noun
cutting sidelocks; evenly cut sidelocks (Heian-era adulthood symbol for noblewomen); coming-of-age sidelock-cutting ritual (late Muromachi to Edo period for women)
Archaic term referring to a historical practice. The first gloss describes the act of cutting the hair at the sides of the face; the second refers to the resulting hairstyle as a marker of adulthood for Heian noblewomen; the third denotes a ceremonial coming-of-age ritual for women from about 1568 to 1867.
平安時代、貴族の女性は成人のしるしとして鬢削ぎをした。
In the Heian period, noblewomen had their sidelocks cut as a sign of adulthood.
江戸時代の武家では、娘の鬢削ぎの儀式が行われた。
In samurai families of the Edo period, a ceremony of cutting the sidelocks was held for daughters.
Compound of 鬢 (bin, 'hair at the temples/sidelocks') and 削ぎ (sogi, from 削ぐ sogu, 'to slice off'). The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but the term directly describes the act of cutting the sidelocks.