Japanese Culture
Lucky and Unlucky Numbers in Japan
Four sounds like death and nine like suffering, so Japanese quietly says yon and kyu instead. Eight is lucky for the opposite kind of reason - the shape of the character.
Japan Know How archive
Tag: yakudoshi
Japanese Eras
Kazoedoshi: Japan’s Other Way of Counting Age
You are one at birth and everyone gains a year at New Year. A baby born on 30 December is two years old on 2 January - and that count still decides four ceremonies.