Japanese New Year Postcard
They usually feature the asian zodiac animal of that year.
Japanese new year postcard. According to the tradition nengajo should be delivered on the january 1st and if the postcards are marked with the word nengajo and if they are posted on time usually before december 25th the japan post guarantees the delivery on time. Since they are nowadays written on postcards they are also known as nenga hagaki 年賀はがき or new year s postcards. Similar to the western custom of sending christmas cards in japan there is a tradition of sending new year s greeting cards called nengajo 年賀状.
Find a large selection of sizes and shapes for your postcard needs. In mid january japan post selects random numbers similar to a new year postal lottery. If you re celebrating the new year in a traditional japanese way and want to surprise your japanese relatives friends and coworkers here are a few tips on how to write the perfect nengajo.
I lived in tokyo for a year and a half until the big earthquake and during that time i took to the japanese tradition of sending out a new years postcard nengajo 年賀状 and painting them with real paint not digital. When sending new year s cards from overseas the word nenga 年賀 should be written in red on the front side along with a stamp and address. Unlike christmas cards nengajo shouldn t arrive before new year s day.
As it is such an important event there are a lot of different customs and traditions that go. If you match any of those number you can win a prize 100 000 yen cash travel electronics food or stamps. New years follows the chinese zodiac system which makes 2017 the year of the rooster as seen in the header image of this blog.
The cards are sent to friends and family as well as to people you have work connections with. In japan starting from mid december everybody starts sending nengajo 年賀状 new year postcards for friends relatives and colleagues. However hikyaku men delivered letters on foot so only a small number of people were able to send their letters.
Get your hands on a customizable japanese new year postcard from zazzle. The 2016 nengajo postcard issued by the japan post the origin of nengajo new year s greeting letters were exchanged in the 18th century via the hikyaku delivery service. The japanese word for it would be お正月 read o shogatsu.