, also known as , originally referred to an annual ceremony held at the Japanese imperial court on May 5. It was one of the five annual court ceremonies called . Since the

Kamakura period The is a period of History of Japan, Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura, Kanagawa, Kamakura by the first ''shōgun'' Minamoto no Yoritomo after the conclusion of the G ...

(1185–1333), when the

samurai The samurai () were members of the warrior class in Japan. They were originally provincial warriors who came from wealthy landowning families who could afford to train their men to be mounted archers. In the 8th century AD, the imperial court d ...

class seized power, has become an event to ward off evil spirits for samurai boys.

Japanese armour Scholars agree that Japanese armour first appeared in the 4th century, with the discovery of the cuirass and basic helmets in graves. During the Heian period (794–1185), the unique Japanese samurai armour ''ō-yoroi'' and ''dō-maru'' appeared. ...

, (helmets) and

Japanese sword A is one of several types of traditionally made swords from Japan. Bronze swords were made as early as the Yayoi period (1,000 BC – 300 AD), though most people generally refer to the curved blades made from the Heian period (794–1185) to the ...

s were displayed in houses from the Kamakura period to the

Muromachi period The , also known as the , is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate ( or ), which was officially established in 1338 by the first Muromachi ...

(1333–1573). From the

Edo period The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...

(1603–1867), were displayed in homes, (carp streamers) were hung in gardens. From this period, the custom of decorating houses with offerings on spread to the peasant and classes, and paper began to be displayed. Since the Showa era (1926–1989), miniatures of samurai armor have become more popular than samurai dolls. Until recently, was known as Boys' Day (also known as Feast of Banners) while was celebrated on March 3. In 1948, the government decreed this day to be a national holiday to celebrate the happiness of all children and to express gratitude toward mothers. It was renamed and changed to include both boys and girls. It is the Japanese equivalent of Double Fifth and was celebrated on the fifth day of the fifth moon in the

lunisolar calendar A lunisolar calendar is a calendar in many cultures, that combines monthly lunar cycles with the solar year. As with all calendars which divide the year into months, there is an additional requirement that the year have a whole number of mont ...

. After Japan switched to the

Gregorian calendar The Gregorian calendar is the calendar used in most parts of the world. It went into effect in October 1582 following the papal bull issued by Pope Gregory XIII, which introduced it as a modification of, and replacement for, the Julian cale ...

, the date was moved to

May 5 Events Pre-1600 * 553 – The Second Council of Constantinople begins. * 1215 – Rebel barons renounce their allegiance to King John of England — part of a chain of events leading to the signing of the Magna Carta. * 1260 – ...

(the fifth day of the fifth ''solar'' month).Nussbaum, Louis Frédéric ''et al'' (2005). "Tango no Sekku" in Other festivals are celebrated on the same day in

mainland China "Mainland China", also referred to as "the Chinese mainland", is a Geopolitics, geopolitical term defined as the territory under direct administration of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in the aftermath of the Chinese Civil War. In addit ...

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

Macau Macau or Macao is a special administrative regions of China, special administrative region of the People's Republic of China (PRC). With a population of about people and a land area of , it is the most List of countries and dependencies by p ...

, and

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

as the

Duanwu Festival The Dragon Boat Festival ( zh, s=端午节, t=端午節, first=t, p=Duānwǔ jié, cy=Dyūnńgh jit) is a traditional Chinese holiday that occurs on the fifth day of the fifth month of the Chinese calendar, which corresponds to late May or earl ...

or Tuen Ng Festival (Cantonese), in Korea as the Dano Festival, and Vietnam as on the traditional lunar calendar date.

Etymology

means and is a simplified form of , referring to the Chinese zodiac name for the fifth lunar month. Days of the week also have zodiac animals. Thus, originally meant 'the first horse day of the fifth month'. However, is a

homonym In linguistics, homonyms are words which are either; '' homographs''—words that mean different things, but have the same spelling (regardless of pronunciation), or '' homophones''—words that mean different things, but have the same pronunciat ...

for in Japanese, so during the

Nara period The of the history of Japan covers the years from 710 to 794. Empress Genmei established the capital of Heijō-kyō (present-day Nara). Except for a five-year period (740–745), when the capital was briefly moved again, it remained the capita ...

the meaning shifted to become the fifth day of the fifth month. means a seasonal festival. There are five , including ''Jinjitsu'' (January 7), ''Jōshi'' (, March 3), ''Shichiseki'' (, July 7) and ''Chōyō'' (, September 9), along with . In Kotobank online dictionary. Retrieved 5 May 2025. marks the beginning of

summer Summer or summertime is the hottest and brightest of the four temperate seasons, occurring after spring and before autumn. At or centred on the summer solstice, daylight hours are the longest and darkness hours are the shortest, with day ...

or 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 * '' ...

