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Business Insider

Princess Aiko, daughter of Japan’s emperor has officially come of age after turning 20 on December 1.

The only child of Emperor Naruhito and his wife Empress Masako, Aiko currently studies Japanese literature at Gakushuin University in Tokyo, according to Royal Central.
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Aiko is coming of age at a tipping point for Japan’s Imperial Household

According to Japanese online magazine Nippon.com, Aiko will hold a press conference in March 2022 to speak about reaching adulthood, which under the current civil code in Japan takes place at the age of 20.
While the family prepares to celebrate, Aiko’s transition into adulthood serves as a stark reminder of a key issue the Imperial Household of Japan is currently grappling with: that it is shrinking.
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Japan’s royal family faced perhaps the most scrutiny in its modern history in the lead up to Aiko’s cousin Princess Mako’s wedding back in October this year. Mako’s relationship with her husband, Kei Komuro was seen as controversial because of reports his mother was involved in a financial dispute with an ex-partner.
The case led to insinuations among the public he was a “gold-digger” according to The New York Times.

The Imperial Royal Household still operates under a male-preference primogeniture system, meaning only male heirs can ascend to the Chrysanthemum throne. By contrast, female royals in Japan are required under the country’s 1947 Imperial House Law to renounce their title and position in the family completely when they marry commoners.
Since World War II, the number of royal family members has plummeted from 67 to a mere 17, and only three heirs remain in the line of succession: Mako’s father Prince Fumihito, 55, his son Prince Hisahito, 15, and Prince Hitachi, the 85-year-old uncle of the current emperor, according to Bloomberg.
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The system is endangering the future of the Imperial Household, a crisis felt most by conservatives and those who see the imperial system as “a critical part of national identity”, says Kumiko Nemoto, professor of sociology at Kyoto University of Foreign Studies.
“Unbroken male bloodline has been central to Japan’s imperial system and it also has symbolised the unquestionable importance of the norm of patriarchy in Japanese family and society,” Nemoto adds.
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Like her cousin Mako, Aiko’s likely fate is to leave the royal family

“The female members of the Japanese royal family continue to be expected to be feminine, subservient and demure, serving the male authority including the husband, father, and the nation,” Nemoto says. “They are still expected to take the traditional path of wife and mother.”
But if Aiko follows the path, she will be forced to do so outside the royal family. “Under the current rules, she will lose her title and place,” Nemoto said.
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Should Aiko marry, she will follow in Mako’s footsteps and renounce her titles

According to The New York Times, her cousin Mako is among eight other Japanese princesses stripped of a place in the family after marriage.
Unless Japanese imperial law undergoes dramatic change – spurred on by either pressure from the Japanese public or government-led initiatives to allow inclusion of women in the line of succession or allowing them to maintain titles upon marriage – Aiko’s fate is sealed.
“If Japan becomes more gender-equal, the public view and expectation of the Japanese imperial family will change perhaps to be more democratic,” Nemoto concludes.
Read the original article on Insider.
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Is Japan’s Princess Aiko destined for the same fate as Princess Mako? The only child of the emperor coming of age highlights the big problem with the imperial family – it’s shrinking

Princess Aiko with her pet dog Yuri: if the 20 year old decides to marry, she’ll be forced to leave the royal family. Photo: AFP

Princess Aiko has officially come of age, according to Japanese civil code. Photo: AFP

Japan’s Princess Aiko poses for a photograph at Togu Palace in Tokyo back in 2018. Photo: Reuters

Japanese Emperor Naruhito, his wife, Empress Masako, with their only daughter Princess Aiko, who cannot ascend the Chrysanthemum throne. Photo: AP

Princess Mako and Kei Komuro caused a furore in Japan when they announced their engagement. Photo: Getty Images/TNS

Japan’s Crown Prince Akishino, centre, strolls with his son Prince Hisahito and his daughter Princess Kako. Photo: AP

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Aiko’s cousin Princess Mako (R) attends the enthronement ceremony where Emperor Naruhito officially proclaimed his ascension to the Chrysanthemum Throne in 2019 in Tokyo. Photo: Getty Images

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Just turned 20, Princess Aiko is the only child of Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako of Japan, but as a woman, she will never ascend the Chrysanthemum throne
And if she marries a commoner like Princess Mako, the law will force her to renounce her title and role in the family entirely – so is it time things changed?



She’s the only child of Japan’s Emperor Naruhito, but as a woman, she will never ascend the Chrysanthemum throne – so what next for the young royal, who just turned 20?


Asian Royalty

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Women and gender