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How most Japanese people spend their New Year’s: eating nonstop at home 【Poll】

Krista Rogers Dec 31, 2013
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How will you be spending New Year’s Eve this year? Celebrating with family or friends? Watching a countdown on TV? Sleeping, oblivious to the world and perfectly happy about it? Here’s what Japanese respondents on one online poll said they’re be doing when the ball drops, the clock strikes twelve, and the temple bells are rung 108 times.

A total of 1,200 people responded to a poll on Japanese website Life Media, ranging in age from their tens through their sixties. According to the results, the majority of Japanese people will usher in the New Year by staying at home and eating toshikoshi-soba (“crossing over to the next year soba”) and pre-prepared treats like o-sechi ryori (a special feast eaten on New Year’s Day; it’s considered unlucky to cook during the first few days of the new year), o-zoni (special New Year’s soup with a clear broth), and mochi (rice cakes) while reminiscing about 2013.

(It must be nice to be lazy at home and eat food like this o-sechi all day:)

Here are a sampling of the questions and response graphs from the poll.

▼Question 1: Will you eat toshikoshi-soba this New Year’s Eve?

Yellow = will eat; blue = will not eat; red = unanswered

First row: men and women of all ages combined

Second row on: Men listed by age (men of all ages combined, women in their tens, twenties, thirties, etc.)

Ninth row on: Women listed by age (women of all ages combined, women in their tens, twenties, thirties, etc.)

About 69% of people will eat toshikoshi-soba on New Year’s Eve; 53% of whom will eat it for dinner. While the percentage of people in their twenties who will eat the special soba was low, 42% will eat the noodles when the temple bells ring 108 times at midnight (another Japanese custom). Furthermore, 83% of people will eat at home, while only 2% will go out to eat.

In addition, when it comes to o-sechi, only 12% of people said they will make everything from scratch, while 34% said they will cook some things and buy other things. About half of them will prepare o-sechi at home. As for o-zoni, most people prefer their clear soup with square mochi and a hint of soy sauce flavor.

▼Question 2: Where do you plan to spend the end of the year/beginning of the new year?

Yellow = at home; blue=family/relative’s house; red = domestic travel; green = international travel; purple = other

First row: men and women of all ages combined

Second row: men of all ages combined

Third row: women of all ages combined

Next, 78% responded that they will spend New Year’s at home, while about 3% will travel within Japan. 83% will relax at home on New Year’s Eve, and 43% of those will watch special television programs as they count down to midnight. 81% will spend New Year’s Day taking it easy at home, too. Sounds pretty good to us!

▼Question 9: What kind of year was 2013 for you?

Yellow = very good; blue = good; red = so-so; green = bad; purple = very bad

First row: men and women of all ages combined

Second row: men of all ages combined

Third row: women of all ages combined

35% of people said that 2013 was either a good or really good year. Unfortunately, about 6% of them had a bad time in 2013…hopefully they’ll have better luck next year.

Everyone, are you looking forward to 2014? If you don’t already have any New Year’s traditions of your own, why not celebrate this year Japanese style?

Source: ねとらぼ
Images: ねとらぼ, Wikipedia