History

Although it is not known precisely when began to be celebrated, it was probably during the reign of the Empress Suiko (593628 AD). In Japan, was assigned to the fifth day of the fifth month after the

. was originally a day for women to purify the house by thatching the roof with irises, which were believed to be effective in repelling evil spirits, and for women to rest their bodies, but it was changed to a day for boys in the

(1185–1333) when the

class took control of the government. The reason for this was that the iris was a plant that represented the samurai because its leaves were shaped like the blade of a

, and the word , which means , had the same pronunciation as and was therefore considered an auspicious plant for the samurai. Since this period, (Japanese horseback archery) was held on May 5 as a way to ward off evil spirits. The custom of displaying miniature Japanese armor and (helmets) on Children's Day, called , has its origins in the Kamakura to

s (1333–1573). Samurai used to take their armor, , and Japanese swords out of their storage boxes in May before the

to take care of them. Since this was the time of the , they began to display armor, , and Japanese swords in the hope of protecting their children. During the

(1603–1867), celebrations became extravagant, and samurai households began to display in addition to real armor, , and Japanese swords. Ordinary households began to display paper . The custom of bathing in the bathtub with irises on May 5 began in this period. The custom of decorating (carp streamers) on Children's Day originated in the Edo period. During the Edo period (1603–1867), samurai families began to decorate their yards with or flags, which were colored with (family crests) to represent military units, during . The and were then merged, and the first appeared in Edo (now

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

). The colorful as they are modernly known became popular in the

Meiji era The was an Japanese era name, era of History of Japan, Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868, to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feu ...

(1868–1912). After Japan switched to the

, the date was moved to May 5 of the new calendar year. Until 1948, Children's Day was known as Boys' Day (also known as Feast of Banners), celebrating

boy A boy is a young male human. The term is commonly used for a child or an adolescent. When a male human reaches adulthood, he is usually described as a man. Definition, etymology, and use According to the ''Merriam-Webster Dictionary'', a boy ...

s and recognizing fathers, as the counterpart to Hinamatsuri, or "Girl's Day" on March 3. In 1948, the name was changed to Children's Day to include both male and female children, as well as recognizing mothers along with fathers and family qualities of unity. In the Showa era (1926–1989), the popularity shifted from samurai dolls to miniature armor, and since the 21st century, miniature have become popular, probably due to the size of Japanese houses. (sticky rice cakes filled with red bean jam and wrapped in

oak An oak is a hardwood tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' of the beech family. They have spirally arranged leaves, often with lobed edges, and a nut called an acorn, borne within a cup. The genus is widely distributed in the Northern Hemisp ...

leaves) and (sticky sweet rice wrapped in an iris or bamboo leaf) are traditionally served on this day. The oak leaf used for is said to be a tree whose old leaves do not fall off until new leaves appear, and is considered a good-luck charm representing prosperity of offspring. Since irises are believed to have medicinal properties and to ward off evil, they are used for various purposes on . For example, people would take a bath with irises in the bathtub, soak thinly sliced iris roots or leaves in

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 ...

and drink it, or put irises in thin

washi is traditional Japanese paper processed by hand using fibers from the inner bark of the gampi tree, the mitsumata shrub (''Edgeworthia chrysantha''), or the paper mulberry (''kōzo'') bush. ''Washi'' is generally tougher than ordinary ...

(Japanese traditional paper) before putting it in their pillows and going to bed.

Notes

References

* Nussbaum, Louis Frédéric and Käthe Roth. (2005). ''Japan Encyclopedia.'' Cambridge:

Harvard University Press Harvard University Press (HUP) is an academic publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University. It is a member of the Association of University Presses. Its director since 2017 is George Andreou. The pres ...

.
OCLC 48943301

External links

Video on Children Day in Fukushima, Japan

Video on Children Day in Coffs Harbour, Australia
{{Japan Holidays Public holidays in Japan Buddhist festivals in Japan May observances Japanese words and phrases

Etymology

History

See also

Notes

References

External links