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Geisha and Courtesan: Role/Occupation
 Family Women
Courtesans and geisha lived in a predominantly female realm instituted with a rigid social hierarchy. In the Edo period (1615-1867 A.D.), both kamuro (child attendants) and shinzo (older attendants) waited on courtesans. In the case of geisha, their family structure consisted of a complex system of ritual mothers and sisters that still continues today. Okasan, or mothers, manage the teahouses where geisha make their living quarters. Usually former geisha, they are the entrepreneurs who arrange and handle the business. Geisha are considered the daughters of the okasan, even though their kinship were not always by virtue of blood.
The idea of sisterhood is prevalent between geisha, although these "sisters" are not usually related. Those who had seniority because of an earlier debut were called onesan, or "older sister", while apprentice geisha who learned from observation of their onesan were identified as maiko. The ceremony of sansan kudo, represented by three sips of sake three times, officially and ritualistically tied the bond of sisters between a maiko and the geisha who agreed to sponsor her. As sisters, their roles were unequal yet complementary as they established a relationship built on mentoring, learning, and mutual respect.
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