The significance of the blossoming cherry trees in Japan has evolved over time.
Emiko Ohnuki-Tierney, a Japanese-American anthropologist, told PBS that the cherry blossom, or sakura, has been a symbol of "the cycle of life, death, and rebirth, on the one hand, and of productive and reproductive powers, on the other" throughout Japan's history.
The tradition of viewing the cherry blossoms is known as "hanami" in Japanese, as the National Park Service stated on its website about the Washington, DC, Cherry Blossom Festival.
Today, cherry trees planted all over the world come to life in the spring.