Christmas in Japan
It's that time of year! Westerners are gearing up for the most popular holiday of the year: Christmas. So it begs the question, what are the people of Japan doing around this wonderful season?
Christmas in Japan is crazy different from the west. Whereas Christmas in America is full of religious icons and traditions, in Japan, you don't see that. Christianity never really got a foothold in Japan, so when you think of how steeped in Christian tradition the holiday is, it's easy to see why Japanese people don't really celebrate Christmas. It's not even a recognized holiday, so it can come as quite a surprise to the foreigners when they're asked to work on Christmas (luckily this year Christmas was on the weekend so I didn't have to worry about that!) That's not to say it isn't popular: Christmas decorations, trees, Santa costumes, and illuminated trees and buildings are everywhere! One really big thing during Christmas time is 'illuminations.' These are places, such as parks, that are completely decked out in twinkling lights, and people often visit these areas just to see the lights.
For the most part, Christmas is still a time to get together and be happy. Among students, it's a time to spend with your significant other, or to try and find a significant other. For others, it's a time to spend with family. But being in a high school setting like I am, mostly I hear about the boyfriend/girlfriend thing. People who do not have significant others to spend time with will often spend time with their friends, sometimes at Christmas parties.
Another big difference is the food. If you've heard anything about Christmas in Japan, you'll probably have heard that KFC is popular. Yes, that's completely true. In November, KFC starts advertising their Christmas dinners for pre-order. If you want one, you have to order early! So fried chicken becomes the staple of Japanese Christmas dinner, compared to the typical American dinner containing turkey or ham. Japan also loves their Christmas Cakes. Again, pre-ordering is very important otherwise you won't get one. I haven't had the chance to try one of these, but you can order them almost anywhere, even the convenience stores. Usually they are a type of sponge cake with cream and strawberries on top. However, Christmas foods and drinks that are considered popular in America have not really made their way to Japan. Hot chocolate is not a seasonal drink and is not really associated with Christmas. Egg nog is non-existent except if you go to Tokyo Disneyland, for the non-alcoholic kind of course. And candies like candy canes and the like are nowhere to be found! I gave candy canes to my students and teachers, and most of them had never even seen one before!
Santa has also made his way to Japan, but not the way we know him. Oh there are people dressed up and walking around as Santa Claus alright, such as our local pizza delivery guy, but that's about it. Children aren't told that Santa brings them presents if they're good. Some people will still dress as Santa and bring presents to people, but it's seen differently. Santa isn't some magic man who children are told travels across the world delivering presents on a magic sleigh with magic reindeer, he's more of a mascot than anything here. And there are no repercussions for bad behavior around Christmas, such as the ever-threatening coal-in-the-stocking scenario. However, I have heard that some people with connections to Buddhism recognize St. Nickolas and the accompanying Black Santa. While St. Nickolas brings presents to good children, Black Santa brings the coal or rocks for the bad children. I haven't looked into this much, but one of my students who lives at a temple told me about it. Gifts are sometimes still exchanged, but it's more for the children. Friends may exchange gifts, and it's pretty much expected that couples get each other something for Christmas. Because of that, the commercialization of Christmas is pretty common in Japan. But it's only really commercialization to outsiders who have been exposed to a different type of Christmas, one filled with widely different traditions.
Christmas movies are not nearly as popular here either. Most people recognize Home Alone, and maybe some version of A Christmas Carol, but as Christmas is not as important of a holiday, there isn't a huge collection of Japan-accessible Christmas movies to watch. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer? Nope. Frosty the Snowman? Nope. Same goes for Christmas songs. The Japanese really like the traditional songs and carols, but more modern renditions of those same songs aren't as widely accepted or recognized (and don't even try with Trans-Siberian Orchestra!). Also, just because someone can recognize the tune of a song doesn't mean they actually know the song. For example, Frosty the Snowman is often heard playing at the mall or on TV. But it doesn't necessarily have the words to it, and because of that, the actual lyrics of the songs are not widely known. There are exceptions though. The song Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer has a Japanese version that most people recognize, but it doesn't sing the beginning where the song lists the names of the other 8 reindeer that Santa has, so people in Japan probably won't know the names of the other 8!
Wow that was a lot of information. This is just what I've gleaned in my brief time here, but I'm sure there's other things that I've missed out on. Hopefully the next post going up will be about New Years. THAT is the holiday that people get excited about in Japan!
