Folklore and yōkai, shrines, samurai, festivals and the words behind them.
12 articles in Culture & traditions
October 5, 20267 min read
A yukata is a casual, unlined summer kimono; a kimono is layered, often silk, and more formal. Fabric, obi, shoes, left over right, and who can wear them.
Read MoreOctober 3, 202616 min read
A yōkai (妖怪) is a strange spirit or monster from Japanese folklore. A list of famous yōkai with their names in Japanese, and where they come from.
Read MoreOctober 2, 20268 min read
A torii gate (鳥居) marks the entrance to a Shinto shrine and the sacred ground beyond. Its meaning, why it's red, famous ones, and how to walk through.
Read MoreOctober 1, 20268 min read
A tanuki (狸) is Japan's raccoon dog: a real wild canid, not a raccoon, and a shape-shifting trickster of folklore. Facts, statues, symbols and legality.
Read MoreSeptember 26, 202616 min read
A samurai was a Japanese warrior who served a lord, until the 1870s. What 侍 means, how samurai lived, bushido as a later idea, swords, armour and women.
Read MoreSeptember 23, 202617 min read
Yes, ninja were real: spies and scouts in Japan, not black-clad superheroes. What the kanji 忍者 mean, what historians know, and which ninja myths are fiction.
Read MoreSeptember 20, 20268 min read
Maneki neko (招き猫) means beckoning cat: a Japanese lucky charm. What the left and right paw mean, the colours, the coin and the origin legends.
Read MoreSeptember 18, 20268 min read
Kitsune (狐) is Japanese for fox, and in folklore a fox spirit. Nine tails, Inari's messengers, fox wives, kitsune udon and what is legend.
Read MoreSeptember 16, 20268 min read
A kappa is a child-sized river creature from Japanese folklore with a water dish on its head. Its looks, its cucumbers, how to beat it, and the sushi roll.
Read MoreSeptember 1, 20267 min read
Hanami (花見) means flower viewing: picnics under cherry blossoms in spring. Its meaning, history, when the blossoms open, etiquette and the words to know.
Read MoreAugust 31, 202616 min read
A haiku is a short poem of 17 sound units (5-7-5) with a season word and a cut. Famous examples with readings, the rules, and how to write one.
Read MoreAugust 29, 20268 min read
A geisha is a trained entertainer, geiko is the Kyoto word for the same job, and a maiko is an apprentice. How they differ, what they do, and Gion photo rules.
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