A Historical Look at the Ninja Suit

While many of us automatically think of an all black suit when we hear the word ninja, there is no historical evidence to point to the fact that they were all that was worn by ninjas.

It is more likely the case that ninja adopted either the same attire as samurai or Japanese peasants of the day.

The Kabuki theater gets the credit for giving us the stereotypical image of ninja always wearing the black outfits. Black outfits were worn by prop handlers so they could move items around the stage without attracting attention. The theater would use similar all black suits in order to portray ninja in their productions. This could have given the audience the impression that ninja were so secretive they were invisible. It also made it impossible for the audience to distinguish the ninja from the prop handlers until they leapt into action. Many ninja used this particular cultural attraction in order to assassinate members of the audience.

To improve gripping and rope climbing ninja boots (jika-tabi) feature a split-toe design that is similar to most of the Japanese footwear from the time. These shoes are so soft that they are almost silent.