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|image = File:大晦日の夜4 - panoramio.jpg
|image = File:大晦日の夜4 - panoramio.jpg
|imagesize = 250px
|imagesize = 250px
|caption = Shinto shrine on ōmisoka.
|caption = Shinto shrine on ''ōmisoka''
|official_name = 大晦日
|official_name = {{lang|ja|大晦日}}
|nickname = New Year's Eve
|nickname = New Year's Eve
|observedby = [[Japan]]
|observedby = [[Japan]]
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|scheduling = same day each year
|scheduling = same day each year
|duration = 1 day
|duration = 1 day
|frequency = annual
|frequency = Annual
|celebrations = [[Kōhaku Uta Gassen]]
|celebrations = ''[[Kōhaku Uta Gassen]]''
|observances =
|observances =
|relatedto = [[Japanese New Year]]<br>[[New Year's Eve]]
|relatedto = [[Japanese New Year]]<br>[[New Year's Eve]]
}}
}}


{{nihongo|'''''Ōmisoka'''''|大晦日|}}—or {{nihongo|''ōtsugomori''|大晦|}}—is a Japanese traditional celebration on the last day of the year. Traditionally, it was held on the final day of the 12th lunar month. With Japan's switch to using the [[Gregorian calendar]] at the beginning of the [[Meiji era]], December 31 ([[New Year's Eve]]) is now used for the celebration.
{{nihongo|'''''Ōmisoka'''''|大晦日}} or {{nihongo|'''''ōtsugomori'''''|大晦}} is a Japanese traditional celebration on the last day of the year. Traditionally, it was held on the final day of the 12th lunar month. With Japan's switch to using the [[Gregorian calendar]] at the beginning of the [[Meiji era]], it is now used on [[New Year's Eve]] to celebrate the new year.


