In a significant event for Japan's royal family, Prince Hisahito became the male member to reach adulthood for the first time in forty years. Hisahito celebrated his 18th birthday on Friday. This is considered a major milestone for the royal family as they had been, like the rest of the nation, facing the issue of an ageing population and a decline in the birthrate.
Prince Hisahito, who is expected to become emperor in the future, is the nephew of Japanese Emperor Naruhito. His father, Crown Prince Akishino, was the last male member of the royal family to reach adulthood, achieving this milestone in 1985.
Hisahito is the youngest in his family, which currently has only four male members.
On his 18th birthday, Prince celebrated his transition to adulthood with enthusiasm, expressing his readiness to seize new opportunities and his desire to learn from every experience. "I hope to learn more through each and every experience, absorbing various aspects and growing through them," the Imperial Household Agency, an administrative body for affairs related to Japan's imperial family, quoted him as saying.
Recommended For You
Prince Hisahito is a third-year student at the University of Tsukuba. The Imperial Household Agency announced that a ceremony to celebrate Hisahito's feat, followed by a press conference, will be planned for spring 2025 or later, after his high school graduation. This timing is chosen to ensure that his studies are not disrupted by the ceremonial events.
Notably, Japan decreased the age of adulthood to 18 from 20 in a revised civil code introduced in April 2022. Princess Aiko, 22, the only child of Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako celebrated her coming of age after turning 20 in 2021.