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''My woman from Tokyo
She's so good to me''
— Deep Purple, "Woman From Tokyo"
Roger Stone: But everybody in this family thinks it's funny to try to get around Pop. [...] You, too, Edith. You give in until you get your own way.
Edith Stone: Yes dear.
Roger Stone: See what I mean?
A complicated Japanese aesthetic and cultural concept. Broadly speaking, a yamato nadeshiko is a woman with attributes that were traditionally desirable in Japan from the perspective of male-dominated society; generally ascribed to people with traditional upbringings. Basically it revolves around acting for the benefit of the family and obeying and assisting authority figures (father, husband, sometimes father-in-law or older brothers). Virtues include loyalty, domestic ability, wisdom, maturity, and humility.
This sounds like an Extreme Doormat, especially to modern Westerners, but don't be fooled. A properly done yamato nadeshiko will show a subtle, but definitely present, touch of iron, in that she is unwilling to let circumstances hurt the ones she cares about or distract her from her goals or missions. (though in more poorly done cases, this will often come across as a forced attempt at trying to convince the audience that the YN isn't just a flower-sniffing doormat with no personality) This is often accomplished so subtly that the target isn't quite certain how things got redirected — a kind of influence judo, if you will. Older yamato nadeshiko are better at this, while a younger one will make up for it in determination — especially when it comes to the man she loves, because that trumps everything else. Aoi loves her parents, but she will step over them to be with Kaoru if she has to, since that's what she wants and no one will take that away from her.
Physically, yamato nadeshiko are tall, willowy, modestly endowed and pretty rather than beautiful. They tend to have dark eyes and long, dark hair with bangs; you know, the kind of hair a Japanese person can actually have. (There are exceptions, of course.) They'll also dress rather girlishly: they like skirts, blouses, lace, ribbons and some may use jewelry and make-up, but not to the extreme. Their voices will often be gentle, calm, and warm as that melted butter you get to dip your shellfish in at Red Lobster.
Yamato nadeshiko characters pop up a lot in Magical Girlfriend series (usually in the character who will win the male lead's heart) and in Betty And Veronica love triangles. Similar to an Ojou, although more likely to be played straight. They tend to be very sympathetic, but their passive, reactionary nature puts them in danger of becoming Satellite Characters for more "interesting" people, as well as target of bashing from fans who prefer either Action Girl or Tsundere types (even more blatant if the Yamato Nadeshiko happens to be in a Love Triangle over a guy with one of these "superior and cooler" girls). They are much more popular in Japan for obvious reasons.
More information on this concept can be found in the sci.lang.japan FAQ . Compare Stepford Smiler for a critical take, and Yandere for a girl who seems to be a Yamato Nadeshiko, but hides a far more unstable psyche.
Most likely will be voiced Kikuko Inoue (and formerly, Sumi Shimamoto) if she's from an anime. If the character is on the young age and is already showing lots of Yamato Nadeshiko traits, it's probably Mamiko Noto voicing that character.
Examples
Anime
- Pictured above, Belldandy in Ah My Goddess, which pretty much standardizes Kikuko Inoue's typecasting. Though the in story reason for her being a Yamato Nadeshiko is that if she wasn't, the universe would be in serious danger.
- Mercedes Herrera / de Morcerf in Gankutsuou, (voiced by Kikuko Inoue), also fits the role to a very large extent.
- Hinata Hyuga of Naruto, who is exceptionally kind, polite and soft-spoken.
- Kasumi Tendo in Ranma 1/2 (also voiced by Kikuko Inoue) was the responsible eldest sister, and when Mrs Tendo died, she became the house's mother figure. She adopted a public face of Yamato Nadeshiko, but allowed her own selfish and snarky side to show at home. Later on, she was Flanderized to follow this trope straight unto the point of parody.
- Note that Kasumi's Tsundere younger sister, Akane, actually wants to grow up into a Yamato Nadeshiko, while still being a martial artist.
- There were also two characters in the manga that tried to get revenge on Shampoo for beating them up as kids by using some weird flowers that turned whoever wore them into a Yamato Nadeshiko, even if they were male.
- Nodoka Saotome, Ranma's mother, is the very image of the Yamato Nadeshiko, as she fits the above description to utmost perfection. But then she hears how someone is menacing Akane or Ranko and she gets out her sword... Even if she's actually clumsy with it, there's a reason Genma calls her a "formidable woman."
