Yakudoshi

thumb|Table of bad luck years , or "calamitous years," are ages that in Japan are traditionally believed to be unlucky.

== Unlucky years == The ages most often considered unlucky in Japan are 25, 42, and 61 for men, and 19, 33, and 37 for women, though there is much regional variation. Note that yakudoshi are calculated by traditional age reckoning in Japan, according to which children are considered to be one year old at birth, and add to their age every New Year's Day. In some communities, the sixty-first year, which was traditionally the year for retirement, has been held to be lucky rather than unlucky. Among the unlucky years, the most unlucky are thought to be the ages of 42 for men and 33 for women, which are known as daiyakudoshi, or "great-calamity years." The year preceding a yakudoshi year, called a year, is also considered dangerous, as is the year following one, called atoyaku.