Starting January 20th (Saturday) is the 24 solar terms, “Great Cold.” As the name suggests, the 24 solar terms are divided into 24 periods, starting with the first day of spring and ending with the coldest season.
The Great Cold is said to be the period of the year when it is the coldest. But it’s not just cold. There are many interesting events and features that are unique to the cold season.
“Frost,” “frost pillars,” and “frost voices” are phenomena unique to winter.
Frost is a thin layer of ice that forms when water vapor in the air comes into contact with the ground or objects when the temperature drops. Many people feel stiff when they see the sight of frost in the morning.
“Frost pillars” are small icicles that form on the ground, and when you step on them, they make a sound like “saku, saku,”. In addition to the sound, the feel of stepping on it is also pleasant, and it may be a moment that brings you back to your childhood.
“Frost voice” is a different word, referring to the quiet feeling when frost falls. The delicate sensibilities of our predecessors can be felt in the use of the word “voice.”
“Shimo”, “Shimobashira”, and “Shimo no Koe” are all seasonal words for winter. It’s fun to compose a poem that includes the word “frost.”
Icefall season when waterfalls also freeze
A waterfall is also called a “baku,” and a frozen waterfall is called an “icefall.” When the temperature drops below freezing, the waterfall freezes and becomes an icefall.
The sounds of the waterfall that you would normally hear, such as “Zaaa” and “Daaaaaa”, suddenly stop when the water freezes. In the silence, the magnificent ice cubes that loom before your eyes will captivate the hearts of those who see it.
Fukuroda Falls (Ibaraki Prefecture), which is counted as one of Japan’s top three waterfalls, is also known for turning into an icefall. The sight of this large frozen waterfall, 120m high and 73m wide, is a sight to behold.
Children’s play on cold days: Pushing steamed buns
“Oshikyo Manju” is pronounced “Oshikura Manju”.
It is a game in which many people gather together, form a circle with their backs to each other, and push each other to push someone out. When you were a child, many of you probably played around with it while singing, “Oshikura Manju, don’t cry when you’re pushed.”
Oshikyomanju will warm your body even on a cold day in the middle of winter.
However, these days, you rarely see children pushing and competing in parks and other places.
I want to hear the children’s cheerful voices singing “Oshikura Manju, don’t cry when you’re pushed♪” again.
“Hikanzakura” and “Kanhizakura” are the same cherry blossoms
News of cherry blossoms blooming from Okinawa sometimes arrives during the cold season. This year, the Okinawa Meteorological Observatory announced the blooming on January 13th. This cherry tree is called Hikanzakura or Kanhizakura. In kanji, they are written as “Hikanzakura” and “Kanhizakura” respectively.
The original name was “Hikanzakura” (scarlet cherry blossoms), but this is sometimes mistaken for a different species, “Higanzakura” (Higanzakura), so the name “Kanhizakura” (cold scarlet cherry blossoms) was born. there is.
The one that has been adopted as a winter season word is “Hikanzakura.”
Higanzakura and Kanhizakura are the same cherry tree, but Higanzakura is a different cherry tree. It’s a little confusing.
Hikanzakura (Kanhizakura) blooms with deeper pink flowers than Someiyoshino. Even if you are not an Okinawan citizen, you will be happy when you hear about the cherry blossoms blooming.
Originally, “Setsubun” was held four times a year.
Originally, Setsubun literally meant the day when the seasons separated, and was the day before the first day of spring, summer, autumn, and winter. According to this way of thinking, Setsubun occurs four times a year.
Nowadays, it mainly refers to the day before the first day of spring. Since it’s the day before the first day of spring, Setsubun is still very cold.
As the name suggests, the Great Cold is a period of extremely cold days. There are days when people say “It’s cold again today, isn’t it?” as a greeting, but on days when the wind isn’t blowing, it’s a good idea to take a leisurely stroll while paying attention to the frost beneath your feet.
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Supervision
Keiko Yamashita: Writer. Books such as “24 Seasonal Seasons and 72 Weather Notes” (Seibidoshuppan) and “72 Seasons of Japanese Beauty” (PHP Institute) explore the beauty of Japanese language and words from the Japanese calendar. There are many books written by him.
Reference materials etc.
2024-01-19 20:00:00
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