Japanese calendar
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Koinobori, flags decorated like koi, are popular decorations around Children's Day |
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This mural on the wall of a Tokyo subway station celebrates Hazuki, the eighth month. |
Since
January 1,
1873,
Japan has used the
Gregorian Calendar, with local names for the months and mostly fixed holidays. Before 1873 a
lunisolar calendar was in use, which was adapted from the
Chinese calendar.
Since the adoption of the Gregorian calendar, three different systems for counting years have or had been used in Japan:
*The Western
Common Era (西暦,
seireki) designation
*The
Japanese era name (年号,
nengō) based on the reign of the current emperor, the year
2006 being Heisei 18
*The imperial year (皇紀,
kōki) based on the mythical founding of Japan by
Emperor Jimmu in 660BCE
Of these three, the first two are still in current use; the imperial calendar was used until the end of World War II.
The modern Japanese names for the months literally translate to "first month", "second month", and so on. The corresponding number is combined with the suffix -gatsu (month):
* January - 一月 (ichigatsu)
* February - 二月 (nigatsu)
* March - 三月 (sangatsu)
* April - 四月 (shigatsu)
* May - "月 (gogatsu)
* June - 六月 (rokugatsu)
* July - 七月 (shichigatsu)
* August - 八月 (hachigatsu)
* September - 九月 (kugatsu)
* October - 十月 (jūgatsu)
* November - 十一月 (jūichigatsu)
* December - 十二月 (jūnigatsu)
In addition, every month has a traditional name, still used by some in fields such as
poetry; of the twelve,
shiwasu is still widely used today. The opening paragraph of a letter or the greeting in a speech might borrow one of these names to convey a sense of the season. Some, such as
yayoi and
satsuki, do double duty as
given names (for women). These month names also appear from time to time on
jidaigeki, contemporary
television shows and
movies set in the
Edo period or earlier.
The name of month: (pronunciation, literal meaning)
* January - 睦月 (mutsuki, affection month)
* February - 如月 or 衣更着 (
kisaragi or
kinusaragi, changing clothes)
* March - 弥" (yayoi, new life; the beginning of spring)
* April - 卯月 (uzuki, hare month)
* May - 皐月 or 早月 or "月(satsuki, fast month)
* June - 水無月 (minatsuki or minazuki, water month -- the 無 character is
ateji)
* July - 文月 (fumizuki, book month)
* August - 葉月 (hazuki, leaf month)
* September - 長月 (nagatsuki, long month)
* October - 神無月 (kan'nazuki or kaminazuki, no god month), 神有月 or 神在月; (kamiarizuki, god month " only in
Izumo province, where all the gods are believed to gather in October for an annual meeting at the Izumo Shrine); as with June, and in keeping with the previous, the 無 character is
ateji, so kan'nazuki also means "god's month."
* November - 霜月 (shimotsuki, frost month)
* December - 師走 (shiwasu, priests run; it is named so because priests are busy making end of the year prayers and blessings.)
Each day of the month has a semi-systematic but irregularly formed name:
| 1 | 一日 | ichijitsu) >17 | 十七日 | jūshichinichi |
| 2 | 二日 | 18 | 十八日 | jūhachinichi |
| 3 | 三日 | 19 | 十九日 | jūkunichi |
| 4 | 四日 | 20 | 二十日 | hatsuka (sometimes nijūnichi) |
| 5 | "日 | 21 | 二十一日 | nijūichinichi |
| 6 | 六日 | 22 | 二十二日 | nijūninichi |
| 7 | 七日 | 23 | 二十三日 | nijūsannichi |
| 8 | 八日 | 24 | 二十四日 | nijūyokka |
| 9 | 九日 | 25 | 二十"日 | nijūgonichi |
| 10 | 十日 | 26 | 二十六日 | nijūrokunichi |
| 11 | 十一日 | 27 | 二十七日 | nijūshichinichi |
| 12 | 十二日 | 28 | 二十八日 | nijūhachinichi |
| 13 | 十三日 | 29 | 二十九日 | nijūkunichi |
| 14 | 十四日 | 30 | 三十日 | sanjūnichi |
| 15 | 十"日 | 31 | 三十一日 | sanjūichinichi |
| 16 | 十六日 | jūrokunichi | |
In the traditional calendar, the thirtieth was the last day of the month, and its traditional name, 晦日
misoka, survives (although
sanjunichi is far more common, and is the usual term). The last day of the year is 大晦日
ōmisoka (the
big thirtieth day), and that term is still in use.
