also: とうじカボチャ
custom of keeping a pumpkin or squash during winter and eating it on the winter solstice
A traditional Japanese custom where a pumpkin or squash is stored through winter and eaten on the winter solstice (冬至) for good health.
It is said that eating a winter solstice pumpkin will keep you from catching a cold.
My grandmother prepares a winter solstice pumpkin for us every year.
冬至 is the winter solstice itself, while 冬至南瓜 refers specifically to the custom involving pumpkin.
南瓜 is the general word for pumpkin or squash, not tied to the solstice custom.
Standard kanji spelling for the custom.
Mixed kanji-katakana spelling, also common.
Compound of 冬至 (winter solstice) and 南瓜 (pumpkin). The custom likely originates from the belief that eating nutritious pumpkin on the solstice brings health and wards off illness during the cold season.