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13. Japanese New Year Lexicon

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A Japanese New Year Lexicon 1. 正月 /shougatsu/ 正月 /shougatsu/ - or お正月 /oshougatsu/ - is New Year in Japanese. It starts on January 1st and typically lasts for 3 days. Because Japan uses the Gregorian calendar, unlike the Chinese New Year, 正 月 /shougatsu/ starts on the same day as New Year in Poland. Traditionally, the Japanese New Year had a nuance of welcoming a god (年神 /toshigami/) to home. Many accompanying customs derive from this idea. 2. 年神 /toshigami/ Literally it means "god (神 /kami/) of year (年 /toshi/)," and it is said to be a god of the harvest. New Year is the time to celebrate its arrival. 3. 元旦 /gantan/ Another way to say January 1st in Japanese. It visually depicts the first (元) Sun (日) rising over the horizon ( _ ). Many people try to see the actual sunrise on this day. 4. 年末 /nenmatsu/ It means "the end of the year." 5. 大掃除 /oosouji/ It literally means "big cleaning," and it is the period of cleaning before the end of the year. It is the combination of various customs accumulated over the last 1000 years and, because of that, it's possible to analyse its origin and meaning at great length. But here we cover only the basics as it is understood today. Because the coming of New Year means the arrival of a god (年神 /toshigami/), to welcome this god to their home, the Japanese prepare the house by cleaning it inside out. It is accompanied by the gesture of getting rid of things that they accumulated during the year, for example, dusts, possessions, or even worries and other mental burdens. It is the period of great cleansing not only physically but also in mind. The cleaning period starts on December 13th and should end before 29th. It doesn't mean that the Japanese have to clean everyday during this period; it simply means that they should start and finish it between these dates. The cleaning ends with the decoration for New Year - i.e., putting a sign-post outside the house so that the god can find its way to the house without getting lost, and also preparing a place for the god to stay in the house - and it is advised not to drag the work to the 29th. It's because 29 in Japanese にじゅうく /nijuu ku/ has the same sound as the expression "double suffering (二重の苦 /nijuu no ku/)" and it doesn't sound like the best day to schedule the work for an auspicious occasion. The 30th and 31st are also avoided because it is too close to New Year and it gives the impression that the preparation would be rushed; the Japanese don't want the god to think that they didn't take enough time to prepare for its arrival. 6. 大晦日 /oomisoka/ December 31st. There is nothing like New Year's Eve or St. Sylvester's Day celebrations. Because New Year arrives in the form of a god to each house, the Japanese stay at home and quietly wait for the arrival of New Year and 年神 /toshigami/. 7. 年越しそば /toshikoshi soba/ It is the soba noodles that the Japanese eat in the night of New Year's Eve. Compared to other types of noodles, soba noodles are easily cut; by analogy, in order to cut bad cycles in life and make a fresh start on New Year, the Japanese developed a custom to eat soba in New Year's Eve. 8. 除夜の鐘 /joya no kane/ As New Year approaches, temples all over Japan ring their huge bells 108 times. In Buddhism, 108 is the number of 煩悩 /bon nou/ - the thoughts and desires that put mind out of focus. As the Japanese listen to the heavy and slow sound of the bell over and over again, they are supposed to reflect on the past year, especially on the things that didn't go well. They can listen to the sound of the bell at home as they quietly wait for New Year, or they can go to the nearest temple to help them ring the bell. 9. 初詣 /hatsu moude/ The New Year visit to a shrine or temple. The Japanese pay a visit to Japanese gods or Buddhist divinities to give their thanks for the past year or to make a request for the protection for the new year. 初詣 /hatsu moude/ simply means the New Year visit to a shrine or temple and there is no prescribed timing for this visit. Many take time to go for 初詣 /hatsu moude/ in the first 3 days of the year, while others go for 初詣 /hatsu moude/ as soon as New Year comes, just after midnight. For many young Japanese, this 初詣 /hatsu moude/ in the early hours of New Year is analogous to the St. Sylvester's celebration in Europe: it's an occasion to dress up on New Year's Eve and go out in the night; it's just not for a party but for a shrine or temple visit. 10. 鏡餅 /kagami mochi/ A big round 餅 /mochi/ (rice-cake, made out of finely crashed rice). Literally it means "Mirror Mochi" because its O shape is the imitation of ancient Japanese mirror. The mirror in ancient Japan was a sacred item and this 鏡餅 /kagami mochi/ is supposed to be the medium in which 年神 /toshigami/ settles once it arrives home. 11. 初夢 /hatsuyume/ The dream you have in the night between January 1st and 2nd. It is supposed to tell you the fortune of the year. 12. お年玉 /otoshidama/ It is the New Year cash for children. Very often it is given in a small envelop specially designed for お年 玉 /otoshidama/. The custom to give cash to children comes from the tradition of sharing the above mentioned 鏡餅 /kagami mochi/. At the end of 正月 /shougatsu/, the Japanese break the 鏡餅 /kagami mochi/ into pieces by hand or with a wooden hammer (not by knife, because this Mochi is now the body of a god) and share it with the entire family. This symbolic act of giving a piece of a god today became this gesture of giving an envelop with cash to children. 13. 年賀状 /nengajou/ It is the New Year card you send to friends, family and also to the people you had business with during the year. It arrives in the early morning of January 1st, delivered by the Japan Post and its uninterrupted service. 14. おせち /osechi/ The Japanese New Year dish, composed of many dishes in small quantity. It is made to last for a few days, as 年神 /toshigami/ is said to dislike fire, in order to avoid cooking during 正月 /shougatsu/. .
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