Empress Masako celebrated her 57th birthday on December 9. To mark the occasion, she conveyed her written message to the people of Japan through the...
~‘If the couple truly feel they want to marry, then I believe as parents we must respect their decision’~ At a news conference held...
On November 13, Princess Mako, the eldest daughter of Crown Prince Akishino and Princess Kiko, released a statement through the Imperial Household Agency reaffirming her...
The popular Meiji Shrine (Meiji Jingu) celebrated its centennial on November 1 as its inner precinct filled with pomp, circumstance, and plenty of festivities. The shrine,...
Rikkoshi-no-rei, the last ceremony in the gateway to the Reiwa Era, took place on November 8, marking crown prince Akishino as the official successor to...
The Pacific War officially came to a close on August 15, 1945, but even today the images and sound clips of the Showa Emperor announcing on...
At the Akasaka Imperial Residence on May 14, Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako received a lecture by Hiromitsu Shimada, the Cabinet Office’s director general...
Emperor Naruhito turned 60 on February 23, a birthday considered a landmark age in the Japanese zodiac calendar. We would like to offer our heartiest congratulations...
As 2019 comes to a close, we at JAPAN Forward are reflecting on the stories that moved Japan this year, and the stories...
What were the words and topics that Japanese couldn’t get enough of in 2019? What were the buzzwords on everyone’s lips? For this five-part series,...
Japanese Princess Toshinomiya Aiko, the only child of Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako, turned 18 on December 1. In April, Princess Aiko entered...
Emperor Naruhito carried out the most traditional and important of the rituals to becoming emperor of Japan, the Daijosai, starting from the evening of...