[For Kids] January Trivia Quiz & Fun Facts: Learn About the New Year in a Fun Way

eggplant

As auspicious things to see in your first dream of the year, it goes: Mount Fuji, then a hawk, and an eggplant. Mount Fuji signifies immortality (fushi), the hawk signifies height (takai), and the eggplant signifies accomplishment (nasu). It’s not widely known, but did you know the list continues? They say: fourth, a folding fan; fifth, tobacco; sixth, a blind monk. The fan and tobacco are items used where people gather, and the blind monk (zato) is associated with having no hair, which by wordplay shifts to mean “no injury.”

Cleaning

There are various things you shouldn’t do during the New Year period, and among them, cleaning is disliked because it’s said to sweep away the year’s good fortune and luck. Even without that reasoning, you probably don’t want to clean during the New Year when you’d rather spend the time quietly and at ease. Finish your cleaning thoroughly by New Year’s Eve and welcome the New Year with a refreshed feeling.

Seven-herb rice porridge

On January 7th, the Festival of Seven Herbs (Jinjitsu), people eat seven-herb rice porridge, a custom said to have begun in the Edo period. Each of the seven herbs carries its own meaning and is imbued with wishes. In addition to praying to spend the year in good health and free from illness by eating it, there is also the aim of soothing stomachs tired from New Year’s overindulgence and getting vitamins that tend to be lacking in winter.

Mutsuki (the first month of the traditional Japanese calendar)

In the traditional lunar calendar, January is called “Mutsuki.” It is said to derive from expressions such as “mutsubi-tsuki” (written with characters meaning “affection” or “harmonious relations”), reflecting the affectionate atmosphere of relatives gathering for the New Year, and “mutsuki” (written with the character for “fruit” or “grain”), referring to the month when rice grains are first soaked in water.

right-winding

Datemaki (sweet rolled omelet) included in New Year’s osechi is considered more auspicious when rolled to the right. The right-rolling shape is said to represent yang energy, and following the yin-yang concept, it should be rolled to the right and arranged in the jubako (stacked boxes) in a way that forms the shape of the hiragana character “の.”

January 15

It’s said that this New Year’s greeting is used during the period called “Matsu-no-uchi,” when kadomatsu and pine decorations are displayed to welcome the local tutelary deity. The timing can vary by region, but since Kansai observes it through the 15th, many people seem to follow that schedule.

small doll

In France, Galette des Rois is considered an essential New Year’s pastry. It consists of puff pastry filled with almond cream, and if the slice you eat contains a small figurine, you get to be king for the day—making it a delicious and fun treat.