Coming-of-Age Ceremony (Guān Jī)
Coming-of-age ceremony: capping for men (guān) and hairpinning for women (jī).
Guān Jī were the coming-of-age ceremonies in ancient China. Men performed the capping ceremony (guān lǐ) at the age of twenty, where elders placed a ceremonial cap on them. Women performed the hairpinning ceremony (jī lǐ) at fifteen, where their hair was tied up and a hairpin inserted, signifying adulthood and readiness for marriage. As a milestone marking a life stage, an auspicious day was chosen for the ritual.