April’s names sparkle with sakura—a brief, breathtaking perfection that defines Japanese spring.
April’s names sparkle with sakura—a brief, breathtaking perfection that defines Japanese spring.
| Gomei | Meaning |
|---|---|
| koshitayami | Gloom beneath trees |
| amacha | Sweet hydrangea tea |
| fujinami | Waves of wisteria |
| kazekaoru | Wind carrying fragrance |
| aoume | Green unripe plums |
| sakuragari | Cherry Blossom Hunting |
| hanabira | Petal |
| oborozuki | Hazy Moon |
| hana no en | Blossom Banquet |
| hanafubuki | Blizzard of Blossoms |
| māgaretto | Marguerite |
| kato | Tadpoles |
| yamabuki | Kerria Japonica |
| shirokaki | Ploughing seedbed |
| hibi kore kōjitsu | Every Day is a Good Day |
| shidarezakura | Weeping Cherry |
| haru no kure | Spring Dusk |
| tokiwa | Evergreen |
| chō no mai | Dance of the Butterfly |
| hyakka | A Hundred Flowers |
| tsutsuji | Azalea |
| ryūryoku | Willow green |
| kōgan-kitasu | “Wild geese fly north” |
| shincha | First tea of the year |
| haru no hi | A Spring Day |
| ranman | In Full Bloom / Glorious |
| panjī | Pansy |
| kanzan | Kanzan double cherry |
| aobayami | Deep shade of new foliage |
| gyoikō | Gyoikō green cherry |
| shinjukō | Light on fresh trees |
| hanamushiro | Flower Mat |
| kōchō | Plowing Bird |
| shima-yamite-nae-izuru | “Frost ends |
| moegi | Budding wood |
| hanamizuki | Dogwood blossoms |
| yamatsutsuji | Wild azalea |
| wasurenagusa | Forget-me-not |
| gengé | Chinese milk-vetch |
| hanazukare | Fatigue after blossom viewing |
| mugi-tsubame | Barley Swallow |
| tanjōbutsu | Infant Buddha Statue |
| sasanaki | Sparrow-like warbler call |
| hakuun | White Clouds |
| mugibue | Barley-leaf whistle |
| matsu no hana | Pine Flower |
| shinryoku | Fresh verdure |
| sumire | Violet |
| nawashiro | Rice-seedling bed |
| komorebi | Sunlight through leaves |
| kanbutsu | Bathing-Buddha rite |
| kashinfū | Wind heralding flowers |
| shakuyaku | Chinese peony |
| shunjin | Spring Dust |
| yuku haru | The Passing Spring |
| botan-hanasaku | “Peonies bloom” micro-season |
| asebi no hana | Andromeda Blossom |
| zanka | Late lingering blossoms |
| takenoko | Bamboo shoot |
| wakaba-ame | Rain on fresh leaves |
| fuji no tsubomi | Wisteria Bud |
| ryoku-u | Green rain |
| sakuramochi | Sakura Mochi |
| isoginchaku | Sea Anemone |
| nyūgaku | School Entrance |
| yōkihi | Yōkihi cherry cultivar |
| ryūtei | Willow-lined bank |
| sakurabito | Cherry Blossom Person |
| shunrai | Spring Thunder |
| ichigobana | Strawberry blossoms |
| ryūjo | Willow fluff |
| īsutā | Easter |
| koinobori | Carp streamer |
| takenoaki | “Bamboo autumn” (yellow leaves) |
| hanabie | Spring Chill During Blossom Season |
| hanamidō | Flower Hall |
| niji-hajimete-arawaru | “First rainbow appears” |
| zanka | Remaining Blossoms |
| fuji | Wisteria blossoms |
| tsubosumire | a type of Violet |
| kokuu | Grain Rains |
| hanamori | Blossom Guardian |
| wakashiba | New lawn grass |
| genchō-itaru | “Swallows arrive” micro-season |
| hanamatsuri | Buddha’s Birthday festival |
| uzuki | Old lunar name of April |
| kawazu no kassen | Battle of Frogs |
| hana no shizuku | Dewdrop on a Blossom |
| uzuki | Fourth Lunar Month |
| hazakura | Leafy Cherry Tree |
| unoka | Scent of deutzia |
| tōka | Purple paulownia bloom |
| shunchū | Spring Daytime |
| midoritake | Green bamboo |
| harukoma | Spring Colt |
| ryokufū | Green wind |
| sekishun | Regret for Passing Spring |
| yoshi-hajimete-shōzu | “Reeds first sprout” micro-season |
| nodafuji | Noda wisteria cultivar |
| furījia | Freesia |
| kaidō | Flowering Crabapple |
| botan | Peony |
| haru no yoi | Spring Evening |
| osozakura | Late-blooming Cherry Tree |
| hana no tsuyu | Dew on the Blossom |
| fukkatsusai | Easter Feast |
