Taira Toshiko

Taira Toshiko ( Japanese 平 良 敏 子 ; born February 14, 1921 in Ōgimi in Okinawa Prefecture ) is a Japanese dyer and artisan . It was declared in 1974 as a living national treasure for the " important intangible cultural asset " "dyeing and manufacture of textiles from banana trees" ( 芭蕉 布 , Bashōfu ). At the suggestion of her teacher Ōhara Sōichirō, who trained her in Kurashiki in Okayama Prefecture , and the dyer Tonomura Kichinosuke, Toshiko Taira turned to the traditional handicrafts of Okinawa, to which she gained a new appreciation through her work. She revived a centuries-old technique of the Ryūkyū Kingdom to manufacture textiles from the fibers of banana trees and to dye them. In 1974 this technique was declared by the Society for the Conservation of Textiles from Banana Trees in Kijoka ( 喜 如 嘉 の 芭蕉 布 保存 会 , Kijoka no Bashōfu Hozonkai ) as an "important intangible cultural asset". Toshiko Taira was named the Living National Treasure on June 6, 2000 as their representative. In 1986 she was also honored with the " Yoshikawa Eiji Culture Prize" ( 吉川英 治 文化 賞 , Yoshikawa Eiji Bunkashō ). Most recently she received the Order of the Noble Crown (4th class) in 2002 .

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b} 平 良 敏 子 . In: デ ジ タ ル 版 日本人 名 大 辞典 + Plus at kotobank.jp. Retrieved March 12, 2015 (Japanese). 
2. ↑ 重要 無形 文化 財 喜 如 嘉 の 芭蕉 布 展 (東京 ・ 大阪 ・ 福岡 ・ 名古屋) . Kimonozukuri Tamaya, 2012, accessed March 12, 2015 (Japanese, with illustrations). 

Web links

• 重要 無形 文化 財 「芭蕉 布」 保持 者 ： 平 良 敏 子 . In:文化 庁 月報 No. 517. Office for Cultural Affairs, Oct. 2011,accessed March 12, 2015(Japanese, Illustrated). 
• 人間 国宝 平 良 敏 子 . City of Ōgimi, 2014,accessed March 12, 2015(Japanese). 

Japanese name: As is common in Japan, the family name comes before the first name in this article . Thus Taira is the family name, Toshiko the first name.