
A) Several times yearB) Once a yearC) Once in several years
D) Special occasions or events, such as weddings etc…

8.

How do kimonos and your daily lives connect? Please describe your experiences, family customs,
or any onions.

9.

Have you recycled (up-cycled) kimono to other garments (articles)?
Yes
or
No

10.

If so, can you tell me the details? What items have you made into? How were your experiences?

11.

Have you seen any recycled (up-cycled) garments using kimonos?
Yes

or

No

12.

If so, can you tell me the details? When and where did you see it? design, color, etc…

13.

How did you feel about those upcycled kimono garments or articles?

14.

Sustainability contains various meanings. What does sustainability mean to you?

15.

Would you be interested in recycling (up-cycling) your own clothes into a new garment?
Yes

16.

or

No

If so, can you describe any particular garments that you would like to make it? (someone to
make it for you?)

17. Would you be interested in recycling (up-cycling) your own or second-handed kimono into a
new garment?
Yes
or
No

18. If so, can you describe any particular garments that you would like to make it? (someone to
make it for you?)
19. What do you think are the challenges to implementing recycling (up-cycling) kimono tocurrent young generations?

Thank you for participating in the questionnaire.

64

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Appendix B
University of Hawai’i
Questionnaire in a Research Project
Minako McCarthy, Principal Investigator
Tentative title: Slow Fashion Concept Upcycled Kimonos as Recycle-oriented Cultural Sustainability

アンケート参加者情報：それぞれ当てはまる情報にチェック、もしくは貴方の情報を書き込んでくだ
さい。
A)

性別：

B)

出身：

女性、男性、その他__________________（日本の場合、都道府県；海外の場合、出身国をお願いします）
C)

年齢：

D)

学年：

E)

専攻:

F)

第一言語： __________________________________もしよろしければ

貴方の年齢を書き込んでください。

1 年生、２年生、３年生、４年生、その他＿＿＿＿__________________

下記の質問にお答えください。当てはまる項目を一つ選ぶ、または答えられる限りお願いします。

1.

どのくらいの頻度で新しい洋服を購入しますか？
A)

数年に一回

B)

一年に一回

C)

２、３ヶ月に一回

D)

１ヶ月に一回E)

２週間に一回F)

１週間に一回G)

その他

具体的に教えてください

2.

主にどのようなお店で洋服を購入しますか？

3.

古い洋服はどのように処分しますか？

＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿

A)

身内に譲る

B)

リサイクルショップなどに寄付もしくは売るC)処分せず、保有する

D)

粗大ゴミにする

65

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

E)

その他

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

具体的に教えてください＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿

4.

和服（着物など）を所有していますか？

5.

もし、お持ちの場合、何着の着物を所有していますか？＿＿＿＿＿＿着。

6.

貴方の家族や親戚の方は和服（着物など）を所有していますか？
はい、

はい、

もしくは

もしくは

いいえ

いいえ

7.

もし、お持ちの場合、大体のべ何着の着物を所有していますか？＿＿＿＿＿

8.

どのくらいの頻度で着物を着ますか？ 当てはまるものにチェックをつけてください。

9.

A)

一年に数回、B)

一年に一度、

C)

数年に一度、

D)

特別なイベント（結婚式やその他）などの時、E)一度も着たことがない

貴方の生活と着物はどのようにつながっていると思いますか？経験、家族などの関わりや、意見、好みなど、 どんなことでも構いません。

10. 着物をリサイクルして新しい服や小物などを製作したことはありますか？
はい、

もしくは

いいえ

11. もし製作したことがある場合、どのようなものを作られましたか？そして、その経験はどのようなものでしたか？

12. 今まで和服（着物など）をリサイクルし新しく生まれ変わった服や小物を見たことがあ
りますか？
はい、
もしくは
いいえ

13. 見たことがある場合、いつ、どこでそのような新しく生まれ変わったものを見ましたか？その和服（着物など）や小物の色やデザインなどはどの様なものでしたか？

66

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

14. その新しく生まれ変わった和服（着物など）や小物に対しての感想をお聞かせください。

15. サスティンアビリティという言葉を耳にしたことがあると思いますが、いろいろな意味を持っている概念、言葉です。貴方が思うサスティナビリティの定義、意味をお教えください。

16. 古い洋服をリサイクルし、新しい洋服や小物を作ることに興味がありますか？
はい、

もしくは

いいえ

17. 興味がある場合、どのような洋服や、小物を作ってみたいですか？もしくは誰かに作ってもらいたいですか？

18. 古い着物をリサイクルし、新しい洋服や小物を作ることに興味がありますか？
はい、

もしくは

いいえ

19. 興味がある場合、どのような新しい洋服や、小物を作ってみたいですか？もしくは誰かに作ってもらいたいですか？

20.

新しい洋服が手軽に手に入るこの世の中、古い洋服、和服をリサイクルし、新しい服や小物を作るということを現在そしてこれからの方々がこのようなことを試みるとしたら、どのような課題があると考えますか？

アンケートのご協力をありがとうございました。

67

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

68

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

The Ancestors of a New Society: The Tribes (Buzoku) and their Journey
through the Misunderstandings of the Japanese Countercultural Scene
Yaxkin Melchy
University of Tsukuba, Japan69

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Abstract
Buzoku 部族, generally translated as The Tribe (or The Tribes), was a transnational collectiveof artists, poets, activists, and young people who soon became one of the most vital Japanesecounterculture voices. Between 1967 and 1980, they participated in what they called “building
a new society into the shell of this civilization” in the Japanese islands. Despite scholars andmass media’s recent interest in their lives and literary works, there are common
misunderstandings resulting from characterizing Buzoku as the Japanese hippies, or fūten. This
paper focuses on the transition period (1965-1968), going from the foundation of the priorgroup named Bum Academy to the formation of Buzoku. This article recounts this part of their
history to show that this transition was vital for forging Buzoku’s identity and original ideology
guided by a cross-cultural approach to spirituality and arts. They used a range ofsynchronization, translation, appropriation, and juxtaposition skills to set the bases of a“dreamed” community of tribes. This research shows that at least one countercultural collectivein Japan’s sixties scene was involved in complex linguistic, artistic, and spiritualsynchronizations with the global scene while simultaneously practicing the art of embodying
the dream of building a new civilization.
Keywords: Buzoku, countercultural, fūten, hippie, Nanao Sakaki70

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Introduction
Buzoku 部族, generally translated as The Tribe (or The Tribes) was the name adopted by agroup of artists, poets, activists, and young people that between 1967 and 1980 participated in
the creation of what they called “a new society into the shell of this civilization” 1 in theJapanese islands. During this time, the group, originally divided into five “tribes”, founded
three communes and meditation centers, printed a newspaper, attempted for communitarian
agriculture and business, hold artistic parades, poetry readings, and took part in environmental
and spiritual activism. Despite its short existence, their collective experiences and artistic
works served as a precedent for the Japanese countercultural movements, the alternative media,
and the artistic sensibility of the next generations.
Because the group was strongly inspired and nurtured directly by the beatnik and the Americancountercultural ambient of the sixties’ decade, specially through Gary Snyder and Allen
Ginsberg, it is often associated with the beatnik, hippie and fūten generational identities.
However, as Nagasawa Tetsuo one of the founders of Buzoku has clarified in many interviews,
the members of these “tribes” did not identify themselves with these names, but rather
perceived their groups as part of a transnational movement of many tribes that were creating a
new culture and building a new civilization. Even though the group was mainly formed by
Japanese, they also received people from other nationalities and participated in variedtranslation projects. Despite their members settled in different locations and found different
paths in life, the movement shared a common origin in the “Bum Academy” (Bamu Academī
バム・アカデミー

バム・アカデミー or sometimes written as 乞食学会 ) a previous group of vagabond poets

founded by Nanao Sakaki, Yamao Sansei, Nagasawa Tetsuo and Akiba Kenji, which adopted
the name from a suggestion of Gary Snyder, who connected the way of life of these Japaneseartists with Jack Kerouac’s novel called The Dharma Bums.
Today, Buzoku’s life stories and works are becoming powerful voices in the Japanese literary
and cultural scene. For example, the Tokyo Poetry Journal issue on the Japanese beatnik scene“Japan & The Beats” (vol. 5, 2018) and the Spectator Magazine issue titled “The JapaneseHippie Movement” (vol. 45, 2019)2 focus their attention on Buzoku’s poets. Even before this,
episodes from Buzoku’s time had attracted Gary Snyder’s biographers’ attention, and Nanao
Sakaki is still a well-known name for almost all the beatnik generation scholars. Moreover,recently, Buzoku’s founder’s poetry, particularly Nanao Sakaki and Yamao Sansei’s works,
has come into the spotlight of Transpacific and Japanese environmental and cultural criticism(Nagakari 2004, Thornber, 2012, 2014, Teranishi 2015, Masami, 2017, Melchy, 2017). The
recent bibliography illuminates Buzoku’s contributions to the ecological literature and theconnections between Japanese counterculture, environmentalism, and spirituality. Also,
Buzoku’s legacy is now becoming perceived by the Japanese mass media as containing
valuable teachings and messages for current environmental issues (Yamamoto, 2020).

1

The theme was initially coined by the Industrial Workers of the World labor union, commonly known as
wobblies. Gary Snyder echoes this theme in his article “Passage to more than India”, published in Earth House
Hold. Technical Notes & Queries To Fellow Dharma Revolutionaries, New York: New Directions, 1969.
Buzoku’s manifesto (Buzoku sengen) of 1967 appropriated this theme. This appropriation introduces the main
topic of this paper: the countercultural synchronizations, appropriations, and juxtapositions carried by theJapanese members of Buzoku.
2
Nihon no hippī mūvumento. We are the primitives of an unknown culture. Spectator Magazine Vol. 45. (2019)71

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Despite all this new interest and recognition to the influence of their life and works, to a curious
observer not being Japanese nor being part of the Japanese countercultural generation, there
are still gaps and obscure parts in Buzoku’s history that make it challenging to identify theirprotagonist, their movements, the particularities of Buzoku’s “ideology,” and the origins of
their ideas and dreams. Nevertheless, there is a considerable number of sources and documents:
the memories written by Buzoku’s founders: Yamao Sansei and Pon (Yamada Kaiya), thepictures taken by notable photographers such as Fukushima Kikujirō, the Buzoku’s
publications, magazine articles, and interviews. However, most of these materials are notavailable in libraries or bookstores, and they scarcely circulate beyond the countercultural andunderground scene. I have found one of the major archives in Hobbito-mura, an alternative life
center located in Ogikubo, Tokyo, that was founded as a commune. Hobbito-mura holds alibrary, a cafeteria, a meditation room, and a free-of agrochemical vegetable shop. Among themany projects carried in Hobbito-mura, one especially significant in preserving Buzoku’s
memory has been a cycle of interviews with the protagonists of the Japanese counterculture
called “Countercultural Archive: My Blue Sky” (Kauntākaruchā ākaibu: Watashi no Aozora).
The recorded interviews and other valuable materials in the Archive have been uploaded by
Makita Kikori on his Youtube channel.
In this paper, I want to focus on the “period of transition” (1965-1968) that goes from thefoundation of the “Bum Academy,” by a group of poets that gathered in a cafeteria in Shinjuku,
to the formation of “Buzoku,” a transnational collective that soon became one of the most vital
voices in the Japanese counterculture. This article attempt is to show that this transition wasvital for forging Buzoku’s identity and original ideology, which defies the stereotypical notions
around many countercultural discourses. This originality also helps us understand Buzoku’s
criticism of the material civilization (busshitsu bunmei 物質文明) and their connections with theinternational beatnik scene. As this historical recount tries to show, Buzoku was fundamentallya movement seeking to create an alternative global modern culture guided by a cross-cultural
approach to spirituality and arts. They used their poetical and artistical complicity, translation
skills, and networks to set the bases of a “dreamed” community firmly rooted in work,“primitive” and “ancestral wisdom” while engaging in a cross-cultural vision of modernity thatwas synchronized with the generational spirit of the sixties. Buzoku’s seed and its legacy wereborn amidst many processes of synchronization, translation, appropriation, and juxtaposition
carried by artists, hitchhiking travelers, and very young people. The Buzoku seed began at acoffee lounge called Fugetsudō in the Shinjuku area and then moved to a farming landscape, avolcano island, and a building in the suburbs.
This article is based on an extensive history of Buzoku published in Spectator magazine volume
no.45 titled “The Japanese Hippie Movement: We are the primitives of an unknown culture”(2019), particularly on the manga there included, titled “The Japanese Hippie Movement” by
Akata Ryūchi 赤田 祐一 and Sekine Myū 関根美有, and the interview to Nagasawa Tetsuō andfacsimile documents included in that issue. It also integrates some Yamao Sansei’s memories
to be found in the book: The narrow path: Family, Work and Beloved things (Semai michi.
Kazoku to shigoto to aisuru koto, 2018), the testimony of Miyauchi Katsusuke (1987) and an
anonymous special feature on Buzoku’s poetical parade held in Miyazaki, published by the
Shūkan Dokubai magazine in 1967. I also decided to include some photographs from the The
Tribes Diary (Buzoku shinbun, 1967) and Fukushima Kikujirō photographic essays in The
postwar youth, part II. Ribu and Fūten (Sengo no wakamonotachi, part II ribu to fūten, 1981).

