Akihito English pronunciation is the reigning Emperor of Japan, the 125th emperor of his
line according to Japan's traditional order of succession.
He acceded to the throne in 1989.
In Japan, the emperor is never referred to by his given name, but rather is referred
to as "His Imperial Majesty the Emperor" which may be shortened to "His Imperial Majesty".
In writing, the emperor is also referred to formally as "The Reigning Emperor".
The Era of Akihito's reign bears the name "Heisei", and according to custom he will
be renamed "Emperor Heisei" by order of the cabinet after his death.
At the same time, the name of the next era under his successor will also be established.
Biography
Akihito is the eldest son and the fifth child of Emperor Shōwa and Empress Kōjun.
Titled Prince Tsugu as a child, he was raised and educated by his private tutors and then
attended the elementary and secondary departments of the Peers' School from 1940 to 1952.
Unlike his predecessors in the Imperial Family, he did not receive a commission as an Army
officer, at the request of his father, Hirohito.
During the American firebombing raids on Tokyo in March 1945, he and his younger brother,
Prince Masahito, were evacuated from the city.
During the American occupation of Japan following World War II, Prince Akihito was tutored in
the English language and Western manners by Elizabeth Gray Vining.
He briefly studied at the Department of Political Science at Gakushuin University in Tokyo,
though he never received a degree.
Although he was Heir-Apparent to the Chrysanthemum Throne from the moment of his birth, his formal
Investiture as Crown Prince was held at the Tokyo Imperial Palace on 10 November 1952.
In June 1953, Crown Prince Akihito represented Japan at the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth
II in London.
Then-Crown Prince Akihito and Crown Princess Michiko made official visits to thirty-seven
countries.
As an Imperial prince, Akihito compared the role of Japanese royalty to that of a robot;
and he expressed the hope that he would like to help in bringing the Imperial family closer
to the people of Japan.
After the death of Emperor Hirohito on 7 January 1989, the crown prince received the succession.
Emperor Akihito formally acceded to the throne on 12 November 1990.
In 1998, during a state visit to the United Kingdom, he was invested with The Most Noble
Order of the Garter.
On 23 December 2001, during his annual birthday meeting with reporters, the Emperor, in response
to a reporter's question about tensions with Korea, remarked that he felt a kinship with
Koreans and went on to explain that in the Shoku Nihongi the mother of Emperor Kammu
is related to Muryeong of Korea, King of Baekje.
Emperor Akihito underwent surgery for prostate cancer in January 14, 2003.
Since succeeding to the throne, Emperor Akihito has made an effort to bring the Imperial Family
closer to the Japanese people.
The Emperor and Empress of Japan have made official visits to eighteen countries, as
well as all forty-seven Prefectures of Japan.
In response to the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami and the Fukushima I nuclear crisis,
the Emperor made a historic televised appearance urging his people not to give up hope and
to help each other.
The Emperor and the Empress also made a visit on Wednesday, 30 March 2011 to a temporary
shelter housing refugees of the disaster, in order to inspire hope in the people.
This kind of event is also extremely rare, though in line with the Emperor's attempts
to bring the Imperial Family closer to the people.
Later in 2011, he was admitted to hospital suffering from pneumonia.
In February 2012, it was announced that the Emperor would be having a coronary examination.
He underwent successful heart bypass surgery on 18 February 2012.
Marriage and children On 10 April 1959, he married Michiko Shōda,
the eldest daughter of Hidesaburo Shōda, the president and later honorary chairman
of Nisshin Flour Milling Company.
The new Crown Princess was the first commoner to marry into the Imperial Family.
The Emperor and Empress have three children: Naruhito, Crown Prince of Japan
Fumihito, Prince Akishino Sayako, Princess Nori
Official functions
Despite being strictly constrained by his constitutional position, he also issued several
wide-ranging statements of remorse to Asian countries, for their suffering under Japanese
occupation, beginning with an expression of remorse to China made in April 1989, three
months after the death of his father, Emperor Shōwa.
In June 2005, the Emperor visited the US territory of Saipan, the site of a battle in World War
II from 15 June to 9 July 1944.
Accompanied by Empress Michiko, he offered prayers and flowers at several memorials,
honoring not only the Japanese who died, but also American soldiers, Korean laborers, and
local islanders.
It was the first trip by a Japanese monarch to a World War II battlefield abroad.
The Saipan journey was received with high praise by the Japanese people, as were the
Emperor's visits to war memorials in Tokyo, Hiroshima, Nagasaki, and Okinawa in 1995.
Succession
On 6 September 2006, the Emperor celebrated the birth of his first grandson, Prince Hisahito,
the third child of the Emperor's younger son.
Prince Hisahito is the first male heir born to the Japanese imperial family in 41 years
and could avert a possible succession crisis as the Emperor's elder son, the Crown Prince,
has only one daughter, Princess Aiko.
Under Japan's current male-only succession law, Princess Aiko is not eligible for the
throne.
The birth of Prince Hisahito could mean that proposed changes to the law to allow Aiko
to ascend the Chrysanthemum Throne will not go through after being temporarily shelved
following the announcement of Princess Kiko's third pregnancy in February 2006.
Ichthyological research In extension of his father's interest in marine
biology, the Emperor is a published ichthyological researcher, and has specialized studies within
the taxonomy of the family Gobiidae.
He has written papers for scholarly journals, namely Gene and the Japanese Journal of Ichthyology.
He has also written papers about the history of science during the Edo and Meiji eras,
which were published in Science and Nature.
In 2005, a newly described goby was named Exyrias akihito in his honour.
Member of the Ichthyological Society of Japan Foreign member of the Linnean Society of London
Honorary member of the Linnean Society of London
Research associate of the Australian Museum Honorary member of the Zoological Society
of London Honorary member of the Research Institute
for Natural Science of Argentina Honorary degree of the Uppsala University
Titles and styles 23 December 1933 – 10 November 1952: His
Imperial Highness The Prince Tsugu 10 November 1952 – 7 January 1989: His Imperial
Highness The Crown Prince of Japan 7 January 1989 – present: His Imperial Majesty
The Emperor of Japan Honours
National honours Collar and Grand Cordon of the Supreme Order
of the Chrysanthemum Grand Cordon of The Order of the Rising Sun
with the Paulownia Blossoms Grand Cordon of the Order of the Sacred Treasure
Order of Culture The Golden Medal of Merit of the Japanese
Red Cross The Golden Medal of Honorary Member of the
Japanese Red Cross
Foreign honours
Other awards The Royal Society King Charles II Medal
Issue
Ancestors Ancestry in Genealogics.org
Patrilineal descent
See also The Emperor's Birthday
Imperial Household Agency Imperial House of Japan
Japanese era name List of Emperors of Japan
List of longest reigning current monarchs References
External links Kunaicho | Their Majesties the Emperor and
Empress Press Conference on the occasion of His Majesty's
Birthday Complete transcript and audio mp3 and video
of 'Do Not Lose Hope' Address to the Nation at AmericanRhetoric.com