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Japan Holiday On August 15 2024?

The following is a compilation of Japanese national holidays, national observances, patriotic commemorations and important secular events that apply during Thursday, 2024-08-15:

  • National Memorial Service for War Dead - 全国戦没者追悼式:

    [ob] The National Memorial Service for War Dead is an official, secular ceremony held by the Japanese government on August 15 in the Nippon Budokan in Tokyo, Japan to honor victims of World War II. The first such memorial service was held on May 2, 1952. The event is organized by the Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare. The Emperor and Empress are always in attendance, as are representatives of business and labor, political and religious leaders, and bereaved families.
  • Bon Festival - 盆:

    [festival] [gov] Bon 盆, or Obon お盆, is a Japanese Buddhist custom to honor the spirits of one's ancestors. This Buddhist-Confucian custom has evolved into a family reunion holiday during which people return to ancestral family places and visit and clean their ancestors' graves, and when the spirits of ancestors are supposed to revisit the household altars. Although this festival is most commonly celebrated around Agusut 15th, in parts of the Kantō region such as Tokyo, Yokohama and the Tohoku region, this festival is celebrated on July 15th instead. Yey, in the northern part of the Kantō region, Chūgoku region, Shikoku, and the Okinawa Prefecture, the date of this festival varies depending on the occurance of the "15th day of the 7th lunar month".

Notes:

[ob] Not a national holiday, but an observance nationwide.

[festival] Nationwide festival.

[gov] Many Japanese companies and government offices traditionally close this day.

Content last updated on 2016-08-23T15:26:00Z