Sing-song girls Sing-song girls, sometime also called “flower girls”, is a term used by visiting Westerners to China in the 1800s and early 1900’s for high-class entertainers or courtesans. The term originated from foreigners not understanding what to call the entertainers in the tea house (also called flower houses or “sing-song” houses) as the performers there were not considered prostitutes, however their services went beyond that of what was commonplace from entertainers back in Europe. The girls in these establishments would often play romantic games with customers, dance, play instruments, and particularly “sing” sweet “songs” to them to gain their interest and favor – thus the term Sing-song Girl was coined. The concept of a courtesan-entertainer is not new to China and there are references going back 2000 years to the Han dynasty where Chinese emperors are cited needing to find female entertainment for their troops. There have been many terms given to these girls throughout Chinese history: "gē jì" ("singing female entertainer” or “singing beauty”) or "ōu zhě" ("singing person"). Much like the Geisha from Japan, the Korean Kisaeng or the Hetaira of ancient Greece, Sing-song girls trained from childhood to entertain wealthy male clients through companionship, singing and dancing. They were not necessarily obligated provide sexual services, but many did and they considered themselves lovers and not prostitutes. They did not have distinctive make-up like the Geisha and usually wore the same type as clothing as high-class Chinese women such as a Shanghai cheongsam. The practice probably proliferated in China up until 1911 (and possibly later) as it was legal and commonplace for a Chinese man of means to have a second wife or even concubines. As only male children carried on the surname of a family (at the time) this was “supposed” to be for the purpose of perpetuating the family name. These concubines these men sought were most often found the flower house or “sing-song” houses. Entertainers here would usually have one or several male sponsors. Their hope was to become the concubine, or with luck, a second wife of the men they entertained. ---- Pulled V3 back out for this one. The Screen is from Eclectic Swan at Daz Thanx to ktaylor for "Vulcan Hair" and PhilC for "Oriental Fan" both in the Freebie section here at Rendy. In any case, I hope you like her. Rick