With a history of almost 1300 years in Japan, we explore the origins of Children’s Day, its connections to China, and some of its most revered traditions.

Celebrated annually on 4th May, this relatively young is linked to one of Japan’s youngest colours.

On 3rd May 1947 the Constitution of Japan, also known as the “Peace Constitution” was signed, and this date has been a national holiday ever since.

The intention of Showa Day is to encourage reflection upon the years 1929-1989, otherwise known as the Showa Era – an intense time in Japan.

In Japan, streets are not named but have numbers – with the exception of the main roads. Thus, finding your way around the cities can be challenging.

Vernal Equinox Day, also known as Shunbun no Hi (春分の日), is one of two Japanese public holidays that mark the times of the year when day and night are approximately equal in length. Shunbun no Hi is the first of two and typically falls between March 19 and March 22, hence it is often referred […]

Have you heard of yoji jukugo? Piece of cake, break the ice, and cut corners – these are all short idioms we use all the time, and in Japan, they have something similar called 四字熟語 (yojijukugo). A yojijukugo is a Japanese phrase consisting of four kanji. Just like in English, yojijukugo are very popular since […]

Japanese honorifics are suffixes or prefixes used to show respect or familiarity when addressing other people. How do you use them?