17th July – 文月 In Natsumatsuri (Summer festival), you can often see the colorful huge fireworks shining up the dark sky. Even it is common to do small fireworks with family in the riverside. The first 花火大会 (Hanabi Taikai = Fireworks festival) started in 1733, at Sumidagawa, Tokyo. The small company called 鍵屋 (Kagiya) isContinue reading “花火 (Hanabi) – Fireworks”
Tag Archives: #Japan
日本の田舎あるある (Nihon no Inaka Aru Aru) – Common things in Japanese countryside
13th July – 文月 Most people firstly think of Japan as Tokyo, Osaka views – huge buildings lined up and people tightly packed in the busy trains. However, if going some distance away from the metropolis, people might surprise there are many green nature views spread around. Now in Japan it is trending to moveContinue reading “日本の田舎あるある (Nihon no Inaka Aru Aru) – Common things in Japanese countryside”
案山子(Kakashi) – Scarecrow
12th July – 文月 When you see the scenery of countryside in Japan, often 案山子 (Kakashi) stands in the rice fields and protects crops from birds – Rice field farmers cannot monitor the field 24 hours a day, they rely on Kakashi. The origin of the name ‘案山子:Kakashi’ was brought to Japan by the ChineseContinue reading “案山子(Kakashi) – Scarecrow”
お辞儀 (Ojigi) – Bowing
11th July – 文月 (Fuzuki) お辞儀: bowing action. Japanese generally bow in the situation of greeting, thanking, apologizing, asking favor and worshipping at the temples, shrines. Perhaps, you might have seen some movie scenes that Japanese person bows when calling, or all the kids in the class bowing at the same time when the classContinue reading “お辞儀 (Ojigi) – Bowing”
本音と建前 (Honne to Tatemae) – real meaning and public face
6th June – 水無月 本音と建前: 本音 (Honne) means honest and real meaning that the person says, on the other hand, 建前 (Tatemae) is the public face that the person who talks does not truly mean the words. Many countries have its own way of 本音と建前, however Japanese use this quite often – and many ofContinue reading “本音と建前 (Honne to Tatemae) – real meaning and public face”
日本のことわざ (Nihon No Kotowaza) – Japanese Proverbs: Positive
5th June – 水無月 Kotowaza – as you might have known from blogs before, is the sentence of knowledge and lessons from the past. Today’s blog is about positive proverbs that might help people, in order to overcome hard time of life. 雲の上はいつも晴れ (Kumo no Ue wa Itsumo Hare) English: Upper sky is always sunnyContinue reading “日本のことわざ (Nihon No Kotowaza) – Japanese Proverbs: Positive”
衣替え (Koromo Gae) – Changing clothes
1st June – 水無月 Minazuki 衣替え (Koromo gae): When the season changes, change the clothing accordingly. Generally, 1st June is the day most department stores and clothing shops change the display clothes to summer style. Summer clothes are sold around June till the end of September, then Winter clothes are sold during October and inContinue reading “衣替え (Koromo Gae) – Changing clothes”
梅雨 (Tsuyu) -rainy season
31st May – 皐月 梅雨 (Tsuyu), the rainy season falls around June till mid July every year in Japan. During this season, many days have rain or cloudy days, so it’s very humid and damp. The Kanji 梅 means plum, this is because 梅雨 season is the time when plums ripen. Today, the Shikoku areaContinue reading “梅雨 (Tsuyu) -rainy season”
ジブリ映画 (Jiburi Eiga) – Studio Ghibli Movies
30th May – 皐月 Probably many people who like Japan know what Studio Ghibli is – Japanese animation company which have produced many popular films. Ghibli movies have beautiful drawings and fantastic music so it has been loved by various generation in Japan. Some non-Japanese pronounce Ghibli as ぎぶり (Giburi). However the correct way toContinue reading “ジブリ映画 (Jiburi Eiga) – Studio Ghibli Movies”
早口言葉 (Hayakuchi Kotoba) – Tongue twister
28th May -皐月 早口言葉 (Hayakuchi Kotoba) is the sentence to say quickly, the sentences have similar sounds or related sounds repeated several times, therefore those are hard to pronounce correctly. As well as tongue twister exists in English, so does in Japanese. Japanese 早口言葉 often have following sounds , which makes the sentence difficult toContinue reading “早口言葉 (Hayakuchi Kotoba) – Tongue twister”
Little Japan Dictionary 