When learning basic Japanese, you learn the word for seasons is kisetsu in Japanese. There are only four seasons so Fuyu – winter, Haru – spring, Natsu – summer and Aki – autumn / fall do not take a long time to learn. But when you have finished learning the names of the seasons, did you know that Japanese has a rich vocabulary of seasonal words, called ‘kigo’? In this article, we will introduce a few of the well known kigo or season words and those used in Spring and Autumn.
The word ‘kigo’ is made up of two Chinese characters, with the readings of ‘ki’ and ‘go’. ‘Ki’ comes from the word for season, ‘kisetsu’, so means season and go means language, as in Nihongo (Japanese language), so kigo means seasonal language. There are many words related to seasons that use ‘ki’ which is the reading of one of the Chinese characters in ‘kisetsu’. Shiki is made up shi (four) and ki (season) meaning the four seasons. Kisetsufuu means seasonal wind (kisetsu and fuu for wind). Kikan combines the character for season (read ki) and kan (meaning printing) to mean published seasonally or four times a year. Kimatsu means end of the season.
The Japanese word for Spring is Haru. There are many words related to spring weather and begin with haru. Haruichiban combines the word for spring (haru) with the word for number one (ichiban), put together and haruichiban means the first gale of spring. Other spring words related to the weather include harukaze, meaning spring breeze, harusame meaning spring rain, harumeku it has become spring like, and harugasumi spring haze. Of course spring in Japan is famous for the beautiful blossoms on the peach and cherry trees. The blooming of peach blossoms (ume) mark the start of spring. Cherry bloossoms (sakura) and cherry blossom viewing (hanami) are a popular family or group activity in Spring. The word for Autumn or Fall in Japanese is Aki. Many foods are seasonal and taste best in Autumn.
The expression “Aki no shokuyoku” is used frequently in Autumns and means ‘Autumn appetite’. Words related to the Autumn weather include akikaze autumn wind, akiguchi which means early fall, but interestingly literally means autumn mouth, and ‘akigare no hi‘ perfect autumn day. The Autumn Festival (akimatsuri) is a thanksgiving for the harvest. In Autumn many people head to the mountains to see the beautiful red, yellow and orange colors of the leaves changing – Kouyou is the word for this period.