- She's clumsy with the sword, but she doesn't let that get in the way of being lethal with it. It may even be that it's her lack of skill that makes her worthy of such fear. Something in a similar vein to Crouching Moron Hidden Badass, only without the transition. She is a quantum version of the trope.
- Aoi Sakuraba in Ai Yori Aoshi - a textbook example of this trope, to the point where other characters actually use the term in discussing her. She always wears a kimono, which is rare even for a Yamato Nadeshiko; although there is a bit of justification given in that her family business is making kimonos, and it wouldn't do for her to be seen wearing something other than her family's product.
- Also justified in that she wants to be a perfect Yamato Nadeshiko for Kouru in every way, and has been practicing at it since childhood. Since she comes from a very traditional family, you would expect her to be a very traditional example.
- Mariko Tanaka in Wing Commander, complete with kimono and self sacrificial personality.
- Midori in Midori No Hibi, though she is also a Genki Girl at the same time, rather than the usual calm Yamato Nadeshiko style.
- Tytti Norbuck from Super Robot Wars somewhat exemplifies this a bit, probably more on the 'Loyalty' virtue (to La Gias). She's also voiced by Kikuko Inoue. It would be a full subversion if only she doesn't have a weird sense of taste, thereby guaranteeing anything she cooks will... suck.
- Nanase in Yumeria.
- An entire episode centered on this idea in Steel Angel Kurumi: Encore, which went so far as to have a character actually named "Nadeshiko". She, of course, exemplified this concept, and much humor resulted in the Genki Girl main character trying to imitate her.
- Megumi is challenged to a "Yamato Nadeshiko Cup" in Tenshi Na Konamaiki.
- The plot of Yamato Nadeshiko Shichi Henge aka The Wallflower aka Perfect Girl Evolution is to transform the leading lady into this archetype. She has the domestic skills and looks (when she isn't drawn chibi-style); she's just made the conscious decision to let all the other traits slide, becoming a withdrawn and very creepy Yandere Dark Action Girl.
- Strangely, while she may never be the perfect Japanese woman she can apparently be the perfect Japanese man.
- Chitose from the Galaxy Angel Gameverse is played straight as a Yamato Nadeshiko. Like most everyone else in the the anime, she's parodied quite a bit, trying to be perfect but usually failing even to be tolerable.
- Yakumo Tsukamoto, Tenma's little sister, in School Rumble.
- The name of the titular ship in Martian Successor Nadesico may be a reference to this term, as it resembles the Yamato from Uchuu Senkan Yamato.
- Cherry from Saber Marionette J is a Yamato Nadeshiko by virtue of her "motherly" role, but this is often overridden by her Tsundere and Covert Pervert traits.
- The Mysterious Thief Freyr in Matanei Loki Ragnarok refers to Mayura Daidouji as "Yamato Nadeshiko".
- Hikari Horaki in Neon Genesis Evangelion. Despite being a minor character, she appears in a lot of Japanese market pictures and figure sets. Such is the power of the Yamato Nadeshiko slash mother figure (when the best mother figure is a 14 year old girl, you KNOW the world is messed up [see Eureka Seven])
- Rodoreamon's character arc in Simoun follows her evolution away from the Yamato Nadeshiko that she is at the beginning of the series, as she develops more of a backbone.
- Parodied in Muteki Kanban Musume when Miki Onimaru (normally a Yandere-like cranky waitress) got drunk and started to act like one, even to the point of loathing violence and acting submissively.
- Flora/Nera, one of the potential marriage candidates in Dragon Quest V, is a Yamato Nadeshiko type. Contrary to the usual, however, she's significantly less popular than her more tomboyish counterpart - as evidenced in an episode of Lucky Star where this choice is referenced. Kagami's choice of Bianca, the other girl, is treated as being more sympathetic... and Konata's brief discussion of why you might pick Flora is purely about gameplay advantages, not character traits.
- Sakura from Fate/Stay Night is a good example, despite (or perhaps as a defense mechanism against) her horrific home life.
- Misae Ikari from Paranoia Agent uses most of episode 11, "No Entry", exemplifying this concept.
- Something of an Evangelion-style Deconstruction of the trope, as much of her "selfless" behavior appears to be the result of unusually realistically depicted clinical depression.
- Momoko from Sumomo Mo Momo Mo takes the entire series to demonstrate the concept, going from stalker to devoted companion, willing to follow her man even into the next world.
