Becoming an adult is an important milestone in most cultures, and in Japan it is celebrated on Seijin-no Hi, or Coming-of-Age Day, the second Monday of January (Jan. 13 this year). While the rite of passage, like it did before the pandemic, is making its way back, there has recently been a major change in its social context.

Effective April 1, 2022, the Civil Code regards 18 years of age as the start of adulthood in Japan. Prior to that, the age of adulthood was set at 20. The Ministry of Justice explains that the change was intended to respect the right of decision of those 18 and 19 years of age, and to encourage their participation in the society.

Although this change enabled young men and women at such ages to rent an apartment or to have a credit card without consent of their parents, they still need to wait until turning 20 before consuming alcohol or betting on horse races. The same goes for their participation in a coming-of-age ceremony.

In many municipalities in Okinawa as well as on the mainland Japan, ceremonies on January 13 will continue to be targeted to those at 20 years of age. That means 18- and 19-year-old youths still are on the waiting list to get invited unless they were born before April 2 in 2005. Nonetheless, you will most likely see many young adults in suite and tie or kimono celebrating their adulthood.

The ceremony may leave behind some new adults outside the party venue, but the reason for this occasion is expected to remain the same: to mark Japan’s young men and women becoming legal adults.

With the recent change taking effect, in Japan, starting at the age of 18, young men and women are subject to the laws and social responsibilities that bind adults. Regarding participation in politics, they will need several more years of maturing before running for a public office. The minimum age for a congressman and mayor is 25; it is 30 for a senator and governor.

“The purpose of this holiday is to congratulate and encourage young men and women who attain the legal age of adulthood to fulfill their new-found responsibilities and become self-reliant members of society,” said Masahiko Uchino, of the National Cabinet Office’s holiday section. The number of new adults has been decreasing in recent years due to Japan’s shrinking birthrate. According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communication, the number of new adults (age 18) as of January 1, 2024 is 1.06 million (550,000 men and 520,000 women) –a decrease of 60,000 from last year and less than half the 1976 peak of 2.76 million. The number of new adults (age 18) in Okinawa as of January 2024 is was 15,504. The birthrate was 8.7 newborns per 1,000 people in 2023, the highest among all 47 prefectures in the nation. Nothing new for Okinawa, which has been the prefecture with the highest birthrate for the past 50 years.

The tradition of celebrating coming-of-age in the middle of January can be traced back to ancient times, although the national holiday was established for Jan. 15 in 1948. (In 1998, it was moved to the second Monday in January as part of Japan’s Happy Monday system, which moved several holidays to create three-day weekends.) Originally, coming-of-age was celebrated on or around Jan. 15 according to the old lunar calendar. Traditionally called “koshogatsu” (Small New Year’s), it was the day of the first full moon of the year. “It was considered right to celebrate coming-of-age in the beginning of year with festive atmosphere,” Uchino said. Although there was no precise age that determined the onset of adulthood throughout Japan’s feudal era, it was usually celebrated when boys reached the age of around 15 and when girls reached about 13. The Meiji government set the legal age of adulthood for both sexes to 20 in 1876. “Seijinshiki,” or coming-of age ceremonies, are generally held the morning of the national holiday at local city offices throughout the country. Those who turn 20 during the current school year, which runs from April 1 to March 30 the next year, attend. During the ceremony, heads of local government and guest speakers from various backgrounds give speeches and small presents are handed out to the new adults. On this day, young adults also often visit shrines or have parties with family and friends after the ceremony. In some Okinawan villages, such as Shiraho, Ishigaki City, new adults perform a dance to thank the villagers for their support.

Although there will be some work to do to open the door to the 18 and 19 years old, Seijinshiki has been back in order, and the rite of passage continues in a manner to ensure the safety of others.

Dressing the part in style

For most of young women, Coming-of-Age Day and the related ceremony are an opportunity to dress up in their most formal clothes. Many don “furisode,” a style of kimono with long sleeves that hang down.

The furisode is the most formal style of kimono worn by an unmarried woman in Japan. It is made of very fine, brightly colored silk, and is commonly rented or bought by parents for their daughters to wear to celebrate their coming-of-age.

By wearing a furisode, a young woman signifies that she is both single and a legal adult, and thus available for marriage, since the garment may not be worn either until adulthood or after wedlock. In this sense, a furisode might be associated with the formal gowns worn by debutantes in the West.

A full furisode set is very expensive, so it is usually borrowed from a relative or rented. Typically, a young woman rents a kimono, dresses up and has her hair styled at salon before having a formal photo shoot at a portrait studio to commemorate the occasion. This can easily cost 150,000 yen ($1,000) or more. Purchasing a new kimono set may cost more than 1,000,000 yen ($6,670).

There are some young men who might wear a traditional dark kimono, called a “haori” (half-coat) and “hakama” (loose-legged pleated trousers) on this holiday. However, nowadays most of young men wear a Western suit and tie for the occasion.

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