dark age; hard times; winter years
Idiomatic expression likening a period of decline, hardship, or stagnation to winter. Often used for historical, economic, or personal slumps.
After the bubble burst, the Japanese economy entered a long winter period.
この業界は今、冬の時代だと言われている。
This industry is said to be in a dark age now.
A metaphorical expression combining 冬 (winter) and 時代 (era, period), used to describe a time of hardship or decline. The exact origin is uncertain, but it follows a common pattern of seasonal metaphors in Japanese.