Gakuran School Uniform Images

The gakuran (学ラン?) or the tsume-eri (詰襟?) are the uniforms for many middle school and high school boys in Japan. The color is normally black, but some schools use navy and dark blue as well. Other than that it can be recognized by its collar but absence of lapels.

The top has a standing collar buttoning down from top-to-bottom. Buttons are usually decorated with the school emblem to show respect to the school. Pants are straight leg and a black or dark-colored belt is worn with them. Boys usually wear penny loafers or sneakers with this uniform. Some schools may require the students to wear collar-pins representing the school and/or class rank.

The second button from the top of a male's uniform is often given away to a girl he is in love with, and is considered a way of confession. The second button is the one closest to the heart and is said to contain the emotions from all three years attendance at the school. This practice was apparently made popular by a scene in a novel by Daijun Takeda.

Traditionally, the gakuran is also worn along with a matching (usually black) student cap, although this custom is less common in modern times.

The Gakuran is derived from Prussian army uniforms. The term is a combination of gaku (学) meaning "study" or "student", and ran (らん or 蘭) meaning Holland or, historically in Japan, the West in general; thus, gakuran translates as "Western student (uniform)". Such clothing was also worn by school children in South Korea and pre-1949 China.