When it comes to 祝日 (shukujitsu, national holidays) in Japan, you’ll find there’s a bit of a drought in 六月 (roku-gatsu, June). That’s funny because June is also when 梅雨 (tsuyu, rainy season) occurs. Anyway, the closest we get to a holiday in June is 父の日 (chichi no hi, Father’s Day) on the third Sunday of June, which is June 16 this year.
June 16 is historically known as 和菓子の日 (wagashi no hi, Japanese Sweets Day), a designation that dates back to the year 848 when Emperor Ninmyo offered sweets and rice cakes to the gods in exchange for good health. The era of his reign would later be identified by three 元号 (gengō, era names), the latter of which was 嘉祥 (kashō [kajō], Kasho). It lasted from 848 until 851, the year after the emperor’s death in 850.
嘉祥 has come to mean “good omen” or “auspicious sign,” おめでたいしるし (omedetai shirushi) in Japanese, as well as being connected to 和菓子 (wagashi, Japanese confectionery). And when we say 和菓子, we’re not talking about chocolate — think 餅 (mochi, rice cake) and 小豆 (azuki, red beans) served with seasonal 果物 (kudamono, fruit).
お父さんが甘党なら、今年は和菓子を贈ってみない？ (Otōsan ga amatō nara, kotoshi wa wagashi o okutte-minai, If your father has a sweet tooth, this year why not try gifting him Japanese sweets?) It’s said there are two types of people in Japan — 甘党 (amatō) and 辛党 (karatō). The former refers to お酒を飲まず甘い菓子類を好む人 (o-sake o nomazu amai kashi-rui o konomu hito, people who opt for sweet treats instead of consuming alcohol). Thus the latter, 辛党, is used for people who prefer alcoholic beverages over sweets. The kanji 辛 (shin, kara[i], tsura[i]) means spiciness, so nowadays the word 辛党 is often misused for those who like spicy foods such as カレー (karē, curry) and キムチ (kimuchi, kimchi).
So, is your dad 甘党 or 辛党? Either way, a recent poll revealed that fathers in Japan appreciate 感謝の言葉 (kansha no kotoba) — “sweet words,” or “words of gratitude” — and 家族みんなで過ごす時間 (kazoku minna de sugosu jikan, family time spent together). Unlike moms, who can never get enough “me” time, dads seem to want more quality time with their family. Depending on your father’s preference, either おやつの時間 (o-yatsu no jikan, snack time) or 晩酌 (banshaku, evening drink) can be a great time to spend together.
Back in the 嘉祥時代 (kashō jidai, Kasho Era), people would eat 16 snacks and rice cakes to ward off evil — but today you needn’t eat that much. Traditional 和菓子 shops like とらや (Toraya) offer limited assortments of specially designed 饅頭 (manjū, steamed buns with filling) and 羊羹 (yōkan, jellied red bean paste) specifically at this time of year. In your hunt for either of those, you may come across the word 水菓子 (mizugashi, jelly dessert), but that term originally suggested 果物 instead of お菓子 (o-kashi, snacks).
If your dad isn’t of the 甘党 variety and you’d still like to get him お菓子, you could opt for 干菓子 (higashi, dried sweets) like 煎餅 (senbei, rice crackers) to go with his drinks, but technically 和菓子の日 focuses more on sweets made from 小豆 since people used to believe that あんこ (anko, sweet red bean paste) is nutritious and therefore a good snack to indulge in before the summer heat arrives.
You can buy 和菓子 almost anywhere, but get them from a place like the aforementioned とらや and your father will feel extra special. 名店だけあって美味しいよ (Meiten dake atte oishii yo, It’s a famous shop so, naturally, it’s delicious).
One grammatical structure that can be used in your conversations with dad is だけに (dakeni) and its variations of だけあって (dakeatte) and だけのことはある (dake no koto wa aru). These terms are used when you are presenting a fact and want to follow it up with an evaluation (usually a positive one). In our sentence above, 名店だけあって美味しいよ, the “fact” is that the store is famous or has a good reputation, and the “evaluation” is that the snacks must be delicious.
When translated into English, だけに terms are usually rendered as “naturally,” “as one would expect” and “for good reason,” as in, 人気店だけにいつも混んでいる (Ninkiten dakeni itsumo konde-iru, Given it’s a popular shop, it’s always crowded), ジョンは元サッカー選手だけに足が速い (Jon wa moto sakkā senshu dakeni ashi ga hayai, John is a former soccer player so, as you’d expect, he runs fast) or 彼女は真面目なだけあって市長としても優秀だ (Kanojo wa majime na dake atteshichō to shite mo yushū da, She’s a diligent person, naturally [I] can understand [why she] is excellent as a mayor).
Finally, さすが (sasuga, great) can be added for emphasis if it comes before or after the topic: ジョンはさすが元サッカー選手だけに足が速い or さすがジョンは元サッカー選手だけに足が速い.
Is your 父の日 gift an expensive bottle of sake? Your father could reply with, 高いだけのことはあるね (Takai dake no koto wa aru ne, I can see why it’s expensive) as he sips the top-notch sake. だけのことはある tends to translate as “that explains it,” “it’s no wonder” or “it’s no surprise.” In response to the 高いお酒 (takai o-sake, expensive sake) comment, you might say, 並んで買っただけのことはあるよね (Narande katta dake no koto wa aru yo ne, It’s no wonder I had to line up to buy [it]).
Naturally, I can’t script out your conversations for you, but one thing that you’re sure to say on 父の日 is ありがとう (arigatō, thank you). Words like お父さん、いつもありがとう (Otōsan itsumo arigatō, Dad, thank you always) and いつまでも元気で長生きしてね (Itsu made mo genki de nagaiki shite ne, Stay healthy and live long for many years to come) are sweet enough for any father to hear, even if they’re not into candy. Happy Father’s Day!
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