Bunraku (文楽^?), also known as Ningyō jōruri (人形浄瑠璃), is a form of traditional Japanese puppet theatre, founded in Osaka in 1684.

Three kinds of performers take part in a bunraku performance:

Occasionally other instruments such as taiko drums will be used.

The most accurate term for the traditional puppet theater in Japan is ningyō jōruri (人形浄瑠璃^?). The combination of chanting and shamisen playing is called jōruri and the Japanese word for puppet (or dolls, generally) is ningyō.

Bunraku puppetry has been a documented traditional activity for Japanese for hundreds of years.

Originally, the term "Bunraku" referred only to the particular theater established in 1612 in Osaka, which was named the Bunrakuza after the puppeteering ensemble of Uemura Bunrakuken (植村文楽軒), an early 19th century puppeteer on Awaji, whose efforts revived the flagging fortunes of the traditional puppet theater.

Bunraku puppets range in size from two-and-a-half to four feet tall or more, depending on the age and gender of the character and the conventions of the specific puppet troupe. The puppets of the Osaka tradition tend to be somewhat smaller overall, while the puppets in the Awaji^{[disambiguation needed ]} tradition are some of the largest as productions in that region tend to be held outdoors.