Japanese New Year Vocabulary: Essential Oshogatsu Phrases
Last updated: March 4, 2026
If you're learning Japanese, getting familiar with New Year vocabulary is pretty essential. The Japanese New Year, or (Oshogatsu), is the biggest holiday in Japan, and understanding the words tied to this celebration gives you real insight into the culture. Plus, these terms come up constantly in conversations, anime, and media during the season. Here's everything you need to know about Japanese New Year vocabulary, from greetings to decorations to traditional foods.🎇
- Japanese New Year greetings you'll use
- Traditional New Year decorations and their meanings
- New Year food traditions and vocabulary
- New Year's Eve traditions and vocabulary
- First events of the New Year
- Money and gifts during the New Year
- Time periods and calendar vocabulary
- Resources for learning Japanese New Year vocabulary
- FAQs
Japanese New Year greetings you'll use
💡The most important phrase you'll hear during the Japanese New Year is (Akemashite omedetou gozaimasu).
This translates to "Happy New Year" and you'll use it from January 1st through early January. The casual version is (Akemashite omedetou), which works fine with friends and family.
Here's the thing though: you only say this greeting AFTER the New Year arrives. Before midnight on December 31st, you'd say (Yoi otoshi wo), which means "Have a good year." It's the equivalent of wishing someone well before the year changes.
Another common greeting is (Kotoshi mo yoroshiku onegaishimasu), meaning "I look forward to your favor again this year." Japanese people use this phrase constantly in professional and personal contexts during the New Year period.
You might also hear (Kinga shinnen) or (Gashou) on New Year's cards called (nengajou). These are formal written greetings that basically mean "Happy New Year" but you wouldn't say them out loud in conversation.
Traditional New Year decorations and their meanings
Japanese homes get completely transformed for the New Year with specific decorations, each carrying a symbolic meaning. The three main ones you'll see everywhere are kadomatsu, kagami mochi, and shimekazari.
- (Kadomatsu) are those bamboo and pine arrangements placed at entrances. The name literally means "gate pine" and they're meant to welcome ancestral spirits and gods during the New Year. You'll see them outside homes, businesses, and temples from around December 28th until January 7th. The bamboo is cut at an angle, the pine represents longevity, and sometimes plum branches are added for prosperity.
- (Kagami mochi) is the stacked rice cake decoration with a bitter orange ( , daidai) on top. It's typically placed in the home's main room or family altar. The two round mochi represent the past and the coming year, and the orange symbolizes the continuation of the family line. After January 11th, families break and eat the kagami mochi in a ritual called (kagami biraki).
- (Shimekazari) are sacred rope decorations hung above doorways. They're made from twisted rice straw and decorated with paper strips, oranges, and other auspicious items. The decoration marks the home as a sacred space and keeps evil spirits out during the New Year celebrations.
- Other decoration vocabulary includes (hagoita), decorative wooden paddles, and (hamaya), ceremonial arrows sold at shrines to ward off evil.
New Year food traditions and vocabulary
Food plays a massive role in Japanese New Year traditions.
- The most important is (osechi ryouri), the special New Year's meal served in stacked lacquer boxes. Each dish has symbolic meaning tied to health, prosperity, or longevity.
- Common osechi items include (kuromame, black beans for health), (kazunoko, herring roe for fertility), (datemaki, sweet rolled omelet for scholarship), and (kurikinton, candied chestnuts for wealth). Honestly, osechi is an acquired taste for many people, but it's deeply traditional.
- On New Year's Eve, families eat (toshikoshi soba), buckwheat noodles that symbolize longevity and letting go of the past year's hardships. The long noodles represent a long life, and because soba breaks easily, it also represents cutting ties with the previous year's misfortunes.
- (ozoni) is a mochi soup eaten on New Year's Day. The recipe varies wildly by region, some use clear broth while others use miso, but mochi is always the main ingredient. In Tokyo, you'll find square mochi in clear soup, while Kyoto versions use round mochi in white miso soup.
- (otoso) is spiced sake drunk during New Year's for good health. Families drink it in order from youngest to oldest, which is backwards from normal Japanese drinking customs.
New Year's Eve traditions and vocabulary
The transition from the old year to the new has its own set of traditions. December 31st is called (Omisoka), literally "big last day."
- The most iconic New Year's Eve tradition is (joya no kane), the ringing of temple bells 108 times. Buddhist temples across Japan ring their bells starting just before midnight, with the 108th ring occurring right as the New Year begins. The 108 rings represent the 108 earthly desires in Buddhist belief, and each ring is meant to purify one desire.
- Many families spend Omisoka doing (oosouji), a major house cleaning to start the year fresh. This isn't just regular cleaning, people deep clean everything to symbolically sweep away the old year's dust and bad luck.
- (Toshikoshi bangumi) are special New Year's Eve TV programs. The most famous is (Kouhaku Uta Gassen), a music competition that's been running since 1951. Pretty much everyone in Japan watches it while eating toshikoshi soba.