72

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Fugetsudō Coffeehouse
Fugetsudō Coffeehouse ( 風月道 喫茶店) was a coffee shop and music lounge located in the
district of Shinjuku (3-chōme) near to the East exit of Shinjuku Station in Tokyo. The mediumsized business opened from 1951-1973. It was owned by the record entrepreneur and wealthy
painting collector Goro Yokoyama and managed by Yamaguchi Mamoru. It was a popularmeeting place for Japanese and international countercultural artists, beatniks, and hippies inTokyo during the sixties.
According to Akane and Sekine, during the fifties and early sixties, the Shinjuku district wascharacterized by cheap hotels that received many low-budget international travelers who cameto the Tokyo Olympics in 1964. Among those travelers was the journalist John Wilcock, whopublished in 1965 the travel bestseller Japan and Hong Kong on Five Dollars a Day, in which
Fugetsudō is described as the hotspot of the Japanese artistic vanguard. 3 John Wilcock’s book
led to the popularization of Shinjuku among many young travelers from around the world
making Fugetsudō an ideal place for encounters between Japanese and Foreign backpackers,
artists, and travelers. According to Yamaguchi Mamoru, the interaction between foreigners andJapanese raised a shared sense of solidarity (Akata and Sekine 2019, 53)
Fugetsudō is described as a place where people could sit for many hours just by consuming a
coffee cup. It is described as a two-floor classic coffeehouse with a cosmopolitan ambient. The
first floor was a common meeting point for artists, young people, and travelers, while thesecond floor was a well-known meeting point for the Japanese Student Political Activists of
Zengakuren (全学連). It was frequently compared with the famous Greenwich Village District
cafeterias of Manhattan. Also, it was the meeting point for a translation study group thatgathered every night. Fukujima Kikujirō display twenty pictures, along with an introduction on
Fugetsudō. His pictures capture the atmosphere of the Shinjuku coffee shop, as seen on Figure 1.

3 Time after, it would be called the “meca” of the Japanese hippies and an avant- garde spot visited by artists such as

Ono Yoko, Terayama Shūji, and Akaji Maro (Akata and Sekine 43–44)

73

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Figure 1
Interior of Fugetsudō Coffee shop in Shinjuku (Fukushima 福島, 1981)

Among the people participating in Fugetsudō study and translation group was Nanao Sakaki,
a vagabond poet and frequent visitor who used to approach friendly to the different people
gathered in the coffee lounge. Yamao Sansei says that whenever he was always penniless,
Nanao was a natural leader and a confident person who always figured the way somebody
would invite him some drink (Yamao 山尾, 2018, p. 41). Despite his eccentricity, or maybe
because of it, Nanao was also a natural leader for many young people, among them Yamao
itself and Nagasawa Tetsuo, a young poet and Sanskrit translator who used to hang out with
Nanao in Fugetsudō. Fugetsudō was the place that hosted the translation study group and later
became the “meeting point” of Bum Academy members and a place that fostered their contact
with foreigners. Yamaguchi also remembers Fugetsudō as the place where a kind of “tribal”
ideology appeared around 1965, when all the Translation Group members appeared dressed in
Ainu attires and with a strange new appearance. According to Yamaguchi he could feel that at
this point the group had already formed an ideological basis and become a community (Akata
and Sekine 54) 4. Nonetheless there was still some way to go before the formation of Buzoku

According to Akata and Sekine, the “Bum Academy” group had already departed from the Fugetsudō ambientby 1965. (54)474

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

in 1967. This transition period is characterized by the group’s first public demonstrations as
The Bum Academy.
The “Bum Style”
In 1965, Nanao Sakaki, “Nāga” (Nagasawa Tetsuo), Yamada Kaiya, Yamao Sansei, and thesenior high school student “Namo” (Nagamoto Mitsuo) formed a new group they called Bum
バム・アカデミー

Academy (Bamu Academī バ ム ・ ア カ デ ミ ー or sometimes written as 乞 食 学 会 ). Bum
Academy forged a collective identity based on literary translations and practices of wandering
through the Japanese islands that Nanao began to learn and promote around a decade before.
Nanao’s school of wandering was built on a set of appropriations and juxtapositions of Asianand Japanese spiritual wandering narratives (haiku poets and Buddhist sages), the visions on
wandering and nomadism by indigenous peoples, and the beatnik countercultural wanderingnarrative. Nanao’s forged these visions in his own life and wandering practice, in such a waythat people used to call it simply as Nanao’s style, or what Yamao Sansei calls “the way of thevagabonds” (放浪者の道).
Regarding the term “Bum”, it was adopted by Nanao and his followers, who were inspired byJack Kerouac’s novels. According to Miyauchi, the writer and Zen practitioner Gary Snyder,once named, in a joking manner, Nanao’s Sakaki group as the “Bum Academy” due to theirstyle that resembled the hitchhiking poets described in Kerouac’s novels. In addition to this,almost all Nanao’s friends had read Jack Kerouac’s novel On the road, and probably, the novel
The Dharma Bums (The book appeared translated into Japanese until 1973 translated as Zen
hippie 禅ヒッピー). For instance, Miyauchi who was 17 or 18 years old at the time, had On theroad as a model for a way of life to follow (Miyauchi, 1987, p.153) For Miyauchi, a charming
aspect of the beatnik generation was their approach to Buddhism. (p.153). Moreover, according
to Miyauchi, the Japanese “bums” were enchanted by the beatnik’s writers’ ideals of a “return”
to the primitive, spiritual, and wild (荒野) amidst a civilization perceived in crisis (p.154-155).
Also, Yamao Sansei reflects on the foundation of the Bum Academy and his connection withJack Kerouac’s novel On the Road, as follows: “When I was a university student, I read Jacks
Kerouac’s On the Road and was knocked down by his book. Then, I was just an insignificant
private tutor, but my soul wanted to beat.” 5
According to Yamao Sansei, since before the foundation of the “Bum Academy,” Nanao
instructed young people, who often approached him looking for advice, to embark on long
journeys across the country without or almost without money. To travel without money was
the only condition that Nanao set out to these younger people overwhelmed by their lifestyles.
Yamao relates in his memories an episode on how Nanao instructed a friend called Shirasu
Ryū (Shiro) who used to work in a juvenile detention facility (鑑別所) in Nerima:
⸺Your eyes are dirty⸺ said Nanao.
⸺I can’t bear looking at your dirty eyes, so please embark on a long
journey⸺repeated Nanao.
⸺ And how should I do that travel⸺ asked Shiro.

5 学生の頃、ジャック・ケラワックの『路上』を読み、その本にぶっとばされていた僕は、形の上ではしがない家庭教師だったが、魂はビートのつもりだった。(Yamao, 2018, p.43)

75

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

⸺ Take out your pants⸺ replied Nanao. When Shiro obediently took off his pants,
Nanao took a scissor he had neat to him and cut the pant legs to half,transformingthe garment into short pants.
⸺Now put that on and set out to your trip⸺ said Nanao.
⸺Yes, replied Shiro, putting on his cut pants, and despite owning just one or two
hundred yens, he departed from Tokyo to Kagoshima by hitchhiking.
(Yamao 山尾, 2018, p. 38)6
As revealed by the previous episode, Nanao was very serious about traveling without money
as a way to purify one’s life. The instruction of traveling without money may force people toperform two actions that seemed necessary for Nanao: to walk long distances and to connect
with other people. Nanao knew this by experience, and as an admirer and translator of
Kobayashi Issa haikus and Milarepa chants, he also knew that these experiences wereconstituent parts of ancient and spiritual paths for discovering our true self. Nanao’s stylediffered from the common ways of travel promoted by the burgeoning “material civilization”
testing people self-confidence and determination. In a time in which modernization had
provided Japanese society with effective means of transport that had become a consumablecommodity, Nanao’s way would force people to travel, opening our body, mind, and senses tothe risk of a broader experience of discovering the material and non-material connectedness
with others.
To sum up, “The Bum Academy” was a cross between paths, between Nanao’s vagabond way
grown in Japan’s streets and country roads during the fifties and early sixties and the attemptof Nanao and his followers to synchronize this way with their admired American beatnik peers.
This counter-cultural synchronization materializes in the term that Yamao Sansei uses to name
バム・アカデミー

the Bum Academy: 乞食学会 a neologism that translates and synchronizes a Japanese word
and a Buddhist term with an American beatnik identity flag. Fugetsudō’s translation circle andthe experience of encountering with international beatniks were some of the factors thatfacilitated this counter-cultural synchronization. Literature and poetry became translation
vehicles for this group of young artists exploring their spiritual path around Nanao’s and Gary’s
figures. The friendship between these admired Japanese and American poets was seen as abridge that connected spiritually young Japanese voices with those of their American peers.
In 1966 the Bum Academy organized The First Festival of the Bum Academy in Shinjuku. The
next year, they organized a Second Festival, which the invitation was published in the Psyche
Journal no. 001 (April 5th of 1967) designed by Pon and Toshie Nakazima. In this Journal
appear an invitation signed by Gary Snyder, Allen Ginsberg, and Paul Krassner to manifest
against the war and for peace; also appear a poetic manifesto in Japanese and English divided
into eight sections arranged in a design of Buddhist inspiration (Designed by Yamada Kaiya).
6 「君の眼は汚い」とナナオが言った。
「君の眼は汚くて見るに耐えない。旅に出なさい」とナナオが言った。
「ようやって旅に出るんですか」とシロは尋ねた。
「君のズボンを脱げ」とナナオが言った。シロが素直にスボンを脱ぐと、側にあったハサミでそのスボンを半パンに切手、「それをはいて旅に出なさい」とナナオは言った。
「はい」とシロは答え、半パンに切られたズボンをはくと、百円か二百円のお金は持っていただろうが、そのまま東京から鹿児島へ向
かって、ヒッチハイクの旅に出て行った。(p.38)

