1.
end of summer; late summer
The closing period of the summer season, typically late August to early September in Japan. A phrase with strong emotional resonance in Japanese culture, evoking nostalgia, the passage of time, and a bittersweet sense of endings.
夏の終わりが近づいている。
The end of summer is approaching.
夏の終わりに花火大会があった。
There was a fireworks festival at the end of summer.
夏の終わりの夕暮れは、どこか寂しさを感じさせる。
The twilight at the end of summer somehow evokes a feeling of loneliness.
A set phrase frequently used in literature, songs, and everyday conversation to mark the transition from summer to autumn. In Japanese culture, the end of summer carries particularly strong emotional associations: the end of school holidays, the fading of cicada songs, the last fireworks festivals, and the shift toward cooler weather. It is a common theme in songs, novels, and anime.
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- 夏の終わりの空: the sky at the end of summer
- 夏の終わりを告げる: to signal the end of summer
- 夏の終わりの思い出: memories from the end of summer
SIMILAR WORDS:
- 晩夏: late summer — the Sino-Japanese equivalent; more literary
- 残暑: lingering summer heat — the heat that continues into early autumn
- 夏の始まり: beginning of summer — the opposite seasonal transition