Japan History and Culture

Japanese Couple’s cups or meoto chawan

The married-couple teacups are called meoto-chawan (夫婦茶碗) or meoto-yunomi (夫婦湯呑み), This is the meoto means “husband and wife or married couple” in Japanese , traditional set of teacups (yunomi) for couples.

The cups in this set are matching with the exception that the cup for the husband is slightly larger while the wife’s cup is smaller. Sometimes they’re given to couples as a gift for newlyweds.

Size of cup:

Husband’s cup:  height ca 8.5 cm, diameter 6.5cm
Wife’s cup: height ca 8 cm, diameter 6 cm

•    meoto-chawan (夫婦茶碗)

•    meoto-yunomi (夫婦湯呑み)

•    meoto-hashi (夫婦箸)

Japanese Weddings gifts (Hikidemono, 引き出物)

In the wedding party, the couple welcomes all the guests, and the  reception party is  held. Usually the party is visited by about 20 to  200 guests among whom are relatives, friends, co-workers and  bosses of the bride and groom. The party normally starts, Nakoudo  (or matchmaker is the person that contract a marriage between the  man and woman who hope to marry) will introduce the bride and  groom.

Afterwards, Guests’ seats are usually arranged according to their  relationship with the married couple. Usually a full-course meal is  served at the table. After the reception, the guests receive favours  and gifts called Hikidemono, which is their “thank you for coming”  gift for the guests who have attended their wedding and banquet. By  tradition, hikidemono includes sugar or dried bonito flakes (katsuo  bushi), which symbolize happiness. Other items like cake, tableware,  interiors, and sake are also given as souvenirs. In addition, guests  also receive a gift of significant value usually half of the expected cash received by the guest.

In recent years, gift catalogs from which guests can choose gifts are popular as hikidemono. The average cost for a wedding party in Japan is around 2-3 million yen for 100-200 guests.

Japanese wind chimes (Furin, 風鈴)

In Japanese, wind chime or furin, is one idea for mental relief .Made of materials such as metal, ceramics or glass. It has been traditionally one of the typical things Japanese in summer, people set small bell are hung from the eaves of a house or in front of the windows to signal the presence of a cooling breeze. When swung in the breeze, it delivers a pleasant sound most of us Japanese love and enjoy very much and they can feel a little coolness.

These days, furin are not always welcomed because of the dense urban housing conditions in Japan, but the distinctive sound still symbolizes summer, and during the hot humid season signifies a breeze.

Wind chime has a long history. It seems to begin in China, but Chinese used wind chime by a different way. They used it for fortune-telling and expel, because they believe wind tells destiny. Also, the bell sounds secure people from evil. Later, wind chime comes to Japan with Buddhism. So there are wind chimes at temples in Japan and the areas around the temple which people can hear the bell ringing are secured.

Japanese Floating of Paper Lanterns (Toro nagashi)

Toro nagashi or “lantern offerings on the water, “Toro” means lantern, whilst “Nagashi” means to stream. Small paper lanterns containing light candles on a wooden or bamboo base are set adrift on calm water. Usually a message is written on the outside of the paper lantern. The purpose of this event is to send off ancestor’s spirits.

Paper lanterns are used often in the folk practices and holidays of the orient, especially in Japan. They can very in form from a simple square or bell shape to elaborate figural shapes representing animals, people or mythological creatures.

This is primarily done on the last evening of the Buddhist festival of Obon, which is celebrated throughout Asia, paper lanterns are placed by the graves of deceased relatives: a red one for a relative that passed away during previous years and a white one for the recently deceased, a way to supposedly guide the spirits of the departed back to the other world. Recently, travellers from foreign countries come from far and wide to see this spectacle; can feel the quiet and beautiful atmosphere.

The lantern festival the other evening was a three hour affair, with performances of Japanese drummers, Chinese dance, a gospel group, and a lone Scottish bagpiper who played while the lanterns were placed in the pond at sunset

Japanese New Year Money Gift (Otoshidama)

Otoshidama is the lucky preserve of Japanese children. On January 1st, Japanese people have a custom of giving pocket money to children. The money comes from parents, grandparents and relatives this is known as Otoshidama, small gifts with money, colourful envelopes and a typical gift for a junior or senior high school student would be 5000 to 10000 yen ($50 - $100) per relative. That means that the money can add up pretty fast.

Accroding to Kumon Children’s Research Institute (1999), Otoshidama is usually given in decorative envelopes. It is estimated that the average child receives around 40,000 yen each year. Most save the money. Others spend it on relatively expensive computer games, clothes, and CDs.

In the Edo period, large stores and wealthy families gave out a small bag of mochi and a Mandarin orange to spread happiness all around. The amount of money given depends on the age of the child but is usually the same if there is more than one child so that no one feels slighted.