76

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

It also appears the invitation to the poetical parade “Revolution by Love” (Designed by Toshie
Yakazima). It also appears Gary Snyder’s text “Buddhism & the coming revolution” translated
into Japanese by Nagasawa Tetsuo. (with a picture from July 1963 of Nagasawa, Snyder, andGinsberg in Kyoto).
The Bun Academy carried out its Second Festival titled “Revolution by Love. Poem reading,Free Words & Music”. The pamphlet of the event has written the names Nanao Sakaki, Gary
Snyder, Phillip Whalen, Franco Beltrametti, Harry Hoogstraten, Yamao Sansei, Nagasawa
Tetsuo, and Akiba Kenji. Also, it has written: “Bring shōchū and goats! Bring a wonderful
kiss! Bring dandelions and flowers of renge, and also bring your frustration! A Gathering anda Parade for a Prophecy of Destruction of Human Beings” (p.51.)7 At this Festival, the Bum
Academy poets carried out a Poetical Parade that announced the “collapse of the world” (sekaino metsubō 世界の滅亡). The parade departed from Toyama Heights to Shinjuku station’s west
exit. The next day was carried a poetry reading in the Meiji Yasuda Hall (新宿西口安田生命ホール)8. The festival was followed the same year by a Third Festival in Miyazaki city (August 2021, 1967) and a fourth Festival carried in 1968 in Kagoshima city. As Akata and Sekine note,
this festival was carried just three months after the massive parade called Human Be-In thatgathered around 30 mil people in San Francisco, suggesting that there was an intensetranspacific dialogue among these young scenes. Also, it seems that during this period appeared
among the Bum Academy the slogan “We are the primitives of an unknown culture” (ware hamada shirarezaru bunmei no genshijin de aru ワレラハ未ダ知ラレザル文明の原始人デアル).
The Born of Buzoku as a Tribe of Tribes
In the Japanese context, Buzoku history is the story of a “tribe” among other tribes of the sixties.
For instance, the suffix 族 is used to refer to the collective gathered around a specific place oridentity: Fugetsudō-zoku or fūten-zoku. Akata and Sekine’s work helps us understand thislandscape of different tribes, which shared familiar meeting places, tastes, and outlooks by thelate sixties. Among these “tribes” were also the so-called hippies and fūten (Japanese young
people who adopted hippie fashion and a semi-homeless lifestyle). As Akata and Sekine pointout the Japanese media tended to refer to them indistinctly as hippies of fūten. Even so, Bum
Academy members had their own characteristic ideals and visions, or what Yamaguchi called
their ideology.
There are many reasons why Bum Academy members decided to transform and split the group
into tribes and attempt a new way of life different from the countercultural scene in Tokyo.
Some of these reasons are:
1. The desire to engage in full-time communal living led to the necessity to find a place
to settle down collectively.
2. The changes taking place in the burgeoning Tokyo due to gentrification: The Fugetsudōstaff became less permissive with the Bum members’ non-consuming practices.
3. Gary Snyder’s text “Why Tribe” of 1966, translated by Nāga, plus letters and diaries
received with news on the West Coast scene (especially San Francisco Oracle
underground newspaper) that inspired the Bum members to go into a new stage.
4. The Bum members’ connection with the spiritual and ancient practices (Zen meditation,
Advaita, Milarepa, native American, Ainu, and Australian aboriginal spiritual visions)
7「焼酎もってこい、山羊もってこい！ゴールデンバットもってこい！素晴らしい Kiss もってこい！タンポポとレンゲの花もってこい、フラストレイションも！Psyche Journal facsimile reproduction in (Akata 赤田 & Sekine 関根, 2019, p. 51)
8This Hall operated until May 31st, 2017 when it was finally closed. http://meijiyasuda-life-hall.com/

77

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

was perceived as trivialized by the ongoing popularization of the hippie fashion and the“junkie” counterculture (two aspects that became characteristic of fūten).
The first and second reasons are closely related to the urban space. According to Pon, one of
the members of the Tribe cited by Akita and Sekine, despite Shinjuku in 1967 still being the
spot for the fūten, gay and anarchist scene, the zone was rearranged as part of an urbanization
plan before 1970 (when the Us-Japan Security Treaty was going to be extended). Open meeting
points as the famous green area called The Greenhouse ( グリーンハウス) were prohibited or
suppressed. Namo, one of the new Buzoku members, also explains that many of the bums
(including him) wanted to settle permanently in a place wide enough to accommodate many
people, and thus began to search for ideal spaces in Tokyo’s outskirts.
Regarding drug consumption, Bum Academy members’ irritation in front of the hippie
movement’s ongoing popularization of drugs is more subtle and even complicated. According
to Miyauchi, between the “process that goes from beatniks to commune living” was the “drugissue” (Miyauchi 154). Miyauchi says that he sympathized with a particular vision of
consuming mushrooms, marijuana, and peyote (LDS, which was prohibited in Japan in 1970)
as spiritual jumpers, while unable to empathize with the “junkie” vision of drug consuming as
represented in that time by heroin and Burroughs approach to drug consuming. Even so, thejunkie vision soon became particularly popular in Tokyo, during the summer of 1967, andmany youngsters who escaped their house in 1967, embraced the hippie fashion, a homeless
life, and popularized thinner inhalation in plastic bags. They were the so-called fūten, portrayedby the Japanese media as the Japanese hippies.9
Unlike the Bum Academy members, these youngsters were mainly boys and girls who had
escaped their houses without any apparent intention of contesting the materialist civilization,connecting with spiritual practices, or building a new culture. Conversely, the Bum members
had a special synchronicity with the beatnik generation members Allen Ginsberg and Gary
Snyder and their participation in the hippie movement was moved by the communitarian,
global, anti-war, and psychoactive vision on a new culture. Also, the Bums felt connected with
the Japanese “primitives” of the Jōmon period, with the saints of India and other peoples of theworld left apart by the “materialist civilization”. These features persisted and deepened when
they turned into Buzoku in 1967. The photography essay of Fukushima Kikujirō who visitedthe Fujimi commune or “Bum Ashram” in 1967 exemplify his perplexity before to what

Fūten (フーテン), coming from the existing word fūten 瘋癲 was the name adopted by groups of young people
that escaped from their houses and began to gather in the so-called “greenhouse” (グリーン・ハウス) a wide lawn
area and Shinjuku station area. According to Akata and Sekine (2018) these young people adopted the style andfashion of the American hippies, started a semi-homeless life around Shinjuku, and used to sniff inhalants such athinner consume sleeping drugs such as haiminaaru, (ハイミナール) called by them as Rariru (p. 64) Most offūten were under twenty years, liked modern jazz music and adopted this lifestyle without any manifesting any
political stance or criticism toward the social status quo. Following Bīto Takeshi, Akata and Sekine distinguish
fūten from hippie since the first can be described as Japanese young people that just copied the hippie fashion andlifestyle, without adopting their anti-war attitudes, utopian community dreams or critical messages. According to
Akata and Sekine, Japanese newspapers, reporters and magazines tended to call these young people the Japaneseversion of American hippie, using indistinctly fūten zoku and hippī zoku (Akata and Sekine 68). The people ofthe tribes were classified as fūten or hippies by the media (and later too by other artists from the counterculturalscene); however, many of them were openly against being called by these names. When questioned by reporters
and people curious about their identity, they called themselves just “bums” (バム), “vagabonds” (放浪者),“harijans”(ハリジャン) or “primitives” (原始人) who gathered into tribes that shared the common dreamof forming a new culture and civilization.
978

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

seemed a generational phenomenon of primitive-peasant young people in the plenty of theeconomically buoyant sixties in Japan (figures 2 and 3):
Figure 2
Nanda, One of the Founding Members of Buzoku in the Thunderbolt Red Crow Tribe Commune(Fukushima 福島, 1981)
Figure 3
Unidentified. Thunderbolt Red Crow Tribe Commune (Fukushima 福島, 1981)

Before displaying the fourteen pictures of this section, Fukushima Kikujirō writes anintroductory testimony on his visit to the commune founded by the Thunderbolt Red Crow
Tribe, one of the tribes of Buzoku. In this paragraph, one member of the commune manifests
his unconformity with being called fūten and explains his own vision:
Unfortunately, the chief, Sansei Yamao, was digging potatoes in the hatake, so
one of the young members, who was urban looking, offered himself to guide me.
“It’s annoying that we’re called fūten ...” he said first. The ideal of the Red Crows
was to predict the end of material civilization, to restore the original form of
human beings by creating an ancient society in this mountain, and to expand a“new human class society.” … They called themselves harijans (children of thegods, classless); by the same token, they called each other, regardless of their classor scholarship: “Sansei”, “Nanda”, “Captain”, “Boy A”, and so on. These79

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

primitive men used to be a devout worshiper, an artist, and a top-mode stylist.
(Fukushima 福島, 1981, pp. 106–107)10
The Original 5 Tribes
During the summer of 1967, the members of the Bum Academy (except for Nanao, who had
departed to a new journey) held a meeting in a Coffee shop called Seiga ( 青蛾). During thatmeeting, Bum Academy members changed the group’s name to Buzoku 部族 (The Tribes) andproposed a newspaper’s edition be called with the same name. For Nāga (Nagasawa Tetsuo),
who had translated an article sent to the group by Gary Snyder titled “Why Tribe” (1966), theoccasion was an opportunity for the group to jump into a new stage of building community(Akata and Sekine 59). In “Why Tribe,” the term tribe is proposed by Snyder as a term to referto a type of community in the “new society emerging within the industrial nations” and “agroup without nation or territory which maintains its own values, its language and religion, no
matter what country it may be in” (Snyder, Earth House Hold 113). 1967 was a decisive year
for the transition from the “Bum Academy” to “Buzoku”. According to Akata and Sekine’s
recounting of events, in the months from April to September of 1967, five tribes were
established. These tribes were:
1. The Thunderbolt Red Crow Tribe. (Kaminari akagarasu zoku カ ミ ナ リ 赤 鴉 族 ).
This tribe moved to the valley of Fujimi in Nagano Prefecture at the foot of Mt. Nyūkasa
(Nyūkasayama 入笠山). The Thunderbolt Red Crow Tribe was the first to settle a “base camp”
in a 2000 square meter terrain that Yamao Sansei and three friends bought in Fujimi valley(around April of 1967). Nagasawa Tetsuo and Akiba Kenji were the first ones that moved tothe terrain to begin with the camp base’s construction, logging, and farming. The name wasinspired by a local myth about a three-legged Crow that symbolized the Mountain and thefrequent lightings.11 Fukushima Kikujirō’s photographic essay: The Thunderbolt Red Crow
Tribe’s thoughts and expressions (Kaminari akaragasu zoku no shikō to hyōgen かみなり赤烏族の思考と表現 ) displays his visit to the commune and meditation center. As described by
Fukushima, at the commune’s entrance stood a plate with the legend “Bum Ashrama” written
on it.
2. The Banyan’s Dream Tribe. (Gajumaru no yume zoku が じ ゅ ま る の 夢 族 ).
This Tribe moved to the island of Suwanose in Kagoshima Prefecture and established a
meditation center that was later renamed as the Banyan Ashram (バンヤン・アシュラム). The
center and its commune lasted until 1980 when it was finally dissolved (Maebara 96). The ideaof turning the meditation center into an ashram seems to have emerged from the spiritualconnection that many members of these tribes felt toward Hinduism. Nanao’s original vision
for this ashram was to build in the island a “meditation center” in which they could retire tocultivate their body and spirit and practice a sustainable life by farming and fishing. For Nanao,
this was a necessary step for Buzoku members to overcome what he called the “disbelief of themodern civilization” (gendaibunka no fushin 現代文化の不信) (“Nihon Hippīzoku Minami
10

折悪しく酋長の山尾三省氏は畠に芋を掘りにでていたので、割に都会じみた青年の一人が案内役をしてくれた。「われわれがフーテンよばわりされているのは迷惑だ……」と彼はまず言った。赤烏族の理想は、物質文明の終末を予測し、この山中に、古代社会を創造することによって人間の原形を回復させ、”新人類部属社会。を全国に拡げてゆくことだった。……彼らは自らをハリジャン(神々の子、無階級者)と称していた。従って階級,学識を問わずお互いを サンセイ、ナンダ キャプテン、少年 A、という具合に呼びあっていた。この原始人たちは、敬虔な宗教者、アーチスト、トップモードのスタイリストだった。

