Micro-seasons · 七十二候 · No. 13
玄鳥至 Swallows return 清明 せいめい · つばめきたる
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春 Spring夏 Summer秋 Autumn冬 Winter— solid still observed · dashed dropped 2021 · faint never observed All 72 — pick one
東風解凍 East wind melts the ice 黄鶯睍睆 Bush warblers start to sing 魚上氷 Fish emerge from the ice 土脉潤起 Rain moistens the soil 霞始靆 Mist starts to linger 草木萌動 Grass and trees sprout 蟄虫啓戸 Hibernating insects emerge 桃始笑 Peach blossoms begin to bloom 菜虫化蝶 Caterpillars become butterflies 雀始巣 Sparrows start to nest 桜始開 Cherry blossoms start to bloom 雷乃発声 Distant thunder sounds 玄鳥至 Swallows return 鴻雁北 Wild geese fly north 虹始見 First rainbows appear 葭始生 Reeds begin to sprout 霜止出苗 Last frost, rice seedlings grow 牡丹華 Peonies bloom 蛙始鳴 Frogs start singing 蚯蚓出 Earthworms surface 竹笋生 Bamboo shoots sprout 蚕起食桑 Silkworms feast on mulberry 紅花栄 Safflowers bloom 麦秋至 Wheat ripens 螳螂生 Praying mantises hatch 腐草為蛍 Rotten grass becomes fireflies 梅子黄 Plums turn yellow 乃東枯 Self-heal withers 菖蒲華 Irises bloom 半夏生 Crow-dipper sprouts 温風至 Warm winds blow 蓮始開 Lotuses bloom 鷹乃学習 Hawks learn to fly 桐始結花 Paulownia trees produce seeds 土潤溽暑 Earth is damp, air is humid 大雨時行 Great rains sometimes fall 涼風至 Cool winds arrive 寒蝉鳴 Evening cicadas sing 蒙霧升降 Thick fog descends 綿柎開 Cotton bolls open 天地始粛 Heat starts to die down 禾乃登 Rice ripens 草露白 Dew glistens white on grass 鶺鴒鳴 Wagtails start to sing 玄鳥去 Swallows leave 雷乃収声 Thunder ceases 蟄虫坏戸 Insects hole up underground 水始涸 Rice fields are drained 鴻雁来 Wild geese return 菊花開 Chrysanthemums bloom 蟋蟀在戸 Crickets chirp by the door 霜始降 Frost starts to fall 霎時施 Light rains sometimes fall 楓蔦黄 Maples and ivy turn yellow 山茶始開 Sasanqua camellias bloom 地始凍 Land starts to freeze 金盞香 Daffodils bloom 虹蔵不見 Rainbows hide 朔風払葉 North wind strips the leaves 橘始黄 Tachibana citrus turns yellow 閉塞成冬 Cold sets in, winter begins 熊蟄穴 Bears hibernate 鱖魚群 Salmon gather and swim upstream 乃東生 Self-heal sprouts 麋角解 Deer shed their antlers 雪下出麦 Wheat sprouts under snow 芹乃栄 Parsley flourishes 水泉動 Springs begin to thaw 雉始雊 Pheasants start to call 款冬華 Butterburs bud 水沢腹堅 Ice thickens on streams 鶏始乳 Hens start to lay eggs No. 13 · 清明 せいめい · Spring
玄鳥至つばめきたる tsubame kitaru Swallows return
Observation dropped in 2021
By JMA records, the first swallow now arrives ~1.4 days earlier than in 1953.JMA 生物季節観測 累年値 (つばめの初見; 5000 station-years, 1953–2020; ~0.2 days/decade, R²=0)
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燕が南から来ます。
The swallows come from the south.
燕つばめ tsubame swallow 来るくる kuru to come 春はる haru spring Learn these → Learn the words of every season with JIVX — short daily Japanese sentences, graded the way a teacher would, not flashcards.
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