
Want to learn more about holidays in Japan? Our Japanese vocabulary on Holiday cheat sheet contains holidays from the second half of the year from July to December.
The pronunciation and meaning of the words are all included, and example sentences are also provided as references on how to use them.
Fun fact: Did you know that there is a holiday on the day of the emperor’s birthday? This means that the date of the holiday changes accordingly to the birthdays of the different emperors.
If you haven’t check them out, head to part one of our Japanese holiday vocabulary cheat sheet to find out when it currently is.
Holiday 休日(きゅうじつ) / 祝日(しゅくじつ)
七月 (しちがつ Shichigatsu)
Holidays in July
Japanese | Pronunciation | Meaning |
---|---|---|
七夕 | たなばた tanabata | Star Festival |
海の日 | うみ ひ umi no hi | Marine Day |
八月 (はちがつ Hachigatsu)
Holidays in August
Japanese | Pronunciation | Meaning |
---|---|---|
お盆 | ぼん obon | Obon |
山の日 | やま ひ yama no hi | Mountain Day |
九月 (くがつ Kugatsu)
Holidays in September
Japanese | Pronunciation | Meaning |
---|---|---|
敬老の日 | けいろう ひ keirō no hi | Respect for the Aged Day |
秋分の日 | しゅうぶん ひ shūbun no hi | Autumn Equinox Day |
十月 (じゅうがつ Jūgatsu)
Holiday in October
Japanese | Pronunciation | Meaning |
---|---|---|
体育の日 | たいいく ひ taiiku no hi | Health and Sports Day |
十一月 (じゅういちがつ Jūichigatsu)
Holidays in November
Japanese | Pronunciation | Meaning |
---|---|---|
文化の日 | ぶんか ひ bunka no hi | Culture Day |
七五三 | しちごさん sichi go san | Seven-Five-Three |
勤労感謝の日 | きんろうかんしゃ ひ kinrō kansha no hi | Labor Thanksgiving Day |
十二月 (じゅうにがつ Jūnigatsu)
Holidays in December
Japanese | Pronunciation | Meaning |
---|---|---|
クリスマス | kurisumasu | Christmas |
大晦日 | おおみそか ōmisoka | New Year’s Eve |
Example Sentences
Now let us find out how to apply the vocabulary learnt in sentences!
Example 1:
By saying: ‘七五三とは、7歳、5歳、3歳の子どもの成長を祝う行事だ。‘
Pronunciation: Sichi go san towa, nanasai, gosai, sansai no kodomo no seichō wo iwau gyōji da.
It means: ‘Sichi go san is a festival celebrating the growth of seven, five, and three years olds.‘
Example 2:
By saying: ‘7月の第3月曜日は海の日だ。‘
Pronunciation: Sichigatsu no daisan getsuyōbi wa umi no hi da.
It means: ‘The third Monday of June is Marine Day.’