The seven day week, with names for the days corresponding directly to those used in Europe, was brought to Japan around 800 AD. The system was used for astrological purposes and little else until 1876, shortly after Japan officially adopted the Western calendar.
Fukuzawa Yukichi was a key figure in the decision to adopt this system as the source for official names for the
days of the week. The names come from the five visible planets, which in turn are named after the
five Chinese elements (wood, fire, earth, metal, water), and from the moon and sun (
yin and yang).
| 月曜日 | getsuyōbi | Moon | Monday |
| 火曜日 | kayōbi | Fire | Tuesday |
| 水曜日 | suiyōbi | Water | Wednesday |
| 木曜日 | mokuyōbi | Wood | Thursday |
| 金曜日 | kin'yōbi | Metal/Gold | Friday |
| 土曜日 | doyōbi | Earth | Saturday |
| 日曜日 | nichiyōbi | Sun | Sunday |
Notes: Single days between two national holidays are taken as a bank holiday. This applies to May 4, which is a holiday each year. When a national holiday falls on a Sunday the next day that is not a holiday (usually a Monday) is taken as a holiday.
† Traditional date of the founding of Japan by
Emperor Jimmu, in
660 BC. Veracity of this claim is often questioned.
* Part of
Golden WeekTimeline of changes to the national holidays
*
1948 - The following national holidays were introduced: New Year's Day, Coming-of-Age Day, Constitution Memorial Day, Children's Day, Autumnal Equinox Day, Culture Day, Labour Thanksgiving Day.
*
1966 - Health and Sports Day was introduced in memory of the 1964
Tokyo Olympics. Vernal Equinox Day was also introduced.
*
1985 - Reform to the national holiday law made May 4, sandwiched between two other national holidays also a holiday.
*
1989 - After
Emperor Showa died on January 7, the Emperor's Birthday became December 23 and Greenery Day took place of the former Emperor's birthday.
*
2000, 2003 - Happy Monday System (ハッ"ーマンデー制度 Happī Mand" Seido) moved several holidays to Monday. Starting with 2000: Coming-of-Age Day (formerly January 15), and Health and Sports Day (formerly October 10). Starting with 2003: Marine Day (formerly July 20), and Respect for the Aged Day (formerly September 15).
*
2005, 2007 - According to a May 2005 decision, starting with 2007 Greenery Day will be moved from April 29 to May 4, while April 29 will be known as
Showa Day.
*
2009 -
September 22 may become sandwiched between two holidays, which would make this day a national holiday.
Some days have special names to mark the change in seasons. The
24 Sekki (二十四節気
Nijūshi sekki) are days that divide a year in the
Lunisolar calendar into twenty four equal sections. Zassetsu (雑節) is a collective term for the seasonal days other than the 24 Sekki. 72 Kō (七十二候
Shichijūni kō) days are made from dividing the 24 Sekki of a year further by three. Some of these names are still used quite frequently in everyday life in Japan.
24 Sekki
*
5 January: 小' (Shōkan) a.k.a. 'の入り (
Kan no iri)
*
20 January: 大' (Daikan)
*
4 February: 立春 (Risshun) - Beginning of spring
*
19 February: 雨水 (Usui)
*
6 March: "蟄 (Keichitsu)
*
21 March: 春分 (Shunbun) -
Vernal equinox, middle of spring
*
5 April: 清明 (Seimei)
*
20 April: 穀雨 (Kokuu)
*
May 5: 立夏 (Rikka) - Beginning of summer
*
May 21: 小満 (Shōman)
*
6 June: '種 (Bōshu)
*
21 June: 夏至 (Geshi) -
Summer solstice, middle of summer
*
7 July: 小暑 (Shōsho)
*
23 July: 大暑 (Taisho)
*
7 August: 立秋 (Risshū) - Beginning of autumn
*
23 August: 処暑 (Shosho)
*
8 September: 白露 (Hakuro)
*
23 September: 秋分 (Shūbun) -
Autumnal equinox, middle of autumn
*
8 October: '露 (Kanro)
*
23 October: 霜降 (Sōkō)
*
7 November: 立冬 (Rittō) - Beginning of winter
*
22 November: 小雪 (Shōsetsu)
*
7 December: 大雪 (Taisetsu)
*
22 December: 冬至 (Tōji) -
Winter solstice, middle of winter
Days can vary by ±1 day. See also:
Jieqi.
