How to say the days of the week in Japanese: A fun & free guide

Does Japan have the seven-days-per-week system, too? YES!

This means it's not as complicated to remember the days of the week in Japanese as you may think!

Learning them is particularly helpful when communicating in a foreign language; usually, days of the week are easier to pick up than numbers in conversations. Let's say I'm making an appointment at a clinic in Vienna, Austria. The fast-speaker receptionist asks me, "Montag, den dreiundzwanzigsten Oktober?" I could at least understand it's one of the Mondays in October, which would give me a better chance of guessing right. I'd look at my calendar and squeeze out my Baby Deutsch, "Montag... Dreiundzwanzigsten?" (Monday… 23rd?)

Have I succeeded in motivating you to read on?

Table of contents

• Where did it come from?
• How to say and write the days of the week in Japanese
  • These are the seven days
  • Abbreviations
  • Japanese date format
• Good news: easy to remember this way!
• Related words
• Cultural facts
  • What day is the start of the week?
  • Colors in the calendar
• Use them in sentences
• Days of the week Japanese songs
• Get a Japanese calendar

Where did it come from?

The seven-day-per-week concept was introduced to Japan in the early 9th century. A Buddhist monk brought it back from China, and it was mainly applied to the area of fortunetelling in Japan. It became part of everyday life after Japan officially adopted the Gregorian Calendar in the 19th century.

How to say and write the days of the week in Japanese

Let me first introduce the word '曜日' (ようび - yōbi); it means 'day of the week'. Each day has one unique kanji before '曜日'. Pretty simple, right? The kanji '曜' doesn't look super simple though — can you believe most Japanese kids today learn this complicated letter at the budding age of 7 or 8?

The first kanjis are much less complicated, and this blog post helps you remember the seven 曜日 more easily. I've got your back, friends.

These are the seven days

Yes. I counted. There are seven.

Abbreviations

In everyday conversation, we often say '月曜' (getsuyō) instead of '月曜日' (getsuyōbi). Yes, the last '日' (bi) is omitted. One letter shorter. Yay!

In the written format, it can be just a single letter like '月'. If a shop is open from Monday to Friday, the sign on its door or window may say, '月 - 金'.

Japanese date format

In the States, the date format goes like this:

• Monday, October 16, 2023

In British English:

• Monday, 16 October 2023

The Japanese format? Generally, it's in this order: year, month, day, and day of the week. The above date looks like these;

• 2023年10月16日　月曜日
• 2023年10月16日（月）

Sometimes a year is written with a Japanese era name such as '令和5年'. I may write about it some other time if requested, as it'd require an extra 1K words to explain the era name and its history!

Good news: easy to remember this way!

I must've learned how to say the days of the week before starting school. I was utterly fascinated later when I was taught about their association with planets (and a star and a satellite). If you're familiar with the association, this definitely helps you remember how to say and write the seven days. Bonus point: you'll learn the names of some planets (and a star and a satellite) in Japanese, too!

Each kanji preceding '曜日' corresponds to a planet, a star, or a satellite as shown below. (Excuse me for the repetition and my peculiar precision.)

Related words

Here's a list of Japanese words associated with 'week'.

A few words need explanation; let me start with '祝日' (shukujitsu). It's a national holiday, and there are more than a dozen annually. '休日' (kyūjitsu) is a broader term that includes public and personal holidays. If a '祝日' falls on Sunday, the following Monday becomes a public holiday (振替休日 - furikaekyūjitsu), too. You can also call your day off '休日'.

'明日' is commonly pronounced as 'ashita'. 'Asu' is used in more formal contexts, such as news broadcasts.

The word '週明け' might make you wonder, "So, what day is the beginning of the week in Japan?" Excellent question. Read on, the answer is a few scrolls away.

Cultural facts

Now, let's dive deeper into Japanese culture that even the locals might not be aware of.

What day is the start of the week?

According to the Time and Date website, Sunday is the first day of the week in the States and Japan. If you check Japanese monthly calendars, Sundays are often on the left end. (I googled and browsed a few hundred Japanese calendars for 2023.) So, a week starts with Sunday in Japan...

...not always.

First of all, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) defines Monday as the first day of the week. Secondly, '週末' (shūmatsu - weekend) typically refers to Saturday and Sunday. If Sunday is the end of the week, the beginning should be Monday. '週明け' (shūake) usually means Monday unless Monday is a public holiday and the business or school week starts on Tuesday. On the other hand, some Japanese dictionaries define Sunday as the first day of the week.

If someone says 'next week on Sunday', for instance, it's safe to clarify which Sunday they're talking about.

Colors in the calendar

As far as I remember, basic Japanese calendars display Saturdays in blue font and Sundays and public holidays in red.

Saturdays were not days off in Japan until the mid-1970s. Even after that, it was still common for workplaces and schools to operate on a half-day schedule. For several years, I attended school on Saturdays, though the classes would end before lunchtime.

During the transition, some smart people suggested highlighting Saturdays with a different color on the calendar to avoid confusion. The primary colors used in industrial printing are black, red, blue, and yellow. Black (weekday) and red (holiday) were already assigned, and yellow doesn't provide a good contrast on a white background. That's how blue became the color for Saturdays.

Use them in sentences

Some of my English teachers insisted, "Say that in a full sentence." They were good teachers. We shall follow their instructions.

Days of the week Japanese songs

Another way to effectively remember the days of the week: music!

Hint: to find the song lyrics, type in the original song title, artist name, and '歌詞' (kashi - lyrics) in the search box.

• 一週間 (Isshūkan) - Russian folk song translated into Japanese
  The lyrics are partly changed from the original meaning. The melody is surprisingly familiar among the Japanese people.
• Day of the week rap
  Yo! Put ya hands up and say da y-o-b-i! (My friends would laugh to tears if I spoke that way.) The rhythm helps you remember the days of the week in Japanese.
• Weeeek by GReeeeN
  This pop song covers the seven days in the lyrics!

Get a Japanese calendar

I recommend getting yourself a Japanese calendar if possible. Maybe one that features your favorite manga, anime, actor, musician, or place. Hang it on the wall. Place it on your desk. Keep it nearby so you see it every day. It would help you familiarize yourself with the Japanese days of the week. You'd find public holidays —there are quite a few— on the calendar, which may want to explore Japanese culture further.

Or, even better, how about creating your own Japanese calendar now that you know how to write the days of the week in Japanese? You can add your local holidays and events as well. Sounds like a fun project.

This article may be published on a different day, but at the time of typing this sentence, it's 金曜日 here in Austria. What day is it where you are now? Whatever day it is, I wish you a lovely one!

Hungry for more fun and free Japanese language blog lessons? Keep checking back to our Japanese language blog, where we publish expert lessons in easy and fresh blog articles each month.