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Gyaru – What Does Gyaru Mean and Stand For?
What does Gyaru actually mean?
The Japanese term Gyaru is a slang term for “Gal” (girl), but it is also a Japanese cultural expression that is used to describe a fashion sense. It is sometimes used by Japanese girls, or women, who are called “Gyaru“.
Gyaru is a fashion style where girls dye their hair brightly in bright colors such as pink, green and blond. They use creams to darken their skin and wear trendy clothes and nail art to stand out from the rest.
What’s the origin of Gyaru?
The street fashion “Gyaru“, as it is known, originated in the 1970s. It became very popular due to Baywatch, an American action-drama TV series.
The style was not as flashy as it is today. They used only lighter, blonder colors for their hair and decorated their nails with a lot of glitter to stand out.
How did Gyaru spread out?
“Gyaru” is a Japanese cultural thing, which became well known outside of Japan, thanks to the Japanese culture spreading to the western audiences, like anime, manga, movies, and games, where usually there is a “Gyaru” character in place.
The style is no longer as popular as it was in the past, with people choosing more minimalistic pieces.
Synonyms for Gyaru
In a conversation, there are several synonym words or phrases you can use instead. These are some words or phrases that you can replace it with:
- gal
- young female
- adolescent Japanese subculture
Different Types Of Gyaru
Gyaru’s amazing diversity of styles means that you can find something that fits your style. .
Ane Agejo Gyaru
This is the grown-up version of agejo. Ideal for those who want to tone their appearance but still retain their agejo style. Although I don’t consider ane agejo to be onee, it’s something I think I would. I also thought I’d include the term because it’s widely used in gaijin gyaru.
Amekaji Gyaru
This is the mature version of agejo. It’s perfect for people who want to tone down, but not lose their agejo aesthetic. My personal opinion is that ane agejo is onee, but I thought it was worth mentioning because it is a widely-used term in the gaijin Gyaru community.
Gyaruo Gyaru
The Gyaru’s male counterpart! These guys look great and can also be classified under the same Gyaru categories, e.g. Ganguro gyaruo, Rokku gyaruo, OraOra Gyaruo etc. Gyaruo is the male name for Gyaru.
Onee Gyaru
They are often the older sister of the gyaru gang and the style they ‘graduate to’. They have a more refined look, with less makeup and hair. Sakurina, a wonderful example of onee gyaru, has her own distinctive style and I adore Shizuka Muto.
Goshikku Gyaru
The Gyaru community’s rockstars, and goths! This style is easy to learn if you are just starting out, as they share many of the same elements (in clothing) that we have in our goth communities. Sakurina, Amihamu, and Re were all huge Rokku icons back in those days.
Hime Gyaru
The Gyaru princesses! This style is very extravagant and involves wearing many wig pieces to achieve voluminous hair with many curls. Accessories are often made up of pearls, crowns and lace, as well as bows. However, other colours such as black can be worn. This is often confused with Lolita, but it is quite different in silhouette and the makeup and hair are more dramatic.
Kogal/kogyaru Gyaru
This is the earliest type of Gyaru. These girls are typically high school girls and dress in Gyaru fashion. They often wear short skirts and lots of accessories and have blonde/brown hair.
