The chonmage is the traditional topknot that sumo wrestlers wear in their hair — a style handed down from Japan’s samurai era, when the topknot was ordinary men’s dress. Sumo is one of the last places it survives in daily life. The hair is grown long, oiled, and tied up by a specialist hairdresser, and the salaried wrestlers wear a more elaborate, fanned-out version called the oicho-mage, the “ginkgo-leaf” topknot, in the ring and on formal occasions. This guide explains what the chonmage is, who ties it, and why cutting it off marks the end of a career.
It is a samurai-era topknot. The chonmage descends from the hairstyle of the Edo period, and sumo is one of the last places it is worn as everyday dress.
A specialist ties it. Sumo’s own hairdressers, the tokoyama, oil and tie every wrestler’s hair using traditional tools and wax.
Sekitori wear the oicho-mage. The salaried top-division wrestlers wear an elaborate “ginkgo-leaf” topknot in the ring; lower-ranked wrestlers wear a plain chonmage.
Cutting it ends a career. When a wrestler retires, his topknot is snipped off in the danpatsu-shiki ceremony, the moment that closes his time in sumo.
What the chonmage is
The chonmage is a topknot: the hair is grown long, drawn up from the sides and back, and folded forward over the crown into a knot. The style is a survival from the days when it was the ordinary way Japanese men wore their hair, and it largely disappeared from everyday life generations ago. In sumo it never went away. A wrestler wears his hair in the topknot at all times in public, not only in the ring, and it becomes one of the most recognizable parts of his identity — see the wider history of sumo for how the sport kept so many of these older customs alive.
The tokoyama: sumo’s hairdressers
A wrestler does not tie his own topknot. That work is done by a tokoyama, a specialist hairdresser employed within the sumo world, who trains for years to master the craft. Using a wide-toothed comb, cord, and a sweet-smelling wax that holds the hair in place, the tokoyama shapes each wrestler’s chonmage before practice, before bouts, and for ceremonies. The hairdressers are part of the backstage world of a sumo stable and the tournament, working quietly alongside the wrestlers throughout their careers.
The oicho-mage: the ginkgo-leaf topknot
Not every wrestler wears the same style. The salaried wrestlers of the top two divisions — the sekitori — are entitled to the oicho-mage, an elaborate version in which the end of the topknot is spread out into the shape of a ginkgo leaf across the crown of the head. It is worn in the ring and for formal occasions, and it is one of the visible privileges that set the sekitori apart from the ranks below. Lower-division wrestlers wear a plainer chonmage day to day, so the fanned-out ginkgo topknot is, in itself, a mark of having reached the upper ranks.
The topknot is more than decoration. It is bound up with the formality and discipline of sumo, and it is also said to help cushion a wrestler’s head if he falls or is thrown onto the clay. Whatever its practical effect, the chonmage is treated as something to be worn with pride and kept with care.
Cutting the mage: the end of a career
Because the topknot is so tied to a wrestler’s identity, removing it carries great weight. When a wrestler retires, his chonmage is cut off in a ceremony called the danpatsu-shiki. Guests, supporters and former rivals each take a single snip of the cords, and the wrestler’s stablemaster makes the final cut that takes the topknot off for good. For a wrestler who has worn the mage every day of his career, the moment it falls is the moment his life in the ring formally ends — which is why the danpatsu-shiki is often an emotional occasion for everyone present.
Frequently asked questions
Key takeaways: The chonmage is the traditional topknot worn by sumo wrestlers, descended from the samurai era and tied by specialist hairdressers, the tokoyama. Salaried top-division wrestlers (sekitori) wear an elaborate ginkgo-leaf version, the oicho-mage, in the ring. When a wrestler retires, the topknot is cut off in the danpatsu-shiki ceremony.
Q. What is a chonmage?
It is the traditional Japanese topknot worn by sumo wrestlers. The style dates from the samurai era, and sumo is one of the last places it is worn as everyday dress.
Q. What is the oicho-mage?
It is the elaborate “ginkgo-leaf” topknot worn by sekitori, the salaried top-two-division wrestlers, in the ring and for formal occasions. Lower-division wrestlers wear a plainer chonmage.
Q. Who ties a wrestler’s topknot?
A tokoyama, a specialist sumo hairdresser who trains for years and uses traditional tools and wax to shape the hair before practice, bouts and ceremonies.
Q. What happens to the topknot when a wrestler retires?
It is cut off in the danpatsu-shiki retirement ceremony, with guests taking turns to snip the cords and the stablemaster making the final cut.
Photo by Michihiro Taguchi — shot ringside.