==Origins==
==Origins==
===Etymology===
===Etymology===
The last day of each month of the Japanese [[lunisolar calendar]] was historically named {{nihongo|''misoka''|晦日|}}. Originally, "miso" was written as 三十, indicating the 30th day, though ''misoka'' sometimes fell on the 29th due to the varying lengths of the lunar month. The last day in the 12th lunar month is called {{nihongo|''ōmisoka''|大晦日|}}—with the 大 indicating it is the final last day of the month for that year—or the "great thirtieth day".<ref name="sosnoski 1996">{{cite book |date=August 5, 2014 |orig-year=1996 |chapter=Omisoka |editor1-last=Sosnoski |editor1-first=Daniel |title=Introduction to Japanese Culture |location=[[Clarendon, Vermont|North Clarendon, Vermont]] |publisher= [[Tuttle Publishing]] |page=66 |isbn=978-4-8053-1313-8 |lccn=95062169 }}</ref><ref name="tanaka 2004">{{cite book|date=August 22, 2004 |chapter=Prelude: Times, Pasts, History |first1=Stefan |last1=Tanaka |title=New Times in Modern Japan |url=https://archive.org/details/newtimesmodernja00tana |url-access=limited |location=[[Princeton, New Jersey]] |publisher= [[Princeton University Press]] |page=[https://archive.org/details/newtimesmodernja00tana/page/n27 15] |isbn=0-691-11774-8 |lccn=2003066411 }}</ref> As part of the [[Meiji Restoration]], Japan switched to the [[Gregorian calendar]] in 1873, and ''ōmisoka'' was set as December 31, or [[New Year's Eve]].<ref name="nic">{{cite web|url=http://www.nicjapanese.com/english/e-cul-shogatsu.html|title=大晦日(おおみそか)と正月 Omisoka & Shogatsu|trans-title=Ōmisoka and Shōgatsu|first1=Sachiko|last1=Hamano|publisher=Nihongo Instructor Club|access-date=February 2, 2017|archive-url=https://www.webcitation.org/6nzStfzKX?url=http://www.nicjapanese.com/english/e-cul-shogatsu.html|archive-date=February 3, 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref> The day is also known by the archaic pronunciation of {{nihongo|''ōtsugomori''|大晦|}}.<ref name="sosnoski 1996"/><ref name="nishitsunoi 1958">{{cite book|first1=Masayoshi|last1=Nishitsunoi|title=年中行事事典|trans-title=Encyclopedia of Annual Events|page=123|date=May 23, 1958|publisher=Tōkyōdō Shuppan|language=ja}}</ref> This is a shortened version of {{nihongo|''tsukigomori''|月隠り|}}, meaning "last day of the month".<ref name="sosnoski 1996"/>
The last day of each month of the Japanese [[lunisolar calendar]] was historically named {{nihongo|''misoka''|晦日|}}. Originally, "miso" was written as 三十, indicating the 30th day, though ''misoka'' sometimes fell on the 29th due to the varying lengths of the lunar month. The last day in the 12th lunar month is called {{nihongo|''ōmisoka''|大晦日|}}—with the 大 indicating it is the final last day of the month for that year—or the "great thirtieth day".<ref name="sosnoski 1996">{{cite book |date=August 5, 2014 |orig-year=1996 |chapter=Omisoka |editor1-last=Sosnoski |editor1-first=Daniel |title=Introduction to Japanese Culture |location=[[Clarendon, Vermont|North Clarendon, Vermont]] |publisher= [[Tuttle Publishing]] |page=66 |isbn=978-4-8053-1313-8 |lccn=95062169 }}</ref><ref name="tanaka 2004">{{cite book|date=August 22, 2004 |chapter=Prelude: Times, Pasts, History |first1=Stefan |last1=Tanaka |title=New Times in Modern Japan |url=https://archive.org/details/newtimesmodernja00tana |url-access=limited |location=[[Princeton, New Jersey]] |publisher= [[Princeton University Press]] |page=[https://archive.org/details/newtimesmodernja00tana/page/n27 15] |isbn=0-691-11774-8 |lccn=2003066411 }}</ref> As part of the [[Meiji Restoration]], Japan switched to the [[Gregorian calendar]] in 1873, and ''ōmisoka'' was set as December 31, or [[New Year's Eve]].<ref name="nic">{{cite web|url=http://www.nicjapanese.com/english/e-cul-shogatsu.html|title=大晦日(おおみそか)と正月 Omisoka & Shogatsu|trans-title=Ōmisoka and Shōgatsu|first1=Sachiko|last1=Hamano|publisher=Nihongo Instructor Club|access-date=February 2, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170203162206/http://www.nicjapanese.com/english/e-cul-shogatsu.html|archive-date=February 3, 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref> The day is also known by the archaic pronunciation of {{nihongo|''ōtsugomori''|大晦|}}.<ref name="sosnoski 1996"/><ref name="nishitsunoi 1958">{{cite book|first1=Masayoshi|last1=Nishitsunoi|title=年中行事事典|trans-title=Encyclopedia of Annual Events|page=123|date=May 23, 1958|publisher=Tōkyōdō Shuppan|language=ja}}</ref> This is a shortened version of {{nihongo|''tsukigomori''|月隠り|}}, meaning "last day of the month".<ref name="sosnoski 1996"/>