Akata and Sekine vividly illustrate in their manga on The tribe “one ordinary day” in the Thunderbolt Red Crow
Tribe Commune.
1180

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

No Shima Ni Tatekomoru” 15). More than envisioning a commune, Nanao envisioned a stilland quiet place for meditation and spiritual practicing. Near to the place where Buzoku settled
stands a banyan tree in which they used to meditate. Apart from Nanao, among the first ones
who moved to Suwanose in 1967 were Nanda and Kyappu (Shinkai Kenji), later in July arrived
Nāga, Gary Snyder, and Masa Uehara.
3. The Emerald Breeze Tribe. (Emerarudo soyokaze zoku エ メ ラ ル ド そ よ 風 族 or
sometimes Emerarudo burīzu エメラルド・ブリーズ).
This Tribe moved to the district of Kokubunji in Tokyo and founded a commune-house in a
two-floor building that became a long-term residence for around 20 Tribe’s members. The
rental of the entire building was arranged by Yamao Sansei when the commune was set up in
1968. In the commune, the Tribe’s members shared their food and ran three commune’sbusiness: a food cart of Kagoshima style ramen ( 鹿児島ラーメンの屋台 ) and a rock musiccafeteria named Horakai (ほら貝). The commune lasted for two years, until 1970, when thebuilding was sold and the commune dissolved. (Maebara マエバラ, 2019, p. 95)
4. The Seven-Colored Rainbow Mantle Tribe. (Nanairo no niji no manto zoku 七色の虹のマント族).
This tribe supposedly gathered around Gary Snyder and his peers in Kyoto. Nevertheless, somemonths later, Gary and Masa moved to Suwanose island, and the tribe merged with the
Banyan’s Dream Tribe.
5. The Dreaming Hermit Crab Tribe. (Yume miru yadokari zoku 夢みるやどかり族)
This tribe moved to Miyazaki city by invitation of a local abstract painter named Itō Asahi ( 伊東旭), who was a sympathizer of Nanao and his peers. On August 20 and 21, they carried thethird “Bum Festival” In the Miyazaki Jingu sanctuary and the surrounding areas. According toa special feature published by a weekly magazine, this festival included yoga and meditation
sessions and held a musical-poetic parade. (“Nihon Hippiizoku Minami No Shima Ni
Tatekomoru,” 1967, p. 13). Later, near the coast, in what is today part of the city’s port, somemembers founded a commune that lasted until 1971 or 72. (Ono 小野, 2015)
The Publication of The Tribe Diary and the Founding of Communes
On December 20th of 1967 was published the first diary of Buzoku’s tribes, just called “The
Tribe Diary” (Buzoku Shinbun 部族新聞). In this first number appeared Nāga’s manifesto titled“Declaration of The Tribes” (Buzoku sengen 部族宣言 ), which would become later one of
Buzoku’ most representative manifestos. The first volume had a print-run of ten thousand
copies in full color. It had a cost of one hundred yen and became a major hit among thecountercultural scene in Japan, especially among the fūten and other young people who used
to hang out in the Shinjuku area. The second number of “The Tribe Diary” appeared on June
20th of 1968, pressed by The Emerald Breeze Tribe. As can be perceived from fig.1 and fig.2,
there are some similarities between the San Francisco Oracle diary and The Tribe Diary: thetwo-color print designs, the themes portraying an Indian ascetic, the psychedelic motifs, andthe use of the cover page as a pamphlet for a collective event to be held.

81

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Figure 4
The San Francisco Oracle, Cover of No. 5. January,1967 (Cohen, 1967)
Figure 5
The Tribes Diary, Cover of No.1. December, 1967 (in Yamada 山田, 2009)The San Francisco Oracle (Figure 4, left) was an underground newspaper published in San
Francisco by the poet Allen Cohen. Its 12 issues were published from 1966 until 1968. The
newspaper published many poems and texts of beatnik generation writers such as Allen
Ginsberg and Gary Snyder. The vol.1 no.5 (January 1967) displayed on its cover a poster for
the “Gathering of the Tribes in the Human Be”, a performance held on January 14th, 1967.
Similarly, The Tribe Diary cover (Figure 5, right) displays a poster for participating in the
recently established Meditation Center by the Thunderbolt Red Crow Tribe.
Newspaper publishing and meditation center-commune’s foundation were also ways in which
the Buzoku members synchronized with the ongoing movement of forming communes thatemerged across the United States of America. As intentional communities, many of thesecommunes initially took inspiration for their alternative lifestyle from European and Americansocialist cooperatives, Native American people’s villages, and religious communities such as
Indian Ashrams. For example, just in New Mexico, around 30 ashrams-communes were
established in the sixties, although almost all of them closed before 1973 (Lama Foundation,n.d.). Although through many transformations, one of the communes that remain until today is
the Lama Foundation, founded in 1967. In the same way, Buzoku’s communes were raised,taking elements from Hindu, Buddhist, and Native American spiritual paths, and combining
them in a juxtaposed collage of communitarian lifestyle that was going to be proved bydifficulties and challenges. Similarly, to many American countercultural communes, Buzoku’s

82

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

communes were dissolved as members moved or quit, while some proved to be the seed for
new communities still remaining.
Conclusion
First of all, creating a picture of the origins of The Tribe underlines the fact that it emerged
among a local scene in Japan (Shinjuku) in which many countercultural collectives (called
tribes) were coexisting. As the consciousness of a global countercultural scene spread after
1965, many groups were labeled (because of their fashion and attitudes) by the Japanese media
under the hippie’s etiquette or fūten (equivalent to the Japanese hippie). Moreover, when
Buzoku members moved beyond Tokyo, their performances, meditation centers, andcommunes were perceived as part of the hippie movement and the fūten phenomenon.
Nevertheless, The Tribe’s ideology has its origins years before the hippie movement’s
appearance in Japan and America in an active period between 1965 and 1967 as the Bum
Academy. As a result, both Japanese hippies and fūten tended to see Buzoku as theirpredecessor and often mention them as an inspiration. This research suggests that these factors
contributed to perceive Buzoku as the first hippies or fūten. Nonetheless, the tribe’s wanderer
poets, artists, and people that moved to the communes did not identify themselves with any ofthese generational flags, neither with the beatnik one.
Secondly, the research on impressions and episodes from The Bum Academy members reveals
that the group ethos was highly influenced by Nanao Sakaki’s way of practicing wandering(horōsha no michi 放浪 者の道 ) and Gary Snyder’s perspectives of the beatnik and othercountercultural movements. This significant double influence at the group formation shows acontinuous collaborative effort to synchronize the Japanese wandering ethos with the Westerncountercultural ethos (bums). This transpacific countercultural synchronization was adjustedwith the beatnik ethos through Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg, and majorly through Gary
Snyder’s figure. Gary Snyder was the direct interlocutor for Buzoku members due to his
Japanese language proficiency and because he was living in Japan. Consequently, his visionand interpretation of the West’s countercultural scene became predominant in the groups’ wayof synchronizing with the global countercultural scenario.
Thirdly, The Tribe’s synchronization process with the global countercultural scene must not beseen as a crude or pale imitation. According to this research, the counterculturalsynchronization of Buzoku was also a complex exercise of translations and appropriations. A
バム・アカデミー

representative example is a visually evident juxtaposition in the term 乞食学会 (a neologism
replacing the phonetic reading kojikigakkai こじきがっかい that corresponds with the kanji
traditional reading with the anglicism bamu academi バム・アカデミー ) and the appropriationof the term “bum” (バム), both used in the Bums Academy names in Japanese. Also, it is worth
noting that these translations and appropriations were not only directed toward the Americancounterculture. Yamao Sansei’s appropriation of the term “harijan” shows that they were alsosynchronizing their identities, not only as wanderers but also as marginal Asian peoples. These
multiple directions suggest an early separation between Nanao’s wandering and Yamaos’s way.
As revealed by this Bum Academy formation history, this complex synchronization could only
be done by a translation process and openness previously facilitated by the Fugetsudō coffee
shop, which was something like the incubator that granted a space for dialogue and establishingalliances with foreign artists and hitchhikers, prior to the gentrification of Shinjuku area. This
reminds us that urban spaces can hold and boost translation practices, focused on spiritual
practice, and artistic demonstrations.

83

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Fourthly, the Buzoku project that was envisioned as a “tribe of tribes” posed a challenge for
their founders regarding gathering a diversity of backgrounds under a flag and vision. Tribemembers’ ideology continuously synchronized itself with the global and arranged their identity
as a collage. This collage had as one of its prominent motifs the spiritual path. The Tribe’s
identity was mainly forged by juxtaposing many spiritual and cultural traditions, especially“Worlds Primitives,” Hinduism, and Buddhism. Nonetheless, juxtaposition, appropriation, andsynchronization skills were not only aesthetical, but they were previously incubated in their
spiritual formation during the Bum period under the guidance of Nanao Sakaki.
Finally, Buzoku history offers us two pictures of the assimilation of counterculture in Japan;
one can be described as a “pale imitation” of American hippies’ fashion and style. The otherone, the Buzoku’s one, can be described as complex synchronization done by collaborative
processes of translation, appropriation, and juxtaposition. Among these translations, thespiritual was not exclusive, but it was likely prioritized over the other ones and forged a new
spiritual profundity. The artistic appropriation also seemed relevant for their identity flag anda perceived necessity for defining their dream. The poetic parades and The Tribe Diary thatwere surprisingly in tone with the San Francisco Oracle Diary, exemplify the countercultural
appropriation of poetry readings and printed media.
In conclusion, although Buzoku’s existence was limited to thirteen years, their ideology, theirpractices, and their experience proved to be fertile in synchronizing their dreams with the
dreams of other peoples and cultures. In this way, they nurtured the Japanese counterculture’ssoil by creating various communes, businesses, and media under the theme of building a new
global civilization. Compared to the fūten phenomenon, their legacy proved to be relevant forother groups that later identified themselves as hippie, alternative and ecological-spiritual
movements. This research shows that at least one countercultural collective in Japan’s sixties
scene was involved in complex linguistic, artistic, and spiritual synchronizations with theglobal scene and simultaneously practiced the art of embodying the dream of building a newcivilization.

Acknowledgements
I would like to express my special thanks to Nagasawa Tetsuo and Rada, Yamao Akihiko andHaruko, Yamaji Kazuhiro and Nīro Shinnosuke.

