山の日やまのひ・Mountain Day is Japan’s newest holiday on August 11. Although the official announcement was in 2014, it wasn’t celebrated until later in 2016. The holiday is meant to highlight the blessings that come from the mountains that make up most of the country’s terrain and encourage the public to learn more about the mountains of Japan. It was also a result of multiple initiatives done by mountain hiking clubs like the 日本山岳会にほんさんぐかい・Japanese Alpine Club.
Thanks to the addition of 山の日Mountain Day, the country’s 祝日しゅくじつ・national holidayしゅくじつ count went up to 16 days.
Before the official announcement, a handful of 地域ちいき・regions in the country had already celebrated the holiday. August 11 was chosen due to the kanji characters. When written in kanji characters, the month of August is written as 八 which resembles a mountain, while the number 11 resembles a pair of trees. Aside from that, there are no other national holidays celebrated in August.
While the holiday encourages people to show appreciation for the mountains and learn more about them, there are no strict traditions that need to be followed.