Japanese calendar

"Kōki" redirects here. For the given name, see Kōki (given name).
1729 calendar, which used the Jōkyō calendar procedure, published by Ise Grand Shrine.

Japanese calendar types have included a range of official and unofficial systems. At present, Japan uses the Gregorian calendar together with year designations stating the year of the reign of the current Emperor.[1]

History

The lunisolar Chinese calendar was introduced to Japan via Korea in the middle of the sixth century. After that, Japan calculated its calendar using various Chinese calendar procedures, and from 1685, using Japanese variations of the Chinese procedures. But in 1873, as part of Japan's Meiji Period modernization, a calendar based on the solar Gregorian calendar was introduced.[2] In Japan today, the old Chinese calendar is virtually ignored; celebrations of the Lunar New Year are thus limited to Chinese and other Asian immigrant communities.

Japan has had more than one system for designating years.[3] including

Official calendar

Years

The official dating system known as nengō 年号, strictly speaking, gengō 元号, has been in use since the late 7th century. Years are numbered within eras, which are named by the reigning Emperor. Beginning with Meiji (1868–1912), each reign has been one era, but many earlier Emperors decreed a new era upon any major event; the last pre-Meiji Emperor's reign (1846–1867) was split into seven eras, one of which lasted only one year. The nengō system remains in wide use, especially on official documents and government forms.[11]

The imperial year system (kōki) was used from 1872 to the Second World War. Imperial year 1 (Kōki 1) was the year when the legendary Emperor Jimmu founded Japan – 660 BC according to the Gregorian Calendar. Usage of kōki dating can be a nationalist signal, pointing out that the history of Japan's imperial family is longer than that of Christianity, the basis of the Anno Domini (AD) system. Kōki 2600 (1940) was a special year. The 1940 Summer Olympics and Tokyo Expo were planned as anniversary events, but were canceled due to the Second Sino-Japanese War. The Japanese naval Zero Fighter was named after this year. After the Second World War, the United States occupied Japan, and stopped the use of kōki by officials. Today, kōki is rarely used, except in some judicial contexts.

The 1898 law determining the placement of leap years[12] is officially based on the kōki years, using a formula that is effectively equivalent to that of the Gregorian calendar: if the kōki year number is evenly divisible by four, it is a leap year, unless the number minus 660 is evenly divisible by 100 and not by 400. Thus, for example, the year Kōki 2560 (=AD 1900) is divisible by 4; but 2560 minus 660 = 1900, which is evenly divisible by 100 and not by 400, so kōki 2560 was not a leap year, just as in most of the rest of the world.

Seasons

English name Japanese name Romanisation Traditional dates
Spring haru 5 February – 6 May
Summer natsu 7 May – 8 August
Autumn aki 9 August – 7 November
Winter fuyu 8 November – 4 February

See also "Seasonal days", below.

Months

This mural on the wall of Shin-Ochanomizu subway station in Tokyo celebrates Hazuki, the eighth month.

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 月 (-gatsu, "month"). The table below uses traditional numerals, but the use of Arabic numerals (1月, 2月, 3月 etc.) is common.

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 old Japanese calendar was an adjusted lunar calendar based on the Chinese calendar, and the year—and with it the months—started anywhere from about 3 to 7 weeks later than the modern year, so in historical contexts it is not entirely accurate to equate the first month with January.

English name Common Japanese name Traditional Japanese name
January 一月 (ichigatsu) Mutsuki (睦月, "Month of Affection").[13]
February 二月 (nigatsu) Kisaragi (如月) or Kinusaragi (衣更着, "Changing Clothes").[13]
March 三月 (sangatsu) Yayoi (弥生, "New Life").[13]
April 四月 (shigatsu) Uzuki (卯月, "u-no-hana month").[13] The u-no-hana (卯の花) is a flower, of the genus Deutzia.[14]
May 五月 (gogatsu) Satsuki (皐月) or Sanaetsuki (早苗月, "Early-rice-planting Month").[13]
June 六月 (rokugatsu) Minazuki (水無月, "Month of Water"). The 無 character, which normally means "absent" or "there is no", is here ateji, that is, used only for the sound "na". In this name the na is actually a possessive particle, so 'minazuki' means "month of water", not "month without water", and this is in reference to the flooding of the rice fields, which require large quantities of water.[15]
July 七月 (shichigatsu) Fumizuki (文月, "Month of Books").[13]
August 八月 (hachigatsu) Hazuki (葉月, "Month of Leaves"). In old Japanese, the month was called 葉落ち月 (Haochizuki, or "Month of Falling Leaves").[13]
September 九月 (kugatsu) Nagatsuki (長月, "The Long Month").[13]
October 十月 (jūgatsu) Kannazuki or Kaminazuki (神無月, "Month of the Gods"). The 無 character, which normally means "absent" or "there is not", was here probably originally used as ateji, that is used only for the sound "na". In this name the na is actually a possessive particle, so Kaminazuki means "Month of the Gods", not "Month without Gods" (Kaminakizuki), similarly to Minatsuki, the "Month of Water".[16] However, by false etymology this became commonly interpreted to mean that because in that month all the Shinto kami gather at Izumo shrine in Izumo Province (modern-day Shimane Prefecture), there are no gods in the rest of the country. Thus in Izumo Province, the month is called Kamiarizuki (神有月 or 神在月, "Month with Gods"). This interpretation is the one commonly cited in western works.[17] Various other etymologies have also been suggested from time to time.[18]
November 十一月 (jūichigatsu) Shimotsuki (霜月, "Month of Frost").[13]
December 十二月 (jūnigatsu) Shiwasu (師走, "Priests Running"). This is in reference to priests being busy at the end of the year for New Year's preparations and blessings.[13]

