I just wanted to interject and ask that people be careful with political comments; there are people from all over the planet here coming together for a mutual interest, so let's have respect Especially in the topic of a foreign okiya No country is better than another to host something like this, so relax.

As for a foreign okiya, having the practice based on something traditionally Japanese, would one (if they were to become a geisha in a foreign okiya) take on a Japanese name, or one very traditional to the country that the okiya is located in? Are we trying to bring Japan's tradition to another country, or trying to create the tradition in another culture? Like, bring Japanese geisha to the west, or create a western style of geisha? Part of the appeal of geisha is that they demonstrate and preserve things about Japan's yesteryear, so a foreign audience may not connect so well to the idea of their people playing Japanese geisha, when they have their own traditions and history and cultural dress to preserve.

(sorry, not trying to mod or anything, I just fear these sort of country-hating topics, especially when they come from something completely unrelated)

Yes, that is the problem I am thinking of. A Western Kyoto-style okiya would be a strange thing, at least because of the speaking Kyo-ben requirement. And a Western Western okiya would be no okiya at all, that is 'geisha-house' due to the 'westernness'

Thank you Kikuyo-san. I admit my 'bear-hunt', even with its AIGF & non-malicious intention was unrelated to the topic.
[For instance: I know, and knew all the time, that it was not a Baltic state, but Russia, no matter how Stalinist at the time, that crushed 75-80% of Nazism in 1943-45 - and no matter how allied Stalin was to Hitler when seizing the Baltics in 1940. Both happened. OK, end!]

Please let's all enter Kikuyo-san's wonderful, welcoming okiya now, and sail on her course in the future, it looks like the wiser one. [I insist the first round of wodka is on me.]

A Japanese-staffed okiya+ochaya in a non-Japanese environment would require some aforehand explanation for the ignorant, I think we can agree on that by now.
What if we'd connect that Western [or whatever non-Japanese category] okiya to some solid Internet etc. connections - like, for instance, this Board? Or put up a kind of powerpoint-or-so presentation for visitors about what's actually going on in there, and what not! [like prostitution].

But I understand it will remain an uneasy position...

Just my opinion: as you know, Japanese society was very male dominated and wives literally used to sit in their homes. Men looked for female entertaining (not necessarily for sex). Geisha were beautiful, stylish, well mannered persons, who combine desire, wisdom, humor, style and care (u name it). There are no similar things in other cultures. So, be sure that in America and other counties in Europe or Middle-East men will thing about those "okiya" as regular whore houses. U have to be totally naive about men to suggest that 30-50 years old person will pay good money for a conversation with 20 years old girl, no matter of her accent, let's be straight about it. Men will come waiting for something else, girls will obey to do not lose their clients and u will have a whore house in your hands, which are totally illegal in US, or u will have female clients, who will come to look on your art skills and etc. But they will not bring real money, sorry for reality.
I see problems not only in future entertainers, but mainly in clients. Geisha business is business as others. Before u bring something, think twice how you will sell it.

you guys are still gladiating yourselves with that? Nobody can jugde something that has never been tried.The same was said in relation of many businesses in the history.Many stuff that were considered crazy years before now are well-secceded like car,computer,coca-cola and the list go on.

If the problem is the way men will see geishas,it´ss not the geisha culture´s fault,but ours.If the large number of women accepts the porno culture and prostitution as natural,how we could expect more respect for us?We don´t need to have okyias in the West to men sexualize women in professions as well in any other field.Curisouly,i am always attacked (sometimes isnulted) when reporting such reality.

I still think it's a stereotype to say that American men can only look at a teahouse and think of it as an expensive brothel. That makes a rather large assumption on the abilities of American men to understand what the concept of an ochaya is, especially since people here don't a have a problem saying that the American women on this forum understand the idea. To be honest, it's saying that American men are too stupid and too sexualized to understand that a hostess is not a prostitute. Amazingly, American men can get the idea that a geisha is a woman who is hired to help a party be more enjoyable with music, dancing, and conversation. And they can also get the idea that sex is not the obvious conclusion to the end of the night, despite how much the entertainment may have cost. It's not a foregone conclusion that a teahouse in the US would become a brothel. I also think that saying that it would never work in America because men would turn it into a brothel, while saying this doesn't happen in Japan, makes an assumption on the part of Japanese men as well. Somehow, they're more sensitive and cultured than American men, somehow more capable of understanding this rather simple concept? That largely implies that Japanese men are somehow better than American men. I'm sorry for ranting, but I'm really tired of seeing American men get ragged on throughout this topic. It insults a lot of people I know.

Sakamoto, I wasn't targeting your post, just the many posts within this topic that have made claims that it's a foregone conclusion that an okiya in the US would just become a brothel. I'm not going to deny issues of misogynism and exploitation, I'm well aware that they exist in every nation and like most women have had to deal with them personally.

But I still think it's insulting to say that men outside of Japan are incapable of looking at an okiya and think of it as something other than a brothel. That, I think, is a rather dehumanizing way to look at men, as if they're incapable of thinking about anything without a sexual mindset. If the concept of an okiya was explained in plain terms, then anyone can understand what it is. And if the geisha within the okiya don't accept any 'offers' made to them, then it won't become a brothel. It's really that simple.