Japan Day in Düsseldorf

Cultural festival in Düsseldorf, Germany

Fireworks of the 1983 Japan Week, the precursor of the Japan Day

The Japan Day (German: Japan-Tag) (Japanese: 日本デー) is a German-Japanese festival celebrated every year in May or June at Düsseldorf in Germany. The celebration can be seen as the successor of the Japan Week (German: Japan-Woche), which was first held in 1983 and again in 1993, as well as of the Japan Year (German: Japan-Jahr) 1999/2000. It is the largest festival of its kind in the world. North Rhine-Westphalia is the home of the biggest Japanese community in continental Europe.[1] According to German media in 2014 and 2016 Japan Day attracted about 750,000 visitors, while the Japanese Consulate in Germany claims for the 2007 event a record figure of more than one million spectators.

## Program

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* Japan Day 2016

* Martial arts show 2016

* Cosplay in 2016

* Fireworks in 2014

* 2016 cosplayers

* 2023 fireworks

Every Japan Day features the sale of Japanese food and drinks, as well as an extensive stage and sports program. Previous events have had performances by Japanese musicians, including koto players, choirs, J-Pop, and J-Rock groups, as well as martial artists.

In addition, several stalls are showcasing Japanese culture, such as kimono-fitting and a sake-seminar. Another attraction was a samurai army camp.

Late in the evening, a Bon dance marks the final event of the day. Spectators are invited to take part in the dance and Happis and Japanese fans are distributed to those participating.

The celebration closes with Japanese fireworks, consisting of several parts, each dedicated to a different topic.

### Cancellations

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For the first time since its inception, the 2020 Japan Day event scheduled for 16 May was canceled with no plans for a postponed event to take place later in the year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[2] It was expected to resume as normal by the next planned event, taking place on 29 May 2021,[3] but that was also cancelled, in favour of returning in May of 2022.[4] As an alternative, there were a series of smaller Japan Day events in its place that were organised later that year, most of them online.[5]

### Post-Pandemic

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Japan Day returned in full on 21 May 2022, as well as 13 May and 01 June on the following years, with an estimated 630,000 attendees and visitors in 2024.[6]

An extension to a Japan Week is planned for 24 May 2025.[7][8]

## See also

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* North Rhine-Westphalia portal
* Japan portal

* Japanese community of Düsseldorf
* Japanische Internationale Schule in Düsseldorf

## Sources

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1. ^ NRW Pressearchiv, Sept. 29, 2004 (in German)
2. ^ Coronavirus crisis: cancellation of Japan Day Düsseldorf/NRW 2020 imperative
3. ^ "Marathonlauf, Jazz-Rally und Japantag sind 2020 in Düsseldorf abgesagt". Westdeutsche Zeitung. 2020-03-24.
4. ^ "Japan Day Düsseldorf/NRW". www.japantag-duesseldorf-nrw.de. Retrieved 2021-04-27.
5. ^ "Japan-Tag 2021 abgesagt". Retrieved 2021-05-25.
6. ^ "Fernöstliche Kultur am Rhein: Hunderttausende feiern den Japan-Tag in Düsseldorf". Retrieved 2024-06-01.
7. ^ "Der 22. Japan-Tag Düsseldorf/NRW findet am 24. Mai 2025 statt". Retrieved 2024-08-12.
8. ^ "Rund 650.000 Besucher in Düsseldorf erwartet: Japan-Tag wird zur Japan-Woche – mit vielen Events und Aktionen". Retrieved 2025-03-27.

## External links

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Media related to Japan-Tag in Düsseldorf at Wikimedia Commons

* Official Info about the Japan Day