By Tatsuya Hironaka
Tourists who travel in rural areas of Japan in May can watch colorful fish-shaped objects fluttering in the wind. They are called koi-no-bori, namely, carps climbing upstream.
The fish objects are carps because carps are considered strong and beautiful fish in Japan. The carp streamers are a symbol of the ideal Japanese family. There are usually more than three fabric carps displayed, symbolizing the nuclear family.
The set should have the biggest one, the second biggest and the smallest. The biggest one on the top, usually painted in dark colors, represents the father. The size is usually seven meters long. The second one painted red, represents the mother, whose size is about five meters long.
The smallest one shows the child, whose size is about three meters long. If a family has more children, they should add the number of the small one. Since they are enormous, it is rare for families living in cites show off traditional carp streamers, but they hang smaller sets made of paper in their balconies, hoping that their children will grow up healthy and strong just like the carp streamers.
Photo by “Apr09(2009-04-30)308” by giu205 is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