84

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

References
Akata 赤田, Y. 祐一, & Sekine 関根, M. 美有. (2019, November 29). Mangaban nihon no
hippii muuvumento まんが版 日本のヒッピー・ムーヴメント (Manga version: The
Japanese hippie movement). Spectator スペクテイター, 45 (Special Issue), 29–94.
Cohen, A. (1967). San Francisco Oracle (Cover). Wikipedia Commmons.
https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=San_Francisco_Oracle&oldid=100097123
7
Fukushima 福島, K. 菊次郎. (1981). Sengo no wakamonotachi Part II. Ribu to fuuten 戦後の若者たち Part II リブとふうてん (The young people from the Postwar Part II. ribu andfuuten.: Vol. ２. San-Ichi Shobou 三一書房.
Kikori, M. (n.d.). Makita KIKORI 槇田きこり—YouTube. Accessed February 11, 2021, fromhttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuGxtGIitHLrCxKOrRMJUNw
Lama Foundation. (n.d.). Lama Foundation Oral History Project—Social Networks andArchival Context. Retrieved February 8, 2021, fromhttps://snaccooperative.org/ark:/99166/w6tv0p96#biography
Maebara マエバラ, T. トモヒコ. (2019). Hippiiyougo no kiso chishiki ヒッピー用語の基礎知識(Keywords: Fundamental Knowledge of Hippie terms). Spectator スペクテイター, 45(Special Issue), 95–100.
Maebara マエバラ, T. トモヒコ, & Nagasawa 長沢, T. 哲夫. (2019). Buzoku no seichi
Suwanose Repooto. Shijin Nagasawa Tetsuo to no taiwa 部族の聖地スワノセレポート―
詩人・長沢哲夫との対話 (The Sacred Land of Buzoku, report from Suwanose. A
dialogue with the poet Nagasawa Tetsuo). Spectator スペクテイター, 45 (Special
Issue), 154–172.
Melchy Ramos, Y. (2017). Cómo habitar en el planeta tierra: La visión ecológica de lapoesía de Nanao Sakaki [PhD Thesis]. El Colegio de México.
Miyauchi, K. (1987). Biitoniku no Dandizumu ビットニクのダンディズム (Beatniks
dandyism). Silvestar Club 銀星俱楽部, 07, 152–158.
Nagakari 永假, M. まゆり. (2004). “Jijjitsu” toshite no shuukyousei no kaifuku he. Yamao
Sansei to koukkyou suru monogatari 〈事実〉としての宗教性の恢復へ—山尾三省と交響するものがたり (A return to nature: The life history of Mr. Sansei YAMAO).
Kokusaibunka Kenkyuu Kiyou 国際文化研究紀要, 10, 195–220.
Nihon hippiizoku minami no shima ni tatekomoru. (1967, September 15). Shuukan Dokubai
週刊読売, 9(15), 12–17.
Ono 小野, K. 和道. (2015, Spring). Intabyuu with Ono Kazumichi 〈インタビュー〉with 小野和
道. Jinmin No Teki 人民の敵. http://www.warewaredan.com/jinteki08-04bassui.html
Snyder, G. (1969). Earth House Hold. New Directions Publishing.
Teranishi 寺西, K. 薫. (2015). Shinreiseibunka no gennryuu -taikoubunka to Yamao Sansei nichakumoku shite- 新霊性文化の源流 -対抗文化と山尾三省に着目して-. 教養デザイン研究論集, 8, 61–81.
Thornber, K. (2012). Ecoambiguity: Environmental Crises and East Asian Literatures.
University of Michigan Press.

85

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Thornber, K. L. (2014). Literature, Asia, and the Anthropocene: Possibilities for Asianstudies and the environmental humanities. The Journal of Asian Studies, 73(4), 989–
1000.
Yamada 山田, K. 塊也 “Pon.” (2009, January). Dai sann shou Hippiibuumu no nada no“Buzoku” 第３章 ヒッピーブームの中の「部族」 (“Buzoku” in the midst of the hippieboom). Amanakuni.Net: Hippii Muuvumentoshi in Yaponeshia.
http://amanakuni.net/pon/hippie/3.html
Yamamoto 山本, Y. 悠理. (2020, August 8). Yamao Sansei, Nagasawa Tetsuo... Shizenkaiki
no shijin tachi, gendai wo terasu yuragu nichijou, kachikan minaosu hinto ni 山尾三省、長沢哲夫…自然回帰の詩人たち、現代を照らす 揺らぐ日常、価値観見直すヒントに.
Kousho Koujitsu (Good Life with Books) 好書好日.
https://book.asahi.com/article/13590850
Yamao 山尾, S. 三省. (2018). Semai michi. Kazoku to shigoto to aisuru koto. 狭い道 家族と仕事と愛すること (The narro road, Family, Work and my Beloved Things) (new edition).
Yasousha 野草社.
Yuki, M. (2017). American Nature Writing and Japan. In M. Yuki, Oxford Research
Encyclopedia of Literature. Oxford University Press.
https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780190201098.013.170
Corresponding author: Yaxkin Melchy Ramos
Email: yaxkinmex@gmail.com

86

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

The Three Epochs of Hong Kong Lolita Subculture: Cultural
Hybridization and Identity Construction
Shuk-fan Fanny Wong
Senior Instructor, University of Macau
Wai-sum Amy Lee
Associate Professor, Hong Kong Baptist University

87

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Abstract
Lolita is identified as a female oriented subculture phenomenon which came about in the 1990s
in Harajuku, Japan. Youths in Hong Kong, because culturally and geographically in close
proximity to Japan, will usually adapt their neighboring city Tokyo’s cultural movements. This
paper explores the development, meaning, significance of Lolita phenomena in Hong Kongfrom the postmodern historical and socio-cultural points of view. By assembling and examining
the ethnographic data from face-to-face interviewees and materials from online resources
between 2014 and 2017, we reviewed and proposed that there are three major epochs of Lolita
subculture development in Hong Kong. The study concludes that the changes in online
practices over the past two decades lead to the transformation of Lolita identity within thegroup. It also indicates that the development of Hong Kong Lolita subculture shows a positive
impact of cultural hybridization. Moreover, through the active practice on virtual platforms,
the group creates an imagined community for the participants to share their beliefs and dreams
freely.
Keywords: cultural hybridization, gender performance, Hong Kong Lolita, personal identity,
subculture, subcultural history

88

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Introduction
Lolita, with the doll-like and Western classical costumes, was a Japanese born youth subculturearound the 1990s. It is one of the extraordinary examples of global pop-culture, which has beenstudied and evaluated by media and scholars inside and outside of Japan in recent years. Japanand Hong Kong are geographically close to one another and since the 1970s, Tokyo, the capital
city of Japan, initiates popular cultural movements which Hong Kong has followed. For
example, Japanese pop music, animations, cosplay, manga, cutie stationary items as well as
fashion magazines, are the essential substances for many Hong Kong people, especiallychildren, teenagers and young adults, in their everyday cultural life experiences. As Bridges
truly writes “the Hong Kong people’s “eagerness” to embrace Japanese-style popular culture
and consumer culture which emerged so strongly during the 1990s” (2003, p.1055). Although,the flow of popular culture and commercial culture reached its peak during the 1990s, it iscontinuingly growing steadily.. Therefore, it is not surprising that Lolita subculture hasemanated and developed in Hong Kong for over twenty years since it was first introduced fromJapan at the beginning of 2000.
By adopting Western clothing styles from Rococo (1750s-1880s) 1 and the Victorian period(1830s-1900s) 2 , this group of young women present themselves as “Urban Princesses” invarious subgenres of clothing style (Gagné, 2008). They usually communicate with each otherthrough on-line platforms or organizing activities in private locations /settings, such as tea
parties, private photo shooting in clubhouses or parks. In Hong Kong, some of the senior
participants have turned from mid-teens to youth and from youth to more mature adults ormothers, however, for some reason, they are still playing active roles in relation to newly
joining members.
Given the brief background of Lolita subculture from above, our research aims are: First, toreview concepts and meanings of Lolita subculture which are commonly perceived byintellectuals within the field of youth subculture. Second, to explore the development of Lolita
subculture in Hong Kong in the past two decades. Third, to analyze the impacts andsignificance of Hong Kong Lolita phenomenon from historical, social and cultural perspectives.
Methodologically, ethnographic data which was taken from semi-structured face-to-faceinterviews with six Lolitas in 2017 are used. Group interviews with the core administrative
members from a very popular online virtual community “HK Lolita” were also conducted. We
collected data that essentially focused on the historical development of Hong Kong Lolita(phenomenon) from the time it first appeared in Hong Kong. Other data were mainly assembled
by voice-message interviews via Facebook Messenger as well as reviewing key blogs that were
written by the Lolita fandoms. We also use data from a pilot study which was conducted andcollected during 2014 and 2015, because it helped to provide a general background of
population, nature and characteristic of Hong Kong Lolita. To protect the personal identity of
the informants, all personal names of Lolitas that appear in this paper are pseudonyms.
By collecting and analyzing the ethnographic data from field observations, interviews andmaterials from online resources, we came to a conclusion that there are three major epochs of1

Rococo fashion style refers to the designs tended to be lavishly ornate, with complex patterns and the finest of
materials (Muscato C, 2018).
2
Victorian fashion comprises various fashions and trends in British culture. Women usually wore dress with along, tight, pointed bodice and full skirt supported on many petticoats.

89

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Lolita subculture development in Hong Kong: The Justice Epoch, L.O. Epoch and HK Lolita
Epoch. We examine these resources and believe that the development of Hong Kong Lolita has
a strong connection with the transformation of media culture nexus. However, there have beenvery limited studies regarding the development of Hong Kong Lolita from perspectives ofcultural and historical investigation. Scholars such as Vera Mackie and Issac Gagné have done
extensive work on the study of Lolita subculture. The former contributes by investigating theformation of feminine identities and behaviors of Lolita in recent years (Gagné, 2008; 2010;2013) whilst the latter focuses on the study of gender and feminism of Japanese women(Mackie, 2009; 2012; 2015). Their perspectives are from a western point of view and theirfocus were mainly on Japanese Lolita subculture development. As regards the development of
Lolita subculture in Hong Kong, Helena Kwong has written an article on the identities andmeanings of being a Lolita through interviewing ten Hong Kong Lolitas from secondary
schools (Kwong, 2006). There is also a related study which focuses on the construction of apersonal and social identity of Lolita through symbolic consumption (Rahman, Liu, Lam andChan, 2011). However, their discussions about Hong Kong Lolita have not focused much on
the macro-aspects of historical and cultural points of view. Therefore, we hope this paper cancontribute to knowledge about Lolita subculture in Hong Kong in these aspects, as well as thesignificances and impacts of its development.
Background
Lolita Subculture and Its Meaning
Generally speaking, “Lolita is a predominantly female subcultural aesthetics whose
participants strive to embody a “princess” theme through fashion and mannerisms” (Gagné,
2013, p.1). According to the media theorist and sociologist, Hebdige, subculture is a style thatis constructed through a combination of numerous issues predominantly concerned by the
youth who have distinct styles, behaviors, and interests. For instance, fashion, animation,
dance, music and video games etc. (Hebdige, 1979). Therefore, Lolita is identified as a
subculture phenomenon. It was born in Harajuku, Japan and was first introduced by Japaneseyouth visual rock musicians in performances known as “Visual Kei” in the 1980s. 3
In the 1990s, the name of the Japanese Lolita subculture has created a new meaning thatmatches its original idea - “reflecting a modest, innocent, graceful, polite, and Kawaii imageof a Japanese Lolita” (Winge, 2008, p. 50). Lolita group (male and female) continue to expand
in major global cities, such as Seoul, Shanghai, Los Angeles, London, Paris and even in
Scandinavia, e.g. Finland and Sweden. They usually communicate with each other through online platforms or organizing activities in private locations /settings, such as tea parties, private
photo shooting various places. Nevertheless, in the very beginning Lolita subculture wasdisregarded by most Western countries. Although, younger age groups might learnt about thissubculture through online platforms or magazines, such as Gothic & Lolita Bible4, it only drew
many people’s attention and became internationally visible after the film Shimotsuma
Monogatari (aka Kamikaze Girls) was broadcast in 2004. By adopting the best-selling novelof Japanese “maiden” subculture written by Takemoto Novala, the film became a box-office
hit in Japan and a cult film in the West. The story showcases the friendship of two young girls
Visual Kei refers to “visual system” in Japanese, and the Visual Kei musical artists usually associate theatricalcostumes and concert performances with an eclectic music on stage (Gagné, 2008).
4
This Japanese fashion magazine and book was founded in 2001. It focuses on the Gothic and Lolita fashions
news and information. However, the first English-language volume was published seven years later. See (Gothic& Lolita Bible, 2020, August 3, in Wikipedia) for more information.
3

