Christmas Cake

As katakanadian points out below, the use of "Christmas Cake" to denote un married women applied to those over 25, by association with cake unsold by the 25th of December. Back in 1990 when 40% of women married by the age of 25% "Kurisumasu Ke-ki" was a fashionable slang for 26 year old un married women. The use of the expression died out as the average age of marriage increased and now that only 20% of women are married by the age of 25, the use of "Christmas Cake" as a metaphor for an unmarried woman would be met with incomprehension.
http://tabidigi.at.webry.info/201112/article_20.html
http://zokugo-dict.com/08ku/christmas-cake.htm

Category:

Travel & Events

Tags:

• unmarried
• women
• nihonbunka
• 日本文化
• クリスマスケーキ

[katakanadian]

As I understood the term, the expression of an unmarried woman being Christmas cake meant she was over 25 (i.e. past Dec 25th). That's what I was told back in 1995. Today society is different so over 30 sounds about right. Do you know what the equivalent of "old maid" is? At 46 I probably qualify. :P

[timtak1]

@katakanadian You are right. I also read (@ zokugo dict) that as the age of marriage has increased, the usage of this word has died out due to its association with 25. I think that my Japanese teacher, who would be in her eighties now, told me about 25 years ago. I read on another sight that the word was current in 1990. I tend to keep using the words that I learnt when 1st learning Japanese in the early 90's many of which are now "dead." Including "nowii" which once meant contemporary.

[nikku13]

In HK all cakes come with mango! Funny how things differ.

[timtak1]

@nikku13 Mango christmas cake....

I only go to Hong Kong in Summer, next year too.

[aewowww]

Nice to see some Christmas culture outside the UK ! :)