The Empress's Birthday (Chikyusetsu)
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What Is the Empress's Birthday?
December 9th is the Empress's Birthday in Japan. Since 2019, it has been the birthday of Empress Masako. The empress's birthday has long also been called "Chikyusetsu," the counterpart to "Tenchosetsu," the name for the emperor's birthday.
A Name Taken from "Heaven Is Long, Earth Endures"
Both "tencho" and "chikyu" come from a line in the Chinese classic Laozi: "Heaven is long and earth endures."
- Source: the phrase "tencho chikyu" in Laozi
- Tenchosetsu: the emperor's birthday; in Japan a Tenchosetsu ceremony is recorded on Emperor Konin's birthday in 775
- Chikyusetsu: the matching name for the empress's birthday
- Status today: unlike the Emperor's Birthday, it is neither a public holiday nor a court ritual
Before the War, It Resembled Mother's Day
Chikyusetsu was never a rite under the imperial ceremonial ordinances, but girls' schools before the war sometimes held celebrations modeled on Tenchosetsu. In the early Showa era, the Greater Japan Federated Women's Association (formed in 1930) designated the Chikyusetsu of the time (March 6th, Empress Kojun's birthday) as Mother's Day; Mother's Day moved to the second Sunday in May only after the war. In 1948, Tenchosetsu was renamed the Emperor's Birthday in law.
Tips for Marking This Day
- Look up the meaning of the phrase "tencho chikyu" in a dictionary
- Sort out the difference between a public holiday and an observance
- Check how next year's public holidays fall on the calendar
- Copy the birthdays of family and close colleagues into your planner
Not a Holiday, but Still on the Calendar
The Empress's Birthday is not a public holiday, so it brings no day off. It is still written on the calendar. December 9th is a chance to learn where one of those calendar words came from.