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   Play dolls in traditional costume can be found in several shapes and sizes, from an inch or so to three feet tall. 
    Play with dolls is referred to in the Tale of Genji from the first century of this millenium, though the dolls in question seem to have been small adult dolls in "dollhouses." made by arranging screens and miniature furniture. Doll play is presented as appropriate for little girls.
    Historically, dolls were made to represent children in order to provide a distraction for any evil spirits that might wish to harm the child. Such dolls, probably constructed like a bamboo cross with a head attached, are also mentioned in the Tale of Genji, and another protective type of doll, the hoko (made from a stuffed square of silk, with a head added) was made up until the 20th century. One may still find variations of them (e.g. monkey dolls or saru-bobo, red in color). 
    Ningyo representing children or adults, jointed and ready to be dressed and undressed,  are depicted in woodcuts from the 18th century; They seem to have been treasured possessions of the girls and women of the "pleasure quarters." 
   Play dolls are called by several names: "Ichimatsu ningyo" from the name of a popular actor (he wore checked clothing because his name also meant "checked"), "Daki ningyo"  ("huggable doll") for a baby doll,  "Furisode ningyo" from the long-sleeved kimono worn by a little girl, or "Yamato ningyo" (truly Japanese doll)  to distinguish them from the blue-eyed babies imported from the West. A doll representing a child in a vignette of play (in a fixed position) might be called a "warabe ningyo" ("child doll") though that term could apply to many types of dolls.
    Baby dolls include also the "haihai" or crawling baby; these used to be naked but are now often elaborately clothed and hold rattles. There is also the "izumeko" doll, a baby tucked into a basket with a group of toys pinned to the cover to amuse him (he is usually a boy). If the basket is very deep and round, the baby's head poking out may make him look like a hina daruma, or daruma doll with a "princess"  face. (He may also look like a pincushion, but might not appreciate being used that way!) 
   Baby dolls with five-piece strung bodies and charming expressions are also often found in American antique shops; the oldest of these seem to date from the 1930s (most of them from 1945 or later), they and often have cry boxes in their tummies and "made in Japan" stickers indicating they were intended for export. 
    The most prized  play doll is the "mitsu-ore" (3-fold) type, which may be adult or child, a boy or a girl (antique or modern ones are often " anatomically correct"), usually jointed at knees and hips and perhaps the ankles as well so that it can be put into a kneeling position; the most elaborate ones are all wood, with hollow thighs to stabilize the kneeling position, but others have cloth joints.  The dolls are finished in gofun and dressed in several layers of clothes, sometimes with various accessories made to scale. Boy ningyo may have painted hair or wigs with a painted "shave"; girls have wigs, often with a pretty bun on top. 
    In the late 19th century dolls of this general type became very popular in the West, and were exported from Japan; often the construction was inferior, with cotton or paper clothing, hair that fell out, and paper joints,  but these dolls may have great charm. A wonderful example, with the history of the Japanese influence on European doll manufacturing, is a Study Doll at DollsDotCom.