1.
June (traditional Japanese month name)
The old Japanese name for the sixth month. Despite the characters literally suggesting 'month without water,' it actually refers to the month when rice paddies are filled with water (水の月). Still used in literary, poetic, and cultural contexts.
2.
a triangular wagashi (Japanese sweet) eaten on June 30
A traditional Japanese confection made of sweetened rice flour topped with sweet azuki beans. It has a distinctive triangular shape representing ice. Eaten on June 30 as part of the Nagoshi no Harae purification ritual to ward off illness for the rest of the year.
One of the twelve traditional Japanese month names (和風月名). The characters 水無月 literally mean "month without water," but this is interpreted as 水の月 (month of water), referring to the flooding of rice paddies during the rainy season.
Traditional month names
- 睦月 (January), 如月 (February), 弥生 (March)
- 卯月 (April), 皐月 (May), 水無月 (June)
- 文月 (July), 葉月 (August), 長月 (September)
Cultural note
The 水無月 sweet (sense 2) is especially associated with 京都. It is eaten on June 30 during 夏越の祓え, a Shinto purification ritual held at the midpoint of the year. The triangular shape symbolizes ice, which was a luxury in ancient times, and eating it was believed to ward off summer illness.