Thread: Time for Labor day in Japan on 11/23

While we in the usa have thanksgiving in America, they have Labor day in Japan..

Labor Thanksgiving Day (勤労感謝の日, Kinrō kansha no hi?) is a national holiday in Japan. It takes place annually on November 23. The law establishing the holiday cites it as an occasion for commemorating labor and production and giving one another thanks.

Events are held throughout Japan, one such being the Nagano Labor Festival. The event encourages thinking about the environment, peace and human rights.

It is not unusual for early grade elementary students to create drawings for the holiday and give them as gifts to local kōbans, or police stations.


History
Labor Thanksgiving Day is the modern name for an ancient rice harvest festival known as Niiname-sai (新嘗祭?), believed to have been held as long ago as November of 678. Traditionally, it celebrated the year's hard work; during the Niiname-sai ceremony, the Emperor would dedicate the year's harvest to kami (spirits), and taste the rice for the first time.

The modern holiday was established after World War II in 1948 as a day to mark some of the changes of the postwar constitution of Japan, including fundamental human rights and the expansion of workers rights. Currently Niiname-sai is held privately by the Imperial Family while Labor Thanksgiving Day has become a national holiday.

May 1st is also celebrated as Labor Day by many labor unions in Japan, which hold large rallies and marches in Tokyo, Osaka and Nagoya.


So happy Labor/ thanksgiving day to all the AO's japan members