- Parodied in Tenjou Tenge, where Aya Natsume in the very first chapter becomes an obnoxious, ridiculously over-the-top Clingy Jealous Girl mixed with Yamato Nadeshiko because of a family tradition: any woman from the Natsume clan must give their lives to the first one who sees their naked skin, and Souichirou had the tough luck of being thrown into the dressing room while Aya was showering inside.
- The Final Fantasy series has plenty of good examples, though Aerith of FFVII is arguably a subversion (she's not exactly docile and submissive, but she's otherwise more traditionally feminine than the other girls and does occupy the 'comforting, mothering figure' aspect - which she comments on in Advent Children). The best examples from the series would probably be devoted love interest Rosa from FFIV, Garnet/Dagger (when she's being a demure little princess and not a rebellious one) from FFIX and especially Yuna... in FFX, though definitely not in X-2.
- Terra/Tina from FFVI is the series' prototype Yamato Nadeshiko when she's in human form; so much as to take care of-and be loved by-a ragtag group of orphans after Kefka takes over a broken world that he broke.
- Juli Mizrahi from Xenosaga fits this trope well.
- Nadeshiko from Inukami. It's in the name.
- Sakura's dead mother, Nadeshiko, in Card Captor Sakura. Oh look, another one.
- Nadeshiko was a rather atypical YN lady, since she hit all the tropes... except for her utter cluelesness and clumsiness.
- Sakura's father Fujitaka is a perfect example, though male.
- Among Sakura's friends, the one who embodies the trope more closely is Rika Sasaki. Sakura thinks that Rika's very beautiful and mature, if not more than the other girls. Tomoyo also follows the torpe to a degree, but she's more The Ojou.
- Subverted in Ouran High School Host Club: Tamaki often imagines Haruhi, who is actually a bifauxnen, as one; before coming to Ouran and cutting her hair, she resembled one, as well.
- In the Ouran High School Host Club Manga a girl falls for Tamaki by the name of Kanoya who seems to have all these traits. She also closely resembles Tamaki's inner mind version of Haruhi.
- Mayl, the love interest for ten-year-old Lan in Mega Man Battle Network, clearly aims to be his yamato nadeshiko when they grow up. In the Distant Finale, she's succeeded.
- Subverted in Rurouni Kenshin, where Tomoe Yukishiro is sweet, hardworking, so calm and collected she looked borderline cold... and was actually a spy who wanted to kill Kenshin for murdering her fiancé. She actually opens up a bit and does fall for Kenshin, "her second love", but ends up dead. And several years later, Kenshin falls for the Tsundere Kaoru, who in the infamous Seishouhen OAV grows up into a Yamato Nadeshiko.
- Gundam SEED has Lacus Clyne (with heavy emphasis on the wisdom), a Yamato Nadeshiko who uses her Idol Singer status to become a political juggernaut. Slightly subversive in her status as the leader of the Three Ships Alliance; her Yamato Nadeshiko side is decidedly more obvious in Gundam SEED Destiny, particularly the first half where she spends her days as a homemaker/mother figure to a gaggle of orphans. This looks to have been subverted by the ending to Destiny, though, which implies that Lacus is the new leader of the PLANTs. Given that it's the only government of a major power that's still intact (the previous leader of the PLANTs had conquered the Earth Alliance and killed its leaders) and the minor nations had already sided with her beforehand, this particular Yamato Nadeshiko effectively now rules the world.
- In Digimon Adventure 02, one of Genki Girl Miyako Inoue's image songs is called Yamato Nadeshiko Panic; the lyrics are about how much she wants to be more of a Yamato Nadeshiko. And in the Distant Finale, she is. Kinda. Note that the song was actually released after the finale, along with image songs for the girls from predecessor Digimon Adventure and successor Digimon Tamers.
- Kazusa from Kamichama Karin.
- Saeko Busujima from High School of the Dead, with an Heir To The Dojo twist. The other twist is under that polite exterior there's a sadist itching to get out and beat the crap out of everyone. Fortunately for her friends there's a lot of zombies to kill.
- Momo Hinamori from Bleach, also to the extent that a Shinigami can be. Meaning, she's one Yamato Nadeshiko who can burn you with Tobiume's energy blasts if she gets pissed off...
