By: Jin Song, Peak Associate
Oshougatsu, which is Japanese for New Year, is celebrated at the start of January. It is also known as shougatsu. Typical traditions include house cleaning to symbolize new beginnings, viewing the first sunrise, and the consumption of special dishes like herring roe, pickled lotus root, and candied chestnut. On the fourth day of 2025, I attended Oshōgatsu: Japanese New Year Celebrations at the Nikkei National Museum and Cultural Centre with my brother.
It was a somewhat dreary morning with light rain, and I was grateful that the majority of this event took place indoors. At the entrance of the museum was a station for kakizome, also known as New Year calligraphy. There were references for characters associated with blessings, such as “happiness” and “fortune.” I, along with other participants, used traditional brushes and black ink to try replicating characters of our choice. My family is Chinese, and I have tried Chinese calligraphy in the past. Curious about the differences between Chinese and Japanese calligraphy, I asked volunteers at the station and learned that the art itself is very similar, but kakizome is calligraphy specifically done to celebrate the New Year. One volunteer told me that teachers often assign their pupils this type of homework over the break.
“Curious about the differences between Chinese and Japanese calligraphy, I asked several of the volunteers at the station and learned that the art itself is very similar, but kakizome is calligraphy specifically done to celebrate the New Year.”
Next, I tried Igo. This classic board game is also known as Go, Weiqi, or Baduk, among other names, and originated in ancient China. The rules are simple: there are two sides, white and black. Players use stones according to their colour, and must try to capture as much territory as they can. There are no restrictions to how one can place stones and there is only one type of piece, unlike chess. However, this game has incredibly complex emergent strategies. The volunteer told me that in ancient times, games could go on for weeks, with students watching their teachers play against each other and discussing the game for long hours during breaks.
Another board game I tried for the first time was Shogi. I had heard about this game in Naruto, an anime I watched as a child. Shogi is a lot more similar to chess; it also features different pieces with different abilities. I found it remarkably similar to Xiangqi, or Chinese chess, which I often play with my grandfather. Major differences include the shapes of the pieces (flat and rectangular-like plaques), the specific abilities, and how all pieces can “ascend,” or upgrade their abilities upon reaching the enemy’s last rows on the board.
In all, I was glad to attend this event. Despite being a longtime appreciator of Japanese culture, I hadn’t participated in cultural events like this before. I was surprised by the similarities between Japanese culture and my own. Even with the unique aspects of both, I enjoyed making connections and seeing the familiar activities from a different lens.