Christmas in Japan is crazy different from the west. Whereas Christmas in America is full of religious icons and traditions, in Japan, you don't see that. Christianity never really got a foothold in Japan, so when you think of how steeped in Christian tradition the holiday is, it's easy to see why Japanese people don't really celebrate Christmas. It's not even a recognized holiday, so it can come as quite a surprise to the foreigners when they're asked to work on Christmas (luckily this year Christmas was on the weekend so I didn't have to worry about that!) That's not to say it isn't popular: Christmas decorations, trees, Santa costumes, and illuminated trees and buildings are everywhere! One really big thing during Christmas time is 'illuminations.' These are places, such as parks, that are completely decked out in twinkling lights, and people often visit these areas just to see the lights.
For the most part, Christmas is still a time to get together and be happy. Among students, it's a time to spend with your significant other, or to try and find a significant other. For others, it's a time to spend with family. But being in a high school setting like I am, mostly I hear about the boyfriend/girlfriend thing. People who do not have significant others to spend time with will often spend time with their friends, sometimes at Christmas parties.
Another big difference is the food. If you've heard anything about Christmas in Japan, you'll probably have heard that KFC is popular. Yes, that's completely true. In November, KFC starts advertising their Christmas dinners for pre-order. If you want one, you have to order early! So fried chicken becomes the staple of Japanese Christmas dinner, compared to the typical American dinner containing turkey or ham. Japan also loves their Christmas Cakes. Again, pre-ordering is very important otherwise you won't get one. I haven't had the chance to try one of these, but you can order them almost anywhere, even the convenience stores. Usually they are a type of sponge cake with cream and strawberries on top. However, Christmas foods and drinks that are considered popular in America have not really made their way to Japan. Hot chocolate is not a seasonal drink and is not really associated with Christmas. Egg nog is non-existent except if you go to Tokyo Disneyland, for the non-alcoholic kind of course. And candies like candy canes and the like are nowhere to be found! I gave candy canes to my students and teachers, and most of them had never even seen one before!
Santa has also made his way to Japan, but not the way we know him. Oh there are people dressed up and walking around as Santa Claus alright, such as our local pizza delivery guy, but that's about it. Children aren't told that Santa brings them presents if they're good. Some people will still dress as Santa and bring presents to people, but it's seen differently. Santa isn't some magic man who children are told travels across the world delivering presents on a magic sleigh with magic reindeer, he's more of a mascot than anything here. And there are no repercussions for bad behavior around Christmas, such as the ever-threatening coal-in-the-stocking scenario. However, I have heard that some people with connections to Buddhism recognize St. Nickolas and the accompanying Black Santa. While St. Nickolas brings presents to good children, Black Santa brings the coal or rocks for the bad children. I haven't looked into this much, but one of my students who lives at a temple told me about it. Gifts are sometimes still exchanged, but it's more for the children. Friends may exchange gifts, and it's pretty much expected that couples get each other something for Christmas. Because of that, the commercialization of Christmas is pretty common in Japan. But it's only really commercialization to outsiders who have been exposed to a different type of Christmas, one filled with widely different traditions.
Christmas movies are not nearly as popular here either. Most people recognize Home Alone, and maybe some version of A Christmas Carol, but as Christmas is not as important of a holiday, there isn't a huge collection of Japan-accessible Christmas movies to watch. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer? Nope. Frosty the Snowman? Nope. Same goes for Christmas songs. The Japanese really like the traditional songs and carols, but more modern renditions of those same songs aren't as widely accepted or recognized (and don't even try with Trans-Siberian Orchestra!). Also, just because someone can recognize the tune of a song doesn't mean they actually know the song. For example, Frosty the Snowman is often heard playing at the mall or on TV. But it doesn't necessarily have the words to it, and because of that, the actual lyrics of the songs are not widely known. There are exceptions though. The song Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer has a Japanese version that most people recognize, but it doesn't sing the beginning where the song lists the names of the other 8 reindeer that Santa has, so people in Japan probably won't know the names of the other 8!
Wow that was a lot of information. This is just what I've gleaned in my brief time here, but I'm sure there's other things that I've missed out on. Hopefully the next post going up will be about New Years. THAT is the holiday that people get excited about in Japan!
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