| jūsan-mairi | Thirteen-Year-Old Shrine Visit |
| hachijū-hachi-ya | 88th night from Risshun |
| kakitsubata2 | Alternate name for iris |
| sakuragawa | Cherry Blossom River |
| tōsei | Treading on the Green |
| shōgetsu | Shōgetsu cherry cultivar |
| kato | Tadpole |
| zuika | Auspicious falling snow-flakes of petals |
| nodoka | Tranquil / Peaceful |
| ryūryoku kakō | Willows are Green, Flowers are Red |
| hanadayori | Flower News |
| ichiyō | Ichiyō late cherry cultivar |
| fugenzō | Fugen-zō cherry cultivar |
| yamafuji | Wild wisteria |
| shimizu_april | Pure Spring Water |
| hanakagari | Blossom Bonfire |
| unohana | Deutzia blossom |
| fujidana | Wisteria trellis |
| yomogitsumi | Picking mugwort leaves |
| hanaikada (shokubutsu) | Helwingia japonica (plant) |
| yamawakaba | Young mountain leaves |
| aoyanagi-ame | Rain on green willows |
| fujiiro | Wisteria purple |
| santekimidori | Mountains dripping green |
| kaeru-hajimete-naku | “Frogs first croak” micro-season |
| kigime | Buds on every tree |
| chūrippu | Tulip |
| yamabuki | Kerria blossoms |
| hana no kage | Beneath the Blossoms |
| unami | Ripples of deutzia |
| genge | Chinese Milkvetch |
| aoba | Fresh green leaves |
| ringo no hana | Apple Blossom |
| hatsumidori | Season’s first green |
| hinaga | Lengthening days |
| mitsubachi | Worker honey-bee |
| kamatari | Kamatari cherry cultivar |
| hana akari | Glow of Blossoms |
| hanaikada | Flower Raft |
| kanbutsu-e | Buddha's Birthday Ceremony |
| husafuji | Wisteria bunch |
| haru no no | Spring Field |
| aoarashi | Blue-green gale |
| aomugi | Green barley ears |
| wakabahi-kari | Light on young leaves |
| ukon | Ukon yellow cherry |
| hana kurenai | Crimson Blossom |
| zui-u | Auspicious spring rain |
| shunshoku | The Colors of Spring |
| hatsuzumi | First plucking |
| moegiiro | Light yellow-green |
| kunpū | Fragrant spring breeze |
| wakatake | Young bamboo |
| haru no ta | Spring Paddy |
| ichigo ichie | Once in a Lifetime Encounter |
| hana no yuki | Snow of Blossoms |
| seki-shun | Lamenting end of spring |
| sakuradai | Cherry Blossom Sea Bream |
| yoshinoyama | Mount Yoshino |
| wakacha | Young tea |
| shitō | Purple wisteria |
| kame | Turtle |
| yōkō-zakura | Yōkō cherry cultivar |
| ringobana | Apple blossoms |
| jinmu tennō sai | Emperor Jinmu Festival |
| haru no kawa | Spring River |
| wakamidori_april | Young Green |
| haru no umi | Spring Sea |
| miyakowasure | Gymnaster savatieri |
| usuzakura | Pale cherry blossoms |
| chatsumi | Tea-leaf picking |
| yamabukimizu | Water reflecting kerria |
| wakakaede | Young maple leaves |
| hanagumori | Overcast Cherry Blossom Weather |
| hika | Scattered flying petals |
| seimei | Clear and Bright |
| amacha | Sweet Tea (Hydrangea Tea) |
| nashi no hana | Pear Blossom |
| kakitsubata | Iris laevigata |
| wakabakaze | Breeze through fresh leaves |
| haru no tsuki | Spring Moon |
| yaezakura | Double-flowered Cherry |
| hanamatsuri | Flower Festival |
| kokū | Grain-rain solar term |
| kirishima-tsutsuji | Kirishima azalea cultivar |
| kawazu | Frog |
| mimizu-izuru | “Earth-worms surface” |
| seimei | Clear-bright solar term |
| tanishi | River Snail |
| waka-ayu_april | Young Ayu Sweetfish |
Cherry blossoms, misty mountains, and the start of the academic year make April gomei especially buoyant. Utensils may bear names like “Hana-fubuki” (Blizzard of Blossoms) or “Yo-zakura” (Night Cherry), evoking petals that carpet garden stones and even drift into the water jar. Scrolls quote Saigyō or Bashō on impermanence, prompting guests to savor the bowl of tea as one would a single falling petal. Light green bamboo shoots and the season’s first young vegetables appear in sweets, reinforcing the momentary yet exhilarating burst of life.