Naki Sumo Crying Baby Festival
| Naki Sumo Crying Baby Festival | |
|---|---|
Naki Sumo at the Sensō-ji in Tokyo, 2018 | |
| Official name | Nakizumo |
| Also called | Crying Baby Festival |
| Observed by | Japanese people |
| Type | religious, cultural |
| Significance | During high point of spring, on Children's Day |
| Observances | Contest between infants in a sumo ring |
| Date | May 5 |
| Frequency | Annual |
| Related to | Children's Day |
The Naki Sumo Crying Baby Festival (Japanese: 泣き相撲, Hepburn: Nakisumo) is an annual Japanese festival in which sumo wrestlers in a sumo ring hold babies in their arms and attempt to make them cry, with upsetting faces and sounds. The first baby to start crying is proclaimed the winner. In Japanese folklore, strong and loud crying is seen as a sign of healthy baby growth and believed to ward off evil spirits.