Wadokei - Edo Japanese Clock

Live by the hours of Edo Japan.

Before Japan adopted the Western clock, the day was measured from dawn to dusk. A summer daytime hour ran long and a winter one ran short. Wadokei shows this system — futeijiho, the "seasonal hour" — on a traditional Japanese clock dial, calculated for wherever you are.

[The dial]
- The Rat (midnight) sits at the top by default. You can switch the Horse (noon) to the top in settings — surviving Edo-period clocks use both arrangements
- Each hour is marked with its zodiac sign and its bell count (nine, eight, seven...)
- Dawn sits at the right of the dial and dusk at the left, so the marks inside every hour stay evenly spaced through the year
- 4 marks inside each hour
- The current hour is outlined in gold

[Faithful seasonal hours]
- Dawn and dusk follow the Edo definition: the moment the sun sits 7°21'40" below the horizon, computed astronomically rather than taken from a table
- The bells of Edo were struck at the center of each hour, so the hour names follow that counting. Midday nine falls near solar noon; midnight nine near true midnight (the app itself makes no sound)
- Half-hour names such as "nine and a half" are supported

[Your location]
- Allow location access and the hours are computed from sunrise and sunset where you live
- Location is used only for calculation on your device and is never transmitted
- Without permission, the app estimates a location from your time zone

[Old calendar included]
- Kyureki (lunisolar calendar) date and its poetic month name
- Rokuyo (the six-day luck cycle), the 24 solar terms, and the moon phase
- The ordinary clock time is shown small at the top

[Home screen widgets]
- Two kinds: a compact text widget, and one showing the dial itself
- Both resize freely; smaller sizes switch to a simpler layout
- Stretch the text widget to two rows and it also shows the old-calendar date, month name, rokuyo day and solar term
- Language and appearance (dark or light) can follow the app or be set just for the widgets
- The dial widget's background can be hidden in Settings

[Japanese and English]
- Follows your device language, and can also be set explicitly
- In English the kanji on the dial stay as they are, with readings and meanings added alongside

[Who it is for]
- Readers of Japanese historical fiction, and anyone who has wondered what "the seventh hour" in an old traveling song actually meant
- Anyone who would like to feel the turn of the seasons in the passing of a day
- Practitioners of tea ceremony, ikebana or haiku

No data collection. No ads. No network access of any kind.