Like many East Asian countries, each year in Japan is represented by one of 12 animals.
These animals are part of a divination system called “eto”. In English it’s often called “Chinese Zodiac”.
2023 is the year of the rabbit.
In Japanese, the Chinese Zodiac kanji of each animal is different from the regular kanji of that animal.
The top kanji in this post is the regular kanji for talking about rabbits in general, so this is the kanji you see used in books.
The bottom kanji is used to talk about the rabbit in the Chinese Zodiac, so this is the kanji you see on “nen-ga-jo” (Japanese New Year’s cards).
According to the Chinese Zodiac, rabbits are peaceful and gentle, meaning rabbit years offer opportunity for rest and relaxation.
After 2022, which was the dynamic and aggressive year of the tiger, some downtime would be ideal.
Rabbits are also quick and agile, so rabbit years are characterised by business opportunities opening up, and more travelling.
Whether you spend your time relaxing or travelling, I wish all of you a very happy year of the Rabbit!
Calligraphy by Vicky 