Significado de Shibumi

Welcome to a new post on our blog. This time it will be a deeper post, since we will talk about the meaning of the word we chose to represent ourselves as an ecological clothing brand. 'Shibumi' has a story behind its meaning, if you're curious stay until the end!

Where does the word come from?

We are transported to the beginning of the year 1330, in the Muromachi period. This period is characterized by the failure of the Kenmu Restoration and the rise to power of the samurai Kōji Ashikaga, who established the second shogunate (military rule established in Japan with brief interruptions) in Japanese history in 1338. 'Shibumi' comes from the adjective Shibui (渋い) and initially had the meaning of “bitter”. However, for the Japanese it was not a negative term, but a concept of life that had to be valued as well. In the early 1600s, it began to refer to a more pleasant term; people of the time used this word to express their taste and to refer to everything from songs to crafts that were beautiful because they were understated or because they were exactly how they were supposed to look, nothing complicated or invented. Shibumi began to spread as a concept that looks for the beauty of an event, manifestation, person or object in a direct and simple way, without being too flashy or outstanding.

Which means ‘Shibumi’ nowadays?

As we have told you, the meaning of 'Shibumi' has a story behind it. Today Shibumi would be defined as the search for simplicity and nothing too flashy. According to this knowledge, "less is more" and tends to be minimalist, simple yet sufficient.

Why ‘Shibumi’?

Shibumi's meaning was never negative. The Japanese saw bitterness as a stage to be understood and then the concept evolved into a more positive aspect for our interpretation. In Japanese culture, 'Shibumi' will always imply a beautiful and delicate attitude.

We could define the word ‘Shibumi’ (渋み) as “effortless perfection”. An object, place or situation that is beautiful for the simple fact of its existence and being so. This is how we want to define our ecological clothing brand; perfectionist without the intention of being, honest and loyal with no bad interest, refreshing and innovative without a spirit of evil.

Did you find the publication interesting? Did you know the meaning of 'Shibumi'? Tell us about it in the comments!