A Little Story About Umbrellas

The Romance of Sharing an Umbrella
When people hear the phrase sharing an umbrella, they often think of romance. Originally, however, it simply meant two people using the same umbrella, whether they were a married couple, parent and child, or close friends.
It was during the Meiji and Taisho periods that the phrase gradually became associated with romantic relationships.
In particular, ukiyo-e woodblock prints sometimes used a shared umbrella as a subtle way to suggest that two people were in love, without depicting their relationship directly.
Perhaps this symbolism came from the idea that sharing a single umbrella on a rainy day naturally reflects a close and intimate bond between two people.