- In that same series, a more by-the-book Yamato Nadeshiko would be the beautiful, feminine, ultra-polite and graceful Miyako, former 3rd officer of the 13th division and wife of its lieutenant, Kaien Shiba. When remembering her, Rukia Kuchiki says that Miyako was her idol and pretty much her ideal woman, sorta. Her voice? Sumi Shimamoto, in one of her rare appearances in the modern times.
- The 4th Captain, Unohana Retsu, counts as well, mixing this with Team Mom traits.
- Unlucky Childhood Friend Dawn Star from Jade Empire, despite being a master martial artist with Psychic Powers, is otherwise a perfect example of this trope In ANCIENT CHINA!. You can snap her out of it though.
- Setsuna Sakurazaki of Mahou Sensei Negima was once described as this by Weasel Mascot Chamo for being quiet and fair-skinned with raven-black hair (at least in the original translation). Keep in mind, however, that once we actually get to know her, she drops this facade and instead becomes a Bad Ass sword-slinging Samurai-type. Meanwhile, Konoka Konoe, being a Princess formerly living in a Big Fancy Temple Complex and heiress to an ancient family who leads a prominent Magical Organization seems to approach this quite effectively, especially during her Omiais when she wears a kimono. More noticable when she eats the magical aging pills.
- Sango of Inu Yasha is an interesting version of the trope, a willowy dark-haired pretty-not-beautiful girl who follows her family tradition... by being a demon-slayer. Her existence is testament to the idea that the traditional family girl can still be handy to have around in a tight spot.
- Might be inspired by the fact that, in the old Japanese times, the daughters of the samurais were required to know how to defend themselves and their homes in case they were under attack. The naginata polearm is an almost exclusively female Weapon Of Choice, usually a part of a Yamato Nadeshiko with samurai background's dowry; it lets her keep the attackers at bay, using the distance to her advantage and reducing the chance to have the Action Girl hurt.
- Kikyou was a Miko, yet she acted a lot like a Yamato Nadeshiko... until her death.
- Nunnally and Euphemia in Code Geass might be Brittanian, but they both show some traits of the Yamato Nadeshiko types. Specially Nunnally, since Euphie is a bit more rebellious.
- Kallen's biological mother, Mrs. Kouzuki, apparently fits in the mold, but she can be seen as a deconstruction. She is devoted to her daughter and her dead son, but the war left her psychologically damaged and she was addicted to a drug that makes you relive happier times. Kallen also thought her mother was still devoted to her biological father, who basically just used her, not realizing her true reasons until she witnessed first-hand of the depth her mom's psychological damage. She gets better after the Grand Finale, though.
- Another Britannian one is Cécile Croomy, Count Lloyd Asplund's beautiful lab assistant. Also voiced by Mrs. Kikuko Inoue. She'd be the perfect Yamato Nadeshiko if not for two things: her status as a Britannian... and (like Tytti) her HORRIBLE cooking.
- In The Prince Of Tennis manga and OAV's, Sakuno Ryuzaki is portrayed as more mature and less klutzy, fitting the Yamato Nadeshiko mold pretty well.
- Depending on which series you are watching and how you watch it a decent number of the cast of Tenchi Muyo characters fall in this category. Sasami, Ayeka and Kiyone all can be considered this, although the last two often fall out of this due to excessive Flanderization. Interestingly, the same influences cause Sasami to become MORE of one.
- Subverted with Kaede Fuyou in Shuffle: She seems to be this at the start, being unfailingly gentle and subservient, but when her love interest Rin starts falling for someone else aka their common friend and sempai Asa Shigure, well...
- Note that Kaede's madness does not only come from Rin falling for Asa. Kaede was already psychologically damaged from years ago, and even was abusive to Rin because she blamed him for her mother's death in an accident. Her Yamato Nadeshiko side was born out of her guilt over finding out he was not to blame.
- Also, Kaede was only a Yandere in the anime. The original games have her as a more or less normal Yamato Nadeshiko. One of the sequels, which sheds more light on her past, has a few touches from the anime.
- Inverted with Sumire Kanou from Toradora. She is described as having the looks and elegancy of a Yamato Nadeshiko, and is the Student Council President. However, don't judge a book by its cover. Has black hair in the light novels, but has blue hair in the anime.
- To the public eye, Yukimura Tokine from Kekkaishi is a picture perfect embodiment of this trope. However, those who know of her secret work as a kekkaishi know that she is a scarily competent and rather ruthless Action Girl who not only has the tendency to hit allies who annoy her over the head and but also cold-heartedly executes enemies.