Zassetsu
Shanichi days can vary as much as ±5 days.Chūgen has a fixed day. All other days can vary by ±1 day.
Many zassetsu days occur on multiple seasons:
* Setsubun (節分) refers to the day before each season, or the eves of Risshun, Rikka, Rishū, and Rittō; especially the eve of Risshun.
* Doyō (土") refers to the 18 days before each season, especially the one before fall which is known as the hottest period of a year.
* Higan (彼岸) is the seven middle days of spring and autumn, with Shunbun at the middle of the seven days for spring, Shūbun for fall.
* Shanichi (社日) is the Tsuchinoe (戊) day closest to Shunbun (middle of spring) or Shūbun (middle of fall), which can be as much as -5 to +4 days away from Shunbun/Shūbun.
The following are known as the five seasonal festivals (節句
sekku, also "節句
go sekku). The Sekku were made official holidays during
Edo era.
#
January 7 (1/7) - 人日 (
Jinjitsu), 七草の節句 (
Nanakusa no sekku)#
March 3 (3/3) - 上巳 (
Jōshi,
Jōmi), 桃の節句 (
Momo no sekku)#: 雛祭り (
Hina matsuri), Girls' Day.#
May 5 (5/5) - 端午 (
Tango), 端午の節句 (
Tango no sekku), 菖'の節句 (
Ayame no sekku)#: Boys' Day. Overlaps with the national holiday
Children's Day.#
July 7 (7/7) - 七夕 (
Shichiseki,
Tanabata), 星祭り (
Hoshi matsuri )#
September 9 (9/9) - 重陽 (
Chōyō), 菊の節句 (
Kiku no sekku)
Not Sekku:
*
January 1 -
Japanese New Year*
August 15 -
Obon*
December 31 -
ŌmisokaThe
rokuyō (六曜) are a series of six days that predict whether there will be good or bad fortune during that day. The
rokuyō are still commonly found on Japanese calendars and are often used to plan weddings and funerals. The
rokuyō are also known as the
rokki (六輝). In order, they are:
* 先勝 (
senshō) - Good luck before noon, bad luck after noon. Good day for beginnings (in the morning).
* 友引 (
tomobiki) - Bad things will happen to your friends. Funerals avoided on this day (
tomo = friend,
biki = pull, thus a funeral might pull friends toward the deceased).
* 先負 (
senbu) - Bad luck before noon, good luck after noon.
* 仏滅 (
butsumetsu) - The day
Buddha died. Most unlucky day. Weddings best avoided.
* 大安 (
taian) - Most lucky day. Good day for weddings.
* 赤口 (
shakkō) - The hour of the horse (11 am - 1 pm) is lucky. The rest is bad luck.
The
rokuyō days are easily calculated from the Japanese Lunar calendar. Lunar January 1st is always
senshō, with the days following in the order given above until the end of the month. Thus, January 2nd is
tomobiki, January 3rd is
senbu, and so on. Lunar February 1st restarts the sequence at
tomobiki. Lunar March 1st restarts at
senbu, and so on for each month. The last six months repeat the patterns of the first six, so July 1st =
senshō and December 1st is
shakkō.
The first day of April has broad significance in Japan. It marks the beginning of the government's fiscal year. Many corporations follow suit. In addition, corporations often form or merge on that date. In recent years, municipalities have preferred it for mergers. On this date, many new employees begin their jobs, and it is the start of many real-estate leases. The school year begins on
April 1. (For more see also
academic term)
*
Holidays of Japan*
Calendar*
Japanese era name*
Jikkan Jūnishi*
Chinese Calendar*
Japanese calendar history by the National Diet Library*
The Lunar Calendar in Japan*
Koyomi no page in Japanese
*
Koyomi no hanashi in Japanese
*
Rokuyō calculator in Japanese
*
NengoCalc (Tool for converting Japanese dates into Western equivalents)
