Miko - Definition

Definition

The Japanese word miko or fujo — “female shaman; shrine maiden” — is usually written 巫女 as a compound of the kanji 巫 "shaman", and 女 "woman; female". Miko was archaically written 神子 (lit. "kami/god child") and 巫子 ("shaman child").

Miko performed in Japan throughout history. The term Miko means possession by gods and spirits, and while originally perhaps all Mikos employed ecstasy, the term gradually came to include many groups which did not use ecstasy. Mikos performed both within the shrines and outside of the shrines, divining, driving out evil spirits, performing sacred dances, etc., the purpose of which was to serve mankind by preserving life and bringing happiness to man.

Miko are known by many names; Fairchild lists 26 terms for “shrine attached Miko” and 43 for “non shrine attached Miko.” Other names are ichiko (巫子, "shaman child", or 市子, "market/town child", both likely instances of ateji) meaning “female medium; fortuneteller”, and reibai (霊媒) meaning “spirit go-between, medium”).

In English the word is often translated as shrine maiden, though freer renderings often simply use the phrase female shaman (shamanka) or, as Lafcadio Hearn translated it, “Divineress.”

Some scholars prefer the transliteration, contrasting the Japanese Mikoism with other Asian terms for female shamans. As Fairchild explains:

Women played an important role in a region stretching from Manchuria, China, Korea and Japan to the Ryukyu Islands. In Japan these women were priests, soothsayers, magicians, prophets and shamans in the folk religion, and they were the chief performers in organized Shintoism. These women were called Miko, and the author calls the complex "Mikoism" for lack of a suitable English word.