Named after Mencius, the emperor's eldest daughter, Princess Aiko, was pinned high hopes on her adulthood

(Text/Ankang)

Princess Aiko, the eldest daughter of the Japanese Emperor and his wife, celebrated her 20th birthday on December 1 and officially entered the ranks of the adult royal family. The Japanese government has decided to award princess Aiko, the eldest daughter of his majesty the emperor and empress, who has reached the age of 20, on December 1, the highest rank of the medal awarded only to women. The Imperial Household Agency also announced the details of Princess Aiko's coming-of-age ceremony, and in view of the impact on her studies, Princess Aiko's coming-of-age ceremony and congratulations will be held mainly on Sunday, December 5.

In Japan, the Miyake refers to the imperial family that was given the name of the palace by the Emperor. It also refers to the families of princes and kings. "Palace" originally referred to the residence of the emperor and the imperial family, and later extended to the residence of the imperial family. Princess Aiko, Prince Aiko of Keimiya, was born on December 1, 2001, the ninth year of marriage between the current Japanese Emperor and his wife. Her palace number ("Jinggong") and name ("Aizi") are published in the Mencius Lilou Chapter Sentence: "Those who love people, people always love; those who respect people, people always respect." The prayer is named after "love others, be loved by others, respect others, and be respected by others." It is said that the mark on Princess Aiko's belongings is "Azalea", which contains the desire to have a pure heart like a white flower.

As the eldest daughter of the Emperor and his wife, Princess Aiko has received considerable social and media attention since she was a child. According to the Mainichi Shimbun, Princess Aiko joined the orchestra as a cellist in the fourth grade of elementary school, and also performed with the emperor's father who played the viola at the academy's concert. She is also good at sports, joins basketball clubs at school and is very active. He has loved sumo since he was a child, and at the age of 4, he went to the Kokujikan with his parents to watch a competition.

When she graduated from gakuin girls' junior high school, Princess Aiko wrote an article entitled "Praying for World Peace," which recalled the shocks and feelings she felt when she visited the Atomic Bomb Dome in Hiroshima during her school trip, "'Peace' is not a matter of handing over to others, but is constructed by everyone's thoughts and responsible actions." During the summer vacation of her sophomore year of girls' high school, she attended the famous Eton College Summer School in the UNITED Kingdom, staying overseas for about 3 weeks for the first time, learning English and British culture while living in a dormitory. In the spring of 2020, Aiko was admitted to the Japanese Language and Japanese Literature Department of gakuen University's Faculty of Letters, but due to the impact of the new crown epidemic, she has been taking classes online. When she first came to the school to receive guidance from new students, in the face of questions from reporters, she said that she sincerely hoped that everyone could live and move as usual."

In view of the new crown epidemic, Princess Aiko did not hold a celebration banquet and tea party on the 1st birthday, but only received congratulations from the head of the imperial palace and other staff in the evening, and then the family had dinner. For the main celebrations on the 5th, the Imperial Household Agency said that in the morning, Princess Aiko will visit the three halls of the palace, bow to the three halls of the palace and accept the crown of the crown issued by His Majesty the Emperor. At that time, Princess Aiko will wear the medal and the jewel-encrusted crown for the first time, dressed in the middle dress of the first formal dress of the royal women, and greet His Majesty and the Emperor Taishang. After that, he received congratulations from the royal family, the former royal family, the representatives of relatives and the heads of the three powers (legislative, executive, and judicial). There will be no celebrations such as luncheons attended by the Prime Minister and other ministers on that day.

Since Princess Aiko's uncle, Akinobumi, the eldest daughter of the Akishinomiya family, married and broke away from the imperial family, there are currently only 17 members of the Japanese imperial family. When Princess Aiko became an adult, the only minor remained, Yujin, the eldest son of the Akishinomiya family. Many elderly royalty, including the Taishang Emperor and his wife, who retired from official business, had great expectations for Princess Aizi, who officially attended imperial events and assumed official duties. In response, Princess Aiko responded through a birthday speech publicly released by the Imperial Household Agency, "We will take every task seriously and help Your Majesty as much as possible." Regarding her feelings for the Emperor's parents, she said, "You love me so much that you support me in the nearest place at all times." Princess Aiko also expressed her gratitude to the people, "I would like to express my deep gratitude to all the citizens who have guarded my growth and given me a warm voice."

On January 1 next year, as the first official service of the adult royal family, Princess Aiko will attend the New Year's celebration ceremony at the Imperial Palace. Princess Aiko grew to adulthood, and as her opportunities to perform official duties increased, it may ignite the expectations of many people in the public for a female emperor. However, at present, Japan's "Imperial Family Model" does not recognize female lineages and female emperors, and whether to make female emperors possible faces restrictions such as the legal system and political opposition forces. In view of the lack of successors to the imperial family, in order to ensure the number of imperial families, the Japanese government and people of insight from all walks of life are also discussing various discussions, and two options are currently being discussed: (1) female royals continue to stay in the imperial family after marriage; after World War II, the male male families of the old palace family who left the imperial family returned to the imperial family through adoption. But no conclusion has yet been reached. Opinions of female female emperors are increasing, with 87% of respondents in favor of female emperors in a poll conducted by the Yomiuri Shimbun in April 2021. In the context of public opinion, the system is not completely unchangeable, and if the position of the prime minister and other heads of government changes, the "Aiko Emperor Expectation Theory" may rise again.

Source: Reference News Network