Table 2 List of annual events
From: Experience of annual events in the family and social adjustment of school-age children
Period | Content | % |
|---|---|---|
Jan | New Year (making the first visit of the year to the shrine; eating traditional New Year dishes, etc.) | 96.0 |
Jan | Nanakusa (eating soup containing seven spring plants and vegetables, on the seventh day of the New Year) | 30.8 |
Jan | Kagami-biraki (cracking a huge rice cake and eating it with a clear soup or as a sweet red bean soup, etc.) | 41.7 |
Feb | Setsubun (throwing dry beans to expel demons, eating Ehomaki rolled sushi, etc.) | 81.5 |
Feb | Valentine’s Day (giving and/or receiving chocolates, etc.) | 84.1 |
March | Doll’s Festival (displaying Hina dolls, eating special rice crackers and tossed sushi, etc.) | 70.6 |
March | White Day (giving and/or receiving presents, etc.) | 51.0 |
March | The spring Equinoctial week (visiting the family grave, eating special rice cakes, etc.) | 24.0 |
March–April | Viewing cherry blossoms (enjoy looking at cherry and plum blossoms; eating rice cakes rolled in pickled cherry leaf) | 67.1 |
April | Easter (eating egg dishes and special feasts, etc.) | 4.7 |
May | Children’s Day (displaying carp streamers and Boys’ Festival dolls, eating the day’s special sweets, etc.) | 73.2 |
May | Mother’s Day (giving a gift to one’s mother, etc.) | 62.6 |
June | Father’s Day (giving a gift to one’s father, etc.) | 59.9 |
July | Tanabata (Weaver’s Festival, putting up bamboo decorations, etc.) | 35.8 |
July-Aug | The Midsummer Day of the Ox (eating grilled eel, etc.) | 35.1 |
Aug | Bon Festival (visiting the family grave, etc.) | 69.5 |
Sept | The autumn Equinoctial week (visiting the family grave, eating special rice cakes, etc.) | 26.5 |
Sept | Respect for the Aged Day (giving gifts to grandparents, etc.) | 38.6 |
Sept–Oct | Moon viewing (looking at the moon on the 13th and 15th nights of the lunar month; eating special dumplings, etc.) | 37.2 |
Oct | Halloween (dressing up, making decorations, etc.) | 50.4 |
Nov–Dec | Viewing of autumn leaves (enjoy looking at leaves that have turned red and yellow, etc.) | 30.6 |
Dec | Winter solstice (taking a hot bath with dried citrus peel floating in it, eating pumpkin dishes, etc.) | 45.8 |
Dec | Christmas (decorating a Christmas tree, eating Christmas cake, etc.) | 96.8 |
Dec | New Year’s Eve (eating traditional soba noodles just before midnight, etc.) | 92.3 |
– | Children’s birthday | 98.8 |
– | Parents’ birthdays | 75.5 |
– | Grandparents’ birthdays | 45.9 |
– | Parents’ wedding anniversary | 18.5 |