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Aiko, Princess Toshi

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Princess Aiko
敬宮愛子内親王
Princess Toshi
Born(2001-12-01)1 December 2001 (age 22 years)
Imperial Household Agency Hospital, Tokyo, Japan
Names
Aiko (愛子)
HouseImperial House of Japan
FatherNaruhito, Crown Prince of Japan
MotherMasako, Crown Princess of Japan
ReligionShinto

Princess Aiko, The Princess Toshi (敬宮愛子内親王, Toshi-no-miya Aiko Naishinnō, born 1 December 2001) is the only child of Naruhito, Crown Prince of Japan and his wife, Masako.

Name

In a break with tradition, the name of the princess was chosen by her parents, instead of by the Emperor. It was selected from the teachings of the Chinese philosopher Mencius. In clause 56 of Li Lou II, Mencius said "One who loves the others will be constantly loved by them; one who respects others will be constantly respected by them. (愛人者人恆愛之，敬人者人恆敬之。)"

Aiko, the princess's personal name, is written with kanji character for "love (愛)" and "child (子)" and means "a person who loves others."[1] The princess also has an imperial title, Princess Toshi (敬宮 toshi-no-miya) which means "a person who respects others."[1] This formal title will be dropped if she marries a commoner.

Personal life

Princess Aiko began her education at Gakushuin Kindergarten on April 3, 2006.[2] She left kindergarten on March 15, 2008.[3] On 18 March 2014, Princess Aiko finished at Gakushuin elementary school and on 6 April 2014 she entered Gakushuin Girl's Junior High-school.

On her eighth birthday, it was revealed her interests include but are not limited to: writing Kanji characters, calligraphy, jump rope, playing piano and violin, and writing poetry.[4]

In November 2011, Aiko was hospitalized with pneumonia.[5]

In early March 2010, Aiko began to stay home from school due to, along with other girls, being bullied by her elementary school classmates.[6] Aiko returned to school on a limited basis on May 2, 2010. After returning to school, she attended a limited number of classes, accompanied by her mother, upon advice from a doctor at the Crown Prince’s household.[7] [8][better source needed]

Throne

The Imperial Household Law of 1947 abolished the Japanese nobility; under provisions of this law, the imperial family was streamlined to the descendants of Emperor Taishō.[9] The laws of succession in Japan forbid inheritance by or through females. If the laws were changed, Aiko would be second in line to the Chrysanthemum Throne.

Debate

The birth of Princess Aiko sparked debate in Japan about whether the Imperial Household Law of 1947 should be changed from the current system of agnatic primogeniture to absolute primogeniture, which would allow a woman, as firstborn, to inherit the Chrysanthemum Throne ahead of a younger brother or male cousin. Although Imperial chronologies include eight empresses regnant in the course of Japanese history, their successors were always selected from amongst the members of the paternal Imperial bloodline, which is why some conservative scholars argue that the women's reigns were temporary and that male-only succession tradition must be maintained in the 21st century.[9] Though Empress Gemmei was followed on the throne by her daughter, Empress Genshō,[10] Genshō herself was succeeded by her brother's son, thus keeping the throne in the same agnatic line; both Genshō and Gemmei, as well as all other empresses regnant and emperors, belonged to the same patriline.

A government-appointed panel of experts submitted a report on 25 October 2005, recommending that the Imperial succession law be amended to permit absolute primogeniture. On 20 January 2006, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi used part of his annual keynote speech to address the controversy when he pledged to submit a bill to the Diet letting women ascend to the throne in order that the Imperial throne be continued into the future in a stable manner. Koizumi did not announce a timing for the legislation to be introduced nor did he provide details about the content but he did note that it would be in line with the conclusions of the 2005 government panel.

Birth of male cousin

See also: Japanese succession controversy

Proposals to replace agnatic primogeniture were shelved temporarily after it was announced in February 2006 that the Crown Prince's younger brother, Fumihito, Prince Akishino and his wife Kiko, Princess Akishino were expecting their third child. On 6 September 2006, at 8:27 a.m. (Japan Standard Time), Princess Kiko gave birth to a son, Hisahito, who is third in line to the Chrysanthemum Throne under the current law, after his uncle, the Crown Prince and his father, Prince Akishino. The prince's birth provided the first male heir to be born in the imperial family in 41 years. On 3 January 2007, Prime Minister Shinzō Abe announced that he would drop the proposal to alter the Imperial Household Law. Therefore, it seems unlikely that the succession laws will be changed to allow Princess Aiko to become Empress regnant.

Titles and styles

Styles of
Aiko, Princess Toshi
Imperial Coat of Arms
Imperial Coat of Arms
Reference styleHer Imperial Highness
Spoken styleYour Imperial Highness
Alternative styleMa'am

Aiko is styled as "Her Imperial Highness The Princess Toshi".

Ancestry

Family of Aiko, Princess Toshi
16. Yoshihito, Emperor Taishō
8. Hirohito, Emperor Shōwa
17. Lady Sadako Kujō
4. Akihito, Emperor of Japan
18. Kuniyoshi, 2nd Imperial Prince Kuni
9. Princess Nagako of Kuni
19. Princess Shimazu Chikako
2. Naruhito, Crown Prince of Japan
20. Teiichirō Shōda
10. Hidesaburō Shōda
21. Kinu Shōda
5. Michiko Shōda
22. Tsunatake Soejima
11. Fumiko Soejima
23. Aya Soejima
1. Aiko, Princess Toshi
24. Kaneyoshi Owada
12. Takeo Owada
25. Takeno Koga
6. Hisashi Owada
26. Matashirō Tamura
13. Shizuka Tamura
3. Masako Owada
28. Yasutarō Egashira
14. Yutaka Egashira
29. Yoneko
7. Yumiko Egashira
30. Tanin Yamaya
15. Suzuko Yamaya
31. Sadako Niwa

References

  1. ^ a b Colin Joyce, "Japan's princess named 'one who loves others'", The Daily Telegraph. 08 Dec 2001.
  2. ^ Japan's Princess Aiko, 4, starts kindergarten. redOrbit. April 10, 2006. Retrieved December 2, 2009.
  3. ^ Princess Aiko finishes kindergarten. The Japan Times. March 16, 2009. Retrieved December 1, 2009.
  4. ^ Princess Aiko celebrates 8th birthday. The Mainichi Daily News. December 1, 2009. Retrieved December 1, 2009.
  5. ^ Demetriou, Danielle (3 November 2011). "Japan's Princess Aiko suffering from pneumonia". Daily Telegraph. London.
  6. ^ "Japan princess 'bullied by boys'". BBC News. 5 March 2010.
  7. ^ "Princess Aiko returns to school". The Japan Times. Tokyo. 2 May 2010.
  8. ^ Kyodo News, "Princess Aiko returns to school", Japan Times, May 2, 2010.
  9. ^ a b "Life in the Cloudy Imperial Fishbowl," The Japan Times. 27 March 2007.
  10. ^ Ponsonby-Fane, Richard. (1959). The Imperial House of Japan, p. 56.
Aiko, Princess Toshi
Born: 1 December 2001
Order of precedence in Japan
Preceded by Ladies
HIH The Princess Toshi 		Succeeded by
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