Title: Seiza - Wikipedia
Headings: Seiza
Seiza
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Contents
Form
History
Floor
Difficulties
Use in traditional arts
Shikkō
Alternative sitting positions
Agura
Yokozuwari
Wariza
Kiza
See also
References

Content: People's social circumstances, clothing styles, and the places where they sat naturally brought about their manners of sitting. The development, in the Muromachi period, of Japanese architecture in which the floors were completely covered with tatami (thick straw mats), combined with the strict formalities of the ruling warrior class for which this style of architecture was principally designed, heralded the adoption of the sitting posture known today as seiza as the respectful way to sit. By the middle of the Edo period, it had become a convention for samurai to sit in this manner when meeting authority figures such as the Shogun as a symbol of obedience and loyalty. However, it probably was not until around the years surrounding the turn of the 18th century (the Genroku to Kyōhō eras in Japanese history) that the Japanese generally adopted this manner of sitting in their everyday lives and during the Meiji era, it had become firmly established as the proper sitting posture, as part of the "Japanese culture and tradition" purposefully created during this time. The posture serves as the standard floor sitting posture for most traditional formal occasions, and it is generally considered the respectful way to sit in the presence of superiors or elders unless otherwise permitted. Floor
Seiza involves sitting down on the floor and not on a chair. In traditional Japanese architecture, floors in various rooms designed for comfort have tatami floors. Seiza thus is closely connected with tatami flooring. There are circumstances, however, when people sit seiza -style on carpeted and hardwood floors. In many martial arts, for instance, this sitting position generally takes place on hardwood floors.