Children’s Day

May 5th in Japan is Children’s Day. Families that have a boy will hoist carp flags (koinoburi) outside their homes and you’ll see the same in various public places across the country, too.

The black carp, the largest one on the koinobori flag, represents the father and is known as the magoi. The red carp represents the mother (higoi), and the last carp (often blue) represents the child (traditionally the son) with an additional carp added for each younger sibling.