May’s gomei sing of fresh green (shinryoku) and boyhood courage under koinobori carp flags.
May’s gomei sing of fresh green (shinryoku) and boyhood courage under koinobori carp flags.
| Gomei | Meaning |
|---|---|
| satsuki | Old lunar name for May |
| satsuki | Modern name of the month |
| satsukibare | Clear sky after early-summer rain |
| samidare | Early-summer long rain |
| satsukiyami | Dark rainy-season nights |
| rikka | Beginning of summer solar term |
| shōman | “Grain Full” solar term |
| natsutatsu | Summer sets in |
| shoka | Early summer |
| hakusho | Light early-summer heat |
| bakushū | “Barley autumn” harvest time |
| bakushū-itaru | “Barley harvest arrives” micro-season |
| takenoko-shōzu | “Bamboo shoots sprout” micro-season |
| kaiko-okite-kuwa-wo-hamu | “Silkworms wake and eat mulberry” micro-season |
| benibana-sakau | “Safflowers flourish” micro-season |
| umenomi-kibamu | “Green plums turn yellow” micro-season |
| kamakiri-shōzu | “Praying mantis hatches” micro-season |
| aoi-matsuri | Aoi Festival at Kyoto |
| seihakusai | Seihakusai in Nanao |
| kanda-matsuri | Kanda Festival |
| sanjamatsuri | Sanja Festival of Asakusa |
| tango | Boys’ Day Festival (5 May) |
| shōbu | Sweet-flag iris |
| hanashōbu | Japanese iris in bloom |
| shōbuyu | Bath with iris leaves |
| shōbumakura | Pillow stuffed with iris leaves |
| shōbugatana | Toy sword made of iris |
| shōbuzake | Spiced sake with iris root |
| shōbubuki | Thatched with iris leaves |
| kashiwamochi | Oak-leaf wrapped sweet |
| chimaki | Steamed rice wrapped in leaves |
| sanae | Rice seedlings |
| taue | Rice-planting |
| saotome | Planting maidens |
| sanaeda | Paddy with seedlings |
| taue-uta | Rice-planting chants |
| taue-gasa | Planting straw hat |
| taue-odori | Rice-planting dance |
| tamizuharu | Paddies filled with water |
| otauesai | Shrine rice-planting rite |
| mugikari | Barley reaping |
| mugimeshi | Barley-rice dish |
| mugicha | Roasted-barley tea |
| wakaayu | Young ayu sweet-fish |
| kōgyo | Fragrant-fish (ayu) |
| aokaede | Fresh-green maple leaves |
| kuzuwakaba | Young kudzu leaves |
| ka-hajimete-shōzu | “Mosquitoes first appear” micro-season |
| shiohigari | Tidal-flat shell gathering |
| aosagi | Grey heron in fresh green |
| hototogisu | First lesser cuckoo song |
| hatsu-hototogisu | Season’s first cuckoo |
| suzuran | Lily-of-the-valley |
| gubijinsō | Red corn poppy |
| hinageshi | Papaver rhoeas poppy |
| shirotsumekusa | White clover |
| tachiaoi | Hollyhock spikes |
| biwami | Loquat fruit |
| ōtō | Cherry fruit |
| koibata | Carp streamer banner |
| kunsō | Fragrant early-summer grass |
| hashiri-cha | Very first new tea |
| natsukodachi | Fresh-leafed grove |
| yamashitataru | Mountains dripping green |
| satsukirai | Early-summer thunder |
| takebue | Bamboo flute played outdoors |
| unohanakubushi | Prolonged rain spoiling deutzia |
| hatsuhotaru | Season’s first firefly |
| aotsuyu | Pre-rainy-season moisture |
| aobazuku | Brown hawk-owl arrival |
| aotakaze | Breeze over green rice fields |
| aota | Fresh-green rice paddies |
| kinpōge | Buttercup |
| hanatachibana | Blossoms of tachibana orange |
| kikka | Tachibana flower (Sino-Jpn) |
| shakunage | Rhododendron |
| ayame | Iris japonica |
| tsuriganesō | Campanula (bellflower) |
| mame-gohan | Rice with green peas |
| soramame | Broad beans in season |
| natsuchō | Early-summer butterflies |
| amenbo | Water strider |
| kawazumajiwaru | Frogs mate noisily |
| aogaeru | Green tree frog |
| hototogisubue | Cuckoo-whistle toy |
| ryoku-u | Soft rain on greenery |
| ryokufū | Breeze over fresh leaves |
| komorebi | Sunlight filtering through leaves |
| aoarashi-oto | Sound of the green gale |
| yamawakaba2 | Mountain fresh leaves (late) |
| wakakōzo | Young paper-mulberry shoots |
| takeochi-shizuku | Drips from bamboo leaves |
| aobotaru | Green fireflies at rivers |
| hakusho-kaze | Breeze in the first heat |
| yūdachigumo | Clouds portending evening shower |
