Learn about the Japanese female imperial family lines
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| Hello, and welcome to the Culture Class: News and Current Events in Japan, Season 1 - Lesson 14, Female Imperial Family Lines |
| As it is becoming clear that Japan’s royal lineage may soon have no heir, creating female imperial lines is quickly becoming a topic of conversation. |
| In this lesson, we'll learn about this news story. |
Lesson focus |
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| There are now four people who are the immediate grandchildren of the current Emperor, three of them are princesses; and if they get married, they will withdraw from the imperial family and become ordinary people. |
| Also, since only Akishinomiya, the younger son of the Emperor, has a son, Prince Hisahito, there is a high possibility that royalty will almost disappear when Prince Hisahito succeeds to the throne. |
| Therefore, "the creation of imperial female family branches" is supposed to be considered promptly. |
| The creation of imperial female family branches by princesses should also be recognized to enable them to remain in the Imperial family after marriage. |
| Another opinion is that even if it is difficult to establish the Miyake, it should be possible for them to act as royalty even after marriage. |
| Regarding the Japanese Imperial family, it is defined by the "Constitution" and the "Imperial Household Law." So, in order to overcome this situation, revision to the Imperial Household Law is essential. |
| Moreover, the current Emperor indicated his intentions to abdicate last year, saying "It has become difficult to fulfill the obligations of the symbolic emperor due to aging." |
| It is recognized that the public's trust in the Imperial family is deep and that the role they play in diplomacy is great. |
| When the "amendment of the Imperial House Law" was debated for the facilitation of the Emperor's abdication, interest in establishing a female imperial branch increased. Still, the current cabinet, which stuck to the idea of succession to the throne by a male, was reluctant, and the law could not be passed because there was a possibility that female descendants of the royal family could inherit the throne. |
| However, this spring, it became clear that the princess Mako, daughter of Akishinomiya, will be engaged, and the question about the possibility of the "foundation of female imperial family line" has been rekindled. |
| The government could not ignore national public opinion, and in the "special abdication law," which was established to address the problem of abdication and imperial heir, a prompt review of the government after the law's enforcement was requested. An additional resolution was adopted by the Upper House Special Committee. |
| People's interest is increasing regarding how the Emperor and the Imperial family should be from now on. |
Outro |
| Those are the key facts about the Japanese female imperial family lines. |
| If you want to find the related Japanese keywords, make sure to check out the lesson notes. |
| Okay, that’s all for this lesson. Thank you for listening everyone, and keep listening for more of the most talked about news stories in Japan! |
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