90

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

who come from entirely different backgrounds. One of them is a Yankī biker, 5 whereas theother is a Lolita.
As for Lolita, it is known as a fashion from Japan that attempts to capture the innocence ofyouth, and nostalgia for the 19th century (Ann, 2005). The participants perform themselves as
the noble women, by wearing European clothing styles, in the 17th to 18th centuries. Usually,
the dresses were decorated with lace and ribbons along with bell-shaped sleeves (Breward,1995). Accessories such as hats which were trimmed with feathers, flowers, and ribbons werealways worn. Therefore, the design of Lolita fashion has strong associations with the fashionstyles. With the Japanese emphasis on cuteness and modesty, a cultural hybrid was created,such as Sweet Lolita, Punk Lolita, Gothic Lolita, Classic Lolita, etc. Furthermore, Lolita
fashion has been elevated to the status of art when nine outfits of Lolita fashion, the “Kitty andthe Bulldog” exhibition, were displayed at the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) in London
during 2012 and 2013. These outfits, including Gothic Lolita and Sweet Lolita were bought in2011 from Tokyo, which emphasized the connections between British traditional fashion
design and Japanese street style. 6 As posted by the V&A (2012) on their official webpage forthe exhibition:
A striking feature of Lolita fashion is the extent to which it is influenced by British
culture: Alice in Wonderland, Glam Rock, the New Romantics, Gothic, Punk andVivienne Westwood….
However, Lolita also refers to a nickname for Delores in Nabokov’s book Lolita featuring apreadolescent girl who is attractive and sexually responsive (Bishop, 2004). A further
explanation concerning the connotations of Lolita will be presented in the following.
A Review on Lolita Subculture Studies
Lolita, fundamentally a girl’s name in English, is perceived quite differently in the West. The
name is habitually associated with the title character in Nabokov’s novel by the same name.
The novel depicts Humbert Humbert (aged 37) as an émigré academic scholar and admitted
pedophile (Nabokov, 1997). He is obsessed with a 12-year-old girl, Dolores Haze, whom herecognizes as a “nymphet”. He becomes sexually involved with Dolores after he becomes her
stepfather, and Humbert bestows upon Dolores a private name, “Lolita”. Therefore, the term
“Lolita” implies a man’s sexual attraction to adolescent girls in Western countries.
McVeigh, who analyzed the cute and fancy Lolita look, from psychological perspectives,characterized the doll-like and innocent features, to be considered sexy from “a Western
perspective – a particular type of euro-kawaii” (2014, p.176). This is because people associate
certain type of fixed female dress with images, such as skirts with lace, rose flora pattern
garments (McVeigh, 2000). With this view, Lolita and their dress may be associated as sexyand glamour from the male gaze in Western societies. However, as for the Lolita praticipant,her subjective intention may be different when girls read about other girls. It attains her selfidentity from her relationship with other members of the Lolita subculture, that is, “Not-Yanki”.
It discards anything excessively masculine and sexual implications (Mackie, 2012). Our
informants also deny that there is any intended sexual connotation in the Lolita subculture. As
our informants responded:
5

A Yanki is a subculture that was popular in Japan in the 1980’s and 1990’s. It is ordinarily used as a nicknamereferring to Northern soldiers during the American Civil War from 1861 to 1865.
6
See more information from the V&A (2012) “Lolita Fashion: Japanese Street Style”.

91

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Outsiders should not regard “Lolita” as synonymous with a sexualized view of young
girls. This is a really big misunderstanding. (Selo)
I don’t like people who links us with assisted dating, and we are not, of course!
(Chacha)According to Winge, Lolitas are usually young women “who dress in cute and modest fashionstyle without the overly sexualized appearance typically associated with Nabokov’s Lolita”(Winge, 2008, p. 47-48). Gagné (2008) also states that Lolitas have attempted to avoid theconflation of rorikon “Lolita Complex” by adopting nonstandard way of writing the word
(rorita) for an alternate phonetic to enunciate the “kon” sound in the word.7 The generation ofLolita, therefore, is regarded as a “movement represents a similarly powerful rebellion against
the conventions of contemporary society” (V&A, 2012). For instance, it might be partly
produced to fight for the growing exposure of the female body in contemporary society. In
many Western societies, the contemporary ideal feminine beauty is slim, fresh, sexy and young
looking as it is represented (Abramson, 1995; Fitts & O’Brien, 2009). By creating themselves
as a sweet and cute feminine image, which might carry furtive meanings, Lolita subculture
expresses its resistance to the social order that defines their subordination. From this point, theconstruction of Lolita identity appears to be breaking down social rules and norms bychallenging hegemony with its unique style – a practice that is very much against the grain of
the majority (Cohen,1997).
Unquestionably, discussions around Lolita become more prominent among researchers in thefield of fashion and socio-cultural studies in recent years (Gagné, 2010, 2013; Winge, 2008;
Bergstrom, 2011; Porzio, 2012). Theresa Winge (2008, p.62), for instance, judges that theperformance of the Japanese Lolita subculture “creates a visual form of resistance against
culture and provides both the subculture and its members with agency and identity”. Mackie(2009) interoperates that Lolita is a response against becoming a grown-up woman. Gagné(2013), also perceives the hyperfeminine aesthetics and shōjo-like 8 behaviours of Lolita,
actually reflecting young girls’ reactive fears against growing up and becoming adult women.
Lolita has usually been perceived as mirroring the participant’s negation of maturity and social
conformity to the normative mode of femininity (Matsuura, 2007; Monden, 2013). As shownin field observations, Lolita participants are not necessarily slim and or have tiny waists. They
do not aim to attract the male gaze, but just want to create a cute childlike look as an expressionof being a free person for choosing her/ his self-identity. Therefore, Lolita is not purely a choiceof clothing, it also expresses their identity and lifestyle (Godoy, 2007). Nonetheless, there areno significant investigations on the historical and the impacts of its development in Hong Kong
yet.
Lolita in Hong Kong
Lolita subculture has developed in Hong Kong for almost twenty years. It is estimated to bearound three hundred active participants and two hundred passive participates, 9 and the age
range is from 15 to 40. In a population of about five hundred Hong Kong Lolitas, around 10%

7Rori-kon (also abbreviated to Loli-con), which refers to middle aged men who have an interest in younger
women (Kinsella, 2006).
8
In Japanese, shōjo refers specifically to a young woman approximately 7–18 years old. See Daijisen (大辞泉)
for more information.
9
Active participates refers to Lolitas who dress in Lolita clothes and join activities physically (such as tea parties
or fashion shows), while passive participates are refers to those who are active in online platforms.

92

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021of them are Brolitas.10 The data was revealed by four Lolita participants from the previous pilot
study between 2014 and 2015, which helped to make available an inclusive background of
population, nature and characteristics of Hong Kong Lolita. In recent years, not many of Lolita
participates have physically presented themselves in the streets or their appearance being
reported by the media. Rather, they choose on-line platforms and private locations forcommunication and gatherings.
Methods & Data Collection
Procedure
Based on the data collected in the pilot study mentioned above, specific interview questions
for this research were set and sent via email or Facebook to the respondents before the interview.
The purpose of the interview is to answer the research questions of the study and the main
selected interview questions include:
1. What motivates you to adopt the Lolita style over many years?
2. From your own understanding and experience, what are the changes of Hong Kong
Lolita over the past two decades?
3. What kinds of virtual/ visual resources that you have been using for the references increating your Lolita style?
Face-to-face group interviews were conducted in cafés in July 2017 (Figure 1) and August
2017 (Figure 2). The researcher (this first author) then, made further individual interviews via
phone, WhatsApp and Facebook in the following few months to follow up and confirm theaccuracy with respondents. A summary of the selected data from all interviews with six Lolita
participants from June to December 2017 shows in Table 1.
Figure 1
Group Interview with HK Lolita Administrative Members

10“Brolita” is a name given to the male Lolita in the Lolita community; he dresses like a female Lolita.

93

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Figure 2
Group Interview with Male and Female Lolitas

Table 1
A Summary of the Selected Data of the Six Lolita Respondents
Participant
Age
GenderJoining Lolita
group at age
Education

Vini
29
F
19

Selo
29
F
19

Cat
33
F
20

SanSan
32
F
24

Angel
34
M
26

Kun
34
M
25

Diploma

DegreeDiplomaDesignDesignMasterDegreeEngineering

DegreeCareerMasterDegreeEngineering

Engineering

Marriage/ChildSingleMarriedSingleMarriedMarried

Train
CaptainSingleAs indicated from the data collected, the Lolita group acquire particular techniques for putting
on makeup; learn what specific behaviours they should follow; study the history of Rocco andVictorian clothing style; design fancy Lolita accessories; search and purchase the limited
design Lolita items from famous fashion bands within the group; attend tea parties and fashionshows etc. These activities usually mean large expenses of money and time that allow them toattain an “ideal-self”, which could not be reached in real life. For example, when they
responded to the interview question: “What motivates you to adopt the Lolita style over many
years”? One of the responds said:
It makes you look more beautiful, just like a princess that is the main reason for wearing
Lolita dress. (Cat)94

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Creating their own unique dress or accessories also helps to express their personality andindividuality (Rahman, Liu, Lam, & Chan 2011). As my respondents, Selo and Kele, who
expressed that they would like to design their own outfits and accessories for matching thestyle of their dresses when they joined group activities. These items can be seen on their onlinesocial platforms for voting and selling. Such DIY practices of designing and creating their
outfits are not common in other subcultures, and as seen from the photos posted on their social
webpages, various activities such as market-fairs, café gatherings for dress swapping or
inviting models or designers from Japan for special events have been organized. Our
respondents expressed during interviews:
I always search posts from my favourite brands online or webpages for the updated
styles and accessories, where I can also buy or sell second-hand dresses as well. (Vini)
You could hardly organize any events for our group activities without using online
platforms…it has been always significant regardless the changes of the names or the
structures of those platforms over the time. (Selo)
These online activities suggest that the Lolita group not just make good use of visual resources,
but also virtual resources to create platforms for communication and business opportunities.
From the data collected, we observed that the use of internet resources marks substantialchanges of Lolita ecology in the past decades.
Data Analysis and Discussion
After providing the background information of Lolita subculture and its significations within
scholarly discourses from above, together with the data collected from the interviews we canconclude and advocate that there are three significant epochs of Lolita subcultural developmentin Hong Kong. The three major periods are: The Justice Epoch, LO Epoch and HK Lolita
Epoch. Detailed elaboration and analysis are discussed in the following.
Stage One: The Justice Epoch (2000-2005)
The Justice Epoch, as the respondents described, was the period starting around 2000 when the
Lolita participants were scattered with a small population of around 20-50 and did not becomea fully-fledged Lolita community yet. The term Justice was borrowed from an online virtual
community platform called “Justice Forum 正義論壇” which was founded in 2004. 11 This was
the most popular time of the forum engaging 2,497 online viewers and a total of 20,000 online
page visitors. At that time the age range of the Lolita group was not as extensive as today,
which was mainly from 15 to 20 years old, and rarely to see a Lolita who is over the age of 20.
Justice Forum provided an online platform for people who were interested in Lolita, Pullip dolland video game entertainment. 12 Lolita fans were attracted to join the community because it
provided a lot of information about the latest Lolita fashion style, news and shops, and so on.
In this first stage, Lolita was almost unnoticed by the Hong Kong public. Most of theparticipants were originally interested in frolicking Super Dollfies (SD) or members who were

11

Justice Forum was online social platform found in 2004, which mainly provided information about animations,video games, leisure, for the members.
12
Pullip a fashion doll created by Cheonsang Cheonha of South Korea in 2003. It was first marketed by Jun
Planning out of Japan. Visit https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pullip for more information.

