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Clarification
On Monday, April 1, the Japan government announced the new era, Reiwa. There were some misunderstanding on the meaning of the word. Reiwa does not mean “order and harmony”; it means “beautiful harmony.” Please see the following information for your reference:
1. With the abdication of current emperor and accession to the throne by the crown prince, as of April 1, the Japan government has made a decision to change the era and announced Reiwa as the new era.
2. This new era will be set to begin in Japan, after the accession to the throne by his Majesty the Crown Price on May 1 of this year.
3. The word “Reiwa”is composed of two kanji characters: “rei” meaning “beautiful” and “wa” meaning “harmony.” With this, the meaning behind “reiwa” is “Culture will be nurtured as people bring their hearts together in a beautiful manner.”
4. Furthermore, the name of new era is a first in history. Classical Japanese literature was the source of the name and was a quote from 1,200-year-old compilation of Japan’s Oldest Anthology, Manyoshu.
Hirotsugu Morishita
Vice Consul
Consular Office of Japan
