Tanabata, also known as the Star Festival, is celebrated to commemorate the story of two lovers who are separated by the Milky Way on the 7th of July of the Western calendar. The story, which originated from a Chinese folklore, depicts two star-crossed lovers; Orihime, a talented seamstress and Hikoboshi, a young cow herder. They were madly in love and married soon after they met; however, they became so attached that they began to neglect their duties and responsibilities. Outraged, the gods of heaven forbade the lovers to be together and separated them with a vast river. Time went on and upon seeing the disheartened Orihime, the gods decreed that the couple would only be allowed to meet once a year on the seventh day of the seventh month. It is said that if it rains on that night, the raindrops are the teas of the reunited lovers.
This festival gained widespread popularity by the early Edo period. Those in Japan celebrate by decorating the streets with colorful streamers made out of bamboo and paper. In celebration of this holiday, girls often pray, wishing for improved craftsmanship whereas boys pray for refined technical skills, in homage to the legend of Hikoboshi and Orihime. Although the folktale varies in different countries, this festival is also observed in Chinese and Korean culture as the Qizi Festival and Chilseok Festival respectively.
This festival gained widespread popularity by the early Edo period. Those in Japan celebrate by decorating the streets with colorful streamers made out of bamboo and paper. In celebration of this holiday, girls often pray, wishing for improved craftsmanship whereas boys pray for refined technical skills, in homage to the legend of Hikoboshi and Orihime. Although the folktale varies in different countries, this festival is also observed in Chinese and Korean culture as the Qizi Festival and Chilseok Festival respectively. 
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