Shichi Go San is a Japanese holiday that falls in November. Being American, it’s easy for me to get wrapped up in turkey dinners and holiday shopping by the time Shichi Go San rolls around. But NOT THIS YEAR! Shichi Go San is a special holiday celebrating children as they age, specifically girls who turn three and seven and boys who turn five. And THIS year we have a little girl turning three in our family! So keep reading to learn more about what Shichi Go San is, and how our Japanese American family can still celebrate.
What Does Shichi Go San Mean?
The name Shichi Go San actually refers to the numbers seven, five, and three in Japanese. As I mentioned above, this holiday celebrates girls who turn seven and three years old and boys who turn five years old. To be honest, for the longest time I didn’t know WHY this festival chose those specific ages to celebrate, so I had to do some internet sleuthing.
A couple articles I read explained that Shichi Go San started as a way to celebrate children’s survival, as in medieval times, infant mortality was high. This is similar to the Chinese practice of a baby’s 100 days old party, which, our family being part Chinese, we also celebrated.
The reason for the ages of three, five, and seven being celebrated has to do with cultural customs from the past. In samurai times, parents shaved their children’s heads until age three. Then at age five, boys were allowed to wear a traditional clothing called hakama, which signified growing up. Girls at age seven also had a clothing change – they were allowed to wear obi to tie their kimono. For more information about the history behind Shichi Go San, this article at the Tokyo Weekender was really helpful.
How to Celebrate Shichi Go San Today
Obviously, some of those old customs are no longer followed today. But one way to commemorate Shichi Go San that is still practiced is the wearing of formal clothes, kimono. For kids, this is usually the first time they wear kimono, making it a significant event.
Just FYI, kimono in Japan refers typically to only formal wear. I know many clothing companies in American have kind of thrown the word around to mean pajamas or bathrobes, and many Americans think kimono means any sort of Japanese clothing, but… they’re wrong.
Other ways to celebrate Shichi Go San are to go to a shrine and potentially get blessed by a Shinto priest in a short ritual. Since I’ve never witnessed one of these rituals, I’m not actually sure what goes on. Our family is Christian, and we don’t really have Japanese shrines near us anyway, so we’re opting out of this practice.
Instead, we took some professional kimono photos! Yes, there are photoshoots specifically for celebrating Shichi Go San and commemorating your baby’s first time wearing a kimono. And isn’t that all any parent wants in life? Amazingly cute photos?
Shichi Go San Candy
Another common practice is to give children a special candy called chitose ame. It is a long, thin candy that represents long life, and it is often given in a bag decorated with more symbols for long life. To be real, I don’t know how to make this candy or where to get these bags, but my children’s Japanese daycare sends them home every November. Thank God for daycare, am I right?
Anyway, that’s really all I have on Shichi Go San. If I can find any children’s books or more ways to teach your kids about this holiday from whatever country you may be in, I’ll update this post. But for now, enjoy these family kimono photos! And if you’re in the Seattle area and interested in Shichi Go San photos, definitely check out Kimono Art Seattle.
Learn More About Japanese Holidays
Interested in learning more about Japanese holidays? Especially about we celebrate them even from America? Check out my posts on Tanabata and Girls’ Day.