Miyako Ishida

Miyako Ishida (石田美也子, Ishida Miyako^?) is a supporting character in the Koe no Katachi series. She is the mother of Shōya's Older Sister and Shōya Ishida, the mother-in-law to Pedro and the grandmother of Maria Ishida.

History[]

In the manga, a drunk Miyako is overheard talking to Yaeko Nishimiya about her divorce. Not much is known about this other than her statement "...in a huff, he left both the salon and our family!", along with Yaeko's response of "I don't believe it! Men worry too much about losing their hair!"

Personality[]

Miyako is a kind and caring woman, who’s patience and emotional strength rarely falters, even when it conflicts with feelings of anger or sadness. Left by her husband to raise two children, Miyako works hard to provide for them and does her best to be a loving and supportive mother, showing a deep care for her small family.

She also shows sincere kindness and empathy to people outside of her family, especially to the Nishimiya family whom she seems to have established a good connection with despite the issues between her son and Shōko Nishimiya in the past.

Physical appearance[]

Miyako is of average height with a slender build and has green eyes. Her natural hair color is black, but she dyes it blonde. However, it's been some time since she's dyed it so her natural roots show through. She also has a scar on her right ear lobe from having an earring ripped out, though it’s unclear whether the injury was self-inflicted or caused by Yaeko Nishimiya.

Miyako most often wears a red turtleneck with a black apron and beige khakis/slacks, which appears to be the outfit she uses for work. She can sometimes be seen wearing a yellowish-green long sleeve in some of her casual outings.

List of appearances[]

Volume 01[]

Chapter 01 — "Shōya Ishida"
Side Story — "7 Months Earlier"
Chapter 03 — "Hahahahaha"
Chapter 04 — "Nishimiya, You Piece of Shit"
Chapter 05 — "Reject" (cameo)

Volume 02[]

Chapter 07 — "I Gave Up Once Before"
Chapter 08 — "Friends?"
Chapter 10 — "That's Just Great"
Chapter 12 — "Sis"
Chapter 13 — "Struggle"
Chapter 14 — "Yuzuru Nishimiya"

Volume 03[]

Chapter 20 — "Reason"
Chapter 22 — "I Want to Know"

Volume 04[]

Chapter 27 — "Hate"

Volume 05[]

Chapter 41 — "Everyone"

Volume 06[]

Chapter 43 — "Daredevil"
Chapter 44 — "Blight"
Chapter 49 — "Satoshi Mashiba"

Volume 07[]

Chapter 53 — "To the Bridge" (cameo)
Chapter 54 — "To You"
Chapter 55 — "Homecoming"
Chapter 56 — "Going to School"
Chapter 59 — "The Future"
Chapter 60 — "Nobodies"
Chapter 61 — "Graduation" (cameo)
Chapter 62 — "A Silent Voice"

Relationships[]

Friends[]

Yaeko Nishimiya: Initially, Miyako and Yaeko did not get along, though they later became friends after reconciling. Their rocky relationship began when Miyako chose to give Shōko her desired haircut instead of following Yaeko's instructions, causing Yaeko to yell at her and leave the salon in anger.

When Shōya began bullying Shōko, Miyako did her best to make things right by paying Yaeko back the cost of the hearing aids and attempting to have her son apologize. Yaeko lies to her about Shōko not being there and instead asks her to talk at a nearby café. When returning to her son, Miyako is seen with an injury to her right ear lobe, though it’s unclear whether she did it to atone or if Yaeko hurt her.

The two don’t interact for several years until Shōya befriends Shōko and eventually risks his life to save her. At the hospital, Miyako is surprised when Yaeko gets into a dogeza pose and sincerely apologizes to her, unaware that her son saved Shōko from taking her own life until Yuzuru shows her a photo of the event. Things improve between the two when the Ishidas and Nishimiyas have dinner together after Shōya recovers from his coma, with Miyako and Yaeko sending the kids to the store so they can talk things out and are seen casually drinking and chatting when they return. Their friendship continues into the final chapter, where Yaeko is seen getting a haircut from Miyako.

Yuzuru Nishimiya: Miyako first meets Yuzuru when Shōya brings her to their home so can be fed and recover from fatigue. Miyako lets Yuzuru sleep in her home and starts to get acquainted with her after Yuzuru begins coming over more often to hang out with Shōya and Maria.

