The Promotion of Knitting Techniques by Haruyo Eto from the Meiji Period to the Showa Period: The Transition of Knitting in Japan

Abstract

  Haruyo Eto was a knitting teacher who actively promoted various knitting activities from the Meiji Period to the Showa Period. In1924, she contrived for the first time the practical knitting symbols “goritekifugo.” She advocated financial independence and a spirit of self-reliance by knitting after a number of political changes, many wars and the Great Kanto Earthquake. In order to help the country recover from wars and disasters, Eto initiated and implemented a large number of knitting activities. As a result, many Japanese women took up knitting as a means of livelihood, in the hope of living a peaceful life. By learning proper knitting techniques, women were able to use various yarns such as wool and cotton during times of disaster and war, and earn income from selling their goods. While knitting was a symbol of high culture in Europe and the United States, it was a means of sustenance in Japan.