9/14/2005

Indian Summer (koharubi)

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Indian Summer, koharubi  小春日

***** Location: Japan, worldwide
***** Season: Early winter
***** Category: Season


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Explanation

koharubiyori 小春日和、
ko rokugatsu 小六月"small June"

koharunagi 小春凪(こはるなぎ)no wind at Indian summer time
koharuzora 小春空(こはるぞら) sky at Indian sumer time

Koharu 小春 means a little spring and biyori (hiyori 日和) a fine day any time of the year, literally meaning the sun is at peace. This word has a very gentle ring to the Japanese.
We can add the suffix "biyori" at many other words, like a fine day for an excursion "ensokubiyori" 遠足日和.
According to the Asian Lunar calendar, this was October, but now it is November, when we have a stroke of fine days with bright sunshine.


A warm day in winter, feeling like the coming spring, is quite common, especially after the New Year.

We also have

fuyu atataka 冬暖か (ふゆあたたか) winter is warm
..... fuyu nukushi 冬ぬくし(ふゆぬくし)
toodan 冬暖(とうだん) warm winter
..... dantoo 暖冬(だんとう)

. Winter, the season (fuyu)
 



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Worldwide use

Why INDIAN ?

The first reference that we have is from a book with the title A Snow Storm as it affects the American Farmer, which was written by a French-American farmer named J H St John de Crèvecoeur in about 1777. In it he said “Then a severe frost succeeds which prepares it to receive the voluminous coat of snow which is soon to follow; though it is often preceded by a short interval of smoke and mildness, called the Indian Summer”.

There are several explanations for where the phrase came from, mostly put forward in the early nineteenth century, which suggested the term was of sufficient antiquity by then that its origin had gone out of living memory. William and Mary Morris suggest it came about because the word “Indian” had been adopted as a term among early colonists to describe something false, or a poor imitation of the real thing, as in Indian corn or Indian tea.

Whatever the reason, this name for a short period of fine weather at the end of autumn is now the standard term, even in Britain, where older names such as St Luke’s summer, St Martin’s summer or All-Hallown Summer are now obsolete or rare.

© www.worldwidewords.org. /Michael Quinion

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Indian summer

"spell of warm weather after the first frost," first recorded 1778, Amer.Eng., perhaps so called because it was first noted in regions inhabited by Indians, or because the Indians first described it to the Europeans. No evidence connects it with the color of fall leaves or a season of Indian attacks on settlements. It is the Amer.Eng. version of British All-Hallows summer, Fr. été de la Saint-Martin (feast day Nov. 11), etc. Also colloquial was St. Luke's summer (or little summer), period of warm weather occurring about St. Luke's day (Oct. 18).
© www.etymonline.com

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The term Indian summer has been used for more than two centuries.
The earliest known use was by French American writer St. John de Crevecoeur in rural New York in 1778. There are several theories as to its etymology:

* It may be so named because this was the traditional period during which early North Americans First Nations/Native American harvested their fall crops.
* It may be of Asian Indian origin rather than North American Indian. H. E. Ware, an English writer, noted that ships traversing the Indian Ocean loaded their cargo most often during the Indian summer, or fair weather season. Several ships actually had an "I.S." on their hull at the load level thought safe during Indian summer.

© More in the WIKIPEDIA !

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Germany

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In German, the Indian summer is called "Altweibersommer", which is a slightly less polite way of saying "old ladies' summer". Interesting though that it should be almost the same in Hungarian, which is a very different language!

We had a few days of Indian summer here in Europe -- October has been a somewhat more "summery" month than anything we have had since the end of April! I exaggerate but infinitely slightly...

Indian summer --
settling to smoke and drink
on the doorstep

(2006)


Indian summer --
walking down the sunny side
of the street

(2007)

Isabelle Prondzynski, October 2007


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Hungary

falling leaves sound
invite to meditation
old ladies' summer

hulló falevelek hangja
meditálásra késztet
vénasszonyok nyara

In Hungarian, the equivalent to the USA "Indian Summer" is the idiom translated "old ladies' summer", vénasszonyok nyara. In this poem it is the last line in the English version and the Hungarian version.

 © Julianna Kádár

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Russia

"Women's summer" (bahbia leto)


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Things found on the way



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HAIKU



古家のゆがみを直す小春かな
furu-ie no yugami o naosu koharu kana

he repairs the slant
of my old home
during a warm spell in early winter . . .


The cut marker KANA is at the end of line 3.

Buson talks about a carpenter, who had come to repair his home before the winter starts. Since it is a warm day, he works leisurely and we can almost hear the sound of his hammer and saw.

. Yosa Buson 与謝蕪村 in Edo .


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小春日やお茶のけむりを眺めをり
koharubi ya ocha no kemuri o nagame-ori

indian summer afternoon -
watching the steam rise
from hot green tea

Etsuko Yanagibori
(Tr. Gabi Greve)
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/cherrypoetryclub/message/20609

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Indian summer –
the rattle of cornstalks
in a windy field

Indian summer -
earth-scented breeze strokes
my daughter’s hair

Indian summer –
all the windows on the street
open

Indian summer –
a new bird
at my window

Indian summer –
overhead an airplane
rocks its wings three times

Zhanna Rader

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indian summer--
in the patches of sunlight
schoolgirls bundle up


Angèle Lux

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Indian summer --
balcony spider weaves
between the rails


Isabelle Prondzynski, 2005


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Indian summer
the acupuncturist brings his cactus
back outside


From my new book “the canary funeral”
- Shared by Alan Pizzarelli -
Joys of Japan, 2012



