The Language of Cherry Blossoms Is Not Midterms but Entrance Ceremonies... Why Admissions and Job Starts Begin in April [Sunday Culture]

From September to April:
The Impact of Fiscal Year Changes During the Meiji Era

In Korea, there is a saying that "the flower language of cherry blossoms is midterm exams." The new semester starts on March 1st, and by mid-April, the beginning of the semester has already passed. Although it’s a bit hazy, when you try to go cherry blossom viewing with determination, you end up being busy cramming for exams, and once the exams are over, you remember seeing green leaves pushing through instead of flowers.

In Korea, school admissions and the start of the semester always begin in March. The first half of the year’s new recruitments also usually start in March. The image of March as the time to officially start the year is strong.

Students entering school with cherry blossoms in the background. Studio Alice.

In contrast, Japan starts everything in April. School admissions, the start of the semester, and company hiring all happen in April. Even the entrance ceremony date is set in April. Therefore, in Japan, cherry blossoms do not symbolize midterm exams but rather imply a new beginning. So how did neighboring Japan come to start the year in April? Today, we will clear up this curiosity.

First, the reason April 1st became fixed is related to the government fiscal year. Japan’s fiscal year begins in April. To explain this, we need to go back to the Meiji era, which started in the late 19th century.

During the Meiji era, Japan embraced Western culture and systems, achieving industrialization. At the same time, it moved toward imperialism and militarism. The Japanese government was increasing military spending, but then faced a financial crisis due to insufficient tax revenue. To supplement the lacking funds, in Meiji 17 (1884), they borrowed tax revenue for the following year in advance. Naturally, the budget reserved for 1885 was reduced.

The Japanese government solved this by changing the fiscal year period. Originally, Japan’s fiscal year started in July, but from 1886, it was moved forward to start in April. This meant that the fiscal year 1885 was shortened by three months, from 12 months to 9 months. This is how the accounts were balanced, according to scholars.

Another theory is that this change originated from the tax payment method at the time. During the Edo period, taxes were paid in rice. However, from the Meiji era, the system changed to monetary payment instead of rice. Farmers would harvest rice in the fall, sell it to convert it into cash, pay taxes in cash, and the government would collect the cash to prepare the budget. If the fiscal year started in January, it would take time to sell the rice, convert it to cash, collect it, and then prepare the budget, so the start was delayed to April.

Illustration depicting a Japanese school entrance ceremony. Cherry blossoms are also drawn. Irastora.

When Japan’s fiscal year changed, something else changed along with it: the conscription system. The reporting date for conscription candidates was changed from September to April. Consequently, military-related schools such as officer academies changed their new semester to April. Other schools followed suit to unify the admission period, and naturally, companies also followed this schedule.

Originally, during the Meiji era, Japanese schools modeled themselves after Germany and the UK, adopting a September admission like Europe. This September admission was changed.

Still, countries that start their academic year in April like Japan are very few. Outside of Japan, only India and Pakistan start their semesters in April. Most European countries start in September, and countries like Korea that start in March are relatively rare when compared globally. In fact, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Japan even discussed changing from April admission to September admission to secure enough class days.

Anyway, it’s fascinating that what is standard in one country may not be universal in another.