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E-mail Newsletter "HIGHLIGHTING Japan"
https://www.gov-online.go.jp/hlj/en/


VOL. 199 (NEW YEAR'S ISSUE 2025)

◆CELEBRATING A BRIGHT NEW YEAR IN JAPAN◆

Japan has many annual events throughout the year, but it has treated its New Year events with special care since ancient times. The Japanese New Year is known for a variety of customs and good luck events related to food, clothing, and shelter, and each has its own meaning. In this month’s HIGHLIGHTING Japan, we present an interview with a great scholar of folklore on the special meaning that welcoming the New Year has for Japanese people. We introduce kimono, o-sechi ryori cuisine (traditional Japanese New Year food), a New Year’s herbal sake and indoor decorations for the New Year, all of which help celebrate and add splendid color and enjoyment to the Japanese New Year. We also introduce traditional performing arts including the Shishi-mai dance, and a kite-flying event held at the foot of Mt. Fuji.

●The Origins and Significance of Japan’s New Year’s Culture
(Interview with SHINTANI Takanori, a folklorist and Professor emeritus at the Graduate University for Advanced Studies and National Museum of Japanese History.)

●Traditional New Year's Kimono: Haregi – Its Heritage and Modern Adaptations
(Introducing the history, traditions, and modern adaptations of haregi, the kimono worn, especially by women, for New Year celebrations.)

●Herbal sake O-toso for Good Health and Longevity
(Showcasing O-toso, an herbal sake traditionally consumed in Japan to welcome the New Year.)

●New Year’s O-sechi Cuisine: Wishing for Happiness in the Year Ahead
(Introducing o-sechi, the traditional New Year’s cuisine in Japan, enjoyed at home, along with its origins and significance.)

●The Significance and Spirit of Shitsurai in Japan’s New Year
(A look at shitsurai, the art of beautifully arranging indoor spaces for various traditional Japanese seasonal events, with a focus on New Year’s decorations.)

●Shishi-mai: A Lively Dance Performed in a Lion Costume
(Introducing the Shishi-mai dance, a Japanese folk performing art showcased at New Year’s and festivals to drive away misfortune and pray for good health, with a focus on Izumozaki Town in Niigata Prefecture, where it is especially popular during New Year’s celebrations.)

●Giant Kites Soar at the Foot of Mount Fuji at New Year
(Celebrating kites as a symbol of good fortune and kite flying as a New Year tradition in Japan, alongside a kite flying event in the highlands at the foot of Mount Fuji.)

●Vibrant Hagoita Decorations for the New Year
(Introducing the history and origins of the hagoita as a traditional New Year decoration in Japan, with a special focus on the Hakata Okiage style of hagoita from Fukuoka Prefecture.)

■POLICY-RELATED NEWS
(Initiatives to Further Deepen Ties between Japan and the Caribbean States and Regions: Japan-CARICOM Friendship Year 2024)

■SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
(Technologies to Predict and Minimize the Impact of Frequent Line-Shaped Precipitation Systems Causing Heavy Rainfalls in Japan)

■DISCOVERING JAPAN THROUGH THE EYES OF JAPANESE INFLUENCERS
(Japanese Home Cooking Connects Hearts and Minds)

■TREASURES OF JAPANESE CULTURE
(Anime: A Subculture That Gives a Sense of Japanese Values and Culture)

■BACK COVER
THE BEAUTY OF JAPANESE SWORDS
(Short sword signed Yoshimitsu (celebrated Atsushi Toushirō))

https://www.gov-online.go.jp/hlj/en/january_2025/

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