| aoshigure | Brief shower amid greenery |
| usubenibara | Pale-pink roses |
| baraen | Rose garden in bloom |
| barakō | Fragrance of roses |
| hachiokoshi | First honey-bee flight |
| mitsubachi2 | Worker honey-bee |
| hanamitsu | Nectar in abundance |
| naega | Scent of wet seedlings |
| aogaeru-koe | Chorus of green frogs |
| kazehikaru2 | Wind glitters through leaves |
| ryokuin | Green shade |
| hikarakka | Petals still drifting |
| usuhanazakura | Very late pale cherry |
| hika2 | Scattered petals on the wind |
| hototogisu | Lesser Cuckoo |
| unohana | Deutzia Flower |
| botan | Peony |
| shōbu / ayame | Iris |
| tsubame | Swallow |
| kunpū | Fragrant Breeze |
| wakaba | Young Leaves |
| hachijūhachi-ya | 88th Night |
| fuji | Wisteria |
| koinobori | Carp Streamers |
| kabuto | Samurai Helmet |
| sanae | Young Rice Plants |
| aoba | Green Leaves |
| saotome | Rice-planting Maiden |
| kashiwa-mochi | Kashiwa Mochi |
| chimaki | Chimaki |
| hatsu-gatsuo | First Bonito of the Season |
| tsutsuji | Azalea |
| shinryoku | Fresh Greenery |
| shōbu | Martial Spirit |
| aoimatsuri | Aoi Festival |
| taue | Rice Planting |
| yaguruma | Pinwheel Arrow |
| fukinagashi | Streamer |
| shaga | Fringed Iris |
| shimizu | Pure Spring Water |
| aokaede | Green Maple |
| musha ningyō | Warrior Doll |
| issei | One Cry |
| chatsumi | Tea Picking |
| kiri no hana | Paulownia Flower |
| wakamidori | Young Green |
| sawarabi_gomei | Early Fern Shoots |
| seiran / aorashi | Storm in the Green Leaves |
| kuina | Water Rail |
| seibozuki | Month of the Holy Mother |
| takenoko | Bamboo Shoot |
| waka-ayu | Young Ayu Sweetfish |
| satsukibare | Fine May Weather |
| rakka | Falling Blossoms |
| ryokuu | Green Rain |
| kakkō | Cuckoo |
| seiryū | Clear Stream |
| fujinami | Wisteria Waves |
| hatsune_gomei | First Song |
| shōman | Lesser Ripening of Grain |
| iwatsutsuji | Rock Azalea |
| kamo | Kamo |
| uzuki | Fourth Lunar Month |
| kazahaya | Swift Wind |
| matsu no midori | Green of the Pine |
| seiwa | Clear and Calm |
| shirobotan | White Peony |
| ukigusa_gomei | Floating Weed |
| tokonatsu | Everlasting Summer/Pinks |
| komadori | Japanese Robin |
| shizugatake | Shizugatake |
| futaba-aoi | Asarum caulescens |
| hayase | Rapids |
| wakamusha | Young Warrior |
| tōryūmon | Gateway to Success |
| kanza | Sitting Quietly |
| fukamidori | Deep Green |
| hanashōbu | Japanese Iris |
| koke-shimizu | Mossy Spring |
| yamabuki_gomei | Kerria Japonica |
| magoi | Black Carp |
| higoi | Red Carp |
| kanjaku | Quiet and Serene |
| asebi_gomei | Japanese Andromeda |
| banryoku | Myriad Green / Verdure |
| iwashimizu | Rock Spring Water |
| kanzō | Daylily |
| shincha | New Tea |
| hazakura_gomei | Leafy Cherry Tree |
| biyōyanagi | Hypericum Monogynum |
| keiryū | Mountain Stream |
| shōbuyu | Iris Bath |
| samidare | Early Summer Rain |
| aoume_gomei | Green Plum |
| kusudama | Scented Ornamental Ball |
| taisanboku | Southern Magnolia |
| yomogi | Mugwort |
| fuji no ame | Wisteria Rain |
| natsu kodachi | Summer Grove |
| ajisai | Hydrangea |
| hashiri | The Very First of the Season |
| temaribana | Snowball Bush |
| hanaikada | Flower Raft |
| kaze kaoru | The Wind is Fragrant |
| seika | Clear Summer |
| seizan_gomei | Green Mountain |
| hakuun_gomei | White Clouds |
| natsu asashi | Summer is Young |
| hana tachibana | Orange Blossom |
| rikka | Beginning of Summer |
| iwane | Rock Root |
| seseragi | Babbling Brook |
Early summer arrives with vibrant new foliage, tea-picking chants, and the Iris Festival (Tango no Sekku). Names like “Wakaba” (Young Leaf), “Shōbu-yu” (Iris Bath), or “Kaze-koi” (Carp in the Wind) suggest vigor and cleansing. The year’s first tea leaves—destined to become matcha—are plucked in Uji, so gatherings may feature a caddy called “Ichiban-cha.” Cool breezes replace spring haze, and sweets wrapped in oak leaves symbolize strength and healthy growth, mirroring the expanding light that now floods the tea room.