It became a public holiday back in 1948 which means that people get a day off from school and work on this day each year, but the celebration of this holiday goes back much further.
Back in ancient times, Higan no Nakaba, was a day when people would visit the graves of their loved ones and pay homage to their ancestors. Often cleaning the grave site of debris and leaving fresh flowers or an offering of food. Maybe that is because, like during it's sister holiday, the fall equinox, the veil between the living and the dead is thinner than normal.
Today people spend the day with their loved ones, usually visiting their parents' home or grave site if they had passed away.
In America, we have a similar holiday for ushering in the Spring and saying goodbye to the long, clod winter. We call it St. Patrick's Day and we get drunk. I guess it's another one of those "little differences."
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