Little New Year - Koshogatsu

This refers to the 15th of the New Year as opposed to New Year's Day (Gantan). It is also called Women's New Year and is a day on which many events take place. As it is called Flower New Year, on the 14th people cut down willow and sumac trees and carve them into small flowers which are then decorated with ornamental flowers such as millet ears and rice flowers. There is also a ritual called "monozukuri" where mochi (rice cakes) and dango (rice dumplings) are stuck onto tree branches and set up in the living room to pray for a good harvest. In places where sericulture is practiced, cocoon balls are made from mochi and used as decorative trees. During the imperial dynasty, there was a ceremony in which the Chief Water Officer would present rice porridge with seven kinds of ingredients, but common people cook red bean porridge instead. Before cooking the rice porridge, three bamboo tubes representing early, middle, and late rice are placed inside, and after cooking, the amount of rice porridge inside is used to predict the size of the crop (Kayuura). In addition to the "Yoken Tameshi" event, which predicts the size of the year's harvest, three rice cakes (early, middle, and late) are placed on a tray covered with white rice, and the amount of rice grains that stick to the rice cakes is used to predict the size of the rice crop for the year.

Many Little New Year events involve children. On this day, the Dosojin (roadside god) is worshiped and a fire is lit, but before that, children go around the houses to collect Kadomatsu (New Year's decorations) and New Year's decorations. In many places, New Year's huts are built for children to stay in during Little New Year events. Children stay in these huts, roast and eat rice cakes, and sing bird-chasing songs. In many areas, they are called Saito-goya (Saito huts), but in the Hokuriku and southern Tohoku regions, they are called Torigoya (Torigoya). In Akita Prefecture, a snow hut event called Kamakura is famous. The water god is worshiped in a snow hole. The Saenokami fire is called Tondo, Sagicho, Onbe, Sankuro in Shinshu, and Hokkengyo in Kitakyushu. It is said that if you warm yourself by this fire, you will not catch a cold, and if you light calligraphy paper and it rises high, your writing will improve. On the 14th of the New Year, there are examples in various places of making celebratory chopsticks or celebratory sticks out of Chinese linden trees. They are called Yometataki sticks and are used by children to hit the bride's buttocks. It is said to be a curse to prevent the bride from having children.

There is a custom throughout the country of young people visiting houses on Little New Year, bringing simple straw products as a gift and receiving mochi (rice cakes). They are called Hotohoto, Kotokoto, or Totataki because they knock on doors in the evening, and in some places they are called Kasedori because they wear straw raincoats and hats. In Tosa, they are called Kayutsuri. Visitors hide their faces, but are splashed with water. In the case of Namahage on the Oga Peninsula in Akita Prefecture and Amamehagi (Amamihagi) on the Noto Peninsula in Ishikawa Prefecture, young men wear straw raincoats and demon masks and visit houses, searching the houses for lazy people. Both Namami and Amame refer to the red spots that appear on the legs of lazy people, and as punishment they threaten to tear them off and eat them, which scares children and keeps them quiet. Namahage and Amamehagi are registered as intangible cultural heritage by UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) as part of the "Visiting Gods: Gods in Masks and Costumes" rituals. There is also an event called "kaju-bame" held during the Little New Year. The owner takes an axe and asks a persimmon tree, for example, "Will it grow or not?", threatening, "If it doesn't, I'll cut it down." A child then stands behind the tree and replies, "It will grow, it will grow." This is a spell to hope for a good harvest, and is also performed on apple trees in England and other countries.

[Oto Tokihiko]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

元旦(がんたん)正月に対して正月15日をいう。女正月ともいい、多くの行事の行われる日である。花正月といわれるように、14日に楊(やなぎ)やヌルデの木を切ってきてそれを削り、小さな花をつくり、粟穂稗穂(あわぼひえぼ)、稲の花などといって飾っておく。また物作りといって木の枝に餅(もち)や団子を刺して座敷に立て、豊作を祈願する。養蚕をやっている所では餅で繭玉(まゆだま)をつくって飾り木に成らせる。王朝時代には主水司(もいとりのつかさ)から七種粥(ななくさがゆ)を献上する儀があったが、民間では小豆粥(あずきがゆ)をたく。この粥をたく前に早稲(わせ)、中稲(なかて)、晩稲(おくて)を表す早中晩3本の竹筒を入れておき、炊き上がり後その中に入っている粥の多少によって作物のできを占っている（粥占(かゆうら)）。ほかにこの「世の中ためし」という年穀の豊凶を占うものに、白米を敷いたお膳(ぜん)の上に早中晩の三つの餅をのせ、餅に着いた米粒の多少によってその年の稲のできを占う年占(としうら)の行事も行われる。

　小正月の行事には子供の活躍するものが多い。この日は道祖神を祀(まつ)り火焚(た)きをするのであるが、その前に子供たちは家々を回って門松(かどまつ)や正月の飾り物を集めていく。小正月の行事に子供たちの籠(こも)る正月小屋をつくる所が各地にある。子供たちはこの中に泊まって餅を焼いて食べ、鳥追いの歌をうたったりする。サイト小屋という地方が多いが、北陸地方から東北地方の南部では鳥小屋といっている。秋田県ではカマクラという雪小屋の行事が有名である。雪穴の中に水神様を祀っている。サエノカミの火焚きはトンド、サギチョウ、オンベなどのほか、信州ではサンクロウ、北九州ではホッケンギョウといっている。この火に当たると風邪をひかないといい、また習字の紙をくべてそれが高くあがると字が上手になるという。正月14日にヌルデの木などで祝い箸(ばし)とか祝い棒をつくる例が各地にある。ヨメタタキ棒などといって子供が新婦の尻(しり)をこれでたたく。子供ができるまじないという。

　小正月には若者が家々を訪れ、お祝いといって簡単な藁(わら)製品などを持って行って餅をもらってくる風習が全国各地にある。晩方に戸をたたいて訪れるのでホトホトとかコトコトとかトタタキとかいい、蓑笠(みのかさ)を着ているのでカセドリという土地もある。土佐ではカユツリといっている。訪問者は顔を隠しているが、水をかけられたりする。秋田県の男鹿(おが)半島のなまはげ、石川県能登(のと)半島のアマメハギ（アマミハギ）などは、青年が蓑を着て鬼の面をかぶり、家々を訪れ、怠け者はいないかといって家中を探し回る。ナマミもアマメも怠け者の足にできる火斑(ひだこ)のことで、それを剥(は)ぎ取って食うといって懲らすので、子供たちは恐れ、おとなしくなる。なお、なまはげやアマメハギは「来訪神：仮面・仮装の神々」を構成する行事の一つとして、ユネスコ（国連教育科学文化機関）の無形文化遺産に登録されている。また小正月には果樹責めという行事がある。主人が斧(おの)を持って、柿(かき)の木などに、「成るか、成らぬか」といい、「成らねば切り倒すぞ」と脅す。すると子供が木の後ろに立って「成ります成ります」と答える。豊熟を期待する呪法(じゅほう)で、イギリスなどでもリンゴの木に対して行われている。

［大藤時彦］

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