95

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

active Cosplayers 13 . This can explain why the SD was typically considered as the rightaccessory for a Lolita doll (Staite, 2013).
At that time, it was very difficult to find Lolita clothing shops in the market. Because of thelimited choice of Lolita fashion shops available in Hong Kong, and the cost of ordering the
Lolita outfits from Japan was extremely expensive, many Hong Kong Lolitas preferred to maketheir own clothes, or accessories to attain the Lolita look. To some extent, such practices ofhomemade clothing also create a higher self-esteem and sense of satisfaction for theparticipants. As Simon Jones (1996) rightly perceives,
There are a significant minority of young people who sew and knit their own clothes
for reasons (…) There is a symbolic as well as practical pleasure and sense offulfillment for young people in being able to use their own manual skills and resources
to make their own clothes (p.15).
Therefore, by reading magazines concerning Lolita clothes-making, in particular, Gothic &Lolita Bible, and surfing other online resources, participants in the Justice Epoch achieved theirideal look. Magazines were not physically available for purchase in the local market scene;
they were bought only via online sources. Later on, some Lolita clothes appeared in shops in
Tsim Sha Tsui ,14 that is, Emily Temple and Shirley Temple15, which is actually mainly selling
more affluent children’s clothes.
At this stage, the participants were very cautious about how to perform themselves as a proper
Lolita. For example, as explained by one of the senior participants (who have haven joined
Lolita group over 10 years), in order to be a proper Lolita, they would follow all steps andsuggestions that were recorded in those Japanese magazines. For unknown reasons, however,this virtual group faded away at the end of 2007. Then, many of the Lolita participants began
to join the Lolita Online (LO) virtual community to continue being informed and updated with
events or activities within the group. 16
Stage Two: LO Epoch (2005-2010)
Lolita Online (LO) was founded 24 December 2005. It was a Hong Kong based international
virtual community for Lolitas and attracted around 1,500 online visitors who were essentiallyinterested in searching information relating to Lolita issues. Therefore, it attracts not only Hong
Kong Lolitas, but also Lolitas outside Hong Kong. During this period, participants generally
cared much about what “proper Lolita” is and what is not. “Proper” means original and spiritual,
which emphasized the embracement of value and quality for being a proper Lolita. For example,
in one of the blogs (posted on the 7th August 2005), which discusses the differences between
a proper Lolita, cosplayer and MK Lolita in detail. This was because many Lolita participants
wanted to maintain the elegant and noble image of a Lolita.
MK Lolita is a term specifically used for describing a negative comment for the image of Lolita
in Hong Kong. MK is a local terminology which refers to Mong Kok Culture. Mong Kok is a
13

Super Dollfie, often abbreviated SD, is a brand of ball-jointed doll, or BJD, made by the Japanese company
Volks.
14
Tsim Sha Tsui (TST) is an urban commercial area in southern Kowloon, Hong Kong.
15
Originally, Shirley Temple (named after the child film star) began as a kid’s brand in the 1970s. It has a sisterline to Emily Temple Cute. It is believed that the original customers grew up but wanted to keep wearing the little
girlish styles (Carmina, 2008).
16
Lolita Online (LO), the forum had its original name called Headdress Online.

96

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

dynamic and complex place where old and new multi-story buildings filled with commercial
offices buildings, shops and restaurants co-exit. It is also a popular place for young people tosocialize and it has a history of the underground gang world called the Triads. Mong Kok has
been depicted in triad films, as an area that the triads are highly active, and the clothing styleof the triads has been denoted as MK style. Young people who try to imitate this style is called
MK guys or MK girls. Here, MK Lolita implies a kind of lower class, uneducated, badmannered Lolita.
As described by some of the blog writers of the community, he original Lolita look is a full set
of Lolita clothing items from head to toe, including every detail, that is, wigs, make-up, andthe patterns on the dresses and shoe style. Ideally, the dress, accessories or clothes should be
imported from Japan’s famous brands, such as Baby17 and Jane Marple, or at least clothes withfine qualities. Besides, the Lolita outfit should be worn in a proper manner, which means the
air of “princess” or a girl from a “noble” class is an essential “spirit” of a true Lolita. This viewis also verified by Gagné, as his informants repeatedly told him that, “Lolita is about having a
Lolita spirit, which includes being “princess-like” regardless of the actual situations they arein” 18 (Gagné, 2003).
In mid-2005, the film Kamikaze Girls, which was sponsored by “Baby”, was broadcasted in
Hong Kong. Same as in Japan, Lolita culture reached its peak in popularity and it was
repeatedly reported by local media: magazines (e.g. Tong Touch and Next Digital), newspapers(e.g. SCMP and Oriental Daily), and television programmes (e.g. Sunday Report and Hong
Kong Connection by TVB Jade). 19 Since then, more and more fashion shops began selling the
Lolita dress; accessories etc, in Mong Kok and other popular areas, such as Causeway Bay.
Among the shops, there are two representative local Lolita shops: Spider and Lolita in Touch(LIT). Spider mainly features a black colour tone as their theme for designing elegant andluxury Lolita clothes. Conversely, LIT mainly focuses on Kawaii and girly elements. 20 These
two shops are very popular within the Lolita group in Hong Kong. Take an example from oneof the participants Kiri. She was interviewed by the local HK broadcast channels TVB on July
2015 and appeared on one of its many programmes “the Sunday Report”, when she shared her
5-year Lolita life experience. She noticed that both Spider and LIT were very popular shops
for Hong Kong Lolitas (including herself), because the quality was much better than thosedresses that were made by themselves; however, the price is relatively cheaper than thosefamous brands imported from Japan.
Because there were some arguments over the post messages among the administrative members
within the group, and because many visitors used Facebook for communications more often,some of the previous members of LO came to create a new group on Facebook, which led tothe third stage of development. 21

The original name of “Baby” is “Baby, the Stars Shine Bright”, which has been shortened by the insiders.
“Princess-like” means a Lolita should behave well, speak well, and dress in a decent way.
19
“Sunday Report” is the TVB News Cantonese programs which aired since 1987. It is mainly investigating
current social and cultural issues in a thematic way.
20
Kawaii is translated as “cuteness”, it is one of the most frequently used Japanese words.
17
18

21

Some of informants expressed that, it was actually due to arguments (e.g. the selection of posted images andonline business issues) between the members and the administrators of the forum. Therefore, many members fromLO shifted to the other online platforms.

97

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Stage Three: HK Lolita Epoch (2010-Present)
The third stage can be understood as the current stage, and the name is drawn from the HK
Lolita 公開專頁 (Figure 3), 22 is a non-profit making group which was founded in September,2011. Their goal of creating this virtual community is first to: “Provide Lolita Information,
eliminate misunderstanding from Lolita Culture” and second is to “Regularly update the Lolita
events and parties based in HK”. One of our informants, who is also an administrative staff ofthe community group, expressed that: because Facebook is more popular and being used bymany Lolitas, they invited the previous members from the LO group, and transferred most of
the members into the HK Lolita virtual community (over 3,000 visitors). They also strategicallydivided the visitors into three sub-groups under HK Lolita, and they are: (1) Lolita (insider
only), (2) Overseas Lolita (found in May 2016) and (3) HK Lolita second-hand platform (over3,000 members), it attempts to provide a platform for selling and buying secondhand Lolita
clothes.
Figure 3
HK Lolita Facebook Profile

Various gatherings (e.g. tea parties and workshops) are organized each month, which is referred
to as: “call-monthly-gathering-invite as a way to unite group members and a chance to invite
other Lolitas to join the group. Around 2013, HK Lolita Facebook page opened the page to the
public. This was to provide more information for people who are interested in Lolita and invite
others to organize market fairs, public activities such as models to visit Hong Kong andshowcase the Lolita clothes, demonstrate how to use and wear makeup and/or accessories andto experiment being a Lolita. “When I was around 20 years old, many of my Lolita friends,
including myself are “transforming”,” expressed by our informant Ali. She goes on to describe:“Before we were wearing very girly accessories with pink rose and lacy dresses such asa sweet Lolita look – this is the most popular for us. However, we are in our thirties now
and some of us are married and have our own children. I prefer to dress in a style that ismore elegant and classical”.
Currently, the Lolita clothing style has become less restricted as the previous two stages. We
believe that it is a strategy to attract new members which gave them flexibility to try Lolita
22

See (HK Lolita Facebook) for more information.

98

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

clothes in a more relaxed manner. Therefore, at this stage of Lolita fashion, many participants
mix the Lolita style with their daily clothing.
Apart from the fashion shops, some of the upper floor cafés, such as Sugar Factory Café,
founded in May 2014 and Papillon, founded in January 2015, also emerged and aimed to attract
customers who were Lolitas or interested in the Lolita subculture. These cafés are usually run
by young Hong Kong entrepreneurs.
Limitations & Reflections
As it is an empirical qualitative research, the research conclusions drawn was based on hard
evidence, that is, gathering from Lolitas’ real-life experiences from field-observations andindividual interviews. In order to collect accurate and reliable information, several interviews
had been conducted and ethical issues had been taken into account. Below are the limitations
and reflections when conducting interviews and handling data in this study.
Trust
As the term “Lolita” can be perceived in many different ways when referring to western culture,
Lolita participants expressed that they had a certain concern. They were worried that we (theresearchers) might be spies from local magazines and might abuse their photos and data forother purposes that might harm their image. Alternatively, we have to judge whether the
information they provided is true or not. Thus, mutual trust between the interviewees and theinterviewer needs to be handled carefully, and indeed, it had taken a long time to build up andmaintain the trust with the respondents.
Accurate Transcriptions and Interpretations
It is difficult to guarantee correct transcriptions or interpretations from the data because theunderstanding might vary between the insider (participants) and the outsider (researcher).
Minh-Ha in her article “Outside In Inside Out” (1988) suggests, a good ethnographicalanthropologist research is to represent others (insiders), and to be their loyal interpreters. In
order to get the native points of view from the participants be their trustworthy interpreters, thetechniques of coding need to be carefully reviewed and checked for achieving a betterinterpretation and accurate data analysis (McManus, 2003). This is because many of thespecific terms, which were used within the Lolita subcultural group, especially some of theterms based on very local Hong Kong cultural context, could work in a very different way fromour common understanding.
Ethical Concerns
Sometimes, it is hard to decide whether it is ethical to use certain data or not. For example,
there are personal views on specific issues and photos posted by our informants that we foundon public webpages. Although data from public websites and the information is supposed to
be open to the community, for example, the HK Lolita, there is still an ethical concern as tohow such information can be used. Hence, permission is still needed to use the information as
the participant’s wish should be fully respected. This is especially vital to male Lolita (Brolita)
informants as they are relatively more sensitive about the disclosure of personal information.
For instance, one of the Brolitas interviewees told us his real-life story and his reason for beinga Lolita. Although his life experience story was very inspiring and worth studying for LGBTQ
inquiries within in Lolita subculture, the interviewee finally did not approve that we could use
the data in this study. This challenge is taking into account in this study because Brolita could99

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

possibly be identified as vulnerable populations as LGBTQ 23 within Lolita subcultural
population. It is emphasized that, “research with minority groups is “necessarily an ethical andpolitical intervention with participants” (Walsh-Bowers and Parlour, 1992, p.109) and as suchthe researcher should take specific steps to prevent harm to research participants and theirenvironments” (Price, p.17). Therefore, specific following work might have to be done to seek
the trust and permission for the particular data collection and analysis in the future.
Significance and Conclusion
McRobbie (1998) wrote that youth subcultures are symbolically engaged in their output of
cultural forms, they naturally come to represent a particular historical moment and its
generation. Based on the above discussion about the three stages of development of Hong
Kong Lolita subculture, we can come to a conclusion about this subculture as below.
Changes of Online Practices Led to the Changes of Creative Activities
One of the significances of the Hong Kong Lolita development is the modifications of online
platform practices leading to changes of creative activities within the group. In stage one, thatis, the Justice Epoch (2000-2005), Lolita participants were relatively playing a passive role interms of using online resources. Justice Forum was the dominate online virtual community
platform providing information for the online users who were interested in Pullip doll and video
game entertainment, but not just limited to Lolita subculture. They mainly collected and learnt
about the latest Lolita fashion style, news and shops from these specific webpages and alsorelied on online magazine information. They were more enthusiastic to create their own DIY
Lolita dresses and accessories. It was more common for the group to exchange information,such as where to get materials for dress making and which magazines revealed the most
updated design through virtual space.
In the stage of LO Epoch (2005-2010), Hong Kong Lolita group drew much attention in the
media, and it led the group to reach its golden era. This was because a number of media fromlocal magazines, TV companies and online platforms made interviews with different Lolita
participants. At this stage, because of the frequent exposure to the public through media
interviews, participants normally pay much attention to formal Lolita style. By actively
searching information about Japanese famous brands and Lolita activities via online platforms,
participants would have debates on what are the proper style and the proper manners to be a
Lolita. Local Lolita shops such as, Spider and LIT started their online business too. They
promoted their Lolita products by using online platforms and selling advertising in local youth
magazines for reaching their potential customers effectively.
In stage three, that is, the HK Lolita Epoch (2010-present), the group expands and transforms
into new groups because the change of the virtual spaces and communities. Some of sub-groups
have been formed under the online leading group: HK Lolita. Lolita participants are no longer
just making clothes or accessories for themselves, but they are playing a very active role inusing online platforms for selling and promoting Lolita theme activities. Some Lolitas would
re-make or re-design other dresses to form a unique Lolita dress which suites their ideal style.
These “art pieces” usually got lots of positive feedbacks (i.e. many “likes” and “hearts”) fromother Facebook users. For example, our informant Kele (Figure 4), who has posted photos of

23

LGBTQ stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer/questioning. See (Petro, 2014; Price, 2011,p.7) for more information.

