January 1st - The first day of January

... The lyrics of the popular "Patriotic March" during World War II, "All subjects, together, our great mission to serve the Emperor's majesty," were changed to "All subjects, together, drink water and scream," and it can be seen that people who felt oppressed in life and spirit by those in authority were venting their frustrations by changing the lyrics to make authority nonsensical. Also, "January 1st," a song celebrating the four directions worship at the Imperial Palace on New Year's Day, was sung at elementary schools during the New Year's Day ceremony from the Meiji era. Elementary school students in the Taisho and early Showa periods sang the lyrics, "As a test of the beginning of the year, the endless joy of the world..." as "Tofu began with beans, the great earthquake in Owari Nagoya..." ...

*Some of the terminology explanations that mention "January 1st" are listed below.

Source | Heibonsha World Encyclopedia 2nd Edition | Information

…　第2次大戦中にはやった《愛国行進曲》の歌詞〈臣民われら皆共に　御稜威（みいつ）に副（そ）わん大使命〉が，〈臣民我等皆共に　水を飲んで大悲鳴〉と変えて歌われたが，権威ある者に生活，精神を圧迫されていると感じた人びとが，権威をナンセンスなものにしてしまう替歌によって，うさを晴らしていたことがうかがえる。また，元旦に宮中で行われる四方拝を祝う歌《一月一日》は，明治のころから小学校で元旦の式のときに歌うことにされていた。その歌詞〈年の始めのためしとて　終わりなき世のめでたさを……〉を，大正･昭和初期の小学生は〈豆腐の始めは豆である　尾張名古屋の大地震……〉と歌っていた。…

※「《一月一日》」について言及している用語解説の一部を掲載しています。

出典｜株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典 第２版について | 情報