- Akira Sakou in Girls Saurus is The Ojou who lives in a Big Fancy House and is an extremely traditional Yamato Nadeshiko (and is explicitly described as resembling and behaving like Naeshiko herself)... however, she subverts this by being a hardcore Bokukko with very complicated gender identity issues outside of home, and it's implied that her attraction to Shingo is out of a strange inversion of Sitch Sexuality, because he's the only boy who (she thinks) thinks of her as a boy.
- Seto San from Seto no Hanayome. She was willing to bet herself for her husband's contest... SAN-CHAN!!!!!!!!!
- Anezaki Mamori of Eyeshield 21 is a girl with loyalty, domestic ability, wisdom, maturity, and humility... and is definitely a force to be reckoned with, protecting her surrogate siblings and standing up to badass football players. This only seems to elevate her standing in the eyes of other characters.
- Also, played with in regards to Karin Koizumi. The best quarterback in the whole country is... a sweet girl who adores piano playing and shoujo manga and was pretty much forcefully recruited by the Teikoku Alexanders.
- Iono from Iono The Fanatics is a queen from a foreign country who, on the surface, is very much a Yamato Nadeshiko, and she's even described as such by two government officials. However, her weak spot for black-haired girls also prompts her security officer to nickname her "horny queen", which is much more fitting.
- Tohru Honda of Fruits Basket fits this trope almost perfectly. She's just more... clumsy, naïve and more prone to hide things (this one, in the manga) than the standard.
- Yuki in "No Bra" is an example of this. She's a biological male who looks, acts, and identifies as female; however, the term transsexual as yet to be said, and everyone besides her love interest believes her to be biologically female. She's friendly, domestic, and defers to Masato, her love interest. Even when he told her to get her hair cut, something she didn't want to do, she did it with little complaint.
- Miyuki Kobayakawa in Youre Under Arrest. When she's not working at her traditionally male job (cop, if you hadn't guessed by the title) or up to her elbows in the engine compartment of either her patrol car or her personal vintage Toyota S800.
- Taken into parody with Miyuki's coworker and friend Aoi Futaba, a Wholesome Crossdresser who looks and acts the part so damn well that Yoriko says he's more feminine than any of the girls in Bokuto station at some point. Also noticeable because Aoi is one of the few (if not the only) "Yamato Nadeshiko" roles played by Rika Matsumoto, making him a huge case of Playing Against Type.
- In Ikki Tousen Great Guardians, there's Hakufu's sweet and polite "adoptive sister", Sonken Chuubou (Sun Quan) or to be exact, Shoukyou (Xiao Qiao).
- This trope is also parodied in the last episode of Dragon Destiny, where Lady Of War Chou'un Shiryuu dresses up in a formal kimono, takes up ikebana flower arrangment... and utterly fails
- Windows 95-tan is often depicted this way, being the oldest of the 32-bit Windows operating systems.
- Jun Fudo of Devilman Lady tries desperately to embody this trope due to her self-esteem problems and her Abusive Parents. It backfires massively when she starts turning into a demon.
- Anew Returner from Gundam 00. There's debate about her truly having a gender, being an Innovator, but her mannerisms are very much Yamato Nadeshiko. Subverted later: her Yamato Nadeshiko side was a facade, since she was a brainwashed Manchurian Agent. And when her boyfriend tried to give Anew a Last Second Chance and she was about to take it, her boss mindcontrolled her and the boyfriend's partner had to kill her
- In Axis Powers Hetalia, Taiwan has the looks whereas Lietchenstein has the character traits. Also parodied with Japan, a male who puts on a female kimono, along with an apron when he works on the house.
- In Deadman Wonderland, Karako likes to claim that she is one. Everyone else disagrees, though.
- Kaede Kimura in Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei tries to be a yamato nadeshiko (she actually uses the term). But her years spent overseas have left her with a second personality: Kaere, who has a stereotypical aggressive foreigner attitude. Hilarity Ensues.
- Also parodied with Matoi Tsunetsuki, who wears a kimono and acts like a parody of the trope in regards to Itoshiki-sensei.
