Hanafuda - Japanese Flower Cards
Created | Updated Nov 16, 2002
The hanafuda, or 'flower cards', are used for a variety of card games throughout Japan and Korea.
The pack comprises 48 cards, four for each month of the year. Each month is represented by stylised pictures of a seasonal plant. One or two cards from each month additionally show a picture of an object, bird, animal, or person. All but two months have one card showing a coloured paper banner, a 'tanzaku', hanging from the plant.
Most games involve capturing cards from the table with cards of the same month in hand or drawn from stock. Scoring varies greatly from game to game; sometimes only combinations are scored, sometimes cards taken are scored with bonus points for combinations.
Cards showing just the plant are called 'kasu' (rubbish); in games where the cards themselves have a score they count for either 0 or 1 point. Cards with a 'tanzaku' usually score 5, while cards with another additional illustration score either 10 or 20 depending on the card.
The pack
| Month | Motif | 20 points | 10 points | 5 points | kasu |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | Pine | Crane | - | Red, writing | 2 cards |
| February | Plum | - | Nightingale | Red, writing | 2 cards |
| March | Cherry Blossom | Screen | - | Red, writing | 2 cards |
| April | Wisteria | - | Cuckoo | Red, plain | 2 cards |
| May | Lily | - | Boardwalk | Red, plain | 2 cards |
| June | Tree Peony | - | Butterflies | Blue | 2 cards |
| July | Bush Clover | - | Boar | Red, plain | 2 cards |
| August | Pampas | Moon | Geese | - | 2 cards |
| September | Chrysanthemum | - | Sake cup | Blue | 2 cards |
| October | Acer | - | Deer | Blue | 2 cards |
| November | Willow | Ono Michikaze and a Frog | Swallow | Red, plain | 1 card |
| December | Paulownia | Pheonix | - | - | 3 cards |
- The 'red' tanzaku on the 5-point cards come in two kinds, with or without a short phrase written on the card.
- In a Japanse pack, the 'blue' tanzaku are usually purple; in a Korean pack, all the blue cards have a short phrase on them.
Koi-koi, a Japanese game for 2 players
Rules to follow tomorrow maybe
