, also known as "Ocean Day" or "Sea Day", is a public holiday in Japan usually celebrated on the third Monday in July. The purpose of the holiday is to give thanks for the

ocean The ocean is the body of salt water that covers approximately 70.8% of Earth. The ocean is conventionally divided into large bodies of water, which are also referred to as ''oceans'' (the Pacific, Atlantic, Indian Ocean, Indian, Southern Ocean ...

's bounty and to consider the importance of the ocean to Japan as a maritime nation. Many people take advantage of the holiday and summer weather to take a beach trip. Other ocean-related festivities are observed as well. The date roughly coincides with the end of the

rainy season The rainy season is the time of year when most of a region's average annual rainfall occurs. Rainy Season may also refer to: * ''Rainy Season'' (short story), a 1989 short horror story by Stephen King * "Rainy Season", a 2018 song by Monni * '' ...

(梅雨 ''tsuyu'') in much of the Japanese mainland. In 2020, the holiday was observed on Thursday, July 23, a one-time move that was made as a special accommodation to support the opening of the Tokyo Olympics. Due to the postponement of the Olympics, the 2021 date was moved to July 22, also on Thursday as a one-time holiday.

History

The day was known as until 1996. Communications Minister Shōzō Murata designated the day in 1941 to commemorate the Meiji Emperor and his 1876 voyage in the '' Meiji Maru'', an iron steamship constructed in Scotland in 1874. The voyage included a trip around the

Tōhoku region The , Northeast region, , or consists of the northeastern portion of Honshu, the largest island of Japan. This traditional region consists of six prefectures (): Akita, Aomori, Fukushima, Iwate, Miyagi, and Yamagata. Tōhoku retains ...

, embarking on a lighthouse boat in Aomori, and a brief stop in

Hakodate is a Cities of Japan, city and seaports of Japan, port located in Oshima Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. It is the capital city of Oshima Subprefecture. As of January 31, 2024, the city had an estimated population of 239,813 with 138,807 househol ...

before returning to

Yokohama is the List of cities in Japan, second-largest city in Japan by population as well as by area, and the country's most populous Municipalities of Japan, municipality. It is the capital and most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a popu ...

on July 20 of that year. However, it was not designated a national holiday until 1995, when it became the first holiday in the summer months. First observed on July 20, 1996, the Happy Monday System legislation moved the date to the third Monday of July beginning in 2003. As special arrangement for the

2020 Summer Olympics The officially the and officially branded as were an international multi-sport event that was held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some of the preliminary sporting events beginning on 21 July 2021. Tokyo ...

, the 2020 date for Marine Day was moved to July 23. With the Olympics and Paralympics postponed until 2021 due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, the government left this change in place for 2020 and passed an amendment to the Olympic and Paralympic Special Measures Act to make a corresponding change to the holiday in 2021.

Celebration

On this day, families may visit beaches such as Isshiki Beach in Hayama and swim, snorkel, surf, or dive. People may also participate in an event called 'mud-ball throwing'. National aquariums also host special water-related events on this day.

References

External links

Book entry about the Meiji MaruMarine Day Celebration
{{Japan Holidays Public holidays in Japan Water transport in Japan July observances Environmental awareness days Holidays and observances by scheduling (nth weekday of the month) Sea in culture Oceans Monday observances 1995 establishments in Japan