- Airi Nogami, Ryotaro's older sister in ''{{Kamen Rider Den-O'}}', who is pretty, caring, an excellent cook, and completely, completely unflappable. Upon being told that Ryotaro was being held hostage by an armed robber, her immediate reaction was to go back to preparing coffee. When one of the coffee shop regulars asked how she could be so calm, she muttered "That's right", then went off...to make "Ryo-chan" some special hostage snacks. Cue mass Face Fault.
- Tsubaki from Soul Eater. How else would she be able to put up with Black Star?
- Sylphiel Uls-Lada from Slayers
- Shamal from Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha A's, as it fits to her "role" as "the mother" in The Three Faces Of Eve Wolkenritters. Except that she can't cook AT ALL
- Francoise/003, and Lina the Psychic Assassin (when off-duty, that is) in Cyborg 009
- Nagisa Furukawa and her mother Sanae (voiced by Kikuko Inoue) from Clannad. It also helps that Sanae-san is a Lethal Baker.
- Princess Oboro from Basilisk.
- Hermione from Romeo X Juliet.
- To a degree, the five Kimono sisters from Pokemon.
- Toyed with in G Gundam. When Rain Mikamura gets the Rising Gundam to use in battle, it has a heat naginata polearm as its main weapon, following the example of the Yamato Nadeshiko who's trained to defend herself and her household. Rain herself has some Yamato Nadeshiko traits, personality wise: she is extremely devoted to Domon and their mission, but is also more fanservicy, stubborn and outspoken than the standard.
- Parodied in Hamtaro with Charlotte/Sakura, Philip/Ichiro's girlfriend. She can play the part well when needed and has been raised as one... but you'd never know it if you met her outside her Big Fancy House, since she's a Genki Girl bordering on Wild Child whenever she gets out.
- Ren Mikihara from Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu, a minor addition to the side-story cast, along with student body president Atsunobu Hayashimizu, whom she clings to.
Film
- Sally from Nightmare Before Christmas fits this trope pretty well. She has the modest, feminine personality and attire, and is domestic and sensible. It's kind of subverted by how she's a leaf-filled patchwork doll with stitches all over her body and puts deadly nightshade in her creator's food and drink to get out of the house.
- Eve from Love on the Side
- Victoria from Corpse Bride.
Literature
- In a very rare example of Heinlein using this trope, Edith Stone from "The Rolling Stones". Despite being the least assertive persion in a family of aggressive overachievers, and not even possessing the advantage of being family matriarch (as her mother-in-law Hazel has usurped that role), via pure influence judo she is still the only person in the book who always ends up getting her own way in the end.
- Herald Talia in Mercedes' Lackey's Heralds Of Valdemar. One of her two single most significant moments in the series involved epic babysitting — specifically, being the only person in the kingdom kind enough, patient enough, and domestically talented enough to un-spoil the Royal Brat, Princess Elspeth. Which, given Elspeth's importance to the plot later on, saved the world at least twice over. The only diagnostic criteria listed above that Talia misses is that she's not tall.
- Melanie Wilkes from Gone Withthe Wind might be considered a Western version of this. Of course, others might argue that she's an outright Purity Sue.
- It's argued that Scarlett's first husband, Charles Hamilton, could be seen as a male example.
- Esther Summerson, from Charles Dickens' Bleak House, can be seen as a Victorian English version of the trope. She's kind, modest, sensible, and domestically competent, but too down-to-earth to be a Purity Sue.
- Esther is also a partial deconstruction of the trope, as her extreme humility seems to be in part the result of an upbringing that would be considered emotionally abusive by most modern standards.
- Adèle Ratignolle from Kate Chopin's novel The Awakening. Her submissiveness and devotion to her family and husband make her a foil to the protagonist Edna.
- Mrs. Ramsay from Virginia Woolf's novel To The Lighthouse.
- Fanny Price in Jane Austen's Mansfield Park. She is extremely gentle, passive and the doormat of pretty much everybody around her until they try to force her into marrying the man she doesn't love.
- In a rare non-anime example of this trope, Lady Ekaterin Vorkosigan (nee Vorsoisson) from the Miles Vorkosigan novels fits the above description almost to a T... right down to an iron determination to live up to the public mores of an almost oppressively patriarchal culture with a traditional subordinate role for women, her being the ideal wife and mother by said cultural standards, her impeccable reserve and good manners, even her quiet dark-haired beauty. And the requisite willpower of steel in the service of unimpeachable honor lying underneath it all.
