Hello,

I have been looking for any information on how my wifes dreadlocks will be perceived in Japan. They are clean and well taken care of, but I understand that most, even in a lot of western cultures, see them as dirty. I am guessing they will be seen as dirty and unkempt and not a good thing, but I wanted to throw it by some people with better knowledge first and also to see the severity of the negative view. Thank you for any information you can give me.

If you are only coming for a holiday it probably wont make much difference..

But if she wants to work here.. or rent an apartment.. anything that makes us even more different is probably best avoided..

We do plan on moving someday, so now I have to figure our decision for that and how to go about it. Thank you for the response.

Hello. I am a white American male with dreadlocks and after traveling to Japan twice, I have not experienced any problems. She may run into some people who are fascinated with her dreads and want to ask questions or touch them, but that's it. I did not notice any Japanese, excluding maybe children, staring rudely or treating me differently due to my hairstyle. If a Japanese does respond poorly then he/she is probably a rude person to begin with and is not worth worrying about. Such a person's behavior would not be inspired by national/cultural customs.

However, I have not tried applying for a job or apartment yet. I cannot speak for those scenarios.

Hope that helps. : P