Origin of Boys' Day icon in Chinese myth
By Paula Rath
Advertiser Staff Writer
Call it a cultural conundrum: The symbolism of the carp, the icon of Japanese Boys' Day celebrations, originated in China. And, while Hawai'i has adopted the Boys' Day observance, we follow the tradition in a slightly different way from today's Japan.
Gregory Yamamoto • The Honolulu Advertiser
The koi nobori — the carp flags that fly over many Hawai'i and Japan homes for Tango-no-sekku (Japanese for the Boys' Day Festival May 5) — have their roots in Chinese myth, according to materials provided by the Japanese Cultural Center of Hawaii.
The koi has become the icon of Boys' Day for the Japanese.
The Chinese say carp have the ability to swim upstream. A legend said some carp succeeded even in rising above the Dragon's Gate, a torrential stretch of the Yellow River punctuated with treacherous rapids and waterfalls. These hardy fish, they say, turned into dragons when they reached their destination. Some were said to live to 100 years or more. The carp came to represent strength, perseverance, longevity and masculinity, virtues to which Japanese families wanted their sons to aspire.
The custom of flying koi nobori dates to the Edo Period in Japan, from 1603 to 1867. Traditionally, one carp was flown for each boy in the family. While in modern-day Japan many families fly carp for both male and female children, Hawai'i seems to stay with the tradition of honoring only male children with the windsocks. (Girls have their own festival day March 3.)
The largest carp, which is often red, represents the oldest boy. Smaller carp, usually black, stand for the younger males in the household.
There don't seem to be concrete rules for when to put up and take down the windsocks.
Commercially made koi nobori are sold at Iida and Shirokiya in Ala Moana Center for about $5 to $25. Local crafter Joyce Kokubun, who calls her cottage industry Hubbard's Cupboard, makes them from glitter-embellished fabric. They sell at Iida for $9 to $38.50.
