Japan’s Coming of Age Day, or Seijin no Hi, celebrates people who have reached adulthood, traditionally at age 20.
The national holiday is held on the second Monday of January. Local governments invite eligible young adults to ceremonies, where speeches, congratulations, and formal photographs are common. Many women wear furisode kimono, while men may wear suits or traditional clothing.
The legal age of adulthood in Japan was lowered from 20 to 18 in 2022, but municipalities generally continued holding Coming of Age Day events for 20-year-olds, often renaming them “20-year-old celebrations.”
Seijin no Hi is different from Shichi-Go-San, which celebrates younger children at ages three, five, and seven. It is also a modern civic holiday rather than an ancient religious initiation rite.