88th birthday - Beiju

A celebration of longevity for the 88th year of life. It is also called the celebration of rice. The number 88 is related to the character for rice. Since the Edo period, it has been a custom to invite relatives and acquaintances to a banquet to celebrate the longevity of the elders of the family and to rejoice in the prosperity of the family, and this custom continues to this day. Celebrations of the longevity of elders in the political, academic, and business worlds are particularly grand. There was an old custom of presenting participants with a wooden measuring cup and a fire blowing bamboo to bring good fortune to their longevity, but the reason for this is unclear. In any case, it has long been held as the final celebration of longevity after the 60th birthday (60th birthday), 70th birthday (70th birthday), and 77th birthday (77th birthday). Later, the celebrations of 90th birthday (sotsūju) and 99th birthday (hakujū) were added, and in recent years these have also shown a tendency to become established.

[Toshimi Takeuchi]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

88歳の長寿の祝賀。米（よね）の祝いともいう。「八十八」の字画を詰めると「米」に通ずるからである。江戸時代以降、親類・縁故者を招き、一家一門の長老の寿福を祝い、あわせて家門の繁栄を喜び合う宴席を催す習俗が行われ、その余風はなおいまに及んでいる。政界、学界、実業界などの長老の賀寿はとくに盛大である。その際、寿福にあやかるために、枡(ます)の斗掻(とかき)や火吹き竹を参会者に贈る習俗が古くはあったが、その理由は判然としない。ともかく還暦（60歳）、古稀(こき)（70歳）、喜寿(きじゅ)（77歳）に次ぐ最終の長寿の祝いとして、久しく行われてきた。その後、卒寿(そつじゅ)（90歳）、白寿(はくじゅ)（99歳）の賀寿が追加され、近年はこれらも定着の傾向がみられる。

［竹内利美］

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