Ukiyo (浮世, "floating, fleeting, or transient world") describes the urban lifestyle, especially the

pleasure-seeking aspects, of the Edo-period Japan (1600–1867). The Floating World culture

developed in Yoshiwara, the licensed red-light district of Edo (modern Tokyo), which was the site of
many brothels frequented by Japan's growing middle class. A prominent author of
the ukiyo genre was Ihara Saikaku, who wrote The Life of an Amorous Woman. The ukiyo culture
also arose in other cities such as Osaka and Kyoto.
The famous Japanese woodblock prints known as ukiyo-e, or "pictures of the Floating World", had
their origins in these districts and often depicted scenes of the Floating World itself such as geisha,
kabuki actors, sumo wrestlers, samurai, chōnin, and prostitutes.
The term ukiyo (when meaning the Floating World) is also an ironic allusion to
the homophone ukiyo (憂き世, "Sorrowful World"), the earthly plane of death and rebirth from
which Buddhists sought release.