15 Christmas In Japan Facts: Learn All About The Japanese Celebration!
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Christmas has only recently become a popular holiday in Japan, especially with Japanese kids.
As there aren't many Christians in Japan, it's still not considered a religious celebration or commemoration. Numerous traditions brought to Japan from the United States, such as receiving and sending Christmas cards and gift-giving, have become widely known over the years.
The Japanese version of Christmas is celebrated in Japan as a period to extend joy rather than as a religious holiday. Christmas Eve is sometimes more widely observed than the 25 December which is the actual Christmas day.
Christmas Eve is a day when partners spend time together as one and exchange gifts. It is similar to Valentine's Day festivities in the United Kingdom and the United States in many aspects. They do wish each other a Merry Christmas, though.
During Christmas in Japan, young couples enjoy going for walks to see the Christmas decorations and then having a fancy dinner in a restaurant. Reservations for tables on Christmas Eve can be incredibly hard to get due to the high demand.
In Japan, Christmas is not really a national holiday. However, since it is just next to the beginning of the New Year's break from school, many schools are closed on Christmas Day. Many companies, however, will consider the 25th as a regular working day.
Beethoven's Ninth Symphony as well as its final act, 'Ode to Joy', are particularly well-known in Japan all over Christmas and the end of the year as Christmas music. The soundtrack is so well-known that it is simply referred to as 'daiku', which translates to 'number nine.'
Christmas in Japan is a joyous and festive occasion. As the entire country has few religious people, none of the religious significance associated with Christmas was carried over from the West, so it is not a national holiday, as mentioned above.
Nevertheless, several of the items typically associated with Christmas, the celebratory Christmas tree in shopping centers, night markets, and LED Christmas lights, make an appearance, as do a couple of primarily Japanese customs.
A Japanese strawberry shortcake is a Japanese Christmas cake.
It is soft and porous, with whipped cream lining and icing that is significantly less sweet than some other floral centerpieces. In Japan, this snack is known as 'Christmas Cake', and it's a delicious way to celebrate the holiday season and the winter season with relatives as well as friends.
Another popular Christmas activity in the major city of Japan, particularly in Tokyo midtown and Tokyo station, is visiting Tokyo Disneyland or other theme parks and then seeing all of the interior decoration and processions.
Tokyo Disneyland's Christmas season runs from the second week of November until Christmas Day. All of the Christmas decorations are removed on 26 December, fully prepared for the New Year's holiday festivities to begin!
In Japan, New Year's is a huge holiday. Continue reading this article and learn how to blend in if you get to visit Japan during the Christmas holiday season. Afterward, also check Christmas in Ireland facts and Christmas in Russia facts.
Japanese Christmas Traditions
Christmas is celebrated differently in different places. Due to that, Japan has its own set of Christmas traditions that the people of the country follow. Let's talk about a few of them.
In Japan, we get to see Christmas being celebrated in a different manner to how it is in western countries. In Japan, Christmas is a time for companions and lovers to throw parties, plan dinners, and celebrate as much as people can.
New Year's is the occasion of the year when everyone in the family and extended relatives gets together, goes to the monastery, and celebrates 1st January with meals and drinks.
This is more of a Japanese custom. One interesting fact about the Japanese festive season is that Christmas Eve, like Valentine's Day, is celebrated as a romantic day with a pleasant Christmas dinner.
Christmas Shopping In Japan
Christmas shopping is something we’re all familiar with. Shopping malls or department stores with gifts, decorations, sweets, and endless sales are what make our Christmas season so much better and enjoyable.
Let's find out how Christmas shopping is done in Japan. The few months that come before Christmas are said to be the busiest in the world on the sales calendar.
November and December are the busiest months for shoppers according to international calendars. In November, there is Black Friday, accompanied by Cyber Monday, both of which originated in the United States.
Black Friday is a huge sale day in the United States, which is regarded as a conventional holiday for many American employees. Companies offer huge promotions and discounts on this day, which also mark the beginning of the holiday shopping season.
The term 'Black Friday' arose from the global financial meltdown of 24 September 1869, when the value of gold dropped dramatically. This occasion also happens in Japan with huge sales in stores.
Japanese Christmas Cake
Christmas cake is commonly eaten on Christmas Eve throughout Japan.
The cake is merely a sponge cake iced with whipped cream, frequently adorned with strawberries, and generally racked with Christmas sweets or other cyclical fruits like strawberries or cherries, as well as a Santa Claus ornament.
Fujiya was the first to release Christmas cakes in this style, which became widely known when they began selling in Ginza, Tokyo's central business center.
During this time, Japan was undergoing huge waves of western cultural influence, especially among the wealthy elite. Individuals of the upper class, who had a strong affinity for western cultures in a broad sense, considered western-style sweets to be a rare treat.
Japanese Christmas Dinner
Each year on 25 December, vast numbers of Japanese people sit at the table to eat a hearty meal of KFC fried chicken, with customer orders being placed at the restaurant months ahead of time.
This Christmas tradition is because of a highly effective marketing advertisement that began in the 1970s. It spawned an entirely new Japanese Christmas culinary legacy that has survived for nearly five decades.
Since December 1974, merely four years after the first KFC store opened in Japan, KFC has been the greatest Japanese Christmas cuisine. Some claim that Takeshi Okawara, the first KFC manager in Japan, told a barefaced lie and advertised their fried chicken as a typical American Christmas food to increase sales.
Japanese Christmas Decorations
The streets and buildings are full of Christmas lights and decorations during the Christmas season.
The beautiful decorations all around are admired by all the Japanese couples who come out to celebrate this holiday in their own way. Shopping malls, department stores, and Christmas markets decorate Christmas trees and traditional trees to put them up in their windows as a display.
The streets are lit up with decorations that are not necessarily Christmas symbols because this celebration for them isn't a religious one.
Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for Christmas in Japan facts then why not take a look at Christmas in Italy facts, or Christmas in Sweden facts.
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With a Bachelor's in Microbiology from the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Oluwatosin has honed his skills as an SEO content writer, editor, and growth manager. He has written articles, conducted extensive research, and optimized content for search engines. His expertise extends to leading link-building efforts and revising onboarding strategies.
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