How would you express "五部咲き" in English? Let's break the phrase down:
五 (go) means five.There are several Japanese websites that have translated the phrase "五部咲き" as "half bloom" or "half bloomed," but such a phrase is ambiguous; half of the trees are in full bloom and half of the trees are not; all the blossoms are in half bloom; or half of the blossoms on each tree are in full bloom and the other half are not.
部 (bu) means part.
咲き (saki/-zaki) means bloom or blossom.
Horticulturists working for the National Park Service at the National Mall & Memorial Parks in Washington D.C. take a scientific approach to expressing the various stages of cherry blossoms.
Bud stage 1: You can see green buds from late February to early March.Unless you are a horticulturist or tree grower, most people may not know words like floret and peduncle. So, what is the best way to express the various stages of cherry blossoms in everyday English? Since the concept of 花見, or cherry blossom viewing, is limited to only a few cities in North America, I would suggest you use simple and easily understood phrases. For example:
Bud stage 2: You can see the florets in March, which means there are about 16 to 21 days until peak (full) bloom.
Bud stage 3: You can see the florets starting to extend, which means there are about 12 to 17 days until peak bloom.
Bud stage 4: You can see the peduncle getting longer, which means there are about 6 to 10 days until full bloom.
Bud stage 5: The buds start to appear puffy white, which means there are about 4 to 6 days before full bloom.
The cherry blossoms are in full bloom today.I found one Japanese website that has pictures of the varying degrees of cherry blossom in excruciating detail. To be perfectly honest, I couldn't tell much difference between some of the pictures. For example:
The cherry blossoms are at their peak today.
The cherry blossoms will be in full bloom this weekend.
The cherry blossoms will be at their peak this weekend.
The cherry trees have only partially blossomed so far.
The cherry trees are almost in full bloom.
The cherry trees are nearly in full bloom.
Only half of the buds or so have blossomed.
Only half of the blossoms or so are in full bloom.
The cherry trees haven't fully bloomed yet.
The cherry blossoms haven't fully blossomed yet.
5分咲きTrying to express these varying degrees of cherry blossoms to someone from outside of the Far East might be a fruitless endeavor. Personally, I would use the following phrases:
7分咲き
1分咲きも
8部咲き
全景4部咲き
全景5部咲き
つぼみふくらむ
3～5分咲き
つぼみ
満開
ほぼ満開
満開近し
The cherry trees are going to blossom pretty soon.Remember, the main point is just to enjoy the cherry blossoms, so get out and enjoy the beautiful blossom in all their splendor while you can!
The cherry trees are in full blossom now.
Most of the cherry blossoms are gone.
| NIGHT CHERRY BLOSSOM VIEWNG TOP 10 RANKING Otherworldly Experience With Lit Up Cherry Blossoms At Night | |
| 1 | Hirosaki Park, Hirosaki City, Aomori Prefecture Blossoms on about 2600 cherry trees waft in the nightly air during the Hirosaki Sakura Matsuri (Hirosaki Cherry Festival). Night light-up period: April 23 - May 5, sunset to 11 pm. |
| 2 | Takato Joshi Park (park in the ruins of the Takato castle), Ina City, Nagano Prefecture About 1500 cherry trees, mostly strains inherent in the area, are in bloom for about two weeks. Night light-up period: About two weeks from mid-April, sunset to 10 pm. |
| 3 | Hinokinaigawa-Tsutsumi (riverbank), Bukeyashiki-Dori (samurai residence alley), Senboku City, Akita Prefecture Cherry blossom viewing in two different types of atmosphere. Night light-up period: Mid-April to early May, sunset to midnight for the riverbank, 6:30 pm-10:30 pm for the alley. |
| 4 | Takada Park, Joetsu City, Niigata Prefecture The park is lit up during the cherry blossom viewing festival around the Takada Castle. Night light-up period: April 4-20, sunset to 11 pm. |
| 5 | Chidorigafuchi Ryokudo, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo Rows of about 260 cherry trees lining the moat of the Imperial Palace are reflected on the water. Night light-up period: March 28 - April 6, sunset to 10 pm. |
| 6 | Kiyomizu-dera, (Kiyomizu Temple), Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto Visitors can enjoy both cherry blossoms and a view of Kyoto in the evening. Night light-up period: March 29-April 10, 6:30pm-9:30pm (special night viewing) |
| 7 | Rikugien (Garden), Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo Enjoy the otherworldly view of 17m-wide cascading blossoms on 70-year-old trees. Night light-up period: March 20-30, sunset to 8:30 pm. |
| 8 | Maruyama Park, Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto Cherry trees about 80 years old are in full bloom, aesthetically lit up in the night sky. Night light-up period: March 10 - April 15, sunset to 1 am next day. |
| 9 | Miidera (Temple), Otsu City, Shiga Prefecture Free access to the mountain temple while the cherry blossoms are lit up in the evening. Night light-up period: April 1-17, 6:30 pm to 9:30 pm |
| 10 | Hamarikyu Onshi Teien (Garden), Chuo-ku, Tokyo Cherry blossoms of about 80 trees are reflected on the lake water as they are lit up with high-rise buildings in the background. Night light-up period: April 12-20, sunset to 8:30 pm. |
| Note: The period and hours during which the cherry blossoms are lit up are shown. They are subject to change just before the stated period depending on the level of blooming. Some places charge visitors for viewing. | |
(The Nikkei Plus 1 Saturday edition)
References:
- グランドコンサイス英和辞典・グランドコンサイス和英辞典
- プログレッシブ英和中辞典
- 大辞林第三版
- CD-ビジネス技術 実用英語大辞典
英辞郎第三版
- CD-The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language
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