Please Remove Your Shoes

* It is the custom in Japan to remove one's shoes and put on slippers before entering a home, school, restaurant, shrine, or temple.  Many Japanese homes have a small entry room, called a genkan, which may include a shoe storage cupboard, called a geta-bako, as well as a rack of slippers for changing into.  In Japanese schools, there is a large entry room with shelves or lockers for each student's shoes.

The tradition of removing shoes when entering a building began in Japan at least 800 years ago.  The custom prevents dirt from being tracked into the house from outside.  Because traditional Japanese homes used cushions or mats set directly onto the floor for both sitting and sleeping, a clean floor was particularly important.