- Ekaterin is both a subversion and an upholding of this trope - subversion in that her first marriage almost emotionally destroyed her, as her determination to be a good wife and mother by her cultural standards trapped her for ten years in a marriage to an abusive idiot. And upheld in that her second marriage to Miles Vorkosigan, after Tien Vorsoisson finally got himself killed via his own stupidity, has become exactly as per the trope description above, under the subtle tutelage of...
- Miles' mother, Countess Cordelia, galactic champion of subtle psychological jiu-jitsu, who has happily settled into occupying the Yamato Nadeshiko role to Count Aral Vorkosigan in her older age. Although unlike Ekaterin she's actually a retired Action Girl, and can stay retired because after a legendary Mama Bear incident in Miles' infancy no one on Barrayar is insane enough to give her any reason to un-retire.
It was during a civil war, Miles was in an artificial womb in the capital city, which the enemy had captured. Cordelia recruited her own special ops team and went in to recover Miles. She not only returned with Miles, but the severed head of the enemy leader. Her husband was negotiating with factions who were thinking of switching sides, when she showed him what "she'd bought in the capital". The civil war didn't continue much longer after that. +
- Catelyn "Cat" Tully-Stark from A Song Of Ice And Fire. The Tully motto is “Family, Duty, Honor,” and those are the words Cat lives by.
Live Action TV
- Pam from the US version of The Office, though Pam can't be said to be 'obedient' to Jim, as demonstrated in the 'chairs vs. copier' argument.
- Swan Shiratori, Tokusou Sentai Dekaranger's mechanic, fits this description perfectly, though not being as tall or long-haired as most anime examples.
- The following season Mahou Sentai Magiranger yields a better example, Ozu Miyuki, literally the mother of the core 5 Rangers. Even her superhero identity is named MagiMother.
- Partially subverted two seasons later in Juuken Sentai Gekiranger. Masashi Miki, a single mother of one and more of a guardian and mentor to the Rangers than the actual grandmaster Sha Fu, was a former Sukeban delinquent in her teen years.
Theatre
- The I Want Song "A Quiet Girl" from Wonderful Town seems to be about this type.
Video Games
- Nakoruru from Samurai Shodown is a Cute Bruiser, The Beast Master version of the trope. Also, Haohmaru's lover Oshizu and Ukyou's lady of liege Kei Odagiri.
- Iris from Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney: Trials and Tribulations. Her twin sister, Dahlia Hawthorne, is a Yandere to the extreme.
- It's now normal for Tales leads to get paired with a Tsundere by the story, but in Tales Of Phantasia, the tsundere went to best friend Chester, and the main character got Mint, who is such a perfect example of this trope that she basically gets it as a title. In Tales Of Symphonia, you get neither (although you can pick the tsundere, the Dojikko Chosen One is the designated love interest if you don't, and there's no yamato nadeshiko to be found).
- Believe it or not, Mai Shiranui from Fatal Fury and The King Of Fighters is one. And very proud of it, since in her own words, she's "number one" in Japan. It's quite more evident when she's outside the fighting ring, of course: i.e., in the KOF: KYO game, Mai puts on a fancy kimono and hosts a tea ceremony for Kyo and his girlfriend Yuki◊.
- Slightly subverted in the Visual Novel Princess Waltz with Shikikagura Suzushiro, who looks, acts and tries very hard to be one of these. Stand in her way however and she shows a much more ruthless and bitchy side to her personality, and also possesses a powerful and brutal fighting style.
- Yukiko in Persona 4. Granted, it kind of comes with her job, being the heiress of a traditional-style Japanese inn, but she embodies so much of it that her Shadow is everything a Yamato Nadeshiko is not; very, very trashy... not one bit serene.
- The Pokemon Gardevoir. It looks vaguely like a pretty human female, and it devotes itself to protecting and serving its trainer, to the extent of sacrificing itself for them.
- In Street Fighter, Rainbow Mika's tag-team partner is actually named Yamato Nadeshiko.
- Most of the Harvest Moon games have at least one. In the original and Magical Melody, it's the Maria character. In HM 64, Back To Nature, and Friends of Mineral Town, it's Elli. In A Wonderful Life, it's Celia. Interestingly for this trope, said character is almost never the easiest to marry.
Western Animation
Real Life
- Saint Monica of Hippo can be considered a sort-of very early version of the Yamato Nadeshiko, due to her devotion to her husband Patricius and her son Saint Augustine.
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