Today is Setsubun, tomorrow is the beginning of spring (Risshun), and the 10th is the New Year’s Day of the old lunar calendar. This time of year feels like spring is rapidly approaching. While Risshun marks the start of the year in the 24 solar terms based on the sun’s movement along the ecliptic, the old lunar New Year falls on the first day of the “old calendar,” determined by the phases of the moon. When combined with the new calendar’s January 1st, Japan has three different beginnings of the year. While the new calendar’s New Year is fixed on January 1st, the old lunar New Year varies between January 22nd and February 19th, depending on the new moon day, making it different each year. Although Japan’s New Year is almost always on January 1st, in countries like China, Taiwan, Korea, and some Southeast Asian nations, the old lunar New Year is celebrated as the New Year. China’s New Year, known as the Spring Festival (Chun Jie), is well-known in Japan as well. The Spring Festival in 2024 is an 8-day holiday from February 10th (Saturday) to February 17th (Saturday), and many Chinese visitors are expected in Japan during this period.

今日は節分の日で明日は立春、そして10日は旧正月の元旦です。一気に春が押し寄せた様な時期がこの時期です。立春が太陽の黄道上の動きを基準に決められる二十四節気での１年の始まりであるのに対して、旧正月は月の満ち欠けを基準とした“旧暦”の1月1日です。新暦の１月１日と合わせると、日本には１年の始まりが３回あることになります。新暦のお正月が1月１日と固定している一方、旧正月は1月22日から2月19日までの間で新月の日が元旦ですから、旧正月は年によって変わります。日本の正月は１月１日がほぼ確定していますが、中国や台湾、韓国を初め、東南アジアの一部の国々は旧正月が正月です。中国の正月は春節と言って、日本でもよく知られています。2024年の春節は2月10日（土）～2月17日（土）の8連休で、日本にも沢山の中国人がおとずれます。