noun
rising sea waves in early summer (late May to early June)
A seasonal word (kigo) used in haiku and traditional poetry to evoke early summer. Refers to the characteristic swell of the sea during the transition from spring to summer, around the time of the Rabbit (卯) month in the old lunar calendar.
卯波が立つ磯辺を歩いた。
I walked along the shore where the early-summer waves were rising.
俳句で卯波は初夏の季語として詠まれる。
In haiku, 'unami' is used as a seasonal word for early summer.
Compound of 卯 (u, 'the Rabbit, the fourth sign of the Chinese zodiac; the fourth month of the lunar calendar') + 波 (nami, 'wave'). The name refers to the seasonal waves that appear around the fourth month of the old calendar (late May to early June).