Subdivisions of the month

Japan uses a seven-day week, aligned with the Western calendar. The seven-day week, with names for the days corresponding to the Latin system, was brought to Japan around AD 800 with the Buddhist calendar. The system was used for astrological purposes and little else until 1876.

The names of the days come from the five visible planets, which in turn are named after the five Chinese elements (metal, wood, water, fire, earth), and from the moon and sun (yin and yang). On the origin of the names of the days of the week, also see East Asian Seven Luminaries.

Japanese Romanization Element English name
日曜日nichiyōbiSunSunday
月曜日getsuyōbiMoonMonday
火曜日kayōbiFire (Mars)Tuesday
水曜日suiyōbiWater (Mercury)Wednesday
木曜日mokuyōbiWood/Tree (Jupiter)Thursday
金曜日kin'yōbiMetal/Gold (Venus)Friday
土曜日doyōbiEarth (Saturn)Saturday

Sunday and Saturday are regarded as "Western style take-a-rest days". Since the late 19th century, Sunday has been regarded as a "full-time holiday", and Saturday a "half-time holiday (半ドン)". These holidays have no religious meaning (except those who believe in Christianity or Judaism). Many Japanese retailers do not close on Saturdays or Sundays, because many office workers and their families are expected to visit the shops during the weekend. An old Imperial Japanese Navy song says "We have neither Sundays nor Saturdays!" which means "We work throughout the week."

Japanese people also use 10-day periods called Jun (旬). Each month is divided roughly into three 10-day periods. The first (from 1st to 10th) is jōjun (上旬 "upper Jun"); the second (from 11th to 20th), chūjun (中旬 "middle Jun"); the last (from 21st to 31st), gejun (下旬 "bottom Jun" ). These are frequently used to indicate approximate times, for example, "the temperatures are typical of the jōjun of April"; "a vote on a bill is expected during the gejun of this month."

Days of the month

Each day of the month has a semi-systematic name. The days generally use kun (native Japanese) numeral readings up to ten, and thereafter on (Chinese-derived) readings, but there are some irregularities. The table below shows dates written with traditional numerals, but use of Arabic numerals (1日, 2日, 3日, etc.) is extremely common in everyday communication, almost the norm.

Day number Japanese name Romanisation
1一日tsuitachi
2二日futsuka
3三日mikka
4四日yokka
5五日itsuka
6六日muika
7七日nanoka
8八日yōka
9九日kokonoka
10十日tōka
11十一日jūichi-nichi
12十二日jūni-nichi
13十三日jūsan-nichi
14十四日jūyokka
jūyon-nichi
15十五日jūgo-nichi
  
Day number Japanese name Romanisation
16十六日jūroku-nichi
17十七日jūshichi-nichi
18十八日jūhachi-nichi
19十九日jūkyū-nichi
jūku-nichi
20二十日hatsuka
21二十一日nijūichi-nichi
22二十二日nijūni-nichi
23二十三日nijūsan-nichi
24二十四日nijūyokka
nijūyon-nichi
25二十五日nijūgo-nichi
26二十六日nijūroku-nichi
27二十七日nijūshichi-nichi
28二十八日nijūhachi-nichi
29二十九日nijūkyū-nichi
nijūku-nichi
30三十日sanjū-nichi
31三十一日sanjūichi-nichi

Tsuitachi is a worn-down form of tsuki-tachi (月立ち), which means "the month beginning". The last day of the month was called tsugomori, which means "Moon hidden". This classical word comes from the tradition of the lunisolar calendar. The 30th day of the month was also called misoka, just as the 20th day is called hatsuka. Nowadays, the terms for the numbers 28–31 plus nichi are much more common. However, misoka is much used in contracts, etc., specifying that a payment should be made on or by the last day of the month, whatever the number is. The last day of the year is 大晦日 ōmisoka ("big 30th day"), and that term is still in use.

