Tea Scoop Names (Mei) for September

September brings clearer autumn air, chrysanthemums, moon-viewing, and the first deep sounds of insects at night. For chashaku mei, it is a month suited to words of Choyo, moonlight, autumn fields, and quiet evening atmosphere.

Solar Terms for September

Hakuro (白露 / White Dew)

• The season when white dew appears on grasses and autumn becomes more visible
• It connects naturally with white chrysanthemums, morning dew, moonlight, and autumn insects

Shubun (秋分 / Autumn Equinox)

• The seasonal turning point when day and night are nearly equal
• It suits mei such as Jugoya, Zangetsu, Musashino, and Kinuta

September Seasonal Motifs

Choyo (重陽 / Chrysanthemum Festival)

• One of the five seasonal festivals, observed on September 9
• It is also called the Chrysanthemum Festival, making chrysanthemum mei especially fitting

Moon Viewing

• The season of the harvest moon and moon-viewing gatherings
• Mei can follow the changing moon: Jugoya, Izayoi, Tachimachi-zuki, Imachi-zuki, Nemachi-zuki, and Fukemachi-zuki

Mei for Early September

Kikugasane (菊重 / Layers of Chrysanthemum)

• A graceful mei for the Chrysanthemum Festival

Kikuju (菊寿 / Chrysanthemum Longevity)

• A celebratory mei connected with longevity and chrysanthemums

Kisewata (着せ綿 / Chrysanthemum Cotton)

• From the custom of covering chrysanthemums with cotton to absorb their dew and fragrance

Shiragiku (白菊 / White Chrysanthemum)

• A clean and quiet mei for an early autumn tea gathering

Kikubiyori (菊日和 / Chrysanthemum Weather)

• A calm, fine autumn day when chrysanthemums are in bloom

Ginpu (吟風 / Poetic Wind)

• A mei for the clear wind that invites poetry

Kinpu (金風 / Golden Wind)

• A classical expression for autumn wind

Yuzukiyo (夕月夜 / Evening Moonlit Night)

• A soft mei for the moon appearing in the evening sky

Matsuyoi (待宵 / Waiting Evening)

• The evening before the harvest moon, carrying a feeling of anticipation

Mei for Mid to Late September

Tsuki no Shizuku (月の雫 / Moon Drops)

• A pure mei evoking moonlight and dew

Tsuki no Yado (月の宿 / Moon's Lodging)

• A quiet image of moonlight resting in a place

Jugoya (十五夜 / Fifteenth Night)

• The classic mei for the harvest moon

Izayoi (十六夜 / Sixteenth Night Moon)

• The moon on the night after Jugoya, the fifteenth-night harvest moon
• It rises slightly later, giving the sense of a moon that appears as if hesitating

Tachimachi-zuki (立待月 / Standing-Wait Moon)

• Another name for the seventeenth-night moon
• It is said to be named for the moon rising while one waits standing, wondering if it will appear at any moment

Imachi-zuki (居待月 / Sitting-Wait Moon)

• Another name for the eighteenth-night moon
• The name suggests sitting indoors or in a room while waiting for the moon to rise

Nemachi-zuki (寝待月 / Sleeping-Wait Moon)

• Another name for the nineteenth-night moon
• Because the moon rises late, the name suggests waiting for it while lying down

Fukemachi-zuki (更待月 / Late-Night-Wait Moon)

• Another name for the twentieth-night moon
• It means a moon that rises only after waiting until late at night

Zangetsu (残月 / Lingering Moon)

• The moon that remains toward dawn

Mikazuki (三日月 / Crescent Moon)

• A simple and elegant mei for the slender moon

Tsukikage (月影 / Moonlight)

• An old poetic word for moonlight or the moon itself

Suzumushi (鈴虫 / Bell Cricket)

• A clear autumn insect sound in the evening

Matsumushi (松虫 / Pine Cricket)

• A mei that adds the sound of autumn nights

Akatombo (赤蜻蛉 / Red Dragonfly)

• A familiar image of dragonflies over autumn fields

Musashino (武蔵野 / Musashino Plain)

• A broad autumn field associated with grasses and moonlight

Kinuta (砧 / Fulling Block)

• A classical autumn mei evoking the sound of cloth being beaten at night