100

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

her own well-designed corsets, earrings and hair pins on the HK Lolita (Facebook) for sharing
and selling. She gains much satisfaction in her creative amateur designer identity, as Kele states:“Lolita online platforms really enables me to retain my own interest and earn somepocket money and most importantly, make me feel greatly fulfilled. It was very
rewarding when I received positive comments and request for purchasing my selfdesigned accessories from my Lolita friends”.
Figure 4
Accessories Made by our Informant, Kele, for Qi Lolita

A Form of Cultural Hybridization
Lolita culture in Hong Kong can correspondingly be understood as a culturally hybridized form
for it consists of interactions between a Western classical clothing style and the Japanese
aesthetical concept of cuteness (Kawaii). Because of the great success of the Meiji Restoration
around 1860s to 1890s, 24 Japan become much stronger in economics, political and culturaldevelopments when compared with other Asian countries in the 19th and 20th centuries. Its
cultural soft power was influential on other countries and places, including Hong Kong.
Historically, the involvement in and influence of Japan on Hong Kong has been strong andremains ever so since post-war period after the end of the Japanese occupation. Lolita fashionstyle which is well accepted by a group of teenagers (especially girls) or young adults has
established a unique position in Hong Kong youth subcultural history. Hong Kong Lolita alsoenhances the original Lolita style by combining traditional Chinese Qipao style into the new
design called Qi Lolita, 25 or even the negative localized style, which is mentioned above, MK
Lolita.
An Imagined Virtual Community
Since the 2010’s the members of Lolita subcultural groups found a web of imagined spatialconnections via Facebook and other online platforms. This spatial connection allows theparticipants to share similar interests, values and views on Lolita fashion style no matter where24

During the Meiji Restoration, the leaders acted in the name of restoring imperial rule to strengthen Japan against
the threat represented by the colonial powers. See (Kissinger, 2011) for more information.
25
Qipao is also called Cheongsam or mandarin gown. It is a popular traditional female body-hugging dress in
China during 1920s-1960s.

101

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

their physical locations are. Therefore, the existence of online virtual communication platforms
is nursing the development of the Hong Kong Lolita community ecologically. As Gagné states,“gathering at such spaces on online virtual community sites reflected an inherently social desire
and purpose where they could reaffirm that there were others who had similar aesthetics” (2013,
p.6).
Undeniably, the virtual platform accelerates not only the growth of Lolita subculture, but alsoenables the group to express personal interests, ideas towards life and people, and mostimportantly it also helps the participants to construct their specific identities. For example, Kun,
who is a Brolita as well as a train captain, usually posts updated news about his job duty, details
about services disruption of lines and expresses his view towards customers and the train
company in rather humorous ways (sometimes also comprises vulgar words). This forms aninteresting identity of a train Brolita within the group.
In short, the virtual platform has a very solid connection with Hong Kong Lolita identity
formation and development since the birth of Justice Forum in 2000. The three stages of Hong
Kong Lolita development show that the virtual space is very “real” to this subculturalcommunity. Real-life Lolitas rely on the e-platform to exchange formation about activities andexchange ideas, and most importantly, to swap Lolita fashion products and express their views
on different aspects in life. We believe Lolita subculture will continue to exist and nourishedby the virtual postmodern space.

102

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

References
Ann, J. (2005). Urban Dictionary. Accessed October 3, 2018, fromhttps://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Lolita
Approaches, National Centre for Social Research, London
Bergstrom, B. (2011). Girliness next to Godliness: Lolita fandom as sacred criminality in thenovels of Takemoto Novala. Mechademia 6, 21–37.
https://doi.org/10.1353/mec.2011.0009
Bishop, J. (2004). Urban Dictionary. Accessed October 3, 2018, fromhttps://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Lolita
Breward, C. (1995). The culture of fashion. Manchester University Press. pp. 145–180.
Bridges B. (2003). Hong Kong and Japan: Commerce, culture and contention. The China
Quarterly, No. 176 (Dec, 2003), pp. 1052–1067, in Cambridge University Press onbehalf of the School of Oriental and African Studies.
Carmina, L. (2008), Shirley Temple: A Lolita brad for kids. Retrieved October 21,2018, fromhttp://www.lacarmina.com/blog/2008/01/shirley-temple-a-lolita-brand-for-kids/
Clough, P. (1994). Feminist thought: Desire, power, and academic discourse. Oxford, UK;
Cambridge, Massachusetts: Blackwell Record
Dean, M., & Laidler, K., (2013). A New girl in town: Exploring girlhood identities throughFacebook, First Monday, 18(2–4), 1–9.
Duffy, R. (2008). Urban Dictionary. Accessed October 3, 2018, fromhttps://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=yanki 03/10/2018).
Gagné I. (2008). Urban princesses: Performance and “women’s language” in Japan’s
Gothic/Lolita subculture. Journal of Linguistic Anthropology, 18(1), 130–150.
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1548-1395.2008.00006.x
Gothic & Lolita Bible (2020, August 3) in Wikipedia.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gothic_%26_Lolita_Bible
Hebdige, D. (1979). Subculture: The Meaning of Style. London: Routledge.
Hodkinson, P. (2002). Goth: Identity, Style, and Subculture. Oxford: Berg
Jones, S. (1996). Style, fashion and symbolic creativity, in Paul Willis, Common Culture:
Symbolic Work at Play in the Everyday Cultures of the Young, Buckingham: Open
University Press, pp. 84–97, p. 15.
Kinsella, S. (2006). Minstrelized girls: Male performers of Japan’s Lolita complex. Japan
Forum, 18(1), 65–87. https://doi.org/10.1080/09555800500498319
Kissinge, H. (2011). On China. Penguin Books, 2011
Mackie, V. (2012), Reading Lolita in Japan. In T Aoyama, & B. Hartley (Eds.), Girl Reading
Girl in Japan (Asia’s Transformations), Routledge; 1 Edition.
Mackie, V. (2015). Feminism. In J. Babb (Ed.), The SAGE Handbook of Modern JapaneseStudies (pp. 181–193). United Kingdom: Sage Publications.
Mackie, V. (2009). Transnational bricolage: Gothic Lolita and the political economy offashion. Intersections: Gender and Sexuality in Asia and the Pacific, 2009(20), 11–11.

103

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

McManus, S. (2003). Sexual orientation research phase 1: A review of methodologicalapproaches. Glasgow: Central Research Unit Papers, Social Research Scottish
Executive
McVeigh, B. J. (2000). Wearing ideology. Oxford, New York, Berg
McVeigh, B. J. (2014). Interpreting Japan: Approaches and applications for the classroom.
London, Routledge
Minh-Ha, T. (1991). When the moon waxed red: Representation, gender and cultural politics,
pp. 65–80. London: Routledge.
Monden, M. (2008). Transcultural flow of demure aesthetics: Examining cultural
globalisation through Gothic & Lolita fashion. New Voices, 2. 21–40.
https://doi.org/10.21159/nv.02.02
Monden, M. (2013). The “Nationality” Lolita Fashion. In F. Nakamura, M. Perkins, & M.
Krischer (Eds.), Asia through art and anthropology: Cultural translation acrossborders (pp. 165–178). Bloomsbury Academic.
Nabokov, V. (1997). Lolita (Second Vintage International ed.). New York: Random House
Osmud, R. O., Liu, W. S., Lam, E., & Chan, M. T. (2011). “Lolita”: Imaginative self andelusive consumption. Fashion Theory, 15(1), 7– 28.
https://doi.org/10.2752/175174111X12858453158066
Petrow, S. (2014) “Civilities, what does the acronym LGBTQ stand for?” in Washington
Post. Accessed September 19, 2020, fromhttps://www.washingtonpost.com/news/artsanentertainment/wp/2014/05/23/civilities-what-does-the-acronym-lgbtq-stand-for/Pieterse, J. N. (1997). Globalization as hybridization. In M. Featherstone, S. Lash, & R.
Robertson (Eds.), Global modernities (pp. 45–68). London: Sage.
Porzio, L. (2012). I want to be happy looking at myself: Lolita style and its embodied
practices between resistance and urban fashion. In L. Petican, M. Esseghaier, A.
Nurse, & D. Eluwawalage (Eds.), Trending now: New developments in fashion studies(pp. 69–79). Brill Books. https://doi.org/10.1163/9781848882119_008
Price, Elizabeth (2011) LGBT sexualities in social care research. Methods Review, 2. NIHR
School for Social Care Research, London. Accessed July 1, 2020 fromhttp://eprints.lse.ac.uk/41198/
Robertson, R. (1995). Glocalization: Time-Space and homogeneity-geterogeneity. In M.
Featherstone, S. Lash, & R. Robertson (Eds.), Global Modernities. London: Sage.
Staite, S. (2013). Femme infantile: Australian Lolitas in theory and practice. Intersections:
Gender and Sexuality in Asia and the Pacific, 32.
Victoria & Albert Museum (V&A), (2012). Lolita fashion: Japanese street style. Accessed
October 4, 2019, from http://www.vam.ac.uk/content/articles/j/japanese-street-style/Winge, T. (2008). Undressing and dressing Loli: A search for identity of Japanese LoLita.
Mechademia, 3, 47–63. https://doi.org/10.1353/mec.0.0045
Winge, T., (2006). Consuming the imagination: Origins of anime and manga cosplay.
Mechademia, 1, 65–76. https://doi.org/10.1353/mec.0.0084

104

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

Illustrations
Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4Group Interview with the administrative
members of HK Lolita at Papillon Café,
Mong Kok 帕比安紅茶書室Group interview with male Lolita and female
Lolita at Sugar Factory Café (a maid cafe inMong Kok)
HK Lolita (Facebook Profile Photo)

Photo by Lolita Participant(30 July 2017)
Photo by Lolita Participant(18 August 2017)https://www.facebook.com/hklol
ita/
online accessed 12/10/2019
Accessories, made by our informant, Kele for Photo by S.F.Wong
Qi Lolita sold in a Lolita Market Garden in (2nd October 2016)
October 2016, at the plaza D2 place, The
space, Lai Chi Kok, Kowloon

Corresponding author: Shuk Fan WONG
Email: sfwong@um.edu.mo

105

IAFOR Journal of Cultural Studies

Volume 6 – Issue 1 – 2021

106the iafor

journal of cultural studies

ISSN: 2187-4905