This Is Japan
Explore everyday life in Japan
Since some time during the Edo Period (1603 – 1868), the third, fifth, and seventh years of children’s lives have held considerable cultural significance in Japan. They have been considered maturation years, and were once considered years when children transitioned from being a baby into a child, and from being a child into a young man or a young woman.
During the Edo Period, it was customary to keep children’s heads, both boys and girls, shaved until their third birthday. Upon turning three, their survival until that point was celebrated, thanks was given at a local shrine, and their hair was grown long. For boys, fifth birthdays meant another celebration and more thanksgiving. It also meant being allowed to wear a traditional robe known as a hakana, which meant becoming more associated with adults. For girls, turning five carried little significance, but turning seven meant being allowed to wear a full-sized obi belt when wearing kimono, which carried with it the significance of being considered as more of an adult.
These days, the customs described above have been dropped and the celebration of these years has become more of a thanksgiving and a chance for Japanese people to remember their traditional culture than anything else. Nowadays, it is typical for girls to wear kimono, have their hair done, get their portraits taken at a professional photography studio, and go to a local shrine with their family to pray and give thanks some time between August and November of their third and seventh years. Boys, for the most part, only celebrate during the year of their fifth birthdays, and they do so in much the same way as girls. They put on traditional Japanese clothes, have their portraits taken, often while holding swords and striking samurai poses, and go to a shrine with their family to pray and give thanks some time between August and November.
During the Meiji Period, Shichi-Go-San, as this celebration is called (seven-five-three) was held on November 15. Prior to that, its date varied from year to year based on the Chinese Lunar Calendar. Though it is celebrated over a broader period of time these days, often anytime between August and November, I have found that November is still the time of year when you are most likely to see this celebration taking place at local shrines. During the first two weeks of November, it is common to find food and toy vendors with their makeshift tents set up outside of the entrances of shrines, and it is quite a sight to see children in their various kimonos walking around while their parents and grandparents follow, dressed in suits and nice dresses.
This is an ongoing series that will explore various aspects of daily life in Japan. My hope is that this series will not only reveal to its followers, image by image, what Japan looks like, but that it will also inform its followers about unique Japanese items and various cultural and societal practices. If you are interested in getting regular updates about life in Japan, please consider following me at @boxcarblue. If you have any questions about life in Japan, please don’t hesitate to ask. I will do my best to answer all of your questions.
This was really interesting. I never knew about all of this. My wife and I celebrate Japanese Girl's and Boy's Day but none of these other customs. Do you think that the Girl's and Boy's Day has just taken over these previous customs? Kinda commercialized it? Either way, very informative post as usual. I have been very busy. I will go back and read all the post that I missed. Cheers.
I didn't know about the history of shichi-go-san either, but I became interested after I started to write this series. After asking a lot of people and doing some research myself to confirm what I was being told, I learned about this celebrations' beginnings in the Edo Period. I suspect that the history of these customs goes back even further and only became formalized during the Edo Period, but I'm not sure.
I would also guess that Girl's and Boy's Day probably started during the Edo Period as well, but I don't know for sure. I'll look into it. Buying a 'kabuto' for boys and a 'hina' doll for girls seems to be pretty traditional. I don't think everyone does it these days, but my father-in-law was pretty adamant about buying these things for my children. I was surprised to see what a big difference there is in price between well-crafted 'kabutos' and 'hina' dolls and their cheaper imitations that many toy stores sell.
Good job!
Thanks. I'm glad you liked it.