Australia and the World Past and Present

季寄せ – kiyose – a dictionary of seasonal words for haiku and poetry

Spring season words:

啓蟄 – keichitsu – the “awakening of insects”, hibernating insects come out of the ground.

遅日 – chijitsu – a lingering day.

春雷 – shunrai – spring thunder

陽炎 – kagerou – heat haze, shimmer of hot air

​春灯 – shuntou – spring lantern

田打ち – tauchi – tilling a rice field

お玉杓子 – otama jyakushi – tadpoles

下萌え – shitamoe – sprouting grasses

余寒 – yokan – lingering cold

山焼き – yamayaki – burning off the hills

初花 – hatsuzakura – the first cherry blossoms

茂り – shigeri – the thick growth of vegetation

囀り – saezuri – the chirping, twittering or warbling of birds

Summer

青嵐 – aoarashi – wind blowing through green foliage

薫風 – kunpuu – fragrant breeze

夕焼け – yuuyake – the evening glow

日盛り – hizakari – the hottest part of the day

一重 – hitoe -‘one layer’, an unlined kimono

端居 – hashii – sitting on a verandah

青葉 – aoba – green leaves

万緑 – banryoku – myriad greens

木の下闇 – ko no shitayami – dark under the trees

常磐木 – tokiwagi – an evergreen tree

早苗 – sanae – young rice plants

Autumn

残暑 – zansho – late summer heat, lingering summer heat

冷ややか – hiyayaka – the chill of the air

秋晴れ – akibare – a clear autumn day

野分き – nowaki – ‘field divider’ – a wind storm

新米 – shinmai – new rice

鈴虫 – suzumushi – bell cricket

柚子 – yuzu – Japanese citrus

稍寒 – yayasamu – a little cold

朝寒 – asasamu – morning cold

落穂 – ochibo – the fallen ears of a rice plant

破れ蓮 – yabure hasu – a tattered lotus

荻の声 – ogi no koe – wind through the rushes

迎え火 – mukaebi – welcoming fire for returned spirits

紅葉 – momoji – red and yellow leaves

Winter

短日 – tanjitsu – a short day

冬晴れ – fuyubare – a clear winter’s day

木枯らし – kogarashi – ‘withering trees’, a cold and wintry wind

風花 – kazahana – snowflakes

枯れ野 – kareno – a withered field

炉 – ro – hearth, fireplace

焚き火 – takibi -bonfire

雪見 – yukimi – snow viewing

初雪 – hatsuyuki – first snow

New Year

大晦日 – oomisoka – New Year’s Eve

年忘れ – toshi wasure – forgetting the troubles of the past year

初日 – hatsuhi – ‘first sun’ of the New Year

門松 – kadomatsu – pine decorations

年始 – nenshi – the first visits of the New Year

書き初め – kakizome – first calligraphy of the year.

破魔弓 – hamayumi – ‘break the devil bow’ – a sacred arrow

獅子舞 – shishimai – lion dance

初詣 – hatsumoude – first visit of the year to a shrine