| Japanese Cherry |
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 Somei Yoshino Sakura |
| Scientific classification |
Sakura or Cherry Blossom (Japanese kanji and Chinese character: 桜 or 櫻; katakana: サクラ) is the Japanese name for ornamental cherry trees, Prunus serrulata, and their blossoms. Cherry fruit (known as sakuranbo) come from a different species of tree. It can also be used as a name.
History
Sakura is indigenous to the Himalayas and in east Asia such as China, Japan and South Korea. Japan has a wide variety of sakura—more than 305 species can be found there.[citation needed] This is because many were artificially hybridized or grafted by the Japanese many centuries ago.[citation needed]
Flower viewing
During the Heian Period (794–1191), the Japanese nobility sought to emulate many things Chinese, including the social phenomenon of flower viewing (hanami: 花見), where the imperial households, poets, singers, and other aristocrats would gather and party under the blossoms. The first recorded flower-viewing event took place at Kyoto's Shinsen-en Garden in 812. In China, it was the ume “plum” tree (actually a species of apricot) that was held in highest regard, but somehow by the middle of the ninth century, the sakura had replaced the plum as the favored species in Japan.[citation needed]
Every year the Japanese Meteorological Agency and the public track the sakura zensen (cherry-blossom front) as it moves northward up the archipelago with the approach of warmer weather via nightly forecasts following the weather segment of news programs. The blossoming begins in Okinawa in January and typically reaches Kyoto and Tokyo at the end of March or the beginning of April. It then proceeds into areas at the higher altitudes and northward, arriving in Hokkaidō a few weeks later. Japanese pay close attention to these forecasts and turn out in large numbers at parks, shrines, and temples with family and friends to hold flower-viewing parties. Hanami festivals celebrate the beauty of the sakura and for many are a chance to relax and enjoy the beautiful view. The custom of hanami dates back many centuries in Japan: the eighth-century chronicle Nihon Shoki (日本書紀) records hanami festivals being held as early as the third century CE.
Most Japanese schools and public buildings have sakura trees outside of them. Since the fiscal and school year both begin in April, in many parts of Honshū, the first day of work or school will coincide with the cherry blossom season.
Symbolism
In China, the cherry blossom is a symbol of feminine beauty and sexuality. It has also come to represent the feminine principle and love in the language of herbs. On the other hand, in Japan, cherry blossoms symbolize the transience of life because of their short blooming times. They have also come to represent clouds due to their nature of blooming en masse. Falling blossoms are used as metaphors for fallen warriors who died bravely in battle. [citation needed] Due to this connotation, they are closely associated with the samurai. This theme remains alive today and is often observed in pop culture, especially manga and anime. Music also works with the theme; for example, the band Kagrra often uses sakura in its songs and live shows for ambiance. The flower is also represented on all manner of consumer goods, including kimono, stationery, and dishware. Cherry blossoms are an enduring metaphor for the ephemeral nature of life, and as such are frequently depicted in art.[citation needed] There is at least one popular folk song, originally meant for the shakuhachi (bamboo flute), titled "Sakura", as well as a number of pop songs. "Sakura" is also a common Japanese female name.
During World War II, the sakura served as a motivating symbol for the Japanese people. Japanese pilots would paint them on the sides of their planes before embarking on a suicide mission, and they were referred to in the names of kamikaze units. A cherry blossom painted on the sides of the bomber symbolized the beauty and ephemerality of nature.[1] The government encouraged the people to believe that the souls of downed warriors were reincarnated in the blossoms. Even now Japanese military and police use the cherry blossom in emblems, flags, and insignia instead of star.[citation needed][clarify]
Japan’s most beloved variety of sakura is the Somei Yoshino. Its flowers are nearly pure white, tinged with the palest pink, especially near the stem. The flowers bloom and usually fall (or “scatter,” 散る chiru) within a week, before the leaves come out. Therefore, the trees look nearly white from top to bottom. The variety takes its name from the village of Somei (now part of Toshima in Tokyo). It was developed in the mid- to late-19th century at the end of the Edo period and the beginning of the Meiji period. The Somei Yoshino is so widely associated with cherry blossoms that jidaigeki and other works of fiction often depict the variety in the Edo period or earlier; such depictions are anachronisms.
Other categories include yamazakura, yaezakura, and shidarezakura. The yaezakura have large flowers, thick with rich pink petals. The shidarezakura, or weeping cherry, has branches that fall like those of a weeping willow, bearing cascades of pink flowers.
Outside Japan
Philippines
A province in Western Philippines, Palawan, serves as home to an endemic Palawan Cherry Blossoms, which appeared to resemble that of Japan's, thus the name.
United States
Japan gave 3,000 sakura trees as a gift to the United States in 1912 to celebrate the nations' then-growing friendship. These trees have since lined the shore of the Tidal Basin in Washington, D.C. (see West Potomac Park), and the gift was renewed with another 3,800 trees in 1956. The sakura trees continue to be a popular tourist attraction (and the subject of the annual National Cherry Blossom Festival) when they reach full bloom in early spring. Macon Georgia also has a festival for cherry blossoms.
Korea
Although sakura trees were already indigenous to Korea, following its annexation by Japan the Japanese planted sakura trees in locations that Koreans found offensive, such as at sites where ancient palaces, like Gyeongbokgung, once stood.[citation needed]
Most of these trees were later cut down and removed by locals, who resented them as a reminder of Japan's imperialism in Korea, but areas where sakura had been blossoming for millennia were left alone. Ironically, sakura trees for appreciation (viewing for their beauty) were replanted by Koreans in Cheju Island and other regions.[citation needed]
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