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Related words

***** Goose summer

In the days of Middle English, a period of mild weather in late autumn or early winter was sometimes called a "gossomer," literally "goose summer." People may have chosen that name for a late-season warm spell because October and November were the months when people felt that geese were at their best for eating.
"Gossomer" was also used in Middle English as a word for filmy cobwebs floating through the air in calm clear weather, apparently because somebody thought the webs looked like the down of a goose. This sense eventually inspired the adjective "gossamer," which means "light, delicate, or tenuous" - just like cobwebs or goose down.

goose summer--
many colors fill
forest and field


"chibi" (pen-name for Dennis M. Holmes)
Ocotober 2007

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Origin:
Gossomer, gossummer, gosesomer, gosamer, gossamer, perh. For goose summer, from its downy appearance, or perh. For God's summer, cf. G. Mariengarr gossamer, properly Mary's yarn, in allusion to the Virgin Mary. Perhaps the E. Word alluded to a legend that the gossamer was the remnant of the Virgin Mary's winding sheet, which dropped from her when she was taken up to heaven.
For the use of summer in the sense of film or threads, cf. G. Maedchensommer, Altweibersommer, fliegender Sommer, all meaning, gossamer.

Source: Websters Dictionary

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. . . . WINTER - - the complete SAIJIKI

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12 comments:

Gabi Greve said...

koharubiyori is the name of a Japanese sweet for tea

http://www.kaho-fukuoka.co.jp/saijiki/2004-11/koharubi.html

日本に限らず、色々な国にも良く似た時季があるそうで、中国 China では「小陽春 small sun in spring」、Amerika アメリカでは「Indian Summer」、少し時季はずれますが、ドイツGermany では「Altweibersommer(老婦人の夏 summer of old ladies)」、ロシア Russiaでは「Бабье лето(女性の夏 summer of the ladies」と呼ぶそうです。
語源は様々に語られていますが、東洋は春、欧米露では夏、というのも面白いですね。

In the East, this winter day reminds us of spring, in the West, it reminds of us of summer.

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Michael Baribeau said...

.
According to...


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_summer


"Indian summer is a name given to a period of sunny, warm weather just before winter. This time is usually in late October or early November (Northern hemisphere) / late April or early May (Southern hemisphere), sometime after the first frost. It can persist for just a few days or sometimes over a week."

However I don't have my Haiku World to verify.

Here in Michigan USA I have always perceived Indian Summer as a late fall phenomena.

Interesting though, reading the Wikipedia entry it has another entry regarding a phenomina I was unfamilier with called January Thaw...


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_thaw


Michael Baribeau

Michael Baribeau said...

Indian Summer has always felt like a late autumn kigo for me here in Michigan USA, but around here it don't feel like winter, early or otherwise, until there's snow on the ground:)




"While almost exclusively thought of as an autumnal event, I was surprised to read that Indian Summers have been given credit for warm spells as late as December and January (but then, just where does that leave the "January Thaw" phenomenon?)."

http://www.crh.noaa.gov/dtx/?page=stories/i-summer




"Indian summer is a name given to a period of sunny, warm weather just before winter. This time is usually in late October or early November (Northern hemisphere) / late April or early May (Southern hemisphere), sometime after the first frost. It can persist for just a few days or sometimes over a week."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_summer




Indian Summer Definition: A period of warm weather following a cold spell or a hard frost, Indian summer can occur between St. Martin’s Day (November 11) and November 20. Although there are differing dates for its occurrence, for more than 200 years the Almanac has adhered to the saying “If All Saints’ brings out winter, St. Martin’s brings out Indian summer.” As for the origin of the term, some say it comes from the early Native Americans, who believed that the condition was caused by a warm wind sent from the court of their southwestern god, Cautantowwit.

http://www.almanac.com/word/oneanswer.php?wordnumber=14422





St. Luke’s Little Summer

Definition: A spell of warm weather that occurs about the time of the saint’s feast day, October 18, this period is sometimes referred to as Indian summer.

http://www.almanac.com/word/oneanswer.php?wordnumber=14421




While researching Indian Summer came across this one, January Frost that I didn't know...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_thaw




Interesting short weather/season list

http://www.almanac.com/word/index.php?startat=1&subcategory=58




Michael Baribeau

Gabi Greve said...

Indian summer ~
lady bug examines
sun on a red car ~


Narayanan Raghunathan


This haiku has two kigo.

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Anonymous said...

.
Indian Summer
the flip side
of a hit record


Ed Markowski, 2006

http://tinywords.com/haiku/2006/09/21

Anonymous said...


skipping that lecture
on metaphor in haiku
Indian summer


Bill Kenney

http://tinywords.com/haiku/2007/10/18

Anonymous said...

Indian summer
he tells me I should call it
Native American summer

Bill Kenney

http://haiku-usa.blogspot.com/2007/10/indian-summer-one-more-time.html

Gabi Greve said...

goose summer

there used to be goose fairs in autumn - when the geese would be brought together for sale for the winter.
There was a huge one at Nottingham, still called Goose Fair.

Sally Evans

Anonymous said...

Indian summer ...
between bouts of
chemotherapy

Ella Wagemakers

Anonymous said...

indian summer...
a napping dragonfly
atop the wheatstalk



-brett brady

Anonymous said...

Indian summer
in my niece's flip flops
lasting sunflowers

Heike Gewi

Gabi Greve said...

indian summer
around the horsechestnut trees
a sheen of conkers

Alan Summers, UK

1. Blithe Spirit, British Haiku Society journal, September 1999

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