First events of the New Year
Japanese culture puts special emphasis on the "first" of everything in the New Year. These events all start with the prefix (hatsu), meaning "first."
- (Hatsumode) is the first shrine or temple visit of the year. Millions of Japanese people visit shrines during the first three days of January to pray for good fortune. Popular shrines like Meiji Jingu in Tokyo get absolutely packed with visitors. People buy new (omamori, protective amulets) and return last year's charms to be burned.
- (Hatsuhinode) means watching the first sunrise of the year. People wake up early on January 1st to see the sunrise from mountains, beaches, or temples. It's considered especially auspicious.
- (Hatsuyume) is your first dream of the New Year. Traditionally, this refers to the dream you have on the night of January 2nd. The luckiest dream features Mount Fuji, a hawk, and an eggplant ( , ichi Fuji, ni taka, san nasubi).
- (Kakizome) is the first calligraphy writing of the year, usually done on January 2nd. Students and calligraphy practitioners write auspicious phrases or kanji representing their goals for the year.
- (Hatsuuri) refers to the first sales of the year. Department stores hold massive sales starting January 2nd, and many sell (fukubukuro), "lucky bags" filled with mystery items at discounted prices.
Money and gifts during the New Year
- (Otoshidama) is the money adults give to children during the New Year. The cash comes in special decorative envelopes called (pochibukuro). The amount varies by the child's age and the giver's relationship, but it typically ranges from 1,000 to 10,000 yen. Kids absolutely love this tradition.
- (Onenga) refers to New Year's gifts exchanged between adults, usually food items or household goods. These are similar to (ochuugen, summer gifts) but given during the New Year period.
Time periods and calendar vocabulary
Understanding the timing of New Year events requires knowing a few key terms.
- (Shougatsu) technically refers to January, but it's commonly used to mean the New Year holiday period.
- (Sanganichi) means the first three days of January, when most businesses are closed and families spend time together. Many people don't return to work until January 4th or later.
- (Matsu no uchi) is the period when New Year decorations remain up. In eastern Japan, this lasts until January 7th, while western Japan keeps decorations until January 15th.
- (Koshougatsu) is "little New Year," celebrated on January 15th in some regions with its own traditions.
Resources for learning Japanese New Year vocabulary
You can find Japanese New Year vocabulary PDFs and lists online, though quality varies. Many language learning sites offer free downloadable vocabulary sheets with romaji, kanji, and English translations. These work well as reference materials.
For actual learning and retention, you need active practice beyond just reading lists. Watching Japanese New Year TV specials or variety shows gives you context for how these words are used naturally. Anime often features New Year episodes that showcase these traditions.
If you're interested in Japanese vocabulary beyond just New Year terms, exploring seasonal vocabulary for other festivals like Tanabata (the star festival) or Obon gives you a fuller picture of Japanese culture throughout the year.
Anyway, if you want to actually retain this vocabulary long-term, Migaku's browser extension and app let you create flashcards from real Japanese content while you're watching shows or reading about these traditions. You can look up words instantly and build your own deck with actual context. There's a 10-day free trial if you want to check it out.
FAQs
The holiday represents renewal, purification, and starting fresh. The extensive cleaning, the symbolic foods, the shrine visits, they all serve to close out the previous year properly and begin the new one with good fortune. Companies close for days, families travel across the country to reunite, and the entire nation essentially pauses.
New year celebrations in Japan blend Shinto and Buddhist traditions with modern customs. The shrine visits are Shinto, the temple bells are Buddhist, and watching TV specials while eating KFC (yeah, that's a thing some families do) is thoroughly modern. This mix makes Oshogatsu uniquely Japanese.
Next, learn the three main decorations : (kadomatsu), (kagami mochi), and (shimekazari). You'll see these everywhere and being able to recognize and name them shows cultural awareness.
For food vocabulary, prioritize (osechi ryouri), (toshikoshi soba), and (ozoni). These three foods are central to the celebration and come up constantly in conversation.
The "first" events vocabulary ( , , ) is useful for understanding what people are doing and planning during the holiday.
What's changed is the addition of modern terms and the fading of some older practices. (nengajou, New Year's cards) are declining as younger people prefer digital greetings via LINE or email. Some families now buy pre-made osechi from department stores instead of making it themselves, leading to new vocabulary around ordering and delivery.
Memorize Japanese words for the New Year in the long term
New Year vocabulary is not commonly used in everyday life when the New Year season has not arrived yet. It is not like food or weather words, which you may constantly encounter when living in Japan. Therefore, to acquire these words for the long term memory, learners need to make use of documentaries, shows, movies, or articles related to the New Year tradition.
If you consume media in Japanese, and you understand at least some of the messages and sentences within that media, you will make progress. Period.
New Year, new beginning!