Miyako appears to have grown fond of Yuzuru, with Shōya telling Yuzuru that she's loved by Miyako and Maria when he's helping her work through the grief of losing her grandmother.

Shōko Nishimiya: Miyako first meets Shōko when she gives her a haircut a few months before the young girl transferred to Suimon Elementary. Miyako was put in a tough spot when Yaeko Nishimiya disagreed with her daughter's choice and wanted to force a shorter haircut on her. Ultimately, Miyako decides to go with Shōko's choice and though Yaeko is very displeased, Shōko gives Miyako a polite bow to thank her.

Miyako wouldn't see Shōko until several years later, after her son had fallen into a coma to save Shōko from taking her own life. Miyako initially doesn't know how her son had gotten injured, only learning the truth when Yuzuru shows her a photo of the event. Miyako begins feeling conflicted and doesn't know what to say to Shōko when they meet again in Chapter 49. As Miyako describes, she could comfort Shōko, yell at her, or even talk to her with a smile, but none of it would feel genuine. She awkwardly walks away from Shōko, asking to talk after Shōya has woken up. Their last direct interaction is when the Ishida and Nishimiya families have dinner together in Chapter 55, where Miyako is seen politely pouring shiso juice into Shōko's cup, her conflicted feelings resolved now that Shōya has woken up.

Though they aren't shown interacting very often, Miyako understands how close Shōko has become to her son and is implied to believe that Shōya has feelings for her. When Shōya begins to panic after learning that Shōko wants to move to Tokyo, Miyako gives him a knowing smile and even suggests that he could go with Shōko. It can be inferred that Miyako has grown fond of Shōko and would approve of a possible relationship between her and Shōya.

Family[]

Shōya Ishida: Miyako loves her son with all her heart and consistently shows a deep care for his well being. Raising him as a single mother, she tried to keep him on the right path and offer support if he needed it, even after finding out he was bullying a deaf girl. However, due to constantly working to provide and because Shōya refused to be honest about the things bothering him, Miyako was somewhat unaware of the negative things going on in his early life.

When Shōya planned to take own life during his senior year of high school, Miyako realized and confronted him about his ominous behavior. She prioritized her son’s life over getting back the money she sacrificed due to his actions, threatening to burn the money if he didn’t promise to not commit suicide. After accidentally burning the money, she affirms that she wouldn’t have wanted to spend the money Shōya earned to die anyway. A few months later, Miyako is devastated when Shōya falls into a coma and she later finds out it was because he saved Shōko’s life, though is sincerely relieved after he wakes up.

Miyako is also quite perceptive to some of Shōya’s internal thoughts, particularly when it comes to Shōko and his bond with her. It’s implied that Miyako believes her son has feelings for Shōko, first seen by the look she gives him when Shōya wants to give his cat pouch to Shōko despite several others wanting it as well.

Another instance of Miyako’s perceptiveness occurs when Shōya asks her how he can stop Shōko from moving to Tokyo after graduating. She’s able to see through his frantic behavior and understand that her son doesn’t want his closest friend to leave for reasons he may not even realize yet, later suggesting to him that he could go with Shōko if he’s that worried about her. Although Shōya later decides to remain home, Miyako would have supported him going to Tokyo and even told him to not worry about the money he was saving to pay her back.

Unnamed Daughter: Though her daughter makes scarce appearances, it can be inferred that Miyako treats her with the same amount of love and care she does for Shōya Ishida and that the two have a good relationship. This is evident by the fact that Miyako allows her daughter to live in the family home with her husband and a child that she happily takes care of.

Maria Ishida: Maria is Miyako’s granddaughter and someone she seems to spend a lot of time looking after her while her daughter and son-in-law work. Much like with her own children, Miyako treats Maria with a lot of love and care, often spending time with her by taking care of the garden in front of their house.

Pedro: Miyako appears to be fond of her son-in-law, she being glad when he returned to the Ishida household. When Yaeko mentions how nice it is that Pedro's back, Miyako responds that she knows her daughter is happy.

Etymology[]

The name Miyako means "beautiful" (美) (mi), "to be, also" (也) (ya) and "child" (子) (ko).
Miyako's surname Ishida means "stone, volume measure" (石) (ishi) and "field, rice paddy" (田) (ta/da).

Trivia[]

Miyako owns her own salon called "Hair Make Ishida".
After the injury to her right ear, Miyako noticeably only wears her left earring, likely unable to wear her right one comfortably anymore.