XPost: soc.culture.japan, alt.usage.english   
   From: HenHanna@devnull.tb   
      
   On 7/6/2024 7:28 PM, Stefan Ram wrote:   
   >    Yay! It's Tanabata!   
   >   
   >                               良い七夕を   
   >   
   >    The date of Tanabata varies by region of the country, but the   
   >    first festivities begin on 7 July of the Gregorian calendar.   
   >    The celebration is held at various days between July and August.   
      
      
      
              >>>    Unfortunately, I can't definitively say whether July   
   7th in Japan has been cooler in the last centuries without specific   
   historical weather data.   
      
      
      
      
                 Summer 2023 in Japan was exceptionally hot. Here's some   
   evidence to support that:   
      
   Records Broken:          According to the Japan Meteorological Agency   
   (JMA), summer 2023 (June-August) was the hottest on record since   
   statistics began in 1898. The average temperature across 15 observation   
   stations was 1.76°C higher than the normal for 1991-2020.   
      
      
      
                         Japan is highly likely to suffer a scorching   
   summer this year, after logging the hottest summer on record last year.   
   Average temperatures are expected to be high in June-August across the   
   country, with the mercury likely to rise especially in August, according   
   to the Meteorological Agency.             May 25, 2024   
      
   ___________________________________   
      
      
      
                       No, Tanabata (七夕, Star Festival) in Japan hasn't   
   always been celebrated on July 7th according to the Gregorian calendar   
   we use today.       Here's why:   
      
             Historical Calendar:          Traditionally, Japan used a   
   lunisolar calendar, which combines the cycles of the moon and the sun.   
      
   This calendar doesn't perfectly align with the Gregorian calendar, so   
   the date of the seventh day of the seventh lunar month can vary in the   
   Gregorian calendar.   
      
      
   Shifting Dates:             Because of this difference, Tanabata could   
   fall anywhere between early July and mid-August depending on the year.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)