Tejime

Tejime (手締め^?), also called teuchi (手打ち^?), is a Japanese custom of ceremonial rhythmic hand clapping, performed at the end of a special event—such as a celebration or a meeting of shareholders—to bring the occasion to a peaceful, lively close.

Before proceeding to clap hands, the leader says "ote wo haishaku" (お手を拝借), after which the participants, just before clapping their hands, usually yell "iyō'o" (イヨーオ), "yo" (ヨッ) or "mō itchō" (もう一丁) in order to synchronize timing. There are various ways of clapping hands, which are explained below.

Types of tejime

The main types are:

• Itchō-jime (一丁締め), which consists of a single clap.

• The Edo-style tejime:

• Ippon-jime (一本締め), which consists of three sets of three claps and one final clap (3-3-3-1).

• Sanbon-jime (三本締め), which consists of three ippon-jime, i.e. three three sets of three claps and one final clap (3-3-3-1 3-3-3-1 3-3-3-1).

For example, in the case of sanbon-jime, the ceremony would go like this:

Other types of tejime include Ōsaka-jime (大阪締め) and Hakatashu ippon (博多手一本), which is performed during the Hakata-Gion Yamakasa Festival (博多祇園山笠), held in Fukuoka in July.

See also

• Customs and etiquette of Japan
• Hakushu (拍手), hand clapping related to Shinto