Orihime (織姫 – “Weaving Princess”) was the daughter of the celestial Sky King, Tentei, Orihime wove magnificent garments along the banks of the Milky Way. Though her father cherished her work, Orihime longed for love. Out of compassion, Tentei introduced her to Hikoboshi, a cowherder who lived across the heavenly river. The two fell deeply in love, but their devotion caused them to neglect their duties. Angered, Tentei separated them by the Milky Way, allowing them to reunite only once a year on the seventh day of the seventh month—if Orihime completed her weaving. When rain falls on that day, it is said to be the tears of Orihime and Hikoboshi, unable to meet as the river swells and the magpies cannot form their bridge.

Orihime and Hikoboshi are known by many names and titles across different versions of their story, reflecting their roles and attributes: Orihime is called Tanabata-tsume, Me-Tanabata, Ito-ori-hime (“Thread-Weaving Princess”), Momoko-hime (“Peach-Child Princess”), and others, while Hikoboshi is also known as Kengyū (“Cowherd”), O-Tanabata, Kai-boshi (“Herder Star”), Ushihiki-boshi (“Cow-tender Star”), among other epithets, with both sometimes referred to by constellation-related titles like Me-boshi (“Female Star”) and Tsuma-boshi (“Wife Star”).

Tanabata, or the Star Festival, is a Japanese celebration derived from the Chinese Qixi Festival that honors the annual meeting of the deities Orihime and Hikoboshi, represented by the stars Vega and Altair.

All published appearances of Orihime from before January 1, )-(95)}} are public domain in the US.

Some notable appearances are listed below:

* Man'yōshū

* In ''Bleach'', Inoue Orihime’s character features a recurring Tanabata theme, with references like her symbolic number 7/7 and the alternate name Vega Highwell, paralleling the Orihime-Hikoboshi legend—especially in the pilot chapter, where Ichigo and Orihime mirror the star-crossed lovers and her deceased father mirrors the Sky King.
* Jirachi is a star-shaped legendary Pokémon that awakens once every thousand years, and those who see it write their wishes on small pieces of paper and place them on its head, a tradition that aligns with its common distribution in Japan during the Tanabata festival.

*[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Cowherd_and_the_Weaver_Girl The Cowherd and the Weaver Girl at Wikipedia]
*[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tanabata Tanabata at Wikipedia]
*[https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/UsefulNotes/Tanabata TV Tropes]
*[https://comicvine.gamespot.com/orihime/4005-187327/ ComicVine]
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