by Scott Mehl © Unofficial Royalty 2014
Prince Hisahito; Credit – Imperial Household Agency, 2024
Prince Hisahito of Akishino (Hisahito Shinnō) is the third child, and the only son of Crown Prince Akishino and the former Kiko Kawashima. He is the only grandson of Emperor Emeritus Akihito and Empress Emeritus Michiko, the only nephew of the current Emperor Naruhito, and is currently second in the line of succession to the Chrysanthemum Throne after his father. Prince Hisahito was born on September 6, 2006, at the Aiiku Hospital in Tokyo and he was the first male born into the Imperial Family since the birth of his father in 1965.
Prince Hisahito with his family in 2020; Credit – By 外務省, CC BY 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=115339264
Prince Hisahito had two older sisters:
- Mako Komuro, formerly Princess Mako of Akishino (born 1991), married Kei Komuro, lost her title, and became a commoner upon marriage as required by Imperial Household Law
- Princess Kako of Akishino (born 1994)
After the birth of Princess Aiko in 2001, the only child of Emperor Naruhito, there was much discussion about changing the laws to absolute primogeniture, whereby the oldest surviving child without regard to gender inherits the throne. Currently, there is male-line, male-only succession in Japan. In 2005, the Prime Minister vowed to submit a bill to the government to change The Imperial Household Law, based on recommendations from an independent, government-appointed panel. However, the birth of Prince Hisahito in 2006 seems to have ended the efforts, and the proposal was dropped. Currently, there are only three people in the line of succession: Crown Prince Akishino (born in 1965, brother of Emperor Naruhito), Prince Hisahito, (born in 2005, son of Crown Prince Akishino), and Prince Hitachi (born in 1935, uncle of Emperor Naruhito). It is highly probable that there will not be another person in the line of succession until Prince Hisahito marries and has a son. In November 2020, it was recommended that the discussion regarding the succession be shelved until Prince Hisahito becomes an adult and has children. Unless there is a change in the succession law, it is probable that one day Prince Hisahito will become Emperor of Japan.
Prince Hisahito entering school, 2013. photo: Xinxua
Prince Hisahito attended kindergarten at a school associated with the Ochanomizu University in Tokyo, Japan, and then, in April 2013, entered the Ochanomizu University Elementary School. This makes him the first member of the Imperial Family to be educated outside of the Gakushuin School. In April 2019, Hisahito entered the Ochanomizu University Junior High School. In April 2022, Hishito began to attend the University of Tsukuba’s Senior High School in the Otsuka district of Tokyo. He will be the first member of the Imperial Family in postwar Japan to enroll in a senior high school other than Gakushuin University’s senior high school.
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