A ''shinnenkai'' (, literally "new year gathering") is the Japanese tradition of welcoming the arrival of the New Year, usually by the drinking of alcohol. A ''shinnenkai'' is generally held among co-workers or friends in January. Like the many festivals (''

matsuri Japanese festivals, or , are traditional festive occasions often celebrated with dance and music in Japan. The origin of the word ''matsuri'' is related to the ; there are theories that the word ''matsuri'' is derived from meaning "to wait (for ...

'') and celebrations that the Japanese are known for, a ''shinnenkai'' is their way of getting together to celebrate a new year and to make promises to each other to do their best for this year while wishing each other good luck and fortune. A ''shinnenkai'' is similar to a ''

bōnenkai A is a Japanese drinking party that takes place at the end of the year and is generally held among groups of co-workers or friends. The purpose of the party, as its name implies, is to forget the woes and troubles of the past year, and hopefull ...

'' in several ways with just a few exceptions. Both are observed by parties of friends or co-workers or sponsored by a company for their employees. ''

Bōnenkai A is a Japanese drinking party that takes place at the end of the year and is generally held among groups of co-workers or friends. The purpose of the party, as its name implies, is to forget the woes and troubles of the past year, and hopefull ...

'' and ''shinnenkai'' are not part of the New Year '' Shogatsu'' celebration which lasts until the 3rd of January; they are instead a way of ending and beginning the year through a group celebration. At a ''shinnenkai'' however, some of the '' Shogatsu'' festivities can carry over to the New Year’s party like the making of '' mochitsuki'' by pounding sweet steamed rice or ''kagamiwari'' which is the breaking open of ''

sake Sake, , or saki, also referred to as Japanese rice wine, is an alcoholic beverage of Japanese origin made by fermenting rice that has been polished to remove the bran. Despite the name ''Japanese rice wine'', sake, and indeed any East Asi ...

'' barrels with a wooden hammer and drinking together. This tradition started in the 15th century during the

Muromachi The , also known as the , is a division of History of Japan, Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Ashikaga shogunate, Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate ( or ), which was officially establ ...

period as gatherings to express one's thanks for each other. At that time, the party was known as ''nōkai'' (great achievement gathering). Later on in the 18th century a new word was appearing in writings and was since then was known as a ''

'' or year-end party and a ''shinnenkai'' is the same type of celebration. Although the Japanese have always been a people of great feeling and emotion as in the expression ''

mono no aware , , and also translated as , or , is a Japanese idiom for the awareness of , or transience of things, and both a transient gentle sadness (or wistfulness) at their passing as well as a longer, deeper gentle sadness about this state being the re ...

'', they are more reserved in expressing their feelings to others, so the ''shinnenkai'' has been a way of showing public displays of gratitude. This is especially true for the company or business office ''shinnenkai'' where they can do ''bureikō'' or let their hair down and not worry about the boss/employee formal relationship or the rank and age divisions and have a good time.{{cite web , url=http://www.cg1.org/knowledge/houjin/100104.html , title=新年会や忘年会の飲食代を会社の経費に？福利厚生費？交際費？給与？ , website=www.cg1.org , url-status=dead , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100718113813/http://www.cg1.org/knowledge/houjin/100104.html , archive-date=2010-07-18 When a business decides to have a ''shinnenkai'' they take into account several things before planning a party. Some of their concerns are to ensure that enough of the employees and management will attend. They also try to set a generalized cost of no more than 5,000 yen per person; this is used to cover the cost of the party and to not discourage employees from attending a party that is too expensive. Some companies pay the entire cost of the party and will at times opt to not have the party at a traditional ''

izakaya An () is a type of informal Japanese Bar (establishment), bar that serves alcoholic drinks and snacks. are casual places for after-work drinking, similar to a pub, a Spanish tapas bar, or an American saloon or tavern. Etymology The word e ...

'' (restaurant and drinking places where the majority of ''shinnenkai'' are held) and instead have it on the business premises and save a lot of money in the process. Statistically, more people attend ''

'' than ''shinnenkai'' parties. The majority of those that celebrate a ''shinnenkai'' are office co-workers, rather than friends.

References

Festivals in Japan

See also

References