Japanese New Year - Otoshidama

On New Year's Day, Japanese people have a custom of giving money to children. This is known as otoshidama (お年玉?). It is handed out in small decorated envelopes called 'pochibukuro,' similar to Shūgi-bukuro or Chinese red envelopes and to the Scottish handsel. In the Edo period large stores and wealthy families gave out a small bag of mochi and a Mandarin orange to spread happiness all around. The amount of money given depends on the age of the child but is usually the same if there is more than one child so that no one feels slighted. It is not uncommon for amounts greater than ¥10,000 (US$120) to be given.