Emperor's Birthday in Japan
When is Emperor's Birthday in Japan?
Emperor's Birthday in Japan is on February 23, 2025. It falls on Sunday.
How many days until Emperor's Birthday in Japan?
There are 91 Days left until Emperor's Birthday in Japan.
Is Emperor's Birthday a public holiday in Japan?
The Emperor’s Birthday (translated as Tenno Tanjobi in Japanese) is a national holiday celebrated in Japan in accordance to the birthday of the country’s reigning emperor. This holiday is actually moveable since its date of celebration is directly dependent on the birthday of whoever is acceding the throne. Meaning, if the emperor changes, so does the date of this holiday.
Origin of Emperor's Birthday
Since Emperor Naruhito is the one currently enthroned, the celebration falls on the 23rd of February as he was born on February 23, 1960. This holiday is actually moveable since its date of celebration is directly dependent on the birthday of whoever is acceding the throne. Meaning, if the emperor changes, so does the date of this holiday. While supermarkets, convenience stores, tourist attractions, and others continue to operate, government offices and schools are suspended. At the same time, those who have day jobs are expected to also have a day-off from work on this day.
When was Emperor's Birthday First Established?
The beginning of the celebration for the Emperor’s Birthday can be traced back in the year 1868, when the Meiji Restoration happened. Mutsuhito or commonly known as Emperor Meiji in Japan, was the one who led the Meiji Restoration. The said restoration is the event wherein the military dictators of Japan called Tokugawa Shogunate was overthrown, and thus, returning the control of the country under the emperor’s hands. Under Emperor Meiji’s governance (1868-1912), the modernization of Japan has been given focus, likewise the emperor-worship practice has been strengthened as well. Hence, the establishment of the Emperor’s Birthday to be celebrated as a national holiday began under his regime. Since then, the holiday has been observed each year up until present. In Japan, the succession of the throne in the imperial line has been going on for more than a thousand years already. This means that a variety of dates of celebration for the Emperor’s Birthday has been going on in the country for a while now. When a new emperor ascends the throne, the National Diet (which is the bicameral legislature in Japan) would ensure that the changes of the date of celebration would be officially processed first before the new emperor’s birthday can be designated as a public holiday.
Before the occurrence of the World War II, the Emperor’s Birthday was originally called ‘Tenchosetsu’ (Tencho Festival), a name given that is of Chinese origin. Nonetheless, on 1948, following the events of the Second World War, a new Japanese government was formed and the holiday was renamed to ‘Tenno Tanjobi’. Tenno Tanjobi is a name which literally means Emperor’s Birthday. In the ancient times, the emperors were treated as divine beings, however, after the new government was formed (in 1948), their role and how they are treated has actually changed. Although they are still considered the symbol of the state and the country’s unity, they are no longer treated as living gods. The political authority they have also exercised before was cancelled and their duties have all become ceremonial. Even so, this holiday involving the emperor is still one of those occasions whom the Japanese look forward to every year.
At present, a new emperor has already ascended the throne. This happened last year, 2019, when the former emperor Akihito has relinquished the throne to Naruhito, his eldest son and his successor. Naruhito assumed the title as the new emperor on May 1, 2019, which then marks the beginning of his reign and the Reiwa era in Japan. A special situation has occurred though on that year. Since the relinquishment of the throne happened in May 2019, it has already skipped the new emperor’s birthday which was on February 23. Because of the timing of the change, the holiday was not celebrated on that year. However, in the years to come, it is expected that the celebration would occur every 23rd of February of every year, unless a new successor would succeed the throne.
Emperor's Birthday Traditions in Japan
Every country has their own special holidays to celebrate to every year. Customary practices and traditions are usually observed along with these celebrations. In Japan, one of the country’s special holidays is the Emperor’s Birthday.
Imperial Palace Visit
This is a special day since this is one of only two days in a year that the palace gates are opened to the public (the other day is on January 2, when the emperor does his New Year greetings). It is customary for the Japanese to have a visit to the Imperial palace on this day for them to pay respect and send their birthday-wishes to the emperor. What’s fascinating about this event though is that it’s not just the Japanese people who would attend the event, but even people from foreign countries pay their respects as well to the emperor himself. There were American, German, Italian, Chinese, French, and other nationalities who wish to see the emperor, join the crowd for the celebration, and greet him on his natal day.
Imperial Family's Private Celebration
To celebrate the Emperor’s Birthday, private celebrations are also hosted by the Imperial family wherein several important figures are invited. These include the Japanese government officials, US elected officials, Japanese-American community leaders, Business leaders, Dignitaries from diplomatic missions in Japan, and other important people.
Attending Ceremony at Tokyo Imperial Palace
Nevertheless, the main highlight of the holiday is still the public ceremony held at the Tokyo Imperial Palace (Kokyo in Japanese language) where the emperor and other members of the royal family reside. To be a part of the ceremony, one should go and join the crowd in the morning. The palace, where the event is held, is located in the heart of Tokyo and is just a short walk from the Tokyo station. On the Emperor’s Birthday, a long line of people is formed outside the station and towards the entrance gate of the palace. Strict measures of checkpoints before entering the palace grounds is to be expected. On these checkpoints, it is said that everyone is offered a paper Japanese flag (Hinomaru in Japanese) which you can use during the flag-waiving together with the others when the emperor appears.
Chowaden Hall
It has been a tradition for the emperor, the empress, and the rest of the Imperial family to make an appearance on the palace balcony or on the veranda of the Chowaden Hall when the Emperor’s Birthday happens. A large square could be found in front of the Chowaden Reception Hall and this has been the place where the crowd gathers during the celebration. Greetings and a loud cheer of banzai is typical when the emperor and the others emerge from the balcony. The whole family would appear at least three times in the morning to welcome those who came to visit and to receive all their birthday wishes. Since the visitors are quite huge in number, they are usually placed in groups and this is the reason why the emperor, together with his family, makes multiple appearances so as to cater the whole crowd. During each appearance, murmurs of greetings and a loud cheer of banzai could be heard from each group of visitors.
Cheers like ‘Tenno Heika Banzai’ (meaning His Imperial Majesty, The Emperor Forever) could be heard multiple times from the crowd. The emperor would make a short speech on each appearance, acknowledging all the greetings from the public and thanking the people for their well-wishes. After his speech, the sound of cheers and the waving of the Japanese flags would continue once more and the emperor, together with the other members of the Imperial family would wave back to the crowd before having their exit. This event is one of the rare opportunities to catch a glimpse of the emperor himself and the other royalties in the flesh. This is the reason why for the public, even though the celebration is short-lived, it is considered a special and memorable moment to those who had the chance to visit the palace.
| Year | Date | Day | Holiday |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | February 23 | Sunday | Emperor's Birthday |
| 2026 | February 23 | Monday | Emperor's Birthday |
| 2027 | February 23 | Tuesday | Emperor's Birthday |
| 2028 | February 23 | Wednesday | Emperor's Birthday |
| 2029 | February 23 | Friday | Emperor's Birthday |
| 2030 | February 23 | Saturday | Emperor's Birthday |
| Holiday | Date |
|---|---|
| Christmas Day | December 25, 2024 |
| New Year's Eve | December 31, 2024 |
| New Year's Day | January 01, 2025 |
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