===Activities===
===Activities===
[[File:Ritual bonfire in a shrine OTAKIAGE.jpg|thumb|Otakiage, a ritual bonfire in a shrine]]
[[File:Ritual bonfire in a shrine OTAKIAGE.jpg|thumb|{{ill|Otakiage|ja|御焚上}}, a ritual bonfire in a shrine]]
[[File:Oji Kitsune no Gyoretsu4.JPG|thumb|Kitsune no Gyoretsu (Ōji 2010)]]
[[File:Oji Kitsune no Gyoretsu4.JPG|thumb|Kitsune no Gyoretsu (Ōji 2010)]]
[[File:Oji Kitsune no Gyoretsu5.JPG|thumb|Kitsune no Gyoretsu (Ōji 2010)]]
[[File:Oji Kitsune no Gyoretsu5.JPG|thumb|Kitsune no Gyoretsu (Ōji 2010)]]
Traditionally, important activities for the concluding year and day were completed in order to start the new year fresh.<ref name="tanaka 2004"/> Some of these include house cleaning, repaying debts, eat soba (a kind of noodle), purification (such as [[setsubun|driving out evil spirits]] and bad luck), and bathing so the final hours of the year could be spent relaxing. Recently, families and friends often gather for parties, including the viewing of the over four-hour {{nihongo|''[[Kōhaku Uta Gassen]]''|紅白歌合戦||"Red/White Singing Battle"}} on [[NHK]], or more recently to watch large [[mixed martial arts]] cards.<ref name="sosnoski 1996"/> This custom has its roots in the ancient Japanese culture surrounding {{nihongo|''toshigamisama''|歳神様|}} or {{nihongo|''toshitokusama''|歳徳様|}}, which revolved around the practice of showing reverence toward the gods of the current and upcoming years.
Traditionally, important activities for the concluding year and day were completed in order to start the new year fresh.<ref name="tanaka 2004"/> Some of these include house cleaning, repaying debts, purification (such as [[setsubun|driving out evil spirits]] and bad luck), and bathing so the final hours of the year could be spent relaxing. Recently, families and friends often gather for parties, including the viewing of the over four-hour {{nihongo|''[[Kōhaku Uta Gassen]]''|紅白歌合戦||"Red/White Singing Battle"}} on [[NHK]], or more recently to watch large [[mixed martial arts]] cards.<ref name="sosnoski 1996"/> This custom has its roots in the ancient Japanese culture surrounding {{nihongo|''toshigamisama''|歳神様|}} or {{nihongo|''toshitokusama''|歳徳様|}}, which revolved around the practice of showing reverence toward the gods of the current and upcoming years.


About an hour before the New Year, people often gather together for one last time in the old year to have a bowl of ''[[toshikoshi soba]]'' or ''toshikoshi [[udon]]'' together—a tradition based on people's association of eating the long noodles with "crossing over from one year to the next", which is the meaning of ''toshi-koshi''. While the noodles are often eaten plain, or with chopped [[scallion]]s, in some localities people top them with [[tempura]]. Traditionally, families make [[osechi]] on the last few days of the year. The food is then consumed during the first several days of the new year in order to "[welcome] the 'deity of the year' to each household" and "[wish] for happiness throughout the year".<ref name="washoku maff">{{cite web|url=http://www.maff.go.jp/e/japan_food/washoku/pdf/1wasyoku_english.pdf|title=Washoku 和 食: Traditional Dietary Cultures of the Japanese|publisher=[[Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (Japan)|Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries]]|date=July 8, 2015|access-date=February 2, 2017|archive-url=https://www.webcitation.org/6nza4H4Js?url=http://www.maff.go.jp/e/japan_food/washoku/pdf/1wasyoku_english.pdf|archive-date=February 3, 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref>
About an hour before the New Year, people often gather together for one last time in the old year to have a bowl of ''[[toshikoshi soba]]'' or ''toshikoshi [[udon]]'' together—a tradition based on people's association of eating the long noodles with "crossing over from one year to the next", which is the meaning of ''toshi-koshi''. While the noodles are often eaten plain, or with chopped [[scallion]]s, in some localities people top them with [[tempura]]. Traditionally, families make [[osechi]] on the last few days of the year. The food is then consumed during the first several days of the new year in order to "[welcome] the 'deity of the year' to each household" and "[wish] for happiness throughout the year".<ref name="washoku maff">{{cite web|url=http://www.maff.go.jp/e/japan_food/washoku/pdf/1wasyoku_english.pdf|title=Washoku 和 食: Traditional Dietary Cultures of the Japanese|publisher=[[Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (Japan)|Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries]]|date=July 8, 2015|access-date=February 2, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160716195651/http://www.maff.go.jp/e/japan_food/washoku/pdf/1wasyoku_english.pdf|archive-date=July 16, 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref>


