Hotaru no Hikari

Hotaru no Hikari (蛍の光^?, meaning "Glow of a firefly") is a Japanese song incorporating the tune of Scottish folk song Auld Lang Syne with completely different lyrics by Chikai Inagaki, first introduced in a collection of singing songs for elementary school students in 1877 (Meiji 10). The swapping of lyrics without substantial change to the music is known as contrafactum. The words describe a series of images of hardships that the industrious student endures in his relentless quest for knowledge, starting with the firefly’s light, which the student uses to keep studying when he has no other light sources. It is commonly heard during graduation ceremonies and at the end of the school day. Many stores and restaurants play it to usher customers out at the end of a business day. On the very popular Japanese New Year's Eve TV show, NHK Kōhaku Uta Gassen, it has become a tradition for all the performers to sing Hotaru no Hikari as the last song. Another Western song reworked in the same period (late 19th century) and also used at graduation ceremonies is "Aogeba Tōtoshi".

蛍の光、窓の雪、
書読む月日、重ねつゝ。
何時しか年も、すぎの戸を、
開けてぞ今朝は、別れ行く。

筑紫の極み、陸の奥、
海山遠く、隔つとも。
その眞心は、隔て無く、
一つに尽くせ、國の為。

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