November is the month in which the season words pass from autumn to winter, at Rittō, the Beginning of Winter (around 7 November). The month opens with words of late autumn; from Rittō come the words of early winter, such as koharu, the mild days of "little spring", the winter showers and the withering wind, and after Shōsetsu, the Lesser Snow (around 22 November), haiku speak of fallen leaves and withered fields.
Our company renku circle (社内連句会) gathered these words month by month, to choose the season word of a renku's opening verse. The old haiku are by poets of the Edo period to the Taishō era; the English versions are ours, kept close to the Japanese.
The season 時候
- 冬隣Autumn
- Winter is near fuyudonari A word said at the end of autumn, sensing that winter is almost here.
- 冬立つWinter
- Winter begins fuyu tatsu Rittō, the Beginning of Winter, one of the twenty-four solar terms that divide the year, falls around 7 November; by the calendar, winter begins on this day.
- 初冬Winter
- Early winter shotō The first part of winter, when the last of late autumn and the coming of winter mingle.
- 小春Winter
- Little spring koharu Mild, warm weather in early winter, gentle as spring; it is also called koharu-biyori, little-spring weather.
- 冬めくWinter
- Turning wintry fuyumeku When signs of winter begin to show here and there, in the scenery and in daily life.
Sky and weather 天文
- 初時雨Winter
- First winter shower hatsu shigure The first shigure of the winter, the passing shower long written of as the rain that announces winter. 初しぐれ猿も小蓑をほしげ也BashōFirst winter shower — / even the monkey seems to want / a little straw raincoat
- 時雨Winter
- Winter shower shigure Passing showers in early winter that come and go again and again; those of the Kitayama hills north of Kyoto are well known.
- 木枯Winter
- Withering wind kogarashi The strong, cold wind of late autumn and early winter that blows the leaves from the trees. 凩の果はありけり海の音GonsuiThe withering wind / has its end after all — / the sound of the sea
- 冬の月Winter
- Winter moon fuyu no tsuki The moon shining in the winter night sky, its light clear, cold and bleak.
Land and water 地理
- 枯野Winter
- Withered fields kareno Winter fields stretching bleak and wide, every grass and plant withered. 旅に病で夢は枯野をかけ廻るBashōIll on a journey, / my dreams go running round / the withered fields
Daily life 生活
- 炉開Winter
- Opening the hearth robiraki Opening the sunken hearth for the first time as winter comes; in the tea ceremony a gathering is held in November to mark it.
- 焚火Winter
- Bonfire takibi A fire of gathered fallen leaves and dead branches, lit to keep warm out of doors in winter.
Observances 行事
- 文化の日Autumn
- Culture Day bunka no hi A public holiday on 3 November, a day for loving freedom and peace and for furthering culture.
- 七五三Winter
- Seven-five-three shichigosan Around 15 November, children of three, five and seven are taken to a shrine or temple to celebrate their growing up.
- 酉の市Winter
- Rooster fair tori no ichi A fair held on the days of the rooster in November, by the old cycle of twelve signs, at Ōtori shrines and elsewhere; kumade, decorated bamboo rakes for good luck, are sold there.
- 勤労感謝の日Winter
- Labour Thanksgiving Day kinrō kansha no hi A public holiday on 23 November, a day to honour work and to give thanks to one another.
Animals 動物
- 鷹Winter
- Hawk taka A bird of prey that catches small birds and other creatures in the winter hills and fields; in the old days hawks were trained for falconry. 鷹一つ見付てうれしいらご崎BashōA single hawk / found, and I am glad — / Cape Irago
- 綿虫Winter
- Woolly aphid watamushi A tiny insect that drifts softly on clear days in early winter, wearing something like white cotton.
Plants 植物
- 柚子Autumn
- Yuzu yuzu A fragrant fruit that ripens yellow in late autumn, used to give its scent to food.
- 落葉Winter
- Fallen leaves ochiba The leaves fallen from the trees as winter comes; the word also brings the sound of stepping through deep drifts of them.
- 冬紅葉Winter
- Leaves still red in winter fuyu momiji Autumn leaves that stay on the tree into winter and keep their colour.
- 山茶花Winter
- Sasanqua camellia sazanka A tree that flowers white or red in early winter; its petals fall one by one.
- 茶の花Winter
- Tea flowers cha no hana The small white flowers of the tea bush, which open in early winter, facing downward.
- 石蕗の花Winter
- Leopard plant flowers tsuwa no hana A plant that opens yellow flowers in early winter, in shady gardens and on rocks by the sea.
The seasons follow the old calendar, as Japanese books of season words (saijiki) divide them. Around Risshun, Rikka, Risshū and Rittō, the first days of spring, summer, autumn and winter, one month holds the words of two seasons.
To count the sounds of a haiku, try the Haiku Sound Counter.