At midnight, many visit a [[Shinto shrine|shrine]] or [[Buddhist temples in Japan|temple]] for ''[[Hatsumōde]]'', or the first shrine/temple visit of the year. Throughout Japan, [[Shinto shrine]]s prepare ''[[amazake]]'' to pass out to crowds that gather as midnight approaches. Most [[Buddhist temple]]s have a large [[bonshō]] (Buddhist bell) that is struck once for each of the [[Kleshas (Buddhism)|108 earthly temptations]] believed to cause human suffering.<ref name="kanagawa 2000">{{cite book|title=Japan for Kids: The Ultimate Guide for Parents and Their Children|url=https://archive.org/details/japanforkidsulti00dian|url-access=registration|first1=Diane Wiltshire|last1=Kanagawa|first2=Jeanne Huey|last2=Erickson |publisher=[[Kodansha USA|Kodansha America]]|page=[https://archive.org/details/japanforkidsulti00dian/page/236 236]|date=August 1, 2000|isbn=4770023510|location=[[New York City|New York]]|orig-year=1992|lccn=92000978}}</ref> When seeing someone for the last time before the new year, it is traditional to say {{nihongo|"Yoi o-toshi wo"|良いお年を||lit. "Have a good New Year"}}. The traditional first greeting after the beginning of the New Year is {{nihongo|"Akemashite omedetō|明けましておめでとう||lit. "congratulations on the new year"}}.<ref name="kanagawa 2000"/>
At midnight, many visit a [[Shinto shrine|shrine]] or [[Buddhist temples in Japan|temple]] for ''[[Hatsumōde]]'', or the first shrine/temple visit of the year. Throughout Japan, [[Shinto shrine]]s prepare ''[[amazake]]'' to pass out to crowds that gather as midnight approaches. Most [[Buddhist temple]]s have a large [[bonshō]] (Buddhist bell) that is struck once for each of the [[Kleshas (Buddhism)|108 earthly temptations]] believed to cause human suffering.<ref name="kanagawa 2000">{{cite book|title=Japan for Kids: The Ultimate Guide for Parents and Their Children|url=https://archive.org/details/japanforkidsulti00dian|url-access=registration|first1=Diane Wiltshire|last1=Kanagawa|first2=Jeanne Huey|last2=Erickson |publisher=[[Kodansha USA|Kodansha America]]|page=[https://archive.org/details/japanforkidsulti00dian/page/236 236]|date=August 1, 2000|isbn=4770023510|location=[[New York City|New York]]|orig-year=1992|lccn=92000978}}</ref> When seeing someone for the last time before the new year, it is traditional to say {{nihongo|"Yoi o-toshi wo"|良いお年を||lit. "Have a good New Year"}}. The traditional first greeting after the beginning of the New Year is {{nihongo|"Akemashite omedetō|明けましておめでとう||lit. "congratulations on the new year"}}.<ref name="kanagawa 2000"/>

Latest revision as of 23:55, 24 April 2024

Ōmisoka
Shinto shrine on ōmisoka
Official name大晦日
Also calledNew Year's Eve
Observed byJapan
TypeCultural
SignificancePreparing for the new year
CelebrationsKōhaku Uta Gassen
DateDecember 31
Next time31 December 2024 (2024-12-31)
FrequencyAnnual
Related toJapanese New Year
New Year's Eve

Ōmisoka (大晦日) or ōtsugomori (大晦) is a Japanese traditional celebration on the last day of the year. Traditionally, it was held on the final day of the 12th lunar month. With Japan's switch to using the Gregorian calendar at the beginning of the Meiji era, it is now used on New Year's Eve to celebrate the new year.

