Mizuage

Mizuage (水揚げ, lit. "hoisting from water") was a ceremony undergone by Japanese maiko (apprentice Geisha) to signify her coming of age. When the older geisha training her deemed the maiko ready to come of age, the topknot of her hair is symbolically cut. Afterwards, a party would be held for the maiko.

After the proceedings were finished, the maiko was permitted to 'turn her collar.' This meant that she could now wear the white collar of a geisha instead of the red worn by apprentices. Her hairstyle would also be changed to the 'ofuku,' worn by older women, from the 'split-peach' style (momoware), one of the traditional marks of a maiko.

Also, maiko, in the old days, was expected to sell her virginity to the highest bidder, in another coming of age sign.

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"Memoirs of a Geisha" by Arthur Golden