Hello everyone! Long time, no see.
I have been moving and I came across a copy of the wonderful (in my humble opinion) novel Memoirs of a Giesha and I couldn’t help but wonder: Are there still Giesha in Japan? If so, is it still a career or has it evolved into something else?
Thanks a lot. Hope to be back soon.
I’m sure that someone else will chime in soon with a more definitive answer, but yes, there are still Geisha in Japan - I’ve seen them. The popularity of the profession is declining as it requires a lot of training and sacrifice, but there still are some extremely expensive young geisha. A good, though slightly sensationalistic reference on this topic is Nicholas Bornoff’s Pink Samurai
That having been said, the role that geisha played in the past is now occupied more by bar girls.
Thanks for the reply ignatzmouse. I was begining to think that no one was interested. 
What exactly are bar girls?
There was a great program on the TV a few weeks ago about a girl who became a maiko (kind of like a pre-geisha) in Kyoto. They mentioned how the number of maiko, and consequently geisha, have dropped because of the training involved.
Also, the women who train the maiko-san are picky. They won’t agree to just train anyone. The program focussed on one girl who is quite tall for a Japanese (and very tall for a maiko), and the woman who ended up training her almost didn’t take her in because of her height.
Bar girls, or hostesses are women who entertain drinkers with conversation and karaoke. I believe that they earn some kind of wage but profit mainly from gifts and tips. Most, if not all, are open to further service for bigger tips.
Ahh, the sex industry. The world oldest profession. Just reminds me that it sucks to be a woman sometimes.
From what I understand, the book I read was very well researched and accurate about a Geisha’s life. While I would not wish for such a situation, it seemed that the Geisha were protected by a rich tradition. These “bar girls” sound like they are playing with fire for money.
The Geisha profession isn’t really included in the “sex industry.”
Geisha or Geiko means “woman of art.” Maiko, or aprentice geiko, means “woman of dance.” At least that is what I read in the book “Geisha,” by Kyoko Aihara (ISBN #1858689708). If you are interested in Geisha, this is a fabulous book to read. It has tons of gorgeous pictures as well as interesting information on how the Geisha live in modern times. I also read “Memoirs of a Geisha,” and loved it.
The prostitutes that used to wear the kimono and hairstyle similar to Geisha, were identified by the way thier obi was tied. A true Geisha or Maiko has the obi tied in the back, the prostitute would have her obi tied in the front for easy redressing. Geisha and Maiko have people whose main job is to dress them.
More terminology clarification-- traditionally a geisha is just professional entertainer, who plays instruments like the samisen and sings and converses well or does calligraphy or whatever to provide people with a pleasant evening (there was a male equivilant called a hohkan, although I don’t know whether they entertained men or women).
There are several ranks, traditionally, of prostitutes (a term that sounds so unsavoury considering how well these people were regarded): oiran-- the very highly ranked pros; kohshi-- sort of middle ranked pros; the lowest rank of pro was called a teoppoh. (o-macrons spelled with ‘oh’ here-- sorry.
There were also pre-pubescent attendants to the higher classed courtesans called kamuro-- you sometimes see courtesans with a couple of younger girls in edo period prints, for example. Older girls (16-20 or so) who accompanied senior pros in the district (like an internship) were called shinzoh.
For those who don’t know…what is a Geisha, anyway?
a Geisha is an individual’s female entertainer. She is not a prostitute or stripper. She sings, plays a musical instrument, provides witty & amusing conversation, & is knowledgable (sp?) about current events. They do not perform for audiences, but for small private parties.
if there is a Geisha lurking on this board, please sign up & become a poster, because most Geisha are well informed enough to be an asset to the Straight Dope Message Board Community, & I believe you would be welcome indeed.
Bosda has it. They’re not prostitutes, but they started out as the people who were called in to entertain in the brothels, and so occupied a lower social rank than many of the prostitutes. According to The Nightless City, or The History of the Yoshiwara Yukwaku, by J.E. De Becker (1899), many geisha during the 1800’s would engage in prostitution on the side, but the owners of the licensed brothels tried to have this officially prohibited.
Interesting link: http://www.epinions.com/content_1460576388