Origins[edit]

Etymology[edit]

The last day of each month of the Japanese lunisolar calendar was historically named misoka (晦日). Originally, "miso" was written as 三十, indicating the 30th day, though misoka sometimes fell on the 29th due to the varying lengths of the lunar month. The last day in the 12th lunar month is called ōmisoka (大晦日)—with the 大 indicating it is the final last day of the month for that year—or the "great thirtieth day".[1][2] As part of the Meiji Restoration, Japan switched to the Gregorian calendar in 1873, and ōmisoka was set as December 31, or New Year's Eve.[3] The day is also known by the archaic pronunciation of ōtsugomori (大晦).[1][4] This is a shortened version of tsukigomori (月隠り), meaning "last day of the month".[1]

Activities[edit]

Otakiage [ja], a ritual bonfire in a shrine
Kitsune no Gyoretsu (Ōji 2010)
Kitsune no Gyoretsu (Ōji 2010)

Traditionally, important activities for the concluding year and day were completed in order to start the new year fresh.[2] Some of these include house cleaning, repaying debts, purification (such as driving out evil spirits and bad luck), and bathing so the final hours of the year could be spent relaxing. Recently, families and friends often gather for parties, including the viewing of the over four-hour Kōhaku Uta Gassen (紅白歌合戦, "Red/White Singing Battle") on NHK, or more recently to watch large mixed martial arts cards.[1] This custom has its roots in the ancient Japanese culture surrounding toshigamisama (歳神様) or toshitokusama (歳徳様), which revolved around the practice of showing reverence toward the gods of the current and upcoming years.

About an hour before the New Year, people often gather together for one last time in the old year to have a bowl of toshikoshi soba or toshikoshi udon together—a tradition based on people's association of eating the long noodles with "crossing over from one year to the next", which is the meaning of toshi-koshi. While the noodles are often eaten plain, or with chopped scallions, in some localities people top them with tempura. Traditionally, families make osechi on the last few days of the year. The food is then consumed during the first several days of the new year in order to "[welcome] the 'deity of the year' to each household" and "[wish] for happiness throughout the year".[5]

At midnight, many visit a shrine or temple for Hatsumōde, or the first shrine/temple visit of the year. Throughout Japan, Shinto shrines prepare amazake to pass out to crowds that gather as midnight approaches. Most Buddhist temples have a large bonshō (Buddhist bell) that is struck once for each of the 108 earthly temptations believed to cause human suffering.[6] When seeing someone for the last time before the new year, it is traditional to say "Yoi o-toshi wo" (良いお年を, lit. "Have a good New Year"). The traditional first greeting after the beginning of the New Year is "Akemashite omedetō (明けましておめでとう, lit. "congratulations on the new year").[6]

This celebration is the equivalent of New Year's Eve in the Western world, and coincides with Saint Sylvester's Day celebrated by some Western Christian churches.

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d Sosnoski, Daniel, ed. (August 5, 2014) [1996]. "Omisoka". Introduction to Japanese Culture. North Clarendon, Vermont: Tuttle Publishing. p. 66. ISBN 978-4-8053-1313-8. LCCN 95062169.
  2. ^ a b Tanaka, Stefan (August 22, 2004). "Prelude: Times, Pasts, History". New Times in Modern Japan. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press. p. 15. ISBN 0-691-11774-8. LCCN 2003066411.
  3. ^ Hamano, Sachiko. "大晦日(おおみそか)と正月 Omisoka & Shogatsu" [Ōmisoka and Shōgatsu]. Nihongo Instructor Club. Archived from the original on February 3, 2017. Retrieved February 2, 2017.
  4. ^ Nishitsunoi, Masayoshi (May 23, 1958). 年中行事事典 [Encyclopedia of Annual Events] (in Japanese). Tōkyōdō Shuppan. p. 123.
  5. ^ "Washoku 和 食: Traditional Dietary Cultures of the Japanese" (PDF). Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. July 8, 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 16, 2016. Retrieved February 2, 2017.
  6. ^ a b Kanagawa, Diane Wiltshire; Erickson, Jeanne Huey (August 1, 2000) [1992]. Japan for Kids: The Ultimate Guide for Parents and Their Children. New York: Kodansha America. p. 236. ISBN 4770023510. LCCN 92000978.

External links[edit]

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