Diamond in the Rough
Today’s beautiful koi started out as plain-looking carp.
By Elisa Jordan

It is easy to forget that koi did not initially resemble the living jewels admired today. The evolution of koi began centuries ago when they were plain carp swimming around Japanese rice paddies.

“The natural carp is green or black,” said Robert Lewis, former president of Charleston Showa Koi Club and current Associated Koi Clubs of America delegate for his club.

Far from being the thoroughbred champions they are now, these carp had more humble purposes as food stock and mosquito fish.

“The rice farmers in Japan used them to keep the rice paddies clean of mosquitoes and things like that,” Lewis said. “One day, one of the farmers noticed a fish that had some color. He thought it was unique so he saved it.”

“Whoever the first breeder was thought, ‘Wow this is pretty and I’m not going to eat this fish,’” said Melinda Smieja, a hobbyist and newsletter editor for Olympic Koi, Goldfish and Water Garden Club in Washington. “He decided to breed it. They took that red koi and bred it with their regular fish until they got a different color. Then they took that fish and started inbreeding it. They inbred these fish until they had these amazing and beautiful varieties of koi.”

The earliest koi weren’t as refined as they are today, but their beauty was evident. As time passed, their importance in the Japanese culture also increased. The most coveted pattern in koi keeping, Lewis said, is kohaku — red spots on a white background, similar to the Japanese flag.

“The reason the kohaku is the most coveted, other than being red and white, is that if you gave a painter a full palette of colors, it’s very easy for him to paint an interesting picture,” Lewis said. “If you give a painter only two colors, it’s far more difficult. With a kohaku they only have red and white to make that fish interesting.”

Fish with a red crest on their heads are called tancho, after the tancho crane, also known as the red-crowned crane (Grus japonesis), which is a white bird with a red crest. According to legend, this sacred Japanese crane lives 1,000 years and represents luck and fidelity. Koi, too, have come to symbolize something more than being a fish. Today they are frequently associated with strength and courage. “It all goes back to the rising sun,” Lewis said.

With their beauty and symbolism, koi have ingratiated themselves into Japanese culture. They grew from ordinary carp to representatives of Japan. Their popularity in the 20th century has exploded, resulting in an increased number of hobbyists. The koi also star in great pieces of art, in Japanese cultural festivals and even on people’s bodies as tattoos.

“When the koi started out with the tattooing, it was half koi and half dragon,” Smieja said. The koi dragons, as they’re called, stem from a Japanese legend in which a koi that successfully climbs the falls at Dragon Gate on the Yellow River turns into a dragon. In addition to courage and strength, many view these koi — and koi dragons — as representations of perseverance.

“It’s what the koi represents that makes it so popular,” Smieja said. Once people get to know the koi swimming in their ponds, they fall in love with more than just what they represent. Their colorful patterns and friendly personalities often create life-long enthusiasts. “Once you get hooked,” Smieja said, “you’re hooked.” <HOME>