Greenery Day

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This article is about the Japanese holiday Greenery Day. For the rock band, see Green Day.

Greenery Day (みどりの日, Midori no hi^?) is a Japanese holiday. Between 1989 and 2006 it was celebrated on April 29. In 2007 Greenery Day was moved to May 4.

The present observation of Greenery Day as a national holiday in Japan stems from the celebration of the Emperor Shōwa's birthday on April 29 every year during the Shōwa era. In 1989, following the accession of the current Emperor Akihito to the Chrysanthemum Throne, the name of the holiday was changed from "Birthday of the Emperor" to "Greenery Day". Officially, as its name suggests, it is a day to commune with nature and to be thankful for blessings. The day was renamed to "Greenery Day" to acknowledge the controversial wartime emperor's love for plants without directly mentioning his name. [1] However, in practice it is seen as just another day that expands the Japanese Golden Week vacation.

In 2007, Greenery Day moved to May 4, and April 29 was changed to Shōwa Day in accordance with a 2005 revision of the law pertaining to public holidays. The Shōwa Emperor reigned for 62 years and 2 weeks. On May 3, 1947, he became a symbol of Japan by the new constitution of the country.

Some found the decision to reintroduce Shōwa Day controversial, claiming that it could raise anti-Japanese sentiment in Japan's neighbours who still harbour hostile feelings for Japan's expansionist policies during World War II.

Years	April 29	May 4
before 1986	The Emperor's Birthday	Non-holiday
1986-1988	The Emperor's Birthday	National holiday
1989-2006	Greenery Day	National holiday
2007-	Shōwa Day	Greenery Day

In that Greenery Day is dedicated to nature, it is similar to holidays such as Earth Day and Arbor Day. However, Greenery Day is not exactly the same as other environmentally-focused holidays. Each holiday has its own meaning, history and tradition.