There is traditional belief that some days are lucky (kichijitsu) or unlucky. For example, there are some who will avoid beginning something on an unlucky day.[19]

National holidays

Koinobori, flags decorated like koi, are popular decorations around Children's Day
Main article: Holidays of Japan

After World War II, the names of Japanese national holidays were completely changed because of the secular state principle (Article 20, The Constitution of Japan). Although many of them actually originated from Shinto, Buddhism and important events relating to the Japanese imperial family, it is not easy to understand the original meanings from the superficial and vague official names.

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.

Date English name Official name Romanization
January 1 New Year's Day 元日 Ganjitsu
2nd Monday of January Coming of Age Day 成人の日 Seijin no hi
February 11 National Foundation Day 建国記念の日 Kenkoku kinen no hi
March 20 or March 21 Vernal Equinox Day 春分の日 Shunbun no hi
April 29 Shōwa Day* 昭和の日 Shōwa no hi
May 3 Constitution Memorial Day* 憲法記念日 Kenpō kinenbi
May 4 Greenery Day* みどり(緑)の日 Midori no hi
May 5 Children's Day* 子供の日 Kodomo no hi
3rd Monday of July Marine Day 海の日 Umi no hi
3rd Monday of September Respect for the Aged Day 敬老の日 Keirō no hi
September 23 or September 24 Autumnal Equinox Day 秋分の日 Shūbun no hi
2nd Monday of October Health-Sports Day 体育の日 Taiiku no hi
November 3 Culture Day 文化の日 Bunka no hi
November 23 Labour Thanksgiving Day 勤労感謝の日 Kinrō kansha no hi
December 23 The Emperor's Birthday 天皇誕生日 Tennō tanjōbi

Traditional date on which according to legend Emperor Jimmu founded Japan in 660 BC.

* Part of Golden Week.

Timeline of changes to the national holidays

Customary issues in modern Japan

Gregorian months and the "One-Month Delay"

In contrast to other East Asian countries such as China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Korea and Mongolia, Japan has almost completely forgotten the Chinese calendar. Since 1876, January has been officially regarded as the "first month" even when setting the date of Japanese traditional folklore events (other months are the same: February as the second month, March as the third, and so on). But this system often brings a strong seasonal sense of gap since the event is 3 to 7 weeks earlier than in the traditional calendar. Modern Japanese culture has invented a kind of "compromised" way of setting dates for festivals called Tsuki-okure ("One-Month Delay") or Chūreki ("The Eclectic Calendar"). The festival is celebrated just one solar calendar month later than the date on the Gregorian calendar. For example, the Buddhist festival of Obon was the 15th day of the 7th month. Many places the religious services are held on July 15. However, in some areas, the rites are normally held on August 15, which is more seasonally close to the old calendar. (The general term "Obon holiday" always refers to the middle of August.) Although this is just de facto and customary, it is broadly used when setting the dates of many folklore events and religious festivals. But Japanese New Year is the great exception. This festival is never set on February 1.

Seasonal days

Some days have special names to mark the change in seasons. The 24 Sekki (二十四節気 Nijūshi sekki) (Chinese: Jieqi) are days that divide the solar year into twenty four equal sections. Zassetsu (雑節) is a collective term for the seasonal days other than the 24 Sekki. 72 (七十二候 Shichijūni kō) days are made from dividing the 24 Sekki of a year further by three. These were named based upon the climate of Northern China, so many of the names do not fit in with the climate of Japanese archipelago. But some of these names, such as Shunbun, Risshū and Tōji, are still used quite frequently in everyday life in Japan.

24 Sekki

Days can vary by ±1 day.

Zassetsu

Day Kanji Romaji Comment
February 3 節分 Setsubun The eve of Risshun by one definition.
March 18–March 24 春彼岸 Haru higan The seven days surrounding Shunbun.
Vernal Equinox day 春社日 Haru shanichi In Shinto. 彼岸中日 (Higan Chunichi) in Buddhism.
May 2 八十八夜 Hachijū hachiya Literally meaning 88 nights (since Risshun).
June 11 入梅 Nyūbai Literally meaning entering tsuyu.
July 2 半夏生 Hangeshō One of the 72 . Farmers take five days off in some regions.
July 15 中元 Chūgen Officially July 15. August 15 in many regions (Tsuki-okure).
July 20 夏の土用 Natsu no doyō Custom of eating eel on this day.
September 1 二百十日 Nihyaku tōka Literally meaning 210 days (since Risshun).
September 11 二百二十日 Nihyaku hatsuka Literally meaning 220 days.
September 20–September 26 秋彼岸 Aki higan  
Autumal Equinox 秋社日 Aki shanichi In Shinto. 彼岸中日 in Buddhism.

Shanichi days can vary by as much as ±5 days. Chūgen has a fixed day. All other days can vary by ±1 day.

Many zassetsu days occur in multiple seasons:

Seasonal festivals

The following are known as the five seasonal festivals (節句 sekku, also 五節句 gosekku). The Sekku were made official holidays during Edo era on Chinese lunisolar calendar. The dates of these festivals are confused nowadays. Some on the Gregorian calendar, others on "Tsuki-okure".

  1. 7th day of the 1st Month: 人日 (Jinjitsu), 七草の節句 (Nanakusa no sekku) held on 7 January
  2. 3rd day of the 3rd Month: 上巳 (Jōshi), 桃の節句 (Momo no sekku) held on 3 March in many areas, but in some area on 3 April
    雛祭り (Hina matsuri), Girls' Day.
  3. 5th day of the 5th Month: Tango (端午): mostly held on 5 May
  4. 7th day of the 7th Month: 七夕 (Shichiseki, Tanabata), 星祭り (Hoshi matsuri ) held on 7 July in many areas, but in northern Japan held on 7 August (e.g. in Sendai)
  5. 9th day of the 9th Month: 重陽 (Chōyō), 菊の節句 (Kiku no sekku) almost out of vogue today

Not Sekku:

Rokuyō

The rokuyō (六曜) are a series of six days calculated from the date of Chinese calendar that supposedly predict whether there will be good or bad fortune during that day. The rokuyō are commonly found on Japanese calendars and are often used to plan weddings and funerals, though most people ignore them in ordinary life. The rokuyō are also known as the rokki (六輝). In order, they are:

Kanji Romanization Meaning
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). Typically crematoriums are closed this day.
先負 Senbu Bad luck before noon, good luck after noon.
仏滅 Butsumetsu Symbolizes the day Buddha died. Considered the most unlucky day. Weddings are best avoided. Some Shinto shrines close their offices on this day.
大安 Taian The most lucky day. Good day for weddings and events like shop openings.
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 Lunisolar calendar. Lunisolar January 1 is always senshō, with the days following in the order given above until the end of the month. Thus, January 2 is tomobiki, January 3 is senbu, and so on. Lunisolar February 1 restarts the sequence at tomobiki. Lunisolar March 1 restarts at senbu, and so on for each month. The last six months repeat the patterns of the first six, so July 1 = senshō, December 1 is shakkō and the moon-viewing day of August 15 is always a "butsumetsu."

This system did not become popular in Japan until the end of the Edo period.

April 1

The first day of April has broad significance in Japan. It marks the beginning of the government's fiscal year.[20] 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.

See also

References

  1. "Calendar" at Japan-guide.com; Bramsen, William. (1880). Japanese chronological tables, p. 25.
  2. See the page on the history of the calendar at the National Diet Library site: .
  3. Clement, Ernest W. (1902). "Japanese Calendars", in Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan, Vol. 30-31, p. 3.
  4. Bramsen, pp. 5-11.
  5. Bramsen, pp. 2-5.
  6. See list of nengō with the reasons for the changes in Rekishi Dokuhon, January 2008 ("Nihon no Nengo Tokushuu"), pp. 196-221.
  7. Bramsen, p. 11.
  8. See "2533 years since Jinmu's accesion" in the heading "
  9. "kigen" in Kokushi Daijiten, vol. 4 (Yoshikawa Kô Bunkan, 1983).
  10. Bramsen, p. 25.
  11. "Understanding The Ways That Japan Tells Time". Tofugu.com. July 15, 2014.
  12. 閏年ニ關スル件 (Japanese Imperial Edict No.90, 11 May 1898)
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "Can you tell me the old names of the months?". About.com. Retrieved 2011-05-05.[ About.com, Can you tell me the old names of the months?]
  14. "「卯月」で始まる言葉 - 国語辞書の検索結果 - goo辞書" (in Japanese). Retrieved 2011-11-23.
  15. "「水無月」で始まる言葉 - 国語辞書の検索結果 - goo辞書" (in Japanese). Retrieved 2011-11-23.
  16. Entries in the standard dictionaries Daijisen 大辞泉(Shōgakukan 小学館), Daijirin 大辞林(Sanseidō 三省堂), Nihon Kokugo Daijiten 日本国語大辞典 (Shōgakukan 小学館).
  17. For example, Ian Reader and George J. Tanabe, Jr. (1998). Practically Religious: Worldly Benefits and the Common Religion of Japan. University of Hawaii Press. p. 178. ISBN 0-8248-2090-8.
  18. The Nihon Kokugo Daijiten日本国語大辞典 (Shōgakukan 小学館) lists nine more besides.
  19. Nussbaum, "Kichijitsu" at p. 513.
  20. "THE JAPANESE FISCAL YEAR AND MISCELLANEOUS DATA" (PDF). Japan International Research Center for Agricultural Sciences. 2003. Retrieved 2007-10-08.

External links

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