Emperor Naruhito’s Birthday – Public Holiday in Japan

In Japan, February 23 is ‘Tennou Tanjyobi’ (天皇誕生日) which is the birthday of the current emperor . It is one of Japan’s national holidays and that if the emperor changes, the national holiday will change to the new emperor’s birthday.

In the past Era (Heisei Era ) Emperor Akihito’s birthday was celebrated on December 23, and it has been for the past 29 years. In April 2019, Akihito became the first living monarch to renounce the Chrysanthemum throne in nearly 200 years. His son Naruhito ascended to the throne on May 1, 2019.

In the current Era (Reiwa Era ) it is celebrated on February 23 , the 126th birthday of Emperor Naruhito. Emperor in Japanese history.

Celebration ceremonies, banquets, tea ceremonies and general tours are held in the Imperial Palace . In the Maritime Self-Defense Force, the self-defense ships moored at bases, general ports, etc. They are fully decorated for the occasion. On this day it is customary for the Emperor, Empress and the rest of the Imperial family to make three appearances in the Chowaden Hall gallery in the East Gardens of the Imperial Palace.

In Japan, public holidays are moved according to the birthday of the reigning emperor. In the Showa Era (1926–1989), the birthday of the Emperor of that era, Hirohito , was celebrated on April 29, however, when Akihito ascended the throne, that day (April 29) continued to be a holiday, although the reason for celebration for that day was changed to “Green Day” dedicated to the contemplation of nature.

A little history about this day

According to myth, the first emperor of Japan, Jimmu , a descendant of the sun goddess Amaterasu (the main goddess of Shintoism) was enthroned in 660 BC. C. In this video we tell you more about Emperor Jimmu and his divine ancestry, because descending from Amateratsu requires telling yourself ^^

The historical dates may not be entirely accurate, although it is commonly accepted that the emperors have ruled Japan for over 1,500 years , and that they all descended from the same imperial family.

Although the effective power of emperors has been limited or purely symbolic throughout Japan’s history, all royal rulers, from the Fujiwara and Hojo regents to the Minamoto, Ashikaga, and Tokugawa shoguns, respected the emperor and in their position as rulers of Japan, they were interested in receiving imperial legitimation

With the Meiji Restoration of 1868 , the Tokugawa shogunate was overthrown and Emperor Meiji became the head of state. Under the new Meiji Constitution , the Emperor had sovereign power, and his political and military power was theoretically close to absolute. In practice, however, real power rested first with the oligarchic genre (considered the “founding fathers”) and then with the generals and admirals.

The 1946 post-war constitution states that the emperor has only a symbolic role. He now mainly participates in diplomatic ceremonies and meetings, but has no effective political power .

The imperial family resides in the Imperial Palace of Tokyo and this February 23 will be the first birthday celebration of the current emperor, Naruhito , since his ascension to the throne was on May 1 and due to the current health situation it was not possible to celebrate it in the 2020.