kokeshi doll; limbless wooden doll
A traditional Japanese wooden doll with a simple trunk and a round head, lacking arms and legs. Often associated with the Tohoku region.
I bought a kokeshi doll as a souvenir from the Tohoku region.
These kokeshi dolls are handmade, and each one has a different facial expression.
The word is usually written in kana. This is the most common and recommended spelling.
Katakana spelling, sometimes used for emphasis or in stylistic contexts.
Ateji kanji form; rarely used and may not be recognized by all readers.
Rarely used ateji kanji form.
The origin of the word 'kokeshi' is uncertain. It may derive from a combination of 'ko' (small) and 'keshi' (poppy), or from a dialectal term. The dolls